I'm 12 years late to this video as well lol, Pt.1 brought me here. Yep, I'm the plan-B guy as well. If my wire is loose like that on my Avalanche, I won't be buying a new complete connector either, I'll be doing exactly as you did good sir. Thanks for sharing again.
THIS WORKS PERFECTLY!!! I ran into this issue in my 2006 Chevy Suburban 1500 (5.3L). I did a search on the 2 codes listed here - and came up with D-Ray Smith's video. After watching it 2 times, I pulled mine into the garage, and sure enough - exact same gray wire broken as shown. I took it apart as described in the video, soldered it with the help of my very cool wife as the second set of hands, included some heat shrink over the solder connection, and re-assembled - and cleared the code using my code puller/clearing device. started, ran for 2 days - no more issues! D-Ray, you saved me a TON of $$ - from what I can tell, at least $500 if I would have just brought it into GM to troubleshoot, pull the code, diagnose - and hope they didnt take me for a new throttle body and TPS. THANK YOU!
Thank you for taking the time to explain in such a detailed manner the probable cause, I live in Mexico and am currently driving from Guadalajara to Mexico City, should take no longer than 6hours top, well I've been struggling with the reduced engine power all night long, 11 hours to be exact. every 15 or 20 minutes I need to turn off the engine and let it rest for no less tan 10 minutes. Love the truck, 2007 Silverado 2500hd with 370k miles on it and has never made me suffer like this. Your video and the way you explain how to fix gives me hope that as soon as I make it home I'll be able to fix it without having to spend more money than the truck is worth 😁 Thank you have a great day. I apologize for my bad English, I'm German raised in Mexico :) Greetings from Mexico
I've got a 05 trailblazer. Gave her a little bit of gas jumping on the interstate and she shut down. Check engine and reduced power. It was definitely the same exact problem you had. I was about to replace the whole throttle body. I'm glad I watched this video before hand. Lol. You just saved me some money. Thank you!! Side note: I cleaned out the throttle body anyway for carbon build up Just to be absolutely sure it was gonna work properly. Ty again. 😁
D-Ray, you’re a country genius. Your tug test is so simple and effective, but it is easy to forget to do it. Chevy has been irritating a lot of people with “Reduced Power Mode,” but you fought them and won. By the way, if you tell your customers you’re going to install a $180 harness and charge labor for 6 soldered and sealed joints, instead of just soldering one wire back in place, you may be run out of Arkansas.
Very good video. Intermittent wiring can be difficult to diagnose, but you did it well and provided great info, such as warning about the situation where the good throttle body was replaced, and because the bad harness was moved during the process, the contact was restored, temporarily, leading to the incorrect assumption that the problem was fixed. In addition to the tug test, you can in many situations gently bend the entire harness left, right, up and down (or north, south, east, west) with the engine running to see if the fault occurs. Generally the bad wire will be on the outside of the bend. And anytime I disconnect a plug to inspect for corrosion, I hit it with Deoxit, which will eliminate any present corrosion and protect it for a long time against future corrosion too. I am an electronics technician, and when trouble shooting I always start with the basics (is it plugged in? is it switched on?) and then look for the simplest problems, like bad connections, first. And if you take something apart, and it works when you put it back together, but you didn't do anything to it - you DID NOT fix it!
Nice catch and I always appreciate a fix that costs zero dollars and just a little time. My son is having the same problem of "reduced engine power" occurring intermittently. The throttle body and butterfly has been cleaned, but after about 50 miles, the engine power reduction re-occurred. The recommended next step is to replace the complete throttle body, or the solenoid/sensor mounted to the side of the body....but, we'll be checking the wiring harness and connector before we proceed.
This just happened to me today with my 03Sierra2500. I live in Interior Alaska and we just had a cold snap of negative 20s and colder for a good week. The snap finally broke and looks like my truck did too(not really after this video) A friend came to pick me up and had a car reader that came up with this code. I wasn’t able to do any further research in the warmer-cold we have so got the truck to a shop who can hopefully give me a full diagnostic...which I will pay for that in the end. Anyway. I enjoyed your 2pt video and learned a lot. Thank you very much. -frozen gal
WOW!!!! I SAY THAT BECAUSE THIS VIDEO IS A LIFE SAFER. I JUST HAD THIS PROBLEM LITERALLY YESTERDAY. FORTUNATELY, I WAS ON THE MILITARY BASE WHEN IT HAPPEN AND NOT IN HIGH TRAFFIC. I WILL DEFINITELY LOOKOUT FOR MORE OF YOUR VERY INFORMATIVE VIDEOS. THANKS!!!!!
4:20 ... She sounds like a happy truck. You made me hopeful that this is my issue. It is very Intermittent, sometimes it happens once a day, sometimes 10 times a day and sometimes not at all. Makes me think Wires/Connector. I have my case of beer ready to go, just waiting for the sun to come up. This truck is getting fixed or blown up today 😏. Thanks D Ray, tons of help man. Appreciate you.
Thanks friend for your help. I have a Chevy Uplander 2007 with over 200,000Klms on it. Still in good shape but every winter I have this problem, more so when the winter is frozen at night and thawing in the daytime. I was told to put Methol Hydrate in the gas tank (same thing as gas line anti-freeze), As soon as I do that it picks up to normal again. I have to keep doing this all winter long. Last year I did clean the throttle intake like you mentioned and that helped for a while. Thanks Rick.
D-Ray, Thanks, Reduced Engine Power just happened on my 2006 Silverado. Replaced the Throttle position sensor, which was a pain because GM used rivets to mount the sensor. Put it all together but did not replace the wire harness and still same problem. Will now replace the wire harness and see what happens. Will advise once done tomorrow. Good Video and explanation Thanks, Bro.
THANK YOU SO MUCH for your video replaced pedal and two throttle bodies only to find your video. I did exactly what you did with plan B method and 9 months of aggravation came to an end thanks
To me that repair is better than the original "crimp" style. A soldered joint is always better. The automated machinery used to make these connectors don't have enough skilled human oversight to assure a quality job. The guys like you don't exist in the factories. Jobs are outsourced to Mexico. The average mechanic would have replaced 100s of dollars worth of parts, and still not fixed it. Excellent job......!
