'86 Ranger, 2.3L, Automatic transmission.

Been having a sputtering/rough running situation once warmed up, replaced every so often with open loop smooth running. Lately, have had several occasions where the truck stalls and will not restart after a hard right turn (fuel pump powers up, tho) After 30 or so minutes of repose, truck will restart and run.

Recent History:

During the last 1-1/2 years, had cylinder head rebuilt and reinstalled. Had to run it all winter w/o EGR tube attached because of bad fitting at exhaust manifold. Replaced the fitting last spring and replaced cat back exhaust system. Had manifold hole plugged with pipe plug all winter. Have had a diagnosis of poor compression in the past, have not rechecked compression since head rebuild, but did have a noticable increase in power.

Have checked base ignition timing and it is correct. Valve timing appears to be as it should be. Have not had the opportunity to check for spark during one of the breakdowns, since I had no tools and it was night time.

The codes:

Early in Fall, got 14, 21, 24, 34. The 14 particularly interested me, as it suggests ignition problems.

Just before pulling the distributor, I checked codes again; 14 had disappeared as did 34 (EGR issues I resolved above) but I still got 21 (coolant temp out of range) and 41 (no HEGO switch) So I left the distributor alone and replace the HEGO sensor and cleared codes.

Last code check, just got 21(coolant temp sensor voltage out of range) and 24(air charge or Vane air temp voltage out of range) There is very little heat on cold days, full radiator and I've "burped" the cylinder head on an incline more than once chasing trapped air.

I'm suspicious of the TIF module, since the stalling is after warm up and self corrects. It was replaced once perhaps 12 years ago.

So, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, please render a verdict or at least suggest what to try next. Thank you for reading all this.

 

Hmm...how about doing a voltage test on both those sensors. But if you got no heat or very little, are you running a thermostat at all and if so, is it working?

 

I would look at either tif module or the distributor pickup coil. Both of those are prone to heat issues.

 

Thank you for the suggestions. I replaced the thermostat with what I assume was the standard one when the head was rebuilt. Have noticed a drop or two of coolant around the thermostat housing from time to time. Any idea what the voltage range for the coolant temp sensor is? it was replaced with the head work. Not even sure where the air charge temp sensor is. Last winter resorted to cardboard shoved in the grille to raise some heat.