Ok, this is getting really annoying. Every car I've ever owned had a manual tranny so I dont feel like it's me. Here's what's happening:

From a stop, in 1st gear, clutch pedal fully pressed.
Starting off, using the normal balance of clutch release and gas.
RPMs between 1k-1.5k
The engine will act like it's bogging, the RPMs will drop drastically (to 500 or so) and begin to sputter until the car dies.
It doesn't always die, sometimes it will sputter for a few seconds and recover. However, the frequency of it dying seems to be increasing.

When it first started it was such a rare event that it wasn't a big deal. 3 times today alone I've almost gotten hit pulling out from somewhere and going limp. Ive also read a little into the "limp mode" problems others have had and not totally sure this is related.

Looking for some troubleshooting steps or even maybe a "hey, do this to fix it"
Would like to not get klobbered cause my car is attempting suicide.

 

Bump for any suggestions...

 

It is either fuel or spark. Sounds more like a fuel issue. NO CEL? If it is anything electrical you should have a pending or active DTC stored in an ECU. Would read out codes and see if this gives you a hint. Why not take it to mitsu. I assume its still warranty.

 

Just had the ecu checked. No codes. Gonna check the spark plugs tomorrow for any fouled plugs or bad wires. Will update afterwards.

 

Oh and also besides the fact that I normally avoid a dealership like the plague (due to price raping). The engine has been swapped. I'm sure that would probably void any/all warranties I had unless they don't look at the engine plate, and just the VIN.

 

Been super busy. Gonna change oil and check plugs/wires this weekend.

 

UPDATE

Not intending to revive an old thread but wanted to give it a conclusion in case this happens to someone else. 2 days ago my battery got replaced because the factory battery (pushing 4 years old) had lost all amps. This was causing my car to "flicker" when trying to start it. Had the battery tested and determined it still had 12V but 0 amps. So it was replaced and all was fine. NOW, in relation to the issue above. Since I have replaced the battery the car has not bogged down AT ALL. I've even started up an incline keeping the car below 1000 RPMs which would have definitely killed it with the problem before.

My theory. The alternator wasn't putting out enough V/A at lower RPMs to sustain a healthy spark. Where this would occur normally the battery would assist and the alternator would do it's job afterwards (replenishing the battery). In my case, the battery was too weak and getting weaker over the past 3-4 months eventually dying.

I'm no master mechanic but I got a little knowledge. Any master mechanics out there able to confirm this theory?

 

Glad you solved the issue. I was leaning towards the alternator regulator as that would also cause an issue at low rpm's. either way.....congrats

 

Your theory is on the right track. You battery would not hold a charge making the alternator work overtime to keep it at the desired 14V when running. This was not the case as the battery most likely bogged down to the low 10's even 9's when your issue happened. This would result most likely in the engine ECU not getting the required voltage to make it run. Thus resulting in your weird sputtering. I am surprised the engine did not log a code for battery potential. Batteries can cause a lot of weird issues with all the electronic control in the cars now.

 

Sweet. Thanks for the confirm. My wife thought I was dumb when I told her my theory lol :P