this truck starts up fine and is all good until it idles itself up to 2500 rpm until i unplug the choke and it idles down to 600 rpm and will eventually die. when you take off and drive it dies and after a minute. and when you give any gas it sputters it has a 5 speed with a 5.8 liter. i was thinking it was a ignition problem or fuel problem idk though. please help thanks.

 

97 and choke doesn't compute... 87 with the carb'd 5.8?

 

its an electric choke. but no body can help me out here? i know at least someone that looked knows.

 

Need help us to help you, you state its a 97 but then state "unplug choke/its electric" etc etc.


Yes we can help you here but you need to list the exact year/engine/trans etc etc.

And then why not just directly answer the questions, year correct? does this "97" have a carb on it? (A "97" wouldn't have from the factory it'd be FI)

If you're not sure that's fine too just say so.

 

No, I bet it is the IAC (Idle Air Control):

 

Unless someone converted your truck from EFI to carb, or you got the year of the truck wrong, your truck does not have a choke, electric or otherwise.

We hate guessing at what you're unplugging and if you're calling it a choke and your truck doesn't have one then it could be anything.

You're going to have to help us out some more.

 

Yup my thoughts exactly, goes along with OP's statements of "cause and effect", not so much for a carb / choke setup.

 

i'll bet its the muffler bearings

 

ok so sorry for that whole thing. i thought that little IAC plug ran the choke. i fixed the bogging down and the lugging of the truck while driving with a little fuse under the hood. so no its just the idle that changes and is making it lug a little bit and it will die some times. i was told it could be throttle postion sensor or the egr. but i am not sure if that is correct and for the guy who said to specify. is it 1997 ford f250 with 5.8l with a 5 speed transmission as far as i know its all factory yes its efi. sorry for lack of info 4x4 not sure what the transfer case is and one of the fuel tanks isnt working i think the front one. i bet its pump but not 100% and it also has 200,000 miles. im only 17 and know a little bit about this stuf but mostly used to working on my 68 highboy. so no wiring haha. and when i unplug the IAC it seems to idle down but then it will die. thanks and its a lot to take in sorry im unorganized

 

Ok, now we're getting somewhere.

When you unplug the IAC it should idle down and eventually die. So we know that your IAC is working and also that you don't have a vacuum leak.

Next step is to pull the codes. You can either spend $30 on a code reader like the Innova 3145 or you can get a paperclip and count the flashes of the check engine light. The code reader is far less prone to errors and saves you a lot of time.

fordfuelinjection.com is down right now but there are other good links for pulling codes from a Ford OBD-I truck - try a google search.

 

ok thank you that rules out the 65 dollar possibility. to be honest im getting it ready to sell.and want it to be pretty reliable to. i went a parts store to run the codes and it didnt work. i dont know exactly where the plug is either could you post a picture where the plug is? and where do i get this code reader? and can it read other cars and stuff to? so could it be the fuel sensor? or the egr? or the map? i dont think so but i wpuld like rule out as much as possible.

 

thats a funny one and believe it or not some people will think thats a problem haha.

 

The DTC test plug is under the hood by the drivers side hood hinge..



Oh and don't forget to check the blinker fluid!!!

 

thats the one i used it has a red seal around it right? and it didnt show anything so maybe its just those auto parts store readers that arent any good. i dont really want to go buy that one if i dont have to. i will maybe take to the local shop they have a code reader. i just dont have insurace on this and dont like driving it everywhere plus it dies to

 

No pic but it's on the driver's side under the hood right behind the airbox.

I got mine on ebay. You can probably find it locally.

It can read Ford OBD-I vehicles and that's it.

No such thing as a fuel sensor. It could be the EGR or the TPS. It's probably not the MAP sensor, they rarely go bad.