One day, you’re on your way to work or out doing errands, and your car has died while driving and refuses to restart. Find out why this might have happened and what you may be able to do to get it back on the road again.
The Top Reasons Why Your Car May Have Died While Driving
1. No Fuel.
Seems obvious, but it happens. Either you’ve forgotten to fill up the tank and now you’ve run out, or there could be a problem with the fuel injector. Try putting a gallon or two of fuel in the car. If that doesn’t work, it’s probably a clogged fuel injector or faulty fuel pump, and that’s going to need replacing.
2. Bad Alternator.
Alternators charge the battery and power the electrical system when the car is running. Therefore, a faulty alternator equals no power. Although it is a simple component with only a few parts, the alternator plays a vital role.
- Try to start your engine; if it turns over extremely slowly, your battery is probably dead.
- Try and jump start your car with power from another vehicle.
- Ensure you are connecting positive to positive and ground to negative.
- Also allow the other vehicle to run for a while as it is attached to the dead car before you try to start it.
If this doesn’t work then your alternator isn’t working and only a professional can fix it.
3. Loss of Spark.
Reasons for loss of spark vary from car to car. To determine whether you have lost spark, remove one spark plug, connect it to the ignition cable and attempt to start your car. You should see a spark arc across the spark plug if it’s grounded and you have a good ignition system. If you have lost spark, the car needs to be taken to an auto repair shop.
4. Loss of Compression.
An engine can lose compression due to worn piston rings or carbon deposits on the valve seats/intake valves. No matter what has caused loss of compression, your car needs to be to be taken to an auto repair shop to be repaired.
Your Repair Options for Frequent Stalling
If you car died while driving, the problem can sometimes be fixed on the spot, or it could be a one-time occurrence that needs no further action. In other cases, your car needs to be taken to an auto repair shop. If you are sure of what you are doing, try to fix what you can. If not, try and call for help or get a tow. To reduce the chances of your car dying, make sure you carry out scheduled maintenance on your car.
Desert Oasis Auto Repair specializes in European auto repair and has fine-tuned their skills to provide the highest level of service. Contact us today so we can help you with any problems your European car may have.
