my 302 h.o. is stalling when it's washed

[Tattoo Matt]

well i'm usually asking questions about my 76 ford truck..but this time my my question is about mt 90 mustang..I just took the car out of storage ..had a new tranns put in it and got it ready to drive.. after tinkering with it i took it out for a spin to test the new trans and it worked fine. Then I went to the car wash to cleen the car..after I was done my car didn't start...I ended up flooding it out I cleaned a few plugs ..then it started and ran kinda funny...then after a day it ran like normal...2 days later I did the same thing..cleaned the car..left it running..and it stalled while cleaning it ..after about 20 min. it started and made a very loud pop(like a gun shot).. then it drove funny(some backfiring and missing after about 3000 rpm) after about 2 hours it drove fine.. I know my wires are in the right order....not shure what going on...any help would be greatly appreciated!! thanks tattoo Matt

[Mike G]

Sounds like you are getting moisture in your ignition/spark system. Sorry I am not familiar with the Mustang (let's talk about that truck) but you should check around the dist cap/spark module for loose wires/connections and the such.

--Mike G

[Ecuri]

I agree with mike but more specifically would pull the dist cap and see if it does't have some condensate inside.

[Tattoo Matt]

do you think that just the moisture and not direct water on the distributer would cause this..becouse both times i washed it the hood was closed...i thought that maybe it could be my computer getting wet also...thanks for the replies!!

[atticmole]

I had a car with an invisable crack in the distributer cap, gave me FITS!! It would even look dry inside. After blow drying the cap fixed it in a few minutes, I caught on and replaced it. solved my problem.

[Thomsen]

you are definitely getting moisture in your distributer.

[atticmole]

I forgot to add the cracked cap was kinda new, One reason I took so long to replace it. It would act up sometimes just going thru a small puddle or light rain. Hope your problem is as cheap a fix.

[BandBFord]

"Tattoo" If memory serves me correctly the Mustang coil is located on the drivers side fender/shock tower? You could easily have a cracked coil tower which allows the water to become a conductor for the spark instead of the coil wire. I doubt that you are getting water in the distributor if you are not washing under the hood when cleaning your car.
I know this seems old school however, get yourself a plastic spray bottle (dollar store kind will do). Fill it with water and wait until dark (or pull it in a garage {vent the exhaust}) with the lights off. Start the car and light spray the coil, coil wire and distibutor cap with a fine mist, if you have a crack it will show up. Also, listen for it, you can hear voltage "jump" when a crack is present. When you find it, don't touch it to see if it is real. It will hurt. Then simply replace the part...
Oh... one last thing, keep body parts (and clothes) away from moving car parts.

[Tattoo Matt]

thanks for the info ..will give those suggestions a try

[Purdue Offroader]

not positive but won't spraying wd-40 on the dist be a cheap easy TEMPORARY fix? Or would that totally screw up the dist (my gf's dad's dodge won't start when it rains so I suggested it to him but he can't even find the dist.........then i suggested he buy another ford........haha he drives his wifes expedition when his truck doesn't work)

[DW2455]

yep WD-40 works wonders any time i go to the car wash to clean my engine i take a can of WD-40 and a dry paper towel and soon as im done i pop the dist. cap dry it with the paper towel shoot a light ,mist of WD on the inside of the dist. and the cap put it back on and take off with no problems. Good luck DW

[swann79]

yup... Read the can... WD-40 stands for Water Displacement formula, #40. This is what that stuff was made for!

[kickinhorse89]

I had the same problem with an 90' that I had. Although when it rained the car would not even start. The thing that worked for me was the actual Wire Dryer product that they sell...I traced it to the coil but replaced everything just to be sure...