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I don't know that much about troubleshooting a car problem, so if anyone has any idea about my problem please share them.
I just bought as my first car a '91 Chevrolet Cavalier with 71,500 miles on it. It has a 3-speed automatic transmission. I've had it for about 2-3 months. It's an old car, so problems are expected.
I was driving down a straight sidestreet, no more than 25-30 mph. I may have been accelerating slightly but I was not pushing the engine at all, nearly coasting. All of the sudden, I hear a moderately loud bang. The sound was similar to a hammer hitting a piece of metal. There was no jolt or vibration with the sound, but the engine light came on and then within a second or two the engine died.
I pulled over and opened the hood to check for smoke/damage and found neither. After 10-15 minutes I tried starting it up again and it worked with no problem. I reved the engine in neutral and no problem. I tried forward and reverse, still no problem. I drove it all the way home (not pushing the car, but enough to test it) with not problem.
Oil and transmission fluid are fine. The belt did not snap. The car does not overheat. I've started it twice more with no problem. I also reved the engine up higher for longer in neutral with no problem.
A few people have said it might be an electrical problem, and that the noise was from the engine abruptly stopping. Others think it is a problem with the transmission (which had slipped out of gear twice last week: once in reverse the engine stalled out and once in drive the engine reved higher then lower than higher then lower for a second). I haven't had the chance to bring it to get checked out yet (Labor Day weekend), but I was wondering if anyone knows what this might be? What could cause that kind of noise and cause the engine to stall but then be able to start up and drive normally afterwards? I can't imagine getting a new transmission for a $1,200 car.
Thanks in advance for any idea/advice.
I just bought as my first car a '91 Chevrolet Cavalier with 71,500 miles on it. It has a 3-speed automatic transmission. I've had it for about 2-3 months. It's an old car, so problems are expected.
I was driving down a straight sidestreet, no more than 25-30 mph. I may have been accelerating slightly but I was not pushing the engine at all, nearly coasting. All of the sudden, I hear a moderately loud bang. The sound was similar to a hammer hitting a piece of metal. There was no jolt or vibration with the sound, but the engine light came on and then within a second or two the engine died.
I pulled over and opened the hood to check for smoke/damage and found neither. After 10-15 minutes I tried starting it up again and it worked with no problem. I reved the engine in neutral and no problem. I tried forward and reverse, still no problem. I drove it all the way home (not pushing the car, but enough to test it) with not problem.
Oil and transmission fluid are fine. The belt did not snap. The car does not overheat. I've started it twice more with no problem. I also reved the engine up higher for longer in neutral with no problem.
A few people have said it might be an electrical problem, and that the noise was from the engine abruptly stopping. Others think it is a problem with the transmission (which had slipped out of gear twice last week: once in reverse the engine stalled out and once in drive the engine reved higher then lower than higher then lower for a second). I haven't had the chance to bring it to get checked out yet (Labor Day weekend), but I was wondering if anyone knows what this might be? What could cause that kind of noise and cause the engine to stall but then be able to start up and drive normally afterwards? I can't imagine getting a new transmission for a $1,200 car.
Thanks in advance for any idea/advice.