I'm so glad I found this video. I just bought an 05 Sierra 2500HD with the 6.0 cheap because the former owner didn't want to mess with changing the $55 center driveshaft suport bearing. I replaced the bearing today and during my test drive, bam... this happened! I'm hoping it's just a varnished TB, it has 150,000 miles on it so... what do you expect for $500!
Thanks for being so selfless. Going through this right now on 03 silverado 1500 HD. I save tons of money because of guys like you. Hope to return the favor to all someday when I find a novel problem and resolution. Grace and Peace of Jesus be with you.
Dude I had this problem 2 years ago on a 2009 Silverado , it was under warranty they replaced the throttle body ( with the sensors ) al was ok , just after an \arthoscopic knee surgery I was limping and so was my truck. I checked the harness and went further and used maf sensor cleaner and wiped the throttle body out ( while installed ) that made things worse. However I didn't realize once you move the butterfly valve the ecm has to recalibrate itself to the throttle position sensor. Since the dealer was the last one to play with that plug and since was two years ago I disregarded it however one wire was loose and I am back on the road like Mad Max on Road Warrior thanks for your tips!!
D-Ray, Your videos on the 07 Silverado where very well done and informative. You are really good at trouble shooting that and fixing that broken wire on the throttle body connector! I have a similar problem with my company's 07 Silverado 1500.(Have just a check engine light) Had the truck diagnosed with a 'bad throttle body' and they wanted over $600.00 to replace it. I didn't take the bait! I am going to check the throttle valve to see if it's clean and give all the wires a 'tug test'. I'm a kind of do it yourself guy and will follow your lead if I find a loose wire for the fix. Thanks again and congratulations for your 100th video. It was the first one for me. (I watched parts 1 and 2) and I do look forward to watching your other videos.
D-Ray!!!!!!!!! Thank you . I have had this problem with my 03 since last winter . I knew it was a wiring issue but I had no idea where to start . You led me right to where I needed to be . Thanks bud . Great vid's .
Thanks Ray last night the reduced power alert came on . Wasn't sure what to do haven't diagnosed the ode yet but you have given me some relief. I will let you know the outcome .
D-Ray, Thanks for the video. I have been working with this problem on an 04 Suburban 1500. My problem is at the other end, the Accelerator Pedal Position Sensor. I have replaced the sensor but I keep getting the "Reduced Engine Power" problem. I clear the code but the problem comes back again and again with no obvious common cause. I think I have the problem you demonstrated, intermittent electrical connection. I'm going to give your repair procedure a try, hopefully that will fix the problem.
Cleaned out the throttle body of my 09 Tahoe after it threw the Stablitrak, Traction control, Reduced Engine Power Code. It was fine for a few weeks but then it started actin up again. I may go home and check the wires on the side of the throttle body just like you did here on this video. Thanks for the tip!
Thank you my friend. It was just how you said. The repair worked easier for me because it was actually gummed uo a little due to sitting for extended periods. OUTSTANDING!!!
it is amazing that they still have the exact same problems since they built this engine. I am a retired GM tech who has seen these problems many times.
Just had that issue today with my 2007. as far as i can tell it was the same wire too. Although i had enough wire on the connector side to attach a Butt connector.. but now I cant get the wire loom clip back on (as the Butt is in the way).. Problems for next week tho. B'cause its time to Go!
Minnesota, Jan 8. Just came out of 26 below zero. Had not started 2007 Vortec Max for 5 days. Got the reduced engine, stabilitrac off and other dummy notifications. Will do a couple of D Rays suggestions to try to get out of the driveway, not enough engine to back up. Zero throttle response.
Thanks so much D-Ray. This video really saved me a lot of money. I was literally about to purchase a completely new throttle body!! You are my new best friend!!
i have a 07 tahoe 5.3 and the light of death ( reduced engine power ) came on.after watching your video im certain i have a great place to start. thank you
GM wiring... I just avoided about $1000 in parts by finding a bad connector! This channel is awesome! Good job Ray, seeing videos like this makes me feel like I should be living down south, yankee ingenuity isn't what it used to be....
GREAT VIDEOS MAN !!!! I had the same issue with my 2001 Corvette at 5am this morning and it turned out it was also the missing contact from one of the wires in the harness going into the throttle body....Thanks for all the work you do. Cheers....Brian
d-ray this video really helped. I'm having the same problem with my 2003 chevy suburban. I've replaced throttle body 3 times already. The diagnostic gives me codes running all the way back to the accelerator pedal. I bet there is a problem in the wire harness to the throttle sensors. I'm not sure I'd be smart enough to fix the wiring, but now I know what to look for. Thanks for your input.
ive also recieved the reduced engine power on the display in my 2007 chevy silverado LT new body. ive had -20 F here in illinois... truck was running fine. no error codes. then after hitting a small snow drift about 10 minutes later i got the light. broke my heart.(lol) ive been researching alot about this. not much info was gathered. but this video is pretty informative thanks! im a "gearhead" like you. so im gonna check wiring, and the connector, etc. If anyone else got this situation on their silverado id like to hear. thanks
We too live in IL and are having the same problem. Hopefully it will warm up enough this weekend to take a look at it. We have code # P1516 and a P2135
I live in Arkansas and our tempature is not that cold. My 03 Z71 has 250,000 on it. It started about 3 months ago. The reduced Engine Power and All. Long story short,,, Two Wires 1/2'' in. off the plug to the Throttle Body were Broken Inside the insulator coating. And it just so happensthat Chevrolet has replacement for 160.00 dollars???????? SEEMS A LOT ARE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM!!! Ordered off the internet for 40.00,,,,, ALL GOOD NOW!!!!!!
D ray this makes a lot of sense.. I’ve got a 3500 that throws reduced engine power.. but it only does it when exceleratong & pulling my trailer when it’s hot &/or humid outside
Been dealing with this for a while now...pull over shut the engine off for a few,restart and go,Well my friend I,m going to give this a whirl. THANK YOU VERY MUCH !!!
ok Ray i tried this out my '03 tahoe was crapping out and this worked out fine, i had three wires bad, thanks again you are a great teacher. thanks for the share.
thank you i spent 1100.00 fixing other things that auto zone said was wrong. took it to a dealer paid 500.00 plus to fix 1 wire cause i couldn't afford the whole wiring harness. i thought it would be harder to repair i think im going to do this one my self. thank you
I've been having the same issues with my Chevy cobalt SS supercharged. I'll have to try that when u get back to were i parked it a year ago. The throttle body seemed clean on mine as well. Thanks for the video.
