Mr2 Stalling problems..pls help

[MarylandMr2]

Alright im asking you guys for help because i have been trying to figure this out by myself and with my mr2 mechanic for a month now and we are clueless on why this is happening...ill start from the begining. Please read this story.. I installed a walbro 255 lph in my 94 mr2 turbo, because the dyno tuner said that the car would not push over 7 psi, and the great performance was never consistant after running the car for a little bit, and wouldnt start a couple times. He was 100% sure it was fuel pump. Right after installing the fuel pump...my great dad put a gallon of two stroke gasoline in my car, didnt know til after car misfired and stalled after two mins...emptied tank, put two gallons in and emptied it again then filled it a half tank with 93 and injector cleaner. Changed plugs, car ran okay for two half tanks and one week later i noticed that i didnt adjust gap on spark plugs, adjusted it, cracked a spark plug, but still put it in there( i know stupid, but it was so small of a crack) i ran up the street and it ran amazing! i get to a stoplight, and it starts to stall on me, i go back to my house, and performance has basically been cut in half on the way there, so i take out the spark plugs and replace them..car still stalls and misfire..So I replaced distributor, ignition wires, ignition coil, fpr, fuel filter, checked for vaccum leaks, loose intercooler piping, fuel pressure, fuel leaks, fuel lines, correct voltage, and blowoff valve. everything was okay, but it still stalls and misfires. I pulled off each wire to pinpoint what was the problem....cylinders 4, 2, 1, did not make the idle change. I know compression isnt a issue because the engine is a fresh rebuild with 20,000 miles on it, compression was done at the dyno a week prior, 210 on every cylinder. What could possibly be doing this? I am lost, frustrated, pissed off and i want my baby back, please help me guys, you have helped me in the past. pls help me now. Thank you.

[MR2Jedi]

The ECU has put you in limp mode because it has detected something wrong.
Have you checked timing and the timing belt?

[MarylandMr2]

well the ignition timing was adjusted when tuned. Ill inspect the timing belt for noticable wear. If neither are wrong, how do i get it out of limp mode? wow..ive never heard of this.

thank you

[MR2Jedi]

Originally Posted by MarylandMr2

well the ignition timing was adjusted when tuned. Ill inspect the timing belt for noticable wear. If neither are wrong, how do i get it out of limp mode? wow..ive never heard of this.

thank you

Yes, ECU will limit boost to 6 or 7 psi until problem is fixed. Usually something to do with ignition , timing or vacuum/pressure leak.

[TheEngineer]

im pretty sure limp mode is only something that an Auto trans will do because a TCU is what controls limp mode. At least that is what every other car i have ever known does.

It would seem to me that there is either a leak somewhere or it could even be a power issue. Is it wanting to stall because the car is idling low...like if you give it some gas at idle will it stay fine, because i know sometimes a bad battery connection or a bad ground somewhere can cause this as well

[MR2Jedi]

There are many threads here covering " Safe Mode" which is not confined to just the automatic.
The ECU detects a potentially harmful problem and will retard timng, send extra fuel to prevent detonation and manipulate the TVIS to prevent the boost from going over 6 or 7 psi.
I went thru this a few years back. I ended up taking the car in to some import specialists. But for the life of me, I can't remember what the problem was.

If your knock sensor goes out, that is one instance that safe mode will kick in.

[MarylandMr2]

i wish you could remember...I had a knock sensor blow on me on my old motor, but when that happened it would immediatly hesitate when even 1 psi was reached, and it would idle. this will only idle when gas is applied....but if i stay in the same position with the gas pedal, it will stall out..i have to keep playing with the gas. when i drive it, it gives me power like im running on two cylinders, but i guess it is "limping" me along. I checked the timing belt, it looks brand new, as far as the ignition timing goes, i just got a bad feeling that maybe the tuner messed with the ignition timing too much, i know i messed with it a lil before the dyno. My mechanic is coming over today and we are going to reexamine everything and narrow it down....again....hopefully..

[MarylandMr2]

Its working!!! i changed the spark plugs because they were dark black because of running rich. I also noticed that it looked like there was oil on the plugs, which means that some of that two stroke gas was still in my car..after i put the new plugs in, it idled okay...but after i took it done the street and got into it a little bit, it must have blown out all the rest of it, because now it idles great and runs great. Thanks for the input guys! i promise ill stop messing with it...

[MR2Jedi]

Awsome. Sorry I wasn't more help.

[MarylandMr2]

mr2jedi you are such a big help to everyone on this forum, ive been a member for a while, and everytime i have a question you are the one to answer first and give me insight, you help more than you know. Cars running amazing, im finally enjoying 300hp. I love it! worth every penny. thanks again..