[ghpk]

it may be a fuel pump fuse/relay/connector or the fuel pump itself, please get it checked as it may just stop permanently someday.

[aargee]

Once the car stops, I have to turn the keys again a couple of times to start it again. Light stays On, Tacho needles drop to zero, horn/ICE works

Since the lights are ON, I believe the supply from battery is fine; though I cannot pin point the exact issue, there could be several reasons, I could think about...
1. Short of fuel supply
2. Issue with distributor or one of the spark plugs; next time, notice if there're any jerks during the drive

My neighbour crashed in my parked car

Also could you elaborate the above as which part of the car was hit?

Originally Posted by esteem_lover

@argee... do you think the car is haunted ?

Somehow I'm reminded about this thread -> but that was for self healing, we should probably start one for haunting

[pranavt]

If the car isn't starting, check for spark first immediately. That will tell you if it's an ignition related problem. If there is spark, move on to fuelling related diagnostics like the others have posted.

[Shan2nu]

I have noticed this on my OHC every time i wash the engine bay.

My engine doesn't stop, but it feels as if all 4 cylinders aren't firing and it gets bogged down when i give throttle. Now when i wash the engine bay, i make sure i let the car idle till the radiator fan starts spinning.

No issues there after.

Shan2nu

[pranavt]

Water in the spark plug holes most probably. Always cover electrical components with masking tape.

[Sprucegoose]

+1 one or more spark plugs misfiring...
happens to me sometimes when i go REALLY fast into a deep puddle

[Rohit26]

My wagon R also facing similar issue.It would suddenly stopped itself then i have to crank & it would happily start with all dashboard lights up. . .

[joybhowmik]

Hi All:
I have an intermittent issue on my in-laws '2001 M800 which seems to be similar to what is described on this thread. Let me describe:
My in-laws (for lack of options) hire a specific driver for road-trips - long or short. This guy does not know anything technical about cars - and is usuallly very abusive of the car while driving - e.g. frequent gear changes, speeding over speed bumps etc.
Anyway last couple of trips he has started to complain that at low speed, engine dies when he is on low speed and the AC + headlights are on. I did not believe him at first and thought that the engine probably died because he did not change to a lower gear.

Until I went with him on a drive of about 50 km. Headlights were on, and the AC was on full blast. Nothing happened for the first 40 km.
Then all of a sudden , at about 20-25 km/hr speed, the car appeared to jerk once or twice (sudden loss of power) and the engine died. Cranking again appeared to sort the issue for a short while but it reappeared.
Next time it happened, I asked the driver to put the car in neutral immediately and flatten the accelerator. My thinking was (and this was before I read this thread) - that there could be some dirt in the fuel lines somewhere, which was intermittently stopping the fuel flow, Increasing the volume of fuel flow in this situation would clear this up. This appeared to work for sometime, and was ok to get us near our home. When it happened again the final time, I took the wheel from him, and drove the car home without any issue - in second gear.

Points that are running through my head:
1) It probably has nothing to do with the A/C or the headlights , as my wife reported this stopping problem in the daytime when the A/C was off.

2) Last time this situation had happened, the car was taken to a roadside mechanic - who tightened the connections to the distributor cap. But that apparently did not solve the issue.

3) It probably is not dirt in the fuel line- though I can't rule that possibility out entirely. This is because , the car gets filled up at only one petrol pump most of the time - and my in-laws can vouch for the integrity of the petrol pump guy - as they know him quite well.
Secondly, had it been dirt, it would probably have resulted in symptoms during the first few minutes of the drive - which it did not.

4) It probably is not a broken gear inside the gear box. This is because, the gears themselves are as crisp as they can be in a 10 yr old M-800. Also I don't suspect the clutch as clutch slippage is a different kind of a problem. Besides the clutch did get replaced at the authorised dealer 1 year ago.

5) Now the most important part. I have been given the responsibility to get this fixed tomorrow by taking the car to the dealer, and getting him to fix it. As these guys are usually short of time, I am really doubtful of their ability to replicate the problem in a test drive. So the question(s) are:
a) What should I ask them to check?
b) In what order (preferably of increasing parts cost and accessibility)? i.e. I would rather ask them to diagnose a faulty relay - easy to identify and replace rather than the fuel pump.
c) How do I know that what they have diagnosed is right?

This is the tricky bit, unfortunately. It has to be first time right. The reason is that I am supposed to get the car back, and then I leave back for my hometown. So, in case the wrong fix is applied, it is possible that the car goes out another time with my in-laws in it ... and they get stuck in the middle of nowhere. And there goes my credibility in getting things done , not to mention giving my wife another reason to stock up on - when we next have a fight.

Looking forward to your suggestions.

[OHCVtec]

I used to have this issue everytime my car went for servicing. This was due to water getting into electrical parts. The issue with my car got resolved by drying up the distributer off any moisture.