My car’s engine failed after clutch repair
Dear Neto,
I own an 1800cc 2001 Opel Astra, manual transmission. I recently took it to a mechanic to change a faulty clutch. Afterwards, the car developed a totally new problem.
Though the engine initially had hesitations and slight misfires, now it backfires badly at the engine intake. What could have caused the problem because the mechanic said he never touched the engine?
Cliff.
Dear Cliff,
I cannot readily pick any connection between the clutch and the misfiring. The engine comprises so many components, most of which could malfunction and cause misfiring.
One of the main causes of engine hesitation is a faulty fuel system which comprises a vacuum sensor or air flow sensor and an oxygen sensor.
They are responsible for maintaining the air-to-fuel balance in the engine and their failure even causes complete engine stalling.
A malfunctioning fuel pump and mainly loss of ignition timing can cause bad backfiring. In the latter case, the spark plugs might be firing before the intake valves close completely causing the combustion to take place in the intake manifold further igniting the air-fuel mixture already there.
You could be having faulty sensors somewhere causing all this troubles.
Why don’t you get the car scanned for errors? It will save you time and money.