I have a 95 Accent that has about 165,000 miles on it. Lately it has been starting sometimes and other times it won't start. Cranks over good just won't start.

Also sometimes on acceleration it will buck, stutter, and sometimes backfire. Sometimes when it does this it feels like there is a flat spot like it's doing nothing. Usually when I take my foot off the gas it will ease out and be ok. Again, it doesn't do this all the time. Mostly does it when it's hot.

Also when I stop sometimes I will get a loud clunking noise from the rear and you can actually feel something clunk. (I don't know how else to describe it).

I have new plugs in it and am working on putting a new fuel filter on. So far I can't break the bolts loose. (I don't know if it's ever been changed).

The car ain't much but she does run good when she's not being an ****. I really do like the car and want to keep her running good.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

Any help would be appreciated.

Thank you.



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The 95 Accent has a rear stabilizer bar; it looks kind of like this:


I'm not real familiar with it, but I think maybe the "cups" are rubber and could be worn away. Additionally, and it's not shown very well on the pic, if you follow the bar past the strut, you can see a bracket holding the bar to the body of the car. There is a rubber bushing between the bracket and the bar; that is the most likely culprit for a rear end thunk. If you jack up your car, you should be able to inspect it. As long as the rear wheels are in the same state (either weight on both wheels or both wheels up in the air), the bar is not sprung and you can work on it safely. If you jack it up, though, make sure you use good jack stands.

As far as the poor performance and driveability issues, I bet it's one of the sensors if it's not the plugs or wires. I think there is a Camshaft Position Sensor, Crankshaft Position Sensor, Throttle Position Sensor, as well as Transmission and Vehicle Speed Sensors. If one of them is reading off but not too far, it could cause the rest of the system to try to adjust to the bad value and the car could run like he||. My mechanic told me when a car doesn't start for no apparent reason, he starts with the Crankshaft Position Sensor. But that's just a guess. I would suggest you get familiar with Hyundai's online manuals. It's free, and once you get used to them they aren't too bad to navigate around in. I wrote a guide to get started: http://www.dfwhyundais.com/diy/DIY-WebTechGuide.html

After getting your login and password, go into Service Information, then enter your car's information, then look in both the ETM (schematics) and the SHOP sections, under Fuel System > MFI Control System. It should help you troubleshoot your symptoms.

 

In the SHOP section, also check Fuel System > General. There are Troubleshooting steps under there.

 

I just reread your first post... and you may have another issue I haven't touched on. You said, "Lately it has been starting sometimes and other times it won't start. Cranks over good just won't start."

Does it do this when it's sitting for a while but not too long, like maybe 30 minutes or an hour? If you turn it off, then go to ON (but not START), hold it there a few seconds, then back to OFF for a second, then repeat back and forth like that between OFF and ON (maybe 5 times), does it then start right up? If so, according to someone who answered my post on the CarTalk site, then the problem is with the fuel pump.

My 1995 Escort (that my son drives) does this. Supposedly if I replace my fuel pump, this will be fixed, but the car has never left me stranded and works fine otherwise, so I haven't gotten around to it in 3 or 4 years of having this issue.

The fact that you have driveability issues once it's started though indicates you have more going on here; you should troubleshoot those issues as well..... WebTech (Hyundai's online manuals) should get you going.

 

Thank you for the information. I will look into the things you said. It's 95 here today so I'm gonna have to wait to work on it.

As far as the starting goes it just happens. It could be sitting for days and then won't start or I could drive to my mom's 5 miles away and it won't start. It just happens at random times. Sometimes it starts up after a few cranks and sometimes it takes longer. I'm gonna try the key thing you mentioned and see if that helps.

Thak you for pointing out the online maunuals. I'll keep you posted.