My truck seems to sometimes sputter and jerk 4-5 times at 2000 RPM when I keep a constant speed at that RPM.

I do know that most Rangers do that. But, what causes this and is it avoidable? It gets annoying. I just floor it for a short moment to make it stop or let go of the gas peddle a tad.

 

Most Rangers don't do that!!!!

Might be helpful to know where you are on all past & present due scheduled maintenance items, like plugs, wires, filters, O2 sensors, mileage on the vehicle, any recent repairs, did the problem come about suddenly after some event, or slowly over time????

 

lol..I am with pawpaw most Rangers don't do that........Do as pawpaw says and bring up the maintenance ie., clean TB, MAF, IACV, pcv etc......I bet it goes away

 

I bought this truck in August. It is an automatic.

Appart from changing the oil and the exhaust, I did nothing to it since I bought it.

I guess it might be time to go to the Ford dealer and get it checked out. As far as I know, the previous dealer did nothing to it neither. I hope the bill won't be too high.

It's been doing it since I bought it.

Now, it is getting a little worse. Idle is pretty smooth, so not sure if it is the MAF. The problem doesn't always appear, but I have a feel when it is coming(peddle vibrates more, I am at about 2000 RPM).

 

With that many KMs on it, it surely has some maintenance service done on it. It wouldn't necessarily need to have been don by a dealer. If nothing has been done to it, the items listed by Pawpaw definitely need to be done.

Even if it was serviced at 100K KMs, its due for round 2.

The behavior you describe is not typical of Rangers unless they have been neglected.

 

Allright then,

I guess it's time for my truck to go to the garage. It wouldn't hurt.

I probably need to change the transmission oil also since I guess it was never done.

 

If you like to trouble shoot & turn your own wrenches to save Big Bucks, we can probably talk you through most trouble shooting for your problem & changing scheduled maintenance items like plugs, wires, fluids & filters, even doing a tranny pan drop, filter change on it & followed by a full tranny fluid pump out, it's all really easy to do if you don't mind spending some time under the hood & getting a little oil under your nails!!!! lol

 

I'd love to do that, but I don't have much knowledge to work under the hood. I could learn easily, but I don't want to screw up anything.

I got a few buddies that are good in mechanic. I could maybe go see them.

Starting with the spark plugs, how exacly do you change that? I know it is pretty esasy(done it on my mower many times), but I don't have a tork wrench and I don't know wich plugs to get. I know it wouldn't hurt to replace them.

 

Remove the plug wire from the plug. It is a good idea to twist the larger diameter end that is over the plug before pulling it off the plug. A good plug wire puller is inexpensive and helps a lot on removing the wire. Then remove the plug. Do all of this one plug at a time so the wire is on the right plug.

Be sure you have the correct replacement plug - Motorcraft double platinum or iridium plugs are preferred. Coat the threads of the plug with anti seize compoung and install in the engine. Coat the plug end inside with dialectric grease and press the wire firmly on the plug.

Next, repeat this process on the next plug.

You probably should replace the plug wires as well with Motorcraft spark plug wires. Do this one wire at a time. Ranger engines seem partial to Motorcraft plugs and wires.

If you have a Harbor Freight store close by, check out their torque wrenches. IIRC, the 1/4" drive torque wrench covers the torque range you want for your plugs. They are fairly inexpensive, work well and frequently are on sale.

Good luck and let us know the results of your work.

 

Allright, I will try to do that when it gets a little warmer. Don't feel like freezing my hands. Maybe, a guy I know could help me out.

So, I put the dielectrical grease on the inside of the plug? What is that for?

I will be getting a Haynes manual to know all the tork specifications. I know a guy that has a tork wrench. I could probably borrow it from him.

Thanks for all the help!!!

 

If your going to begin turning your own wrenches, invest in a good repair manual, or repair CD if you need more detail. Many libaries have repair books, so you could begin by looking there for the type who's format & detail offer you the kind of info you need before buying one.

I like michigan66 plug changing ideas. To know which plug number is specified for your engine, look on the under hood emissions label, or visit the Motorcraft website & enter your vehicles particulars & you can come up with the part numbers for the latest design Motorcraft plugs, filters, fluids & parts, then you can cross reference them with other mfgrs parts if need be, or look in your owners manual specifications page for the specified part numbers for all of your vehicles maintenance items part numbers, but it might not be up to date with the latest part numbers.

This forums "Tech Info" thread located atop the thread listing page & search function are your friend & good sources of posted "how to" info.
Yup, also pick your mechanically inclined friends & family members brains for helpful info.

I too stick mostly with Motorcraft parts & fluids, as most seem to perform, fit & last well & are cost competitive. I'm using the new finewire iridium enhanced plugs in all of my Ford engines & have noticed quicker year round starts. Motorcraft plug wires also fit & hold up well.

After breaking a spark plug loose & before removing it, blow the debris out of the plug well, so they won't fall into the cylinder when you remove the plug.

When installing, I use a dab of Permatex nickel loaded anti-sieze on my plugs threads, then torque them to the Low side of spec, to allow for the lube effect of the anti-sieze on the threads, so I don't over tighten them. Makes for easy plug removal next time.

I use Harbor Freight reverseable ratcheting click stop torque wrenches, which sure are handy in tight places, are a good buy when on sale & I now have 1/4, 3/8 & 1/2 inch drive sizes to cover all my torque range needs. So far they've proven to be accurate & have lasted well for this shade tree wrench turner. Just back off the torque setting when storing the wrench, so it's spring doesn't take a set, that'll keep the accuracy up to snuff. Also when using a click stop type torque wrench Dont over torque after it "clicks" so as not to damage it internally. DONT use it as a breaker bar, it isn't designed for that kind of abuse!!!!

I use GE, DowCorning or Permatex/Loctite silicone grease on my plugs external insulators & inside the plug boots on both ends of the plug wire, to prevent flashover on those damp, dewey, rainy days & to prevent the plug boot from baking onto the hot plug insulator. Makes for easy plug wire removal next time.

If you want to try a tranny pan drop, filter change & full fluid pumpout, review this tweak on the process that I use to do mine.
Edit: Add link https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/6...-pump-out.html

 

If your going to use the specified finewire iridium enhanced spark plugs, or double platinum plugs, also use a wire gauge type tool to check each plugs specified spark gap, & ease up on the gap. Don't pull the gauge through if its tight, so as not to damage the fine wire center electrode, or the sidewires platinum pad.

As spark gap is always opening up, I choose to set the spark gap to the low side of spec. It'll help make for faster cold weather starts, as the plug will spark quicker & at a lower voltage on those cold winter starts, when our battery output is at it's lowest & it's having to work its hardest to crank the engine, operate the fuel pump & make spark to get us going.

 

Thanks a lot for the great information!!!

I don't know if this is good or bad, but the jerking problem seems to stop when I remove the overdrive. I will drive without it for a few days to see if it fixes the problem.

Would you guys want an around the truck video? To see if anything is wrong?

 

If the missing/jerking happens on hills with the engine under load, suspect a spark problem, like a weak spark that blows out, from excessive spark gap on worn plugs, leaky plug wires, damaged or dirty internal or external plug insulators.

 

There is never a load in my truck. Only 400 lbs. of sand bags during winter time.

It always dose the jerking at about 2000 RPM in the ranges of 70-90 km/h. After a couple of jerks, it changes gears finnaly.

I have a feeling the tranny fluid needs to be replaced. After being in reverse today and putting it into drive, the truck jerked violently forward. It only did it once.