We fixed our 2003 Suburban "REDUCED ENGINE POWER" problem by simply repairing a ground on the wiring harness. It wasn't the main ground or the one under the driver's side door either. My mechanic said it was a 20 guage wire in back of the engine. Sorry I can't be more specific. He wiggled the harness at the passenger side back of the engine and was able to completely kill the motor. So he started there and found the loose ground. And praise God for answered prayer, the problem is completely gone. No more hesitation over bumps etc.
Great information. My duramax diesel is reading reduced engine power while pulling my RV. I did turned my car off and it did reset, was able to get to camping designation. I am in the OBX camping, and hopefully I can get back to Virginia, 2 hour drive to get my Chevy Silverado in the garage. I am not mechanically knowledgeable so will be at the mercy of some dealership
Good stuff, i have the same issue with my 2011 Chevy Impala LT, got a check engine light "Reduced Engine Power". Hopefully the Chevy Service Center will find the answer the same way D-Ray found the answer to his truck.
Now I have hope….2008 GMC Sierra Denali with reduced engine power. Replaced the TB and after a year it happened again. I can give this a try!!! Thanks for the videos !!!
my sons 2003 Sierra started throwing the P1516 code, we are going to clean the throttle body and inspect the wiring harness. As for your fix on the broken wire, I would take that over the harness repair kit and 8 new splices that can cause problems down the road!
DRAY IS THE MAN! ONE DAY I AM GOING TO STOP AND SEE HIM AND BRING HIM A CASE OF BEER. HONDA 300'S CHEVY SILVERADOS......HE IS SO GOOD AT FINDING AND TEACHING THIS STUFF! DRAY SAVES THE DAY AGAIN!
Thanks Ray- that did the problem.. i had to go to the dealer and purchase the harness, but it works fine now..the connection did cost just under $200. but it was worth it..
Excellent Video. I have a 2007 Buick Lucenre CX with the 3.8L V6 engine and recently three times I've had the "engine has reduced power" message come on. My mechanic had fixed this problem before and it was usually a bad throttle body, which he replaced at close to $500 bucks. This solved the problem for about a month and it came back again. This time my mechanic changed the "accelerator sensors" and that solved the problem, but again in about a month the goddamned, fucking, bitching "engine has reduced power" message came back, much to my dismay. The Lucerne only has 62000 miles on it and I just can't afford to buy a new car and used cars are usually somebody else''s problem. So I looked on google and saw this video and it makes a lot of sense, the problem being the wire harness to the throttle body having a bad wire. This being a $180 part, which isn't cheap but certainly beats buying another vehicle. so I've made an appointment with a different mechanic that used to work on my cars but has moved to a different garage. The mechanic who has been working told me after he put in the new accelerator sensors that "it could be a wire harness problem but that would involve taking the dashboard apart and could cost me a $1000! He suggested I get another car!" When I saw this video I thought changing a $180 dollar part couldn't possibly cost a grand and sure beat buying a new car. So, I'll tell the other mechanic tomorrow and see what happens. I like your southern accent and I think you may have pinpointed the problem. I won't be getting any GM Products anymore. When I was a kid, buying a GM car like a Buick, Oldsmobile, or even a Chevy meant you were getting a piece of the rock. My next vehicle will be a Toyota Camry or Honda Accord, companies who know how to properly manufacture a car, unlike GM.
Similar thing happened on my 2003 Suburban. The gas guage and oil pressure guage have been acting up. This all started after my local garage re-sealed my intake manifold last fall. It was $800+. They also supposedly repaired the oil pressure sensor but it only worked for a week. At least when they call me tomorrow to tell me what is wrong, I will know what some of the components are. Thx!
thanks I will try your technique. my 07 gmc is intermittent, i can turn off then restart and it goes away. I hope it is a poor connection that i can fix. video well done and clear.
This an old video but I finally fix my engine reduced power.. after changing gas pedal sensor, throttle body, map sensor, maf sensor all my problem was, was the throttle body plug.. wow.. thanks dude great video.. wish I could’ve been cane across this video 3weeks ago I would’ve save $360
Right i have A Hummer 2007 h3 and it was doing the same thing!! is was the plug lol i was like wow i saved myself 450 dollars thank you jesus for your video and why is there not a recall for this?? so sad GM!!
I've had a similar problem with my cobalt, definitely will look into it next time I'm in the garage. However I need to get the replacement engine into the vehicle before I can go on the test drive
THANK YOU! I'll have to run through the grounds, throttle plate, and this harness before I know which it is (I'm at 237,000 miles), but I LOVE your harness fix. $180 is absurd!
180$ and this is related to a recall... Bullshit!! Shame on you GM.. I upset and my truck is still messed up.. thank you for sharing this post.. Robert Jr NJ here
Great video, my 09 Sierra is currently at GM (2nd gm dealership ill add) with the same issue and they cant figure out the issue. They finally think its the battery cables so hopefully thats the issue. If not, i'm going to try your diagnostic methods and hopefully find the root of the problem (already had ABS, ECM and some other module replaced and its still not fixed. luckily the dealership owner is a good friend)
awesome video. in my case so far, i have the reduced engine power happen, so i pull to side of road, turn off truck, pop hood, disconnect maf wire harness, blow on harness pins to discharge them, plug it back in and start it up. when i bought the truck used, i didnt get 5 mins down the road and it did this. ended up staying at hotel in different city, going limp mode most of the way, until i realized after the 3rd time of pulling over on the interstate, and doing that routine, it had driven farther than 5 mins. the maf wiring harness was shorting out to the hood inside when it was fully closed, i forgot to latch the hood securly and thats how i found out. upon further inspection some time later, i discovered the ground pin for the maf was bent to the side, and wasnt going into the harness connector. problem solved, for the moment. now its back to the same routine, but now i am suspecting the connector at the tps. i have literally rebuilt this 2003 Denali xl, first the maf, then all new brake lines, fuel pump, starter, pcm ground, all new grounds and now it runs, but take off is slow as snails, and it,wont shift into OD. never had trans issues before, discovered ground strap to engine not secured, so this video leads me to the wiring harness on the tps. it has been replaced before with the throttle body when the previous owner had it. im hoping my long winded comment helps someone in need. btw, if you get in your ride, and it has no crank, no start, check the ground wire for the pcm on passenger side of the rear engine valve cover bolt. mine was completely wasted, i pulled it off and relocated it to the firewall mounting points above the driver side valve cover, where the engine ground strap should go.
