car does not run good, can anyone help

stang_93 · 02-03-2003

i have a 93 mustang with a 2.3L 4 cylinder. what my problem is, is when i take off from a stop my car is cutting out not running right. but when i floor it it will clear up and run fine. the car runs better at speeds faster than 65 but worse 55-60. i was thinking it was maybe timing or my o2 sensor, but i might be wrong. another guy at work said it might be fuel pump. what do you guys think it may be. please let me know. thanx

Fordgazm · 02-03-2003

When was the last time you had a tune up ? Have you checked for all vaccum leaks? When you say cutting out do you mean it is missing? Need some more info

stang_93 · 02-04-2003

um the last time for a tune up was about 6 months ago, i changed plugs and wires. when i say cutting out i do mean missing. i did change the fuel filter today and it seemed to help some but not completly. the car does have 160,000 miles on it too. what kinda of vacuum leaks should i look for, what would be like a main one to look for.

Fordgazm · 02-04-2003

Theres not really a main one to check. But it would'nt hurt to give them all a good lookin over look for cracks, breaks, and any dry rotten lines. Does your check engine light come on when it acts up or any time for that matter ? You said you changed the plugs and wires, but you did'nt say anything about a cap or rotor. If theese have not been changed for awhile they should be checked out too. Another thing you can do is check to be sure that your wires are securely pushed all the way onto the cap and the plug. Also look under the hood at night, while it is running ,with no lights on around you, and see if you see any arcking or stray voltage. If this is the problem you will see a blue spark where you should'nt. Check theese things out and let us know what you find out.

Mana4Real · 02-05-2003

Also a vacuum leak can feel like a miss at idle. But when you give it gas it clears up more... Sounds like a vacuum leak to me. Try just listening around for a hiss underneath the hood.

JUSTNLX · 02-05-2003

A 93 2.3L is distributor-less. Which means no cap and rotor

Check for codes. The ignition module is a pain on these Mustangs. If it goes out, or fails some how, the computor will go into fail safe and run half way decent. This is so you could get it off the highway

Check for codes!

Fordgazm · 02-05-2003

sorry !!

JUSTNLX · 02-05-2003

No need to be sorry! You had good advise.

My 91 2.3L had this problem before I swapped a 5.0 into her, but you should always check your codes first

stang_93 · 02-05-2003

the check engine light has been on since i bought the car and i had it checked and the codes it brought up were the O2 sensor, map sensor, and the eec relay i think. but even with those codes that came up the car was running fine. i will check for any stray voltage tonite.

Justin, you were talking about the ignition module. what do you mean by 'fail safe' on the comp. does that mean that if the ignition module goes out the car will still run, but run like crap?

also one other thing i forgot to say too, i do get a small backfire through the intake. does this maybe sound like timing to you guys?

stang2_3 · 02-05-2003

My car did that too, it may be the ignition module. I changed mine with a new one and it worked just fine after that. Mine is a 91

JUSTNLX · 02-05-2003

Quote:

Originally posted by stang_93
Justin, you were talking about the ignition module. what do you mean by 'fail safe' on the comp. does that mean that if the ignition module goes out the car will still run, but run like crap?

Something like that. It could fail completely

Quote:

Originally posted by stang_93
also one other thing i forgot to say too, i do get a small backfire through the intake. does this maybe sound like timing to you guys?

Check to see if plug wires are in the correct order on the coils and the plugs. Also check to see if the timing belt has jumped a tooth or so. Align the crank pully on top dead center (0deg), pull the inspection plug on the timing cover to see if the cam arrows line up with the mark on the cover. If not rotate crank 360 deg and check again. If not still, you have a jumped belt

Mana4Real · 02-05-2003

Ignition modules ussually function, or don't function.

stang_93 · 02-05-2003

i am having the ignition module tested tomarow and see if that is the problem. i am hopeing it is but really im not, only because of the price of that damn little part. $94.99 for it. i will let you know how it turns out. if that is the problem, i want to thank you guys for helping me.