Hi all,

I recently found the reason for my car bogging down after startup. I hooked up an ALDL reader and it shows really high spikes (really just spikes, no continuous highs) with knock sums of 36 when the car is cold, so the ECU retards timing to values like 0 or -2 degrees, robbing the car of all power.

Funnily, this goes away after a few minutes and there is only an occasional knock of 1 to 5 (most apparent in medium acceleration around 2000rpm). But until then, there is nothing I can do to make it go away. BTW, it does not knock in neutral, only when there is actually load on the engine.

So I am pretty sure that this is false knock. I have no idea what might cause it though. Can anyone help out on this one? Any suggestions how to cheaply fix it would also be appreciated.

Maybe the knock sensor block (V6 ?) is loose and rattling about when the engine is cold, or the knock sensor itself is defective?

It's a 4 cyl, btw. Is there a way to get to the knock sensor without taking the inlet manifold off?

How prone to valve train noise or piston slab is the astron? Could that be an issue at 299k?

Well hidden under there. lol Don't know if the manifold needs to come off.
Check your ignition timing carefully. Maybe get it spot on by the book, test drive it and then try retarding it by a couple of degrees to see if drivability improves. My TS 2.6L ran real bad when cold when I first got it, timing was way over advanced. Piston slap and chain rattle may be contributing factors at 299K Km and triggering the knock sensor, but I'd replace that first.