So my base 2007 has been in and out of the shop over the past month. It's about to hit 90,000 miles. A couple of months ago, the car just started shutting off while driving fairly consistently. Not a pleasant experience, but the good news is that I could just pop in the clutch and re-start it every time without issue. I noticed that just before it would shut off, I would hear two clicks (like from a relay) behind the dash. It's the same clicks you hear when getting in or out of the car and the key fob is detected. I took the car into the shop and they replaced the key fob module. The car ran without issue for about 3 weeks then the engine shut off again. Unfortunately, the first time I took it in, they updated all the software in the car and I can't just pop the clutch in and restart it. I have to come to a complete stop and put the car into reverse before it will allow a restart...obviously incredibly dangerous when that happens on the highway. After the first time it happened, I took it back into the shop. Now they say the body control module is bad and this might be the source of the problems. Does this sound correct? I've tried googling around and haven't ran into anyone having a similar problem. All and all it sounds like a pretty bad defect. It's almost like the car loses connection with the key fob and just decides to shut off the engine. Just looking to see if anyone has any insight. Thanks!

 

Losing connection with the key fob won't shut off the car. In fact, if you try to shut off the car and it can't detect a key fob, it will prompt you to be sure.

The ignition circuit might be something to look at.

When I had my 05, it had a wiring issue that would cause the fuel relay to overheat and the car would shut off. Sometimes it would restart, sometimes it would require a relay swap. This problem was more pronounced with the A/C was on. I did a Racetronix harness for the fuel pump and the problem never resurfaced and eventually I sold it.

It sounds like an intermittent connection issue or failing part. The shop seems like it's parts-changing to find the problem, which can get expensive. Good luck!

 

Agree...fob module isn't going to do it, because you can drive off with no fob in the car....just can't restart it.

The car really only needs a few things to keep it going. It needs to know what the crankshaft is doing (crank sensor/reluctor wheel), needs fuel pressure, needs spark (also crank/cam), needs power and air.

If the ECM looses power it could die so I would check for broken/loose wires there. If you lost battery, the alternator would keep it going and vice versa. The chances of that happening together are slim to none. I doubt the air flow is getting shut off completely to kill it. If you lost fuel pressure, I would think it would not come back that quickly but it is worth checking.

Does it ever trip a code when it does it? If so what are the codes?

My guess is a wiring harness/ground or crank sensor issue.

 

One thing that immediately comes to my mind is whoever reprogrammed everything the first time did something wrong besides selling you a new fob module. They seemingly reprogrammed your car to what seems like an '05 start process (gear shift lever in reverse vs. all years thereafter being in any gear). That's not right as far as I know, but someone will correct me if I'm wrong. What shop was this btw? I think you need a better shop, someone that knows what to look for. There are known Corvette shops in/around Austin.

 

Agreed....could start doing some good old fashioned "tap" tests and also move around some harnesses and connectors to see if you can get it to,act up...good luck.

 

I take it to Aikman Performance in Cedar Park. I used to take it to AutoNation Chevrolet, but the last time I took it there to get a turn signal bulb replaced, they replaced the wrong one and returned the car to me with a bulb that was still out. It was obvious they didn't check their work at all. Before I took it to Aikman performance, the car was shutting off pretty regularly. After they replaced the Key Fob Module and did a dyno tune on the car, it ran fine for about 3 weeks before it started having the issue again. After the 3 week mark, the car started having a problem where the RPMs would drop really low when decelerating. Then one day while I was driving home, I heard the clicks of death behind the dashboard and the car shut off. The shop told me it was obvious that the Body Control Module was bad now. I am a little suspicious of the chain of events. If they don't fix the issue this time, I will try a different shop. I'm all for recommendations. Really I just want to get the car in good shape so I can sell it. I am pretty much playing an expensive game of whack-a-mole at this point. I can't in good conscious sell a car that shuts off randomly when you're driving it though.

 

No codes from the car. The airflow is good and the throttle body was recently cleaned. it definitely sounds like something electrical. There are always two clicks from a relay before it shuts off. It's a very consistent warning that the car is about 2 seconds from turning itself off.

 

Could be a bad main ecu... from my experience theyll work, but randomly shut off - especially while stopped...

good luck!

 

My 06 was doing the same thing. No one could figure it out. My fuel pump relay was getting hot and shutting the engine off. I could start it by replacing the relay but it would get hot again and shut down. I ended up replacing the whole fuse box and that solved the problem.

 

A dyno tune means a non-standard tune. Messing with the tune when there is an existing problem that's killing the engine, sounds like an extremely bad idea.
And as others mentioned, the car does not need communication with the fob to keep running, it just needs communication to start or to shut down without a double try.

I don't think these guys know what they are doing.

 

My 06 manual was doing the same thing. Would just randomly kill, but would start right back up every time. I found it to the starter solenoid. I had to pull the starter and replace the solenoid which had completely fallen apart. It will also do this if the battery cable clamps to the battery wiggle loose for a second. Good Luck!

 

I was going to suggest checking your starter solenoid as well - they are known to get hot and the center post come loose, normally on a car with headers, but easy enough to check (unhook the negative terminal first). Pull on the main power wire to the solenoid and see if it's loose and inspect it well. You can replace just the solenoid if you take the starter to a rebuild shop and save a lot of money if it turns out that's the problem. You can also find the part number for the solenoid on here but it's buried in a thread somewhere.

It's not normal for your 07 to need to be put into reverse to start - only the 05's have to be put in reverse to shut off properly due to the column lock which you don't have. Will your car shut off properly in any gear? I'm guessing the reverse thing is just coincidental.

I've also seen problems with the wiring in the passenger footwell you might inspect there as well looking for anything loose, but my most likely suspect is that solenoid.

Also, when the car does it does the voltage drop on the instrument panel after the clicks?

Lastly, you don't have anything plugged into your OBDII port do you? If so remove that. I had a device plugged into my OBDII port that was wreaking intermittent havoc with my car, shutting down everything but the engine on the highway. Took it out and no more problems.

 

I got my car back from the shop a couple weeks ago after replacing the body control module. It ran good for about 150 miles until this morning the clicks of death happened and then it shut off again. It shut off only after being on for about 5 minutes this morning. As always, after it shut off, I was able to instantly restart it after moving into reverse. I was able to make it back home without it shutting off again. How did you trace it back to the fuel pump relay overheating?

 

crazy , did anyone else have this issue and find the cure for it?

Mine is doing something similar

 

Shifter in reverse when parking yes. If I can recall, all you need is the clutch to be pushed in to start the 05's.

 

Has to be in reverse to turn 100% “off” on 05’s but it will start in any gear as long as the clutch is pushed in.

 

Agree !!!...may be a crank sensor...you would really need a scope to see if the signal is dropping out while you're checking it going down the road !!