I have read several posts about this problem, sorry to introduce the topic again... but I need help!

Very randomly, the car would just lose power and shut down while driving. It seemed to happen only at slower speeds/city driving. Happens both while I am accelerating as well as coasting. After waiting a minute or two, car would start back up and run fine. Yesterday, it was running very poorly. During the 5 mile trip to my mechanic, it stalled 5-6 times. They replaced the oxygen sensor, plugs, wires, cap & rotor (and a brake light bulb!). Car seemed to be running fine. This morning, it stalled again. Same type of stall as previous. Started back up after waiting a minute and drove fine the rest of the day (city, highway, traffic jam). I am going to return to the mechanic this afternoon for further diagnosis, but would really appreciate some additional input.

My exhaust system is in rough shape. Pipe between rear and center muffler is cracked. Could the poor exhaust (next on my list of things to fix - after I pay my rent!) be the cause of this problem? Poor exhaust leads to loss of power, correct? Mechanic said that if the catalytic converter is very clogged, it could result in this - but after inspecting the car, determined oxygen sensor and tune-up was the problem.

Thanks for reading all of the above... I greatly appreciate any help you can give me.

JessPear@aol.com