I had my cruise control on and my car started running like crap on the highway, bucking and jerking and running really rough. I started pulling over and I pushed in the clutch pedal and the car completely died. I called the shop and he said it sounded like it was out of gas... He brings me a gas can and the car still doesn't run. Can't get it to start. He finally gets it to start but it won't idle unless you held down the gas pedal. While he has it running he starts driving it to get it off the highway and during that time my radiator splits and sprays coolant all over the windshield. I had the car towed to his shop and now I'm waiting...

Other bits of info that may be helpful...

-Car was repaired by his shop two weeks ago for valve-spring failure, springs were replaced with COMP 918's, one valve was replaced because it made contact with piston

-Earlier that day he replaced oil pressure sender and sparkplugs

-New oil pressure sender stopped working

-This happened an hour after picking it up

-Car battery was completely dead the next morning

-His wife following us that night said the car was putting out black smoke

Obviously I need another new radiator (this one is 4 months old)... Aside from that what could be the cause for the car stalling and running so poorly? I tried to drive it today and while it starts fine now when I drove around the block it still ran rough and nearly stalled out.

 

Could be a number of things, for starters check your DIC. Who ever installed the radiator may have installed it incorrectly or you just bought a very cheap one. Rad is still new so should be replaced under warranty.

P.S.
Judging by what you wrote, I wouldn't take it to the same shop who did the previous work...to many "coincidences"

 

Damn, I haven't read anything this scary since Stephen King's "Christine".

 

Car is not throwing any codes on the DIC other than for some bulbs that are out and rear defogger relay... I replaced the radiator tonight after the shop had already closed and drove it around the parking lot. I got three messages: ACTIVE HANDLING WARMING UP, SERVICE VEHICLE SOON, LOW OIL PRESSURE. I parked it and that was that.

 

First thing,you need a new shop!

 

I would just send the junk box to the junk man u will save thousands!

 

first thing I'd check is the wiring and connector to the MAF sensor - this can cause the problems you are having and since the radiator was removed, could easily have been damaged on not reconnected properly.

 

 

I just got a text from the shop saying: Did compression on passenger side. One cylinder only read 55psi the one beside it only read 40psi. My help will be here this afternoon and i will check out the other side. I am thinking you may need a shortblock. Not 100percent yet though. I will know more this afternoon.