new guy

[falcon08]

hi everyone , just purchased a 2001 cougar for my ungreatful step son its had a problem ever since we got it ,i just changed the fuel filter and now its much werse it won`t even idol just bounces from 2500rpm to nothing should i now be thinking fuel pump??

[thearrow]

This sounds like a similar problem experienced by someone in Queensland a little while ago and they went down the fuel pump road with no success. It may be the best solution is to take it to a Fraud dealer and see if they can fix it. I am not convinced that the problem will be that obvious as there are a lot of electronics involved in the engine management system and more than likely that is where the fault will be.

A good repairer will be able to put your car on a engine anylyser and if there is a fault will get the codes showing the problem.

Good luck with it and let us know what happens.

[REDDYZ]

I would check all vaccum hoses around the engine to see if any of them are off or broken. These vaccum hoses makes engine run rough, stall or sudden surge in power. Unplug IACV valve wire and see if it makes any difference. If it is stuck open then it something like this will happen. It wont idle and just stalls. Its a good idea to check sensors that can be easily accessible like cam shaft sensor, knock sensor etc and make sure they are plugged in. If you think all these are in tact then take it to a good mechanic who is good at fault finding without guessing or spending too much just replacing unnecessary parts.

[falcon08]

thanks for all the advice , i have sort of figured out some of this problem i put half a tank of 98 octane fuel +a bottle of octane boost in the car its running better now , i think i have a fuel pick up problem below 1/4 of a tank or the gauge is faulty and isn`t accurate anymore and the last 80km fuel mileage is now the empty mark, btw i will never take my car to a ford dealer to get anything done to it thanks to the incompetence of rex gorrels and my two v8`s i`ve had .

[thearrow]

OK you are getting somewhere at least. i would still find a good mechanic and get your engine anylysed and see what codes you get and then you will have a better idea about what is going on. if the octane boos has helped it could even be something like blocked injectors.

[falcon08]

yep i will do just that when funds allow , i`m sort of hoping its something simple like that because if its not it could be that the cars had an accident and they have changed the fuel tank but not the fuel pick up hoses in the tank which might be still bent considering its got a rattle in the rear bumper from a broken clip??

[Dshibi]

Mine did that to me the other week... Just died on the motorway as soon as the fuel warning hit 80. Of course, it's easy to say don't let the fuel get that low, but when you've been relying on the technology for over 5 years it's a bit hard not to!

Welcome to the club tho falcon08 (or your stepson), hope you get the issue sorted. I send mine to Ford for all its problems, my dealer's great and they know the car inside out from the issues I've had over the years - because when they come up, they're not usually 'easy fixes'.

Cheers,

Dan

Originally Posted by falcon08

thanks for all the advice , i have sort of figured out some of this problem i put half a tank of 98 octane fuel +a bottle of octane boost in the car its running better now , i think i have a fuel pick up problem below 1/4 of a tank or the gauge is faulty and isn`t accurate anymore and the last 80km fuel mileage is now the empty mark, btw i will never take my car to a ford dealer to get anything done to it thanks to the incompetence of rex gorrels and my two v8`s i`ve had .

[thearrow]

Haven't seen you in here for a while Dan soooo what was the problem with your Cat???

[Dshibi]

Hey Dave,

Yeah, I haven't been here for a while - been so busy with other things and it doesn't look like it's going to stop any time soon. Hardly get any time to truly appreciate my car much these days - except everyday I get to drive it! haha.

The other day on the M7 on my way to work the fuel gauge hit the 40km to empty mark and the car pretty much died. Lost drive. I could give it gas but it was as though I was speed restricted. Not a good thing on a motorway, so I pulled over. Tried many restarts and couldn't get the car to go much faster than 30kmh. If I changed to 2nd gear, the car would stall. No idea what it was - completely adamant it wasn't fuel, I called up Sinclair Ford and they suggested limping it there, or worst case, get it towed.

Ended up going the tow option and they took it for a spin, came back, took it for another spin, gave me back my keys. The service manager put 15L of fuel in the car and she was fine again. Appears the fuel gauge, or the DTE readout isn't accurate anymore.

I dont' usually let my fuel get so low, but I was waiting for the 'cheap day' and yep, that's what I get for it!

Aside from that incident though the car's still great and going strong!

How's everyone else?

Dan