and sure to check the pcm fuses in the fusebox under the hood after you reground the pcm wire, in my case, i had no clue, thought the fuel pump died, but nothing was working. bad pcm ground, and blown fuse cost me a tow home and countless hours of frustration.
Found your videos to be very helpful thank you! I have a 2003 Chevrolet Tahoe & the Rep appears only in the summer here in Michigan not in the winter...it started last summer but now I know what to look for once I have it apart! Thanks again
I have the same problem where I get the reduced engine power like this the engine power light and the truck will hardly run but it's really random. I'll check this out to see if this might be my problem.
I just ordered a code reader from amazon to find out why i have reduced engine power and lugging when kicked down on my 2002 trailblazer. now i will jump out there and give the old tug test. Thanks,
This was very informative. I have a 2005 Chevy Avalanche which has the same problem. When it was under a warranty the dealer replaced the throttle body and also some sensor in the foot pedal and it didn't solve. I showed them the GM TSB issue on this and they replaced the cable and it worked fine for a few months. It is now doing it very frequently, Could the cable have gone bad that quick? The truck seems to loose some power/torque not long before it triggers light and power actually reduced.
D-ray also have a challenge for you find a good sounding exhaust for the 6.0 that sounds like it actually has back pressure. Because the exhaust that i have heard sound good in optimal rpm range.
I have a 200 firebird 3.8. I have the same problem. It seems to have reduced engine power when its cold. I have to let it warm up before it wil run down the road. Im gonna check the wires as well and see if this is my problem. Thanks for the video.
Thanks man, I believe that may be my problem because I have a 2010 gmc sierra that does the same thing and I get p0641 code for a 5 volt reference code and was advised by autozone to check my engine wiring harness
Thanks for this helpful and reliable video D-ray! I just saved a big amount of money following your simple yet effective way of fixing it. Keep it up, dude!
Hey! Great video! Thanks! I just replaced the MAF and the throttle body 😪.......I wish I had found this first....easy quick replacements...but still. 😆
Dear Mr. D'Ray, I have a 2003 chevy suburban 1500. Lately my "reduced engine power light has gone on, not enabling me to go more than 20-25 mph. It turned out that after a friend hooked it up to a code machine, we saw that one of the cylinders was misfiring and low compression. We tracked it back to a mechanic who didn't tighten the same cylinder spark plug a year ago. It looks like I have to get a head job done or maybe another engine. BUT, for the next 30 days, is there a way for me to disconnect something so the warning doesn't come on?. Keep in mind that I only drive this vehicle(186,000miles) locally and do not exceed 35-40 mph..
Thanx for the good help I am having the same issue but it is intermittently. Another thing I noticed on your truck is that your oil presure sitting around 40lbs my is Polly about 5 lbs under at idle what is it supposed to be at?
Great video..not sure if this is my problem though...I have a 2007 Chevy trailblazer.on the highway yesterday I tried to accelerate , engine revved to about 3000 rpm but engine took a long time to respond... it did eventually speed up to 70mph...but took longer than usual... any suggestions...similar happened to my wifes car and it was the catalytic converter..
I believe this may be what I'm going through. I have a 2004 Silverado 2500 and my connector on my maf has a slight detachment. I've had this reduced engine power alert come up a few times over the last few weeks. Hopefully this fixes it
Thanks! I just experienced this problem. Car stalled, said "Reduced Power", "Engine Disabled", and would not start. Sat for 5 min, and restarted ok. I'll know where to start to try to fix.
Thanks for the help. If I have to replace the TPS, do I have to get anything reprogramed. My 2003 Silverado 1500 just went into Reduced Engine Power. I am like you, I will always try plan B, before I buy an expensive part.
I have an 04 silverado that had thr REP codes, It was an issue with the CPM under the hood not getting a good ground to the housing, I ended up running a ground to it, no more problems.
I'm 12 years late to this video as well lol, Pt.1 brought me here. Yep, I'm the plan-B guy as well. If my wire is loose like that on my Avalanche, I won't be buying a new complete connector either, I'll be doing exactly as you did good sir. Thanks for sharing again.
THIS WORKS PERFECTLY!!! I ran into this issue in my 2006 Chevy Suburban 1500 (5.3L). I did a search on the 2 codes listed here - and came up with D-Ray Smith's video. After watching it 2 times, I pulled mine into the garage, and sure enough - exact same gray wire broken as shown. I took it apart as described in the video, soldered it with the help of my very cool wife as the second set of hands, included some heat shrink over the solder connection, and re-assembled - and cleared the code using my code puller/clearing device. started, ran for 2 days - no more issues!
D-Ray, you saved me a TON of $$ - from what I can tell, at least $500 if I would have just brought it into GM to troubleshoot, pull the code, diagnose - and hope they didnt take me for a new throttle body and TPS. THANK YOU!
Thank you for taking the time to explain in such a detailed manner the probable cause, I live in Mexico and am currently driving from Guadalajara to Mexico City, should take no longer than 6hours top, well I've been struggling with the reduced engine power all night long, 11 hours to be exact. every 15 or 20 minutes I need to turn off the engine and let it rest for no less tan 10 minutes.
Love the truck, 2007 Silverado 2500hd with 370k miles on it and has never made me suffer like this. Your video and the way you explain how to fix gives me hope that as soon as I make it home I'll be able to fix it without having to spend more money than the truck is worth 😁
Thank you have a great day.
