Hi, all!

Before I go see my mechanic, I'm trying to figure out what's the problem with my lovely 242 so I can at least explain it properly to him.

Beginning a few months ago, when I started it up in the morning, it would idle fine, go fine for the first block or so, and then... I don't know how to describe it. It wouldn't stall (the engine would keep running fine) but it would slow way down, no matter how much gas I was giving, and then it would "lurch" ahead, and be fine. It seemed to only do this in the morning, when it was cold. After work, it didn't have a problem.

Since it's more than twenty years old, I'm used to it having a few quirks, so I didn't pay it very much attention. D'oh.

A few days ago, it started doing the "lurching" thing in the evening, too. Now it's having trouble coming out of a stop. If I brake for a light, it doesn't want to move until I give it an outrageous amount of gas, and then it "lurches". However, once I'm running, it's fine, and the engine purrs along.

Any ideas anyone has would be wonderful! I'm sorry this is so convoluted, and I'd love any help you can give me in turning it into a more logical explanation so I can tell my mechanic what's wrong.

Thank you!