Engine turned off on low idle

[XZKL]

Hey guys, I'm new and I'm more of a lurker here. This is my first post and it is about a problem

I seek help from you guys and I just would like to make clear what happened earlier:

- First start of the day. I let it idle for less than 5 minutes. I drove to my barber
- I left my barber. Car started fine but idled low at around 600-800RPM and was shaking a bit. I immediately turned on the AC (I thought it would raise the idle. Uh oh?), reversed out of parking (2-point turn) and before I merged, car died (don't know the right term for it. Is it stall?). The AC did not turn off with the car (immediately turned it off once the car died). I put it in P and tried to restart it in its state. It turned but it did not start so I killed it with the start/stop button. Before I did, battery light kept flashing red and the start/stop button remained on green
- I waited for about 15 seconds before I tried to start it again and started fine, but the idle was lower at around 500-600RPM. I didn't turn on the AC that time and tried doing small revs to keep the idle at around 800-1,000RPM while I tried to merge (to the other side of the road). On the road, when I'm stopping, the idle was still low at about 600-800RPM. I tried to do quick accelerations (not hard, but fast to hit 2,000RPM) to try to charge the battery and force fuel to move. I don't know why I did, but that immediately came to mind after I merged
- It was a very short drive of 3 miles total
- I had started and driven the car the previous day for groceries just fine

If this info helps:
- I drive a 2014 Mirage 1.2 CVT hatch with over 34,7xx miles
- Since July, it is driven no more than twice a week and no more than 10 miles total for groceries and errands
- It is refueled every or more than 4 weeks or when fuel capacity is at half
- It is started and idled for 5 minutes or until the engine temperature light goes off every M-W-F to keep the battery alive

What did/am I do wrong? What should I do/be doing next time? What should I get checked/replaced?

I have searched for posts in this forum before posting this and I think the posts apply to me too, but I still would like to make sure. I apologize if this is another fish in the sea. This post may be deleted/archived if no more discussions are necessary.

I will try to reply the soonest I can. Thanks!

[Eggman]

Hey guys, I'm new and I'm more of a lurker here. This is my first post and it is about a problem

I seek help from you guys and I just would like to make clear what happened earlier:

- First start of the day. I let it idle for less than 5 minutes. I drove to my barber
- I left my barber. Car started fine but idled low at around 600-800RPM and was shaking a bit. I immediately turned on the AC (I thought it would raise the idle. Uh oh?), reversed out of parking (2-point turn) and before I merged, car died (don't know the right term for it. Is it stall?). The AC did not turn off with the car (immediately turned it off once the car died). I put it in P and tried to restart it in its state. It turned but it did not start so I killed it with the start/stop button. Before I did, battery light kept flashing red and the start/stop button remained on green
- I waited for about 15 seconds before I tried to start it again and started fine, but the idle was lower at around 500-600RPM. I didn't turn on the AC that time and tried doing small revs to keep the idle at around 800-1,000RPM while I tried to merge (to the other side of the road). On the road, when I'm stopping, the idle was still low at about 600-800RPM. I tried to do quick accelerations (not hard, but fast to hit 2,000RPM) to try to charge the battery and force fuel to move. I don't know why I did, but that immediately came to mind after I merged
- It was a very short drive of 3 miles total
- I had started and driven the car the previous day for groceries just fine

If this info helps:
- I drive a 2014 Mirage 1.2 CVT hatch with over 34,7xx miles
- Since July, it is driven no more than twice a week and no more than 10 miles total for groceries and errands
- It is refueled every or more than 4 weeks or when fuel capacity is at half
- It is started and idled for 5 minutes or until the engine temperature light goes off every M-W-F to keep the battery alive

What did/am I do wrong? What should I do/be doing next time? What should I get checked/replaced?

I have searched for posts in this forum before posting this and I think the posts apply to me too, but I still would like to make sure. I apologize if this is another fish in the sea. This post may be deleted/archived if no more discussions are necessary.

I will try to reply the soonest I can. Thanks!

Hello XZKL and welcome to the forum.

Troubleshooting from as distance is hard - one can only offer guesses according to the symptoms presented.