I apologize for my bad English, I'm German raised in Mexico :)
Greetings from Mexico
I've got a 05 trailblazer. Gave her a little bit of gas jumping on the interstate and she shut down. Check engine and reduced power. It was definitely the same exact problem you had. I was about to replace the whole throttle body. I'm glad I watched this video before hand. Lol. You just saved me some money. Thank you!! Side note: I cleaned out the throttle body anyway for carbon build up Just to be absolutely sure it was gonna work properly. Ty again. 😁
D-Ray, you’re a country genius. Your tug test is so simple and effective, but it is easy to forget to do it. Chevy has been irritating a lot of people with “Reduced Power Mode,” but you fought them and won. By the way, if you tell your customers you’re going to install a $180 harness and charge labor for 6 soldered and sealed joints, instead of just soldering one wire back in place, you may be run out of Arkansas.
Very good video. Intermittent wiring can be difficult to diagnose, but you did it well and provided great info, such as warning about the situation where the good throttle body was replaced, and because the bad harness was moved during the process, the contact was restored, temporarily, leading to the incorrect assumption that the problem was fixed. In addition to the tug test, you can in many situations gently bend the entire harness left, right, up and down (or north, south, east, west) with the engine running to see if the fault occurs. Generally the bad wire will be on the outside of the bend. And anytime I disconnect a plug to inspect for corrosion, I hit it with Deoxit, which will eliminate any present corrosion and protect it for a long time against future corrosion too. I am an electronics technician, and when trouble shooting I always start with the basics (is it plugged in? is it switched on?) and then look for the simplest problems, like bad connections, first. And if you take something apart, and it works when you put it back together, but you didn't do anything to it - you DID NOT fix it!
Nice catch and I always appreciate a fix that costs zero dollars and just a little time. My son is having the same problem of "reduced engine power" occurring intermittently. The throttle body and butterfly has been cleaned, but after about 50 miles, the engine power reduction re-occurred. The recommended next step is to replace the complete throttle body, or the solenoid/sensor mounted to the side of the body....but, we'll be checking the wiring harness and connector before we proceed.
This just happened to me today with my 03Sierra2500. I live in Interior Alaska and we just had a cold snap of negative 20s and colder for a good week. The snap finally broke and looks like my truck did too(not really after this video) A friend came to pick me up and had a car reader that came up with this code. I wasn’t able to do any further research in the warmer-cold we have so got the truck to a shop who can hopefully give me a full diagnostic...which I will pay for that in the end. Anyway. I enjoyed your 2pt video and learned a lot. Thank you very much. -frozen gal
WOW!!!! I SAY THAT BECAUSE THIS VIDEO IS A LIFE SAFER. I JUST HAD THIS PROBLEM LITERALLY YESTERDAY. FORTUNATELY, I WAS ON THE MILITARY BASE WHEN IT HAPPEN AND NOT IN HIGH TRAFFIC. I WILL DEFINITELY LOOKOUT FOR MORE OF YOUR VERY INFORMATIVE VIDEOS. THANKS!!!!!
4:20 ... She sounds like a happy truck. You made me hopeful that this is my issue. It is very Intermittent, sometimes it happens once a day, sometimes 10 times a day and sometimes not at all. Makes me think Wires/Connector. I have my case of beer ready to go, just waiting for the sun to come up. This truck is getting fixed or blown up today 😏. Thanks D Ray, tons of help man. Appreciate you.
Thanks friend for your help. I have a Chevy Uplander 2007 with over 200,000Klms on it. Still in good shape but every winter I have this problem, more so when the winter is frozen at night and thawing in the daytime. I was told to put Methol Hydrate in the gas tank (same thing as gas line anti-freeze), As soon as I do that it picks up to normal again. I have to keep doing this all winter long. Last year I did clean the throttle intake like you mentioned and that helped for a while. Thanks Rick.
D-Ray, Thanks, Reduced Engine Power just happened on my 2006 Silverado. Replaced the Throttle position sensor, which was a pain because GM used rivets to mount the sensor. Put it all together but did not replace the wire harness and still same problem. Will now replace the wire harness and see what happens. Will advise once done tomorrow. Good Video and explanation Thanks, Bro.
THANK YOU SO MUCH for your video replaced pedal and two throttle bodies only to find your video. I did exactly what you did with plan B method and 9 months of aggravation came to an end thanks
To me that repair is better than the original "crimp" style. A soldered joint is always better. The automated machinery used to make these connectors don't have enough skilled human oversight to assure a quality job. The guys like you don't exist in the factories. Jobs are outsourced to Mexico. The average mechanic would have replaced 100s of dollars worth of parts, and still not fixed it. Excellent job......!
I'm so glad I found this video. I just bought an 05 Sierra 2500HD with the 6.0 cheap because the former owner didn't want to mess with changing the $55 center driveshaft suport bearing. I replaced the bearing today and during my test drive, bam... this happened! I'm hoping it's just a varnished TB, it has 150,000 miles on it so... what do you expect for $500!
Paul Rigard nice buy you got
Thanks for being so selfless. Going through this right now on 03 silverado 1500 HD. I save tons of money because of guys like you. Hope to return the favor to all someday when I find a novel problem and resolution. Grace and Peace of Jesus be with you.
Dude I had this problem 2 years ago on a 2009 Silverado , it was under warranty they replaced the throttle body ( with the sensors ) al was ok , just after an \arthoscopic knee surgery I was limping and so was my truck. I checked the harness and went further and used maf sensor cleaner and wiped the throttle body out ( while installed ) that made things worse. However I didn't realize once you move the butterfly valve the ecm has to recalibrate itself to the throttle position sensor. Since the dealer was the last one to play with that plug and since was two years ago I disregarded it however one wire was loose and I am back on the road like Mad Max on Road Warrior thanks for your tips!!
D-Ray,
Your videos on the 07 Silverado where very well done and informative. You are really good at trouble shooting that and fixing that broken wire on the throttle body connector!
I have a similar problem with my company's 07 Silverado 1500.(Have just a check engine light) Had the truck diagnosed with a 'bad throttle body' and they wanted over $600.00 to replace it. I didn't take the bait!
I am going to check the throttle valve to see if it's clean and give all the wires a 'tug test'.
