Q: Won't stay running

Hello and thank you for your question. It seems to be the transmission that is causing the engine to stall out when you are putting the vehicle into drive. The transmission could have a converter clutch lock up issue causing it too to engage when the vehicle is not moving. When holding on the brakes, this is similar to having a manual transmission and dropping the clutch, (the engine will then stall out). Check the transmission harness for looseness and any corrosion. If the harness is okay, then the converter clutch solenoid could be shorted.

Find the fuse in the vehicle that is for the converter clutch, it should be labeled (cc) and remove it. Start up the vehicle and put it into gear. If the engine is at normal conditions, then the converter clutch solenoid has failed and needs to be replaced. If the engine continues to stall out, then it could be a gear being engaged from forward and reverse at the same time in the transmission. To test this, unplug the harness from the transmission and try driving the vehicle around. If the vehicle drives fine, then the transmission has a clutch pack engagement problem. If you need assistance with troubleshooting your vehicle and finding the cause of the stalling issue, then seek out a professional, preferably a professional from YourMechanic to assist you.