I just purchased this vehicle. It has the 3.0 liter engine and 139,000 miles. It is not overpowered by any means and sometimes when you step down and it should downshift it does. Other times you can go to the floor and it will not downshift. The other day I was climbing a steep hill and it would not downshift, just kept loosing rpms. I pulled the lever to low and instead of downshifting it acted like the engine was stalling out. Thought I was going to have to have the wife push it up the hill. No warning lights are on. Any ideas.

P0308 - # 8 cylinder misfire . Coil or burnt driver inside the PCM . Your vehicle has coil on plug ignition system ,that means your vehicle has 8 coil's .

C1963 Stability Control Inhibit Warning

Carlos, this code means that the fuel mixture is to lean during "off idle" [aka just above idle] operating conditions. Proper diagnosis requires a high amount of skill, experience and a real computer scan tool, not just a code reader. That said, the most common causes of this code are either bad oxygen sensor(s) or a bad MAF [Mass Air Flow] sensor. Once a vehicle gets above 70,000 miles on the odometer, the oxygen sensors start to slow down and fail. Often this happens without setting a fault code for a bad sensor. If your car has 100,000 miles or more on it, change the sensors regardless. Replacement of the oxygens sensors will improve your fuel mileage. Another common cause of this code is a vacuum leak.
PS In the future, always state the engine size for your car, as it came with either a 2.0 or 2.3 liter engine.

This sounds like a bad connection, the problem is where, i have seen the wiring harness that goes over the transmission rub into wiring and cause engine to shut down and then restart again and run until the right movement is made to shut down again.

Try starting the car and do the wiggle test, start grabing wiring and moving around and see if engine dies out.

Generally after about 100k miles more and more parts on vehicles need replaced. A PCV box could need replaced due to it getting clogged with sludge from your engine crankcase.

The PCV releases the blowby gases that build up in the crankcase. It is a vital part to any newer engine.

Most overhead valve engines have a belt. You need to get your engine size, make, model and year and call your local parts house and they can tell you this for sure.

Sometimes this happens with a lot of vehicles, it probably means nothing, i have a 1985 toyota p\u has 430,000 miles on it engine light has been on for four years, still runs great...

I hope your friend put some gas stabilizer in the tank before he store the car.

I will put one bottle of ISO-HEET (red bottle) to the fuel tank + fill-up and let it run down to 1/3 tank.

Fuel up with a full tank Chevron gas for one more pass.

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You should get 21 city / 26 highway on the PT 2.4 Liter engine.

take 2 miles off if it's an automatic.

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Forget an expensive purchase 500 miles away. Are you going there to check it out. Get the VIN # and run it at any GM Dealer and you will know more than it's current owner

Its the crank sensor. There was a recall a few years back for 2001 8.1 liter engines crank sensor. Engine would shut off perodically and sometimes would not restart untill cool. Plus it just happened to mine. about a 350 dollar dealer fix.

how much oil is loosing? a lot or just a little be? because belive it or not a little oil losse is normal on engines but not a lot.