What stands out from here is you typically have short runs in your Mirage and it doesn't really get a chance to fully warm up. I'm not sure if that means anything, but I can relate as I also do short runs in my Mirage and in cold winter weather it never reaches it's full operating temperature. That aside, my first thought is to run out all the old fuel in your tank as best as you can and run some fuel system cleaner in the next tank. Don't use an octane booster - it's not a cleaner. The fuel system cleaner typically recommended here on the forum for North American users is Techron. And don't use cheap gas that can sometimes foul fuel systems. You may have to pull your spark plugs and inspect their condition - if they are carbon fouled, that will need to be addressed.

Also, are there any modifications to your Mirage, or anything plugged in that didn't come from the factory such as something plugged into your OBD-II port or new LED lamps? Doubtful that this is part of your problem but it's come up so many times here that it's worth asking.

Looking forward to your reply.

[DottandDolores]

Have someone scan for codes or unhook the negative battery terminal and see if the problem returns.

[Mark]

Hey guys, I'm new and I'm more of a lurker here. This is my first post and it is about a problem

I seek help from you guys and I just would like to make clear what happened earlier:

- First start of the day. I let it idle for less than 5 minutes. I drove to my barber
- I left my barber. Car started fine but idled low at around 600-800RPM and was shaking a bit. I immediately turned on the AC (I thought it would raise the idle. Uh oh?), reversed out of parking (2-point turn) and before I merged, car died (don't know the right term for it. Is it stall?). The AC did not turn off with the car (immediately turned it off once the car died). I put it in P and tried to restart it in its state. It turned but it did not start so I killed it with the start/stop button. Before I did, battery light kept flashing red and the start/stop button remained on green
- I waited for about 15 seconds before I tried to start it again and started fine, but the idle was lower at around 500-600RPM. I didn't turn on the AC that time and tried doing small revs to keep the idle at around 800-1,000RPM while I tried to merge (to the other side of the road). On the road, when I'm stopping, the idle was still low at about 600-800RPM. I tried to do quick accelerations (not hard, but fast to hit 2,000RPM) to try to charge the battery and force fuel to move. I don't know why I did, but that immediately came to mind after I merged
- It was a very short drive of 3 miles total
- I had started and driven the car the previous day for groceries just fine

If this info helps:
- I drive a 2014 Mirage 1.2 CVT hatch with over 34,7xx miles
- Since July, it is driven no more than twice a week and no more than 10 miles total for groceries and errands
- It is refueled every or more than 4 weeks or when fuel capacity is at half
- It is started and idled for 5 minutes or until the engine temperature light goes off every M-W-F to keep the battery alive

What did/am I do wrong? What should I do/be doing next time? What should I get checked/replaced?

I have searched for posts in this forum before posting this and I think the posts apply to me too, but I still would like to make sure. I apologize if this is another fish in the sea. This post may be deleted/archived if no more discussions are necessary.

I will try to reply the soonest I can. Thanks!

People on this forum like giving their opinion. There's no need to apologize for starting a new thread.

I would second the suggestions already given to you here.

Since you don't drive much, the gas in your tank sits there a long time. I don't know the quality of your fuel there, but that's not a good thing for our ethanol added fuels here. A type of gas treatment that also cleans fuel injectors may be a good place to start like Eggman already suggested.

Likewise, disconnecting the battery for a bit wouldn't hurt anything. If you do both at the same time, however, you'll never be able to tell us which one did the job if the problem goes away for good.

Having someone check your vehicle for engine codes being thrown would be my next step after that.

Good luck & keep us posted on what works!

[Fummins]

I'm having a hard time deciphering the op. Sounds like it was just flooded and didn't start, then it started and I don't know what the problem is after that? Loose brake lines or blinker fluid low? If it ain't broke fix it until it is.

[Clessy]

Do our cars have idle position screws? Easy fix on older cars dying while idling is just to increase the cars minimum idle to be higher. Its normally just a turn of a screw.

[7milesout]

Clessy - I have my doubts it has such a screw. And that's just a bandaid anyway.