I'm a kind of do it yourself guy and will follow your lead if I find a loose wire for the fix.
Thanks again and congratulations for your 100th video. It was the first one for me. (I watched parts 1 and 2) and I do look forward to watching your other videos.
D-Ray!!!!!!!!! Thank you . I have had this problem with my 03 since last winter . I knew it was a wiring issue but I had no idea where to start . You led me right to where I needed to be . Thanks bud . Great vid's .
Thanks Ray last night the reduced power alert came on . Wasn't sure what to do haven't diagnosed the ode yet but you have given me some relief. I will let you know the outcome .
D-Ray, Thanks for the video. I have been working with this problem on an 04 Suburban 1500. My problem is at the other end, the Accelerator Pedal Position Sensor. I have replaced the sensor but I keep getting the "Reduced Engine Power" problem. I clear the code but the problem comes back again and again with no obvious common cause. I think I have the problem you demonstrated, intermittent electrical connection. I'm going to give your repair procedure a try, hopefully that will fix the problem.
Cleaned out the throttle body of my 09 Tahoe after it threw the Stablitrak, Traction control, Reduced Engine Power Code. It was fine for a few weeks but then it started actin up again. I may go home and check the wires on the side of the throttle body just like you did here on this video. Thanks for the tip!
Thank you my friend. It was just how you said. The repair worked easier for me because it was actually gummed uo a little due to sitting for extended periods. OUTSTANDING!!!
it is amazing that they still have the exact same problems since they built this engine. I am a retired GM tech who has seen these problems many times.
Just had that issue today with my 2007. as far as i can tell it was the same wire too. Although i had enough wire on the connector side to attach a Butt connector.. but now I cant get the wire loom clip back on (as the Butt is in the way).. Problems for next week tho. B'cause its time to Go!
I was having the reduced engine power problem for awhile and I watched your video and it saved my ass ill be watching a lot more thank you
Minnesota, Jan 8. Just came out of 26 below zero. Had not started 2007 Vortec Max for 5 days. Got the reduced engine, stabilitrac off and other dummy notifications. Will do a couple of D Rays suggestions to try to get out of the driveway, not enough engine to back up. Zero throttle response.
Thanks so much D-Ray. This video really saved me a lot of money. I was literally about to purchase a completely new throttle body!! You are my new best friend!!
My Son has a 03 3/4 ton silverado with a 8.1 V8 and is having the same problem.Thanks for sharing your fix I'm going to try it on his again thanks.
i have a 07 tahoe 5.3 and the light of death ( reduced engine power ) came on.after watching your video im certain i have a great place to start. thank you
GM wiring... I just avoided about $1000 in parts by finding a bad connector! This channel is awesome! Good job Ray, seeing videos like this makes me feel like I should be living down south, yankee ingenuity isn't what it used to be....
Good job Buddy!! You have more patients than me!! I would have just scrapped it and bought Tundra!!☺
GREAT VIDEOS MAN !!!! I had the same issue with my 2001 Corvette at 5am this morning and it turned out it was also the missing contact from one of the wires in the harness going into the throttle body....Thanks for all the work you do. Cheers....Brian
d-ray this video really helped. I'm having the same problem with my 2003 chevy suburban. I've replaced throttle body 3 times already. The diagnostic gives me codes running all the way back to the accelerator pedal. I bet there is a problem in the wire harness to the throttle sensors. I'm not sure I'd be smart enough to fix the wiring, but now I know what to look for. Thanks for your input.
ive also recieved the reduced engine power on the display in my 2007 chevy silverado LT new body. ive had -20 F here in illinois... truck was running fine. no error codes. then after hitting a small snow drift about 10 minutes later i got the light. broke my heart.(lol) ive been researching alot about this. not much info was gathered. but this video is pretty informative thanks! im a "gearhead" like you. so im gonna check wiring, and the connector, etc. If anyone else got this situation on their silverado id like to hear. thanks
We too live in IL and are having the same problem. Hopefully it will warm up enough this weekend to take a look at it. We have code # P1516 and a P2135
I live in Arkansas and our tempature is not that cold. My 03 Z71 has 250,000 on it. It started about 3 months ago. The reduced Engine Power and All. Long story short,,, Two Wires 1/2'' in. off the plug to the Throttle Body were Broken Inside the insulator coating. And it just so happensthat Chevrolet has replacement for 160.00 dollars???????? SEEMS A LOT ARE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM!!! Ordered off the internet for 40.00,,,,, ALL GOOD NOW!!!!!!
D ray this makes a lot of sense.. I’ve got a 3500 that throws reduced engine power.. but it only does it when exceleratong & pulling my trailer when it’s hot &/or humid outside
Been dealing with this for a while now...pull over shut the engine off for a few,restart and go,Well my friend I,m going to give this a whirl.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH !!!
Al Manchester did it work for you?
Great commentary you can get a new pin for about $2.00 ,it’s called a Delphi pin with boot and also clean the MAF sensor 👍
ok Ray i tried this out my '03 tahoe was crapping out and this worked out fine, i had three wires bad, thanks again you are a great teacher. thanks for the share.
thank you i spent 1100.00 fixing other things that auto zone said was wrong. took it to a dealer paid 500.00 plus to fix 1 wire cause i couldn't afford the whole wiring harness. i thought it would be harder to repair i think im going to do this one my self. thank you
Dude! Thank you. I just encountered this today and stressed out. Was told it was gonna be several hundred.
I've been having the same issues with my Chevy cobalt SS supercharged. I'll have to try that when u get back to were i parked it a year ago. The throttle body seemed clean on mine as well. Thanks for the video.
We fixed our 2003 Suburban "REDUCED ENGINE POWER" problem by simply repairing a ground on the wiring harness. It wasn't the main ground or the one under the driver's side door either. My mechanic said it was a 20 guage wire in back of the engine. Sorry I can't be more specific. He wiggled the harness at the passenger side back of the engine and was able to completely kill the motor. So he started there and found the loose ground. And praise God for answered prayer, the problem is completely gone. No more hesitation over bumps etc.
