1995 Mustang GT hard start problems - ignition related
So I just bought a 1995 Mustang GT convertible a couple of weeks ago and it is driving me up a wall! The car has a bit of a hard time starting in the mornings, it cranks for a minute then will finally catch, recently it has been getting harder and harder to start, and sometimes will die out while driving. I was able to check and saw that I was not getting any spark, so I went and replaced the coil and the Ignition Control Module(mounted on the firewall under the air box.) It all seemed fine and dandy today, but coming home tonight, I had very similar problems as before, very hard to start, and as I was driving the car would randomly just stop running.
Any ideas/solutions? I think really the only thing left to replace in the ignition system is the distributor. Has new cap and rotor, and new plugs, original wires. Could it be a fuel problem as well?
start with the cheap stuff first, cap rotor and battery. alternator may not be charging.
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DSS 331 stroker, AFR 185 heads, Performer rpm 2 intake, Accufab 75 mm race TB, 30lb injectors, 80 mm Pro-M mass air, Extreme energy cam 266.
Anderson ford power pipe the big one, Ford motor sport shorty headers, Bassani x pipe custom cat back with flows, World class T5, center force duel friction clutch.
When you say hard to start, do you mean the engine cranks and spins ok but it won't fire up and run? Or do you mean the engine turns over slowly like a low battery then eventually fires up?
So after you replaced the coil and module do you have spark all the time? If so it sounds like a fuel problem, maybe a clogged filter or weak fuel pump.
The motor spins nice and strong, so I assume the battery and the alternator are okay. It just takes a second or two or cranking for the motor to fire up. Mustang helper, all the above parts have been changed, the only thing that is still there are the wires.
90GT, I do not know if I have spark all the time, I have not been able to check it since replaced, it worked just fine for a bit, then it started acting up again. I have not had someone there to assist me when I had a problem with it to see if it was indeed getting spark. If I am still having problems with the ignition, I think my next step would be to change the magnetic p/u in the distributor, or getting a new one completely.
If I am getting spark my best guess would be fuel, starting off with the fuel filter, then checking pressure to see if my pump is still running strong. Does this seem like a logical course of action?
If I am getting spark my best guess would be fuel, starting off with the fuel filter, then checking pressure to see if my pump is still running strong. Does this seem like a logical course of action?
Yes that would be the next step.
Fords are known for bad grounding problems, so make sure you have clean and solid ground contacts. I have a Ford van that gave me all sorts of igintion problems, took it to 3 shops and no one could find the problem. So a few days later I changed the battery ground wire and all my problems went away.
Okay, so I have a new developement...it did it to me again last night, but this time I was ready!! When I tried to start it, my tach was not moving, so I am guessing no spark. So I'm thinkin its time to change the pick-up in the distributor, or the distributor itself. How hard is it to take the dist. apart and replace the pick-up?
How hard is it to take the dist. apart and replace the pick-up?
Good catch!
From what I understand, it's somewhat tricky, as there are quite a few parts in the dizzy, and plenty of opportunities to put something in backwards, or in the wrong order.
If you are confidant in your mechanical abilities, and have some experience working on cars, go for it.
If money isn't much of a problem, simply get a new/rebuilt dizzy, and drop it in - it's probably not a whole lot more expensive.
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1992 Deep Emerald Green Mustang GT Hatch, 5 speed, 2.73s, Mac fenderwell cold air intake, '93 Cobra MAF, Mac 70mm throttle body & spacer, Explorer intakes, Mac unequal headers & offroad pipe, Magnaflow catback, Walbro 110lph fuel pump, Jet adjustable FPR, MSD Blaster coil, Accel 8mm wires, FRPP aluminum quadrant, UPR firewall adjuster, stock cable, Granatelli upper control arms.
Waiting to go on: Granatelli lower control arms, and GT40 Iron heads!
Well I am having the same problems, and i changed the dizzy, and it did not change anything, it still does exactly what your car does, and it is a spark problem. An easy way to check it, is to use an old spark plug, and plug it into the coil wire that goes to the top of the dizzy.Then crank it, if there is no spark then its a spark problem like mine, I have been calling eveywhere that i can to find out the problem, and no one knows what it is.I am going to call ford as soon as I get a chance, mabe you should do the same and find out what ford knows about the problem, mabe its a problem that a lot of the mustangs our year have had that they know how to fix the problem. Well good luck man and get back to us if you find out anything.later.
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95 mustang gt, powerdyne supercharger, 6psi, intercooler, H-pipe, cobra r rims, cold air intake, 255 fuel pump.378hp, 412lbtwq.
Ok, any idea of which grounds to start looking at? I can give that a shot this weekend as well.
Battery Cable Ground, ground strap from engine to firewall, coil and distibutor ground, etc.
Even if the battery ground "looks" okay, disconnect it from the engine block and make sure both conncetion points are clean. Also I've seen battery ground cables that look okay from the outside but were all coroded inside.
Are you still having problems with it? Have you changed ignition parts? If so what? If you changed the distributor, and the car feels like it kinda wants to start, but won't, you might have it 180* off, done that one before. Let me know what you changed, and what problem you are having still...
Well, I changed the dizzy, the ignition control module, the coil, the plugs the wires, the ground wires, the fuel system, and checked all the wiring. I finally got a check engine light to come on, so I am going to see if it is giving off any codes.If you have any ideas as to what it could be, let me know.
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95 mustang gt, powerdyne supercharger, 6psi, intercooler, H-pipe, cobra r rims, cold air intake, 255 fuel pump.378hp, 412lbtwq.
another thing it could be is your timing is really advanced, i had the same prob wiht my 87 turns out eh timing was at 30degres put it down to 10 and was very easy to start
1995 Mustang GT hard start problems - ignition related 
