Car sounds and feels like wants to shut off

Question

2000 Mercury Grand Marquis ....... My car sounds and feels like wants to shut off.

It started yesterday - I was leaving a friends house and was about 2 lights away from home when i felt this weird jerk and then i heard a clink and something fell from the car. I drove slowly the rest of the way home with no over heating or nothing.

Then I popped my hood and one of my heater hoses was bad. Well, not the hose but the PVC valve from filter hole was melted from inside. I had duck taped it and it's been fine for the last 6 months, but that had now come off.

I have an aftermarket intake from K&N, so I took all of it off, checked the hoses, and put it back in. I used the same old melted PVC valve but no tape - instead used a grommet.

I turned the car on and it kinda sounds like battery is dead but I put in reverse and it sounds and feels like it wants to shut off.  I put it in drive and same thing so I turn it off quick. I don't want to do anymore damage than there is already...

Oh and I almost forgot right before the jerk and the thing that fell from car I put gas in the car then this happened 20 minutes later. I use a lot of gas booster(?) bottles you find at gas station.

I hope that helps diagnose my problem. Please someone help, this car is all I have. I love my car. Thank you for your time.

zipzit · Answer

Fuel, Air and spark in the right amounts and at the right times are what makes an engine purr. In your car there is an engine computer that controls these things (unless you are talking pre 1983 or so...)

Generally problems involving fuel will set an OnBoard Diagnostics (OBD) code.
Air issues are not all that common, and generally come from a totally blocked air filter.  Not all that likely.
Spark issues won't always set a code.

In this case, when I hear your words "it sounds and feels like it wants to shut off" as the engine is idling too low.  My guess is one of the cylinders isn't getting enough spark.  (bad plug or bad spark plug wires..)

But.. with your description of things falling off, things repaired six months ago with duct tape and hose issues, etc, there may well be other items in need of repair.  I'm thinking this car should probably be evaluated by a repair facility / mechanic to get a comprehensive list of things that may need fixing or preventative maintenance.  It would also be nice to see what engine codes are stored in the engine control computer.  Any mechanic can read these codes and in some places the autoparts stores will read the codes for you for free.

If you want to learn how to do this stuff yourself, first stop should be to an autoparts store to pick up a service manual. Look at the books from either Chiltons or Haynes. New = $30  (You might also check places like ebay of $$$ is tight.)  You will want to buy the manual for your car model and year.

The manual will tell you how your car works, and what to do if something goes wrong.

Good luck with it.  You might report back here after a mechanic makes an assessment of things to fix.  Folks here are happy to offer advice on actually making repairs (and saving $$)

Car sounds and feels like wants to shut off

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