Great information. My duramax diesel is reading reduced engine power while pulling my RV. I did turned my car off and it did reset, was able to get to camping designation. I am in the OBX camping, and hopefully I can get back to Virginia, 2 hour drive to get my Chevy Silverado in the garage. I am not mechanically knowledgeable so will be at the mercy of some dealership
That was slick buddy, I like how you are willing to fix things yourself!! Thanks for this video man!
Good stuff, i have the same issue with my 2011 Chevy Impala LT, got a check engine light "Reduced Engine Power". Hopefully the Chevy Service Center will find the answer the same way D-Ray found the answer to his truck.
Now I have hope….2008 GMC Sierra Denali with reduced engine power. Replaced the TB and after a year it happened again. I can give this a try!!! Thanks for the videos !!!
my sons 2003 Sierra started throwing the P1516 code, we are going to clean the throttle body and inspect the wiring harness. As for your fix on the broken wire, I would take that over the harness repair kit and 8 new splices that can cause problems down the road!
DRAY IS THE MAN! ONE DAY I AM GOING TO STOP AND SEE HIM AND BRING HIM A CASE OF BEER. HONDA 300'S CHEVY SILVERADOS......HE IS SO GOOD AT FINDING AND TEACHING THIS STUFF! DRAY SAVES THE DAY AGAIN!
Thanks Ray- that did the problem.. i had to go to the dealer and purchase the harness, but it works fine now..the connection did cost just under $200. but it was worth it..
For my gmc savana 2008 i ended up buying a. Diagnostic computer just to clear the codes and keep going i did this now it runs good THANK YOU
Excellent Video. I have a 2007 Buick Lucenre CX with the 3.8L V6 engine and recently three times I've had the "engine has reduced power" message come on. My mechanic had fixed this problem before and it was usually a bad throttle body, which he replaced at close to $500 bucks. This solved the problem for about a month and it came back again. This time my mechanic changed the "accelerator sensors" and that solved the problem, but again in about a month the goddamned, fucking, bitching "engine has reduced power" message came back, much to my dismay. The Lucerne only has 62000 miles on it and I just can't afford to buy a new car and used cars are usually somebody else''s problem. So I looked on google and saw this video and it makes a lot of sense, the problem being the wire harness to the throttle body having a bad wire. This being a $180 part, which isn't cheap but certainly beats buying another vehicle. so I've made an appointment with a different mechanic that used to work on my cars but has moved to a different garage. The mechanic who has been working told me after he put in the new accelerator sensors that "it could be a wire harness problem but that would involve taking the dashboard apart and could cost me a $1000! He suggested I get another car!" When I saw this video I thought changing a $180 dollar part couldn't possibly cost a grand and sure beat buying a new car. So, I'll tell the other mechanic tomorrow and see what happens.
I like your southern accent and I think you may have pinpointed the problem. I won't be getting any GM Products anymore. When I was a kid, buying a GM car like a Buick, Oldsmobile, or even a Chevy meant you were getting a piece of the rock. My next vehicle will be a Toyota Camry or Honda Accord, companies who know how to properly manufacture a car, unlike GM.
Similar thing happened on my 2003 Suburban. The gas guage and oil pressure guage have been acting up. This all started after my local garage re-sealed my intake manifold last fall. It was $800+. They also supposedly repaired the oil pressure sensor but it only worked for a week. At least when they call me tomorrow to tell me what is wrong, I will know what some of the components are. Thx!
thanks I will try your technique. my 07 gmc is intermittent, i can turn off then restart and it goes away. I hope it is a poor connection that i can fix. video well done and clear.
Mr. Ur info is worth lots of money,, n d way u explain d problems n show how to fix d problems it's incredible ,, u r a genius ,, ty..
This an old video but I finally fix my engine reduced power.. after changing gas pedal sensor, throttle body, map sensor, maf sensor all my problem was, was the throttle body plug.. wow.. thanks dude great video.. wish I could’ve been cane across this video 3weeks ago I would’ve save $360
Right i have A Hummer 2007 h3 and it was doing the same thing!! is was the plug lol i was like wow i saved myself 450 dollars thank you jesus for your video and why is there not a recall for this?? so sad GM!!
I've had a similar problem with my cobalt, definitely will look into it next time I'm in the garage. However I need to get the replacement engine into the vehicle before I can go on the test drive
THANK YOU! I'll have to run through the grounds, throttle plate, and this harness before I know which it is (I'm at 237,000 miles), but I LOVE your harness fix. $180 is absurd!
Mr.D'Ray" I just came across ur chanel and I highly appreciate ur knowledge Sir!.My Respect to u sir"
From Compton Southern California"
180$ and this is related to a recall... Bullshit!! Shame on you GM.. I upset and my truck is still messed up.. thank you for sharing this post.. Robert Jr NJ here
Great video, my 09 Sierra is currently at GM (2nd gm dealership ill add) with the same issue and they cant figure out the issue. They finally think its the battery cables so hopefully thats the issue. If not, i'm going to try your diagnostic methods and hopefully find the root of the problem (already had ABS, ECM and some other module replaced and its still not fixed. luckily the dealership owner is a good friend)
Extremely detail and clear video! Can't wait to check your instructions to solve my Reduced Power issue! Thanks for your time!
awesome video.
in my case so far, i have the reduced engine power happen, so i pull to side of road, turn off truck, pop hood, disconnect maf wire harness, blow on harness pins to discharge them, plug it back in and start it up.
when i bought the truck used, i didnt get 5 mins down the road and it did this. ended up staying at hotel in different city, going limp mode most of the way, until i realized after the 3rd time of pulling over on the interstate, and doing that routine, it had driven farther than 5 mins.
the maf wiring harness was shorting out to the hood inside when it was fully closed, i forgot to latch the hood securly and thats how i found out.
upon further inspection some time later, i discovered the ground pin for the maf was bent to the side, and wasnt going into the harness connector.
problem solved, for the moment.
now its back to the same routine, but now i am suspecting the connector at the tps.
i have literally rebuilt this 2003 Denali xl, first the maf, then all new brake lines, fuel pump, starter, pcm ground, all new grounds and now it runs, but take off is slow as snails, and it,wont shift into OD.
never had trans issues before, discovered ground strap to engine not secured, so this video leads me to the wiring harness on the tps.
it has been replaced before with the throttle body when the previous owner had it.
im hoping my long winded comment helps someone in need.
btw, if you get in your ride, and it has no crank, no start, check the ground wire for the pcm on passenger side of the rear engine valve cover bolt.
mine was completely wasted, i pulled it off and relocated it to the firewall mounting points above the driver side valve cover, where the engine ground strap should go.
and sure to check the pcm fuses in the fusebox under the hood after you reground the pcm wire, in my case, i had no clue, thought the fuel pump died, but nothing was working.
bad pcm ground, and blown fuse cost me a tow home and countless hours of frustration.
