well first off let me introduce myself, i'm Josh.
hello ZUKIWORLD!!!!!
 

ive been a lurker here for a while but i figured it was time to be a part of the community.
i need some technical advice/help/explanation with my zuk.
ive got a 97 sidekick sport 4 door 1.8

i need a new cat & went to the local muffler shop & got it installed & my check engine lights been on for a while & he offered to  check it out.

from what the computer-thing said theres something wrong with my shift solenoid
something wrong with my throttle body sensor
& something wrong with either my maf or my o2 sensor

first off what does the shift solenoid do?
is it something i can fix?

how would i check the throttle body sensor?

& how do i check if its the o2 or maf?


but you probably need some more info on the car
the bad things with the car:
the car hadnt been on the streets in about a year, it was still used occasionally but never in the city much less on freeway

the care sometimes doesnt want to shift

sometimes it stalls when not moving

sometimes it just stops accelarating 

sometimes when i hit the gas hard it doesnt really do anything, no reving no increse in speed just nothing



help?

i love this car. im contantly comparing other cars i drive to mine. i want the car to live as long as i do & i need some help.

any help/advice/tips anything would be really appreciated

thanks in advance,

Josh

The shift solenoid pretty much makes your transmission shift, well in simple terms.      Throttle position sensor, tells the computer the throttle opening position, and the computer then tells the motor what to do pretty much. 

the MAF and O2, well there is a test procedure for the O2, but I dont know the procedure for a suzuki.

thanks bob.

anyone here know the test procedure?

Clear the codes, and drive it, but it sounds like the the TPS
could be bad or the MAF, the O2 is going to tell the computer
things are too rich, and the that code could be from the bad
Cat

Wild

The shift solenoid problem is probably what is causing the odd shifting and stalling.
1.8s don't have throttle bodies (they are MPFI), so I am guessing you are meaning throttle position sensor (TPS).
It could be that the TPS is not adjusted correctly.  It will throw a code, if it is out of spec.  Check/adjust the TPS and clear the codes and see if it come back.  A bad or misadjusted TPS can cause weird running issues.
There are procedures to check the O2 and MAF sensors.....I am not sure if any are online anywhere or not....probably so, but I don't know where offhand....let me see if I can find something....

Take a look at this site.
http://kick-fix.com/
It can be kinda hard to read, in places, but overall pretty good info.  You can spend hours, if not days or weeks, reading through all the stuff on there.

ok
updates.

i went & got the codes cleared. turned the car off. turned on check engine light is off. take a quick drive, as soon as i pull out the light goes back on & starts acting up again.

except that i didnt think to get the codes from him. damn.

i forgot to add something earlier, before i had the new cat installed i knew the old one was bad so i took it off & the car drove, it still stalled occasionally & would over/under rev but otherwise worked.

anyways.
im not a mechanical genius,  but i know my way around a car

is there a specific way to adjust the tps on a sidekick?

& if it was the shift solenoid how would i verify this?


maybe i should go back & get the specific codes, would that be more help to me?

I"d say get the codes pulled the next time it happens, and see what they say.  if your shift solenoid is bad, just replace it.

If you go to an auto parts store they usually have an ODBC II scanner you can borrow to scan the card for codes.

Yes, there is a specific procedure for adjusting the TPS.  It might tell you how in that link I posted earlier.