Questions and Answers
LeSabre ABS Light
Q. Hi, I have had the above-named car, 1992 Buick LeSabre, for some time now. It has a 3800 series V-6 with 117,000 original miles. Its still in nice shape and I'd like to keep it as a second car when our new one arrives. This car has been relatively trouble free for 10 years until recently. Almost simultaneously, the ABS has stopped working and the car developed bad starting and acceleration problems.
As a life long do-it-yourselfer I cringe paying for repairs, but have when necessary. I think I'll have to pay to solve the ABS problem but I've never been conquered on the engine stuff, even on the newer cars. Until now.
ABS - One day the ABS light popped on while driving. When I shut the car off and then restarted it the ABS light went out, but a short time later the brakes grabbed and the light came back on. I could tell by the action of the pedal that the ABS was disabled. The same thing repeated for a couple days until the brakes grabbed, let go, and the ABS light stays on all the time now. Any ideas? Speed sensor possibly?
STALLING AND ERRATIC ACCELERATION - The car always ran well until one morning it would not start unless I gave it some gas, something you normally don't do with fuel injection. This started the car for awhile, but then it began stalling as soon as it would start. If I hold my foot on the gas slightly it will run but as soon as I remove my foot from the accelerator it would die.
Eventually the car will hold its idle but sometimes this takes 5-10 minutes. Even after it runs on its own the acceleration does not have the life it had previously and struggles to get to 80 mph. I took the car to a mechanic friend of my father who determined the Mass Airflow Sensor was no good. He said the EGR, fuel pressure, and injectors were working properly. He changed the MAS and the car started running as if it was new. That lasted about three weeks, and now the same symptoms have returned, including its sluggishness when acceleration picks up (like merging when getting on the expressway).
I'd appreciate any ideas you may have since you have many years of experience dealing with these kinds of problems. I have your web site as a reference tool and your articles are full of useful tips.
Thank you for your time,
MarcA. You need to have the ABS scanned for stored codes. Yes, it could be a bad wheel speed sensor. The engine problem sounds like another bad MAF sensor. Was it a GM unit or aftermarket? It should still be under warranty. You could unplug it and it should be running on a back-up logic. The light will come on but it should change the way it runs.
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