with the 89 f150/5.0 that died in the drive way. disconnected negative battery cable replaced distributor cap, rotor and plug wires (all accel). reconnected battery, truck fired right up, no hesitation. cranked it 4 more times, drove it around front, took a shower, went to go for ride, wouldn't start. plenty of battery it will turn over strong. cleaned battery posts this a.m., reconnected battery, truck cranked and ran for about 10 seconds and died. towed it around back and tried to do the self test to get the trouble codes but the dash light doesn't flash like the haynes manual said it should. if anyone has any further suggestions i would surely appreciate them.
thanx in advance

mitch

 

There are only 3 reasons an engine won't run. No air, no fuel, or no spark, do the fuel pumps run when you turn the key? They should run for 5-10 seconds and stop. Also check the fuel pressure. If it's below 20ish the truck might try to start but will not run for long. You should have 35-40 with it running, and ~40 with the engine offf. It the pressure drops more than something like .5 psi then the you have a bad pump, FPR, or injector(s). Hope this helps. You might also want to try cleaning the Idle air control.

 

The next time it dies, see if it has spark and check the fuel pressure as mentioned. At least this will tell you which system is failing, making it much easier to diagnos.

 

yes, the fuel pump runs for a few seconds when i turn the key on. there is fuel in the fuel rail and if i depress the shrader valve while the engine is turning over it sprays everywhere. i don't have a fuel pressure tester, i guess i'll have to get one.

mitch