XZKL - It's been about 10 days, I'm curious as to if your car has done this again. I'm going to go down the fuel path as well. Maybe not so much fuel quality, but ethanol/water issues. I don't agree with fuel injector cleaner, and I'm going to state why down below. But if the Philippine's adds ethanol to the gas, there is an additive that you might consider ... since your vehicle tends to use fuel very slowly. Seems like ethanol tends to gather water & separate from the gas over time if the gas doesn't get sloshed around. In that case, your % of ethanol taken from a settled area is going to increase. Possibly greatly increase. I doubt our engines will run well on high %'s of ethanol ... potentially leading to what you're experiencing. Just think about it. If you let your gas stay in the tank for a long time, and the ethanol/water tends to work its way to the bottom, then you refill it at half a tank, over a period of time, I would tend to think the ethanol/water concoction is going to increase. Then when driven, it might tend to try to suck all the ethanol/water concoction in one kind of "gulp." Leading to problems.

There's an additive that either stops the separation, or tends to stop the ethanol from separating from gas and combining with water. I don't remember what it is, but google it. See if you can find some. This is just a thought ... I don't know what your vehicle's actual problem is.

But I suggest you purchase a BT dongle that plugs into your OBD-II (they are cheap). And their are free apps out the ying-yang that can connect to the dongle and read codes as well as lots of other (cool) stuff usually. If your vehicle has a code, you can then read it (and clear it) on your smartphone. That's the best way ... to actually know what the issue is.

As for fuel injector cleaner. It's a long story that I'll pair down. A shop owner that specialized in fuel system issues said that fuel injector cleaner was the best thing that has ever come along. He said fuel injector cleaner is what made him rich. Because ... when it is added to a tank, generally it is added to an older car that's having issues. Most times, fuel injector cleaner is added and doesn't get burned in a tank of gas quickly enough. It too settles in the gas, works it's way to the bottom of the tank. Where it then starts doing what it is designed to do. It starts breaking up sediment. But in the bottom of the tank. Later when that fuel is sucked out during use, the loosened crap gets picked up and sent on down the line. What makes it past the fuel filter starts accelerating the clogging of the injectors. Next thing you know, the injectors are worse off. He said, the best way (the only way he does it is) to clean them is to pull them out, and do it mechanically (with extreme pressure & cleaning agent). Which is what his shop did ... a lot. And he said since people started using fuel injector cleaner in their fuel tank, his business had been BOOMING. So ... I've never ran the first injector cleaner in any of my vehicles ... and I have never had an issue. And I tend to keep my vehicles long term. If your injectors ever did clog ... I suppose 3 new injectors wouldn't be all that expensive ... but it has been a while since I researched.

[Fummins]

It is started and idled for 5 minutes or until the engine temperature light goes off every M-W-F to keep the battery alive

I'm still gonna guess flooded. But the op probably got the covid.

[7milesout]

Fummins - I can't imagine how a modern day fuel injected, controlled by ecu engine could flood. Not saying it can't happen, but I can't imagine it. However, I have a 2009 Toyota Matrix. When my Warden would stop and fill it with gas, when she would go to crank it, it wouldn't start. Then when it finally did it ran crappy for a while then went back to normal. Until the next gas fill.

Turns out, there is a valve called a VSV, part of the EVAP system. I think VSV stands for Vacuum Switch Valve. When the engine is running this valve opens allows the fumes / vapors from the charcoal cannister to be drawn into the intake for burning, instead of being released into the atmosphere. When the engine is off, this valve closes.

However, this valve failed open. So when the tank was filled with gas, the vapors on the top of the tank are pushed out due to gas fill. With this valve stuck open, the vapors would get pushed into the intake and some of the cylinders (those with open intake valves). This would "flood" the engine. Causing the engine to have an over-rich mixture that didn't want to burn.

$25 later and a new VSV and it worked perfect again. Toyota put this valve in an easy to access area under the hood. It was a simple fix, but took some research to determine the root cause of the problem. This issue only happened after refueling.


7milesout

[Dodge Aries K]

Oh, the flooding thing definitely happens to Mirages. They run pretty rich when cold especially an early one like that. Then if you shut down and restart it a few times with it cold it will flood and it requires you to pin the throttle and crank it a while so it can clear itself out a bit.