1987 Reliant LE speed sensor question(s)

[Bootski]

Hi. I'm a new member and was hoping I could pick someone's brain regarding this sensor. It's a 2.5, TBI, automatic 3 speed.. It brought up a code 34 for awhile and was starting to bog down, (thinking that it wants to maybe stall but doesn't), when I would slow the car to stop or turn a corner. And this would happen only if I drove it faster than 60 k/ph. It would run rough after stopping, but noticeably better in neutral. I came across something on allpar similar to my problem, and wanted to see what others had to say. I haven't had the car long, but want to keep it as it's grown on me. I've replaced spark plugs, cap/rotor, rad cap (which made a huge difference to it running rough and thought the problem was fixed), fuel filter (massive difference in fuel consumption), and air filter.
I don't know the history on the car. I bought it from a wrecker who said he knew the guy who owned it who only gave it up because he was getting to old to drive. One mechanic who put in the shocks that blew up, said the shocks looked like the originals. And overall thought the car was in good shape. He said the motor didn't move at all while running (?) I would like to do as much work myself as possible within my limitations. Meaning I'm not a mechanic, but not an idiot either.
Thanks for any idears,
Christine.

[Butch]

Code 34 is not for a sensor, it's for the cruise control solenoid....http://minimopar.knizefamily.net/fault/code34.html A spd sensor could be cause your stall problem but would have a differant code.

[dc8flyer]

First, I'm not a mechanic.

My 1987 Dodge 600, 2.5L had similar issues. While the codes are interesting they don't always tell you the true source of the problem. I also had a code 34 but there wasn't anything wrong with my cruise control, other than the brake switch was too close to the brake pedal resulting in the cruise control disengaging. It seems the true source of a problem can be masked by other sensors that are affected by the real source of the problem.

Your problem sounds familiar and it turned out to be my Throttle Position Sensor (TPS) as well as the connector to the TPS. I also ended up replacing the speed/distance sensor on the transmission.

Problems were solved.

[Jacks1986Lebaron]

Speed/Distance Sensor Failure--fault code 15
This is probably the second-most common failure. The symptoms for this are usually stalling when coming to a stop. This condition is often associated with a fault code 15, but the sensor can become intermittent and cause idle problems without triggering the fault code. The computer uses the speed/distance sensor to determine the vehicle's speed. As you decelerate, the computer closes the AIS bypass. As the vehicle comes to a stop, it opens it again to maintain the idle speed. This is especially important for vehicles equipped with an automatic transmission because the transmission loads the engine while in gear. Without valid data from the sensor, the ECU does not know when the vehicle is stopping and often cannot open the AIS bypass fast enough to keep the engine from stalling. The only way to solve the problem is to replace the sensor. Be sure to check the wiring first, though. Occasionally, the connector on the sensor itself gets oily and comes loose.