1999 Acura TL stalling

1999 ACURA TL
113,000 MILES • 6 CYL • 2WD • AUTOMATIC
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CARROKE
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The engine check light came on, and shortly thereafter, the car stalled out while going 30 mph. After several atempts to restart, it started, and after about 30 seconds, it stalled out again. After a couple of more minutes, it started again, and I drove 3 miles to my home, with the check engine light still on. What might the problem be?
Nov 1, 2009 at 8:05 AM
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KHLOW2008
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Hi carroke,

Thank you for the donation.

When the CEL comes on, an error has been detected in the engine management system and you would need to retrieve the trouble codes to understand what is causing the problem.

Get a free scan done at Autozone and let me know the exact trouble codes retrieved.

We can proceed from there.
Nov 1, 2009 at 9:06 AM
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CARROKE
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The code was P0420
Nov 1, 2009 at 2:42 PM
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KHLOW2008
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P0420 = Catalyst System - Efficiency below threshhold.

The fault code indicates a bad catalytic converter. It could be clogged causing the engine to stall when you try to accelerate.

The engine stalling and difficult to start could be related or it could be something else and sine P0420 has been detected, you would have to get it rectified before continuing with diagnostics if the problem persists.
Nov 2, 2009 at 6:38 AM