hey guys iam new here...i use this site alot for info..
i have a 2000 3.8 auto with about 80,000..my first problem is i have a low ticking when i first start my car but it then goes away after bout 1 or 2 min of running....i tried to use the old screwdriver trick and listen for it but the loudest thing i hear ticking is my fuel injecters.......maybe a exhaust leak..ive been told...maybe exhaust manafold maybe y pipe connection idk but it's killin me...also i've had the car about 2 years i've changed the coil,moduel,wires, cause i was having a bad misfire inj the past..i drove the car for awhile with the bad misfire could this have broke sumthing else...sumtimes or most of the time in 2nd gear at 5.000rpm my ces light blinks and the car feels like its screamin but it's not goin anywhere then the light stop blink and wont remain lite...the only code iam throwin is a 422 i think sumthing like small fuel leak...and i've tried to change the gas cap work for a lil while then the light came right back up.....also i have this weird poping sound comin from under then hood drivers side.....sumtimes is sounds like thin meatal hiting but just the other day in the morning on the way to work my car was makin this noise any time a hit the gas and the more i gave it gas the more bog down it got and made this noise...then later tht day i got in my car and it was not doin this....i have no idea wtf this could be....point blank my car just runs like crap and feels very restricted.....it almost feels like a running 5clyd or sumthing..but then other times the pick up is good and it feels strong then it runs crapy and really slugish.....any input or help would be awsome...i've tried to read anything with these sysptems but still cant find the problem....i dnt have money to take itanywhere so i've been tryin to do it myself with the help of this site...can anyone help please......thanx

 

P0422 Main Catalyst Efficiency Below Threshold (Bank 1)

That's all I could find. It's not your gas cap. Everything I found says this. Problem could be a catalytic converter orO2 sensor. Your call on where you want to start. Don't just take my word for it, wait for others to chime in also.

 

thanx 02stangt for the reply...well tht might not be the code cause everytime i got it scand they said sumthing about low fuel pressure leak...i thought tht was the code but i guess not if thts wht u found for it...but i do know my cat is bad..it rattles like hell...i took if to the dealership about 8 months ago cause it was clog'd and they fixd it under warranty..they fix'd it for frree..but now it rattles and is goin bad again....well i took it to them again like 2 weeks ago and told them it was rattleing and if it was under warrenty and they said it's not the converter rattleing it was the 02 sensor behind the cat tht was rattleing so i paid them 80$ for nothin...i went home lookd at the 02 after the cat....it's so tight and rusted on there how can it be rattleing....and then i check'd the cat again and when i hit or tap it i can hear the guts rattleing...how can the dealership tell me it's not the cat when i lookd at it myself....they also said i had a p300 random misfire but the ses light isnt stayin on and i did'nt even knew it threw tht code....it does the p300 at 5.000 rpm in 2nd gear under full throttle..this light blinks and then does off.

it takes me so much to accelerate and feels very restricted and sluggish but once iam goin it feels strong and responsive
also under full throttle the engine screams but the car doesnt seem to respond..it feels kindof like sumthing might be slippin...idk

so idk if i should just put a pipe in the place of the cat or if doin so will harm mmy car even more....
i would really like to find out what is poping and ticking under my hood on the driver side...
like i sayed the ticking stopd after about 1 to 2 min....
the poping only happens under hard throttle and is sumtimes loud and sumtime not really...

ive taken the egr valve off and cleaned it and it seems to open and close like it should
ive cleaned the maf and it seem to run a lil betterand a lil more responsive but i still have the ticking,poping, and it still feels very restricted on power..

sometimes ona cold start my car runs great and responsive and well it feels nice..but after awhile it just rns like crap and very slow..

i will go to discount auto parts and get the correct code its throwing...but it's always the same one and they always tell me it's not that serious.....for my car running this crappy and makein all thses noises u would think ti would throw a code

sorry to write so much i could go on for hours about these problems i have been fighttin them for months and just dnt have the money to take it sumwhere and get it all lookd at and fixd...plus i would much rather figure it out myself with sum friendly help...anyone's input is much apperciated

 

How long does it take to get to 5,000 rpms? Also, when you say screaming... Do you mean the rpms are high, or the engine sounds like it's straining to move? When I get home, I can tell you more about that P0300 code. If I remember right, it doesn't turn the light on, but the cylinder specific misfires codes do. It's been awhile since I've looked at it. Compared to before this incident, did your exhaust change the sound it was making?

 

Looking at things, it looks like the code you meant to list was P0442 - Evaporative Emission (EVAP) System Small Leak. Check lines to and from Evaporative Emission Canister for leaks and such. Maybe apart of your problem with the way it runs.

 

THE SES LIGHT ONLY BLINKS IN 2ND GEAR WHEN IT GETS TO 5,000RPM.....CLIMBING FROM 4-5 IS LIKE HELL AND THE ENGINE SOUNDS LIKE IT'S STRANING JUST TO GET TO 5,000RPM AND WHEN IT DOES THE SES LIGHT COMES ON AND BLINKS AND THEN GOES OFF...

MY EXHAUST SOUNDS A LIL RASPY AND WHEN PASSING THINGS LIKE WALLS AND BUILDINGS I CAN HEAR MY EXHAUST..SOUNDS CRAPY.
WHEN I FIRST GOT THE CAR IT WAS DEF NOT AS LOUD AND U NEVER REALLY USED TO HEAR IT BUT NOW IT'S LIKE AIR AND RASPY..IDK HOW TO EXPLAIN....

WHERE DO I FIND THE EVAP CANISTER...SO I CAN CHECK ALL THE LINES

IVE BOUGHT EXHAUST MANIFOLD GASKETS BUT IAM NOT SURE IF THE TICKING IS THT ARE NOT AND DNT REALLY WANNA TAKE THEM OFF AND AND REPLACE IF THTS NOT THE TICKING IAM HEARING...

 

http://www.autozone.com/az/cds/en_us...rInfoPages.htm

READ THIS. I THINK IT WILL HELP ALOT.

 

thanx.stangt
i def understand a lil more about what tht does and how it works.....

 

what if in the past i mounted an amp could i have punchered the gas tank and maybe thts why it keeps throwin tht 442 code.???

 

It's possible. How far were the holes drilled?