Help a lass out

[fafaa]

REALLY ####ING LONG STORY IM SORRY
Hi everyone, I'm stuck in a bit of a rut with my 04 VZ, I had a service done a couple of weeks ago and she suddenly started throwing the "check powertrain" light and doing the shuddering at idle, loss of power and generally running like a sack of ****. Took it back to where I got it serviced and they said "Oh yeah it'll be your coils and spark plugs, just replace em she'll be right" I got back in my car and boom she drove fine... The next day the same thing happens. I took it to Holden and they ran a diagnostic on it and told me my ecu was rooted. OK replaced under warranty no problem. I pick it up and it's still running like poop. Asked them what's up and they tell me I'll need the air intake and throttle body hose replaced but they aren't covered under warranty so they didn't do them. The little 90 degree rubber hose from the throttle body hose to the engine had worn from age so we rigged up a replacement and replaced the air intake. Still no change. We checked the coils and number 4 isn't getting any power and it's misfiring on that cylinder, everything else is running sweet. Took it back to Holden this morning and the guy starts giving me **** about the rubber on the throttle body telling me the entire thing needs to be replaced. Start giving him **** about replacing an ecu if the throttle body is what's causing the problem. Agrees to check out the problem for me. Has ANYONE had this god awful nightmare happen to them? If so what did you do? I'm so sick of this I just want my baby running again.

 

[mpower]

I reckon a couple of people have seen this - seems like a few of them refer to faulty O2 sensors. GL

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/powertrain-warning-light.150345/post-1674878

Welcome to the Forum.

But please don't post immediately any thought or question that comes into your head. Have a navigate around the site, and do a search first. You will find that thousands and thousands of questions have been asked and answered before.

A quick 5 second search by typing in "powertrain" would have come up with your answer!

Links just for you below;

Holy Sh#t. After doing this search, I now realise how many people do this. Especially with just this issue alone!!! Any problem becomes an immediate thread....but it doesn't need to be. Most of the links below are sometimes only weeks or months apart in the VZ Commodore Section. I shake my head in disbelief.

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/powertrain-warning.149520

https://forums.justcommodores.com.a...ain-error-coming-when-given-some-stick.133510

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/engine-light-check-powertrain.147697

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/check-powertrain-light-comes-up-dash-uh-oh.145583

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/check-drivetrain-wtf-problem-solved.142692

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/check-drivetrain-wtf.141983

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/powertrain-warning-light.10257

https://forums.justcommodores.com.a...rain-svs-warning-light-stays-no-speedo.137346

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/powertrain-error-sending-me-nuthouse.113456

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/check-powertrain-message.109784

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/check-powertrain-warning-light.112629

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/check-powertrain-message.105797

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/power-train-light-l76-6l.110907

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/o2-sensor-replacement.78806

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/check-powertrain-what-dealio.50567

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/vz-powertrain-light-p0521-error.98151

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/check-powertrain-warning-message.90485

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/check-powertrain.90070

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/powertrain-problems-please-help.89407

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/powertrain-problems-please-help.89418

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/powertrain-error.86263

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/check-powertrain-engine-cutting-out.87864

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/check-powertrain.84466

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/2004-sv6-check-powertrain-caution.25074

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/o2-sensors.59775

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/3-oxy-sensors-4-months-homicidal-sv6.48261

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/intermittent-powertrain-light-gen3-v8.42471

https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/vt-ss-powertrain-warning-light.9567

 

[Big-Al]

definitely sounds like O2 sensors are shagged but wouldn't the diagnostic test have show tha....... oh yer we are talking about Holden here

 

[kiwicon]

lol.

10char

 

[Munz]

You didn't state whether they replaced the number 4 coil the last time you went back?

 

[Big Red VF-SII Go-kart]

An aged//wobbly/damaged oxygen sensor can throw up the 'check powertrain' light with no relationship to anything else they are speculating as being in need of service. I say speculating because the people you spoke with appear clueless, virtually pulling you left right and centre to have things replaced with no positive outcome. This is not good enough. There would have been an error code displayed on the dash display (separate thread here somewhere on how to interrogate these codes).

 

[mpower]

An aged//wobbly/damaged oxygen sensor can throw up the 'check powertrain' light with no relationship to anything else they are speculating as being in need of service. I say speculating because the people you spoke with appear clueless, virtually pulling you left right and centre to have things replaced with no positive outcome. This is not good enough. There would have been an error code displayed on the dash display (separate thread here somewhere on how to interrogate these codes).

nothing worse than mechanics who play swapsies and then if the issue isn't fixed merely move on to the next part to swap out.

 

[Grennan]

9/10 Holden Dealers are Parts Fitters. Nothing more. They plug in their tool and if it doesnt point them to the issue they are clueless.

Take it to a proper mechanic, warranty be damned.

 

[Big Red VF-SII Go-kart]

Erm... how do you tell a proper mechanic from a parts fitter?
I don't go to a Holden dealers anymore (very high cost, incomplete work, missing parts on reassembly... and as a result of me going elsewhere, they voided my 5-year warranty, grrrrrrrr) and the current techies do more than fit parts: they don't send any car back out until they have found the problem, so I guess they are real deal. I dunno, what you call Mercedes-Benz techies "parts fitters", even though they are very well trained in interrogation / diagnostics too?

 

[Grennan]

Erm... how do you tell a proper mechanic from a parts fitter?

Pretty easily.

Someone who cannot do diagnostic work, people who merely rely on tools such as Tech 2 to diagnose an issue.

A lot of dealership mechanics fall under this category, not all.

Pretty clear, that whoever is doing the work on this car, is a parts fitter, rather than a mechanic.

I don't go to a Holden dealers anymore (very high cost, incomplete work, missing parts on reassembly...

Parts fitters.

they don't send any car back out until they have found the problem,

Mechanics.

Taa daa.