I own a 1999 Acura 3.2TL. My car shuts off randomly. When the car shuts off it loses all power (mechanical and electrical). I pull the car over, put the car in park and take the key out of the ignition. I let the car sit for about 30 seconds and restart the car. 99% of the time the car restarts. This problem started back in October with my car shutting off while driving and I could pop the car into neutral and restart the car. Now I have to pull the car over and let it sit. In late December I noticed that the car would shut off if there was 1/4 tank of fuel or less. Now the problem is daily and it happens with 1/2 tank or less. My father initially thought it might be the fuel filter, but this doesn’t seem to be the only issue. The car is idling at 500 rpm or a little less which is about 200-300 rpms slow. My main concern is my car shutting when I’m driving and I cannot signal to other cars I’m pull off the road or if I’m in an intersection or crossing over lanes of traffic and my car shuts off I could have a serious situation. The problem is a nuisance and safety concern. Any help would be appreciated!!
The shut-down of the engine could be the result of a bad ignition switch, particularly if you are one of the people who have a large number of keys on their key ring. (The excess weight–more than 6-7 keys or so–will wear out the switch over time) Another suspect could be the Mass Air Flow Sensor, particularly if you have one of those permanent air filters to which you apply oil (Excess oil fouls the MAF)
As to the slow idle speed, you might want to have to have the Idle Air Control valve cleaned or replaced. Of course, you also have to make sure that you bring all of the car’s maintenance up to date as well.