Found your videos to be very helpful thank you! I have a 2003 Chevrolet Tahoe & the Rep appears only in the summer here in Michigan not in the winter...it started last summer but now I know what to look for once I have it apart! Thanks again
I have the same problem where I get the reduced engine power like this the engine power light and the truck will hardly run but it's really random. I'll check this out to see if this might be my problem.
I just ordered a code reader from amazon to find out why i have reduced engine power and lugging when kicked down on my 2002 trailblazer. now i will jump out there and give the old tug test. Thanks,
This was very informative. I have a 2005 Chevy Avalanche which has the same problem. When it was under a warranty the dealer replaced the throttle body and also some sensor in the foot pedal and it didn't solve. I showed them the GM TSB issue on this and they replaced the cable and it worked fine for a few months. It is now doing it very frequently, Could the cable have gone bad that quick? The truck seems to loose some power/torque not long before it triggers light and power actually reduced.
D-ray also have a challenge for you find a good sounding exhaust for the 6.0 that sounds like it actually has back pressure. Because the exhaust that i have heard sound good in optimal rpm range.
Thank you very much man this video was really amazing thanks 🙏
Thanks for the info, it was great. I had my first...and I hope only, "reduced engine power" today on the freeway....thanks for the post
Right On my man i had the same issue my truck is running perfect and now i can take my quads up to Payson without any worries
I have a 200 firebird 3.8. I have the same problem. It seems to have reduced engine power when its cold. I have to let it warm up before it wil run down the road. Im gonna check the wires as well and see if this is my problem. Thanks for the video.
Very informative video. Just an FYI since you helped me. You can find parts for cheap and new on Ebay. I can get that pigtail on Ebay for $7.50 !!
Thanks man, I believe that may be my problem because I have a 2010 gmc sierra that does the same thing and I get p0641 code for a 5 volt reference code and was advised by autozone to check my engine wiring harness
Nice fix, I'm sure many would miss that wire being loose.
Thanks for this helpful and reliable video D-ray! I just saved a big amount of money following your simple yet effective way of fixing it. Keep it up, dude!
Excellent video presentation. 100th video= first class
Hey! Great video! Thanks! I just replaced the MAF and the throttle body 😪.......I wish I had found this first....easy quick replacements...but still. 😆
Dear Mr. D'Ray, I have a 2003 chevy suburban 1500. Lately my "reduced engine power light has gone on, not enabling me to go more than 20-25 mph. It turned out that after a friend hooked it up to a code machine, we saw that one of the cylinders was misfiring and low compression. We tracked it back to a mechanic who didn't tighten the same cylinder spark plug a year ago. It looks like I have to get a head job done or maybe another engine. BUT, for the next 30 days, is there a way for me to disconnect something so the warning doesn't come on?. Keep in mind that I only drive this vehicle(186,000miles) locally and do not exceed 35-40 mph..
Thanks for part 1 and 2!! I am motivated to try this myself.
Enjoyed the video. Very well done. Appreciated the"plan B" repair. That's kinda the way I roll too in these types of situations. Thanks!
Great Job Guy. Keep it up. I have a same problem on my GMC youkon 2003. I will tackle the problem on Monday or Tuesday.
Thanks again
Thanks so much for this video it solved my problem and saved me $180.00.
Perfect! I finally understand the "tug test". Thank you Donald.
Thanks your intelligence at a common sense view is perfect..
Thanx for the good help I am having the same issue but it is intermittently. Another thing I noticed on your truck is that your oil presure sitting around 40lbs my is Polly about 5 lbs under at idle what is it supposed to be at?
Great video..not sure if this is my problem though...I have a 2007 Chevy trailblazer.on the highway yesterday I tried to accelerate , engine revved to about 3000 rpm but engine took a long time to respond... it did eventually speed up to 70mph...but took longer than usual... any suggestions...similar happened to my wifes car and it was the catalytic converter..
I believe this may be what I'm going through. I have a 2004 Silverado 2500 and my connector on my maf has a slight detachment. I've had this reduced engine power alert come up a few times over the last few weeks. Hopefully this fixes it
Definitely not plan b fix lol. This is how we professionally fix these connectors at the dealer, D-Ray.
Only difference is we add a new crimp and There is a tool to crimp that connector. Great fix
Great video sir, I had the same problem your three steps of diagnoses were spot on I was fixed in half an hour!
Thanks! I just experienced this problem. Car stalled, said "Reduced Power", "Engine Disabled", and would not start. Sat for 5 min, and restarted ok. I'll know where to start to try to fix.
Awsome, like how you looked at simple thing (tug test) before diving into the job
Good video, but couldn't you buy just a Terminal through Waytech or terminal supply co.
You probably just saved me a ton of money ....thanks for sharing your knowledge
Best video on youtube i had this problems for over half a year already i jad to buy a new throttle body new electrical pedal and a new computer
I'm all for MacGvyer fixes. Got a 2007 Yukon 5.3L that is stalling. Thx for the possible remedies. Thx. I liked & subscribed.
Thanks for the help. If I have to replace the TPS, do I have to get anything reprogramed. My 2003 Silverado 1500 just went into Reduced Engine Power. I am like you, I will always try plan B, before I buy an expensive part.
Just wondering why the check engine light stayed on. Is it just because it had not been reset or are there other problems.
I have an 04 silverado that had thr REP codes, It was an issue with the CPM under the hood not getting a good ground to the housing, I ended up running a ground to it, no more problems.
I don't know if it is the same, but the one for my '07 was 88986255. It's kinda pricey, that's why I repaired my old one.