my 3.8 stalls with no warning. sometimes starts right back up, other times i have to turn it over many times. sometimes when it starts back up there is a little backfire. no trouble codes. mechanic said cam sensor, replaced, no effect. he said it could be icm, or pcm. would be expensive to start slugging in part. when it runs, it is really quick, and starts fast.car has 120,000 miles. help. wife drives it. don`t want her broke down all the time. mostly happens when slowing down, or letting off accelerator. if going around 35 or faster, it starts back up on its own. thanks for any help.

Is the check engine light on? If so, have your mechanic pull the codes.

Also, has your mechanic checked the fuel pressure?

no. service engine light does not come on. mechanic hooked up. no trouble codes. said it is not a fuel problem

Others will chime in, but don't be surprised if a piece of advice is to have him check the fuel pressure.

Had same issue and it was the crank position sensor.

With symptoms like this, the first thing to go after are the battery cables. Disconnect them from the battery and PULL THE BOOTS OFF. That'* where the trouble hides. You cannot see the corrosion unless you pull the boots. Clean, apply dielectric grease, then do the same for the connections at the starter, alternator, and the 3 grounds under the ICM bracket.

You have classic symptoms.

thanks guys, appreciate the info. now have some more things to try. really a good lookin car, runs fantastic. if i can solve this, it will be back where it was. never really had this problem before i changed the fan belt.(i know, i didn`t touch any wires.)some guy said the icm receives the 18x and 3x signals. if one is missing, then this will happen. know the 3x is the crank sensor, don`t know what the 18x signal is though.

Just remember in the future to fill in all the details from before the problem existed. I had the problem on my 89 where the serpentine belt broke and took out the crank sensor with it. I think the newer models have a sheild around the sensor, but that doesn't mean it stays on after someone works on them.

got it! i banged with my fist on the coil packs with the engine running, and lo and behold, when i hit the third one, the engine died, repeated it several times with same result. took them off, removed icm, cleaned grounding underneath, put back together. no failures at all now. thanks for the input. this sites a real help.

its the crank positioning sensor...they stall out then either fire back up or you gotta wait a few let it cool off and she fires back up...i had it go bad in my 99' from what i remember its not a very expensive fix