Greetings fellow Ford lovers.... I have a 2001 F150 5.4L with the extended cab and 8 ft bed. it has just over 200K on it and runs GREAT....when it runs.... I have a problem that occurs only in cold weather ( anything below 35 degrees). The truck will crank over and some times it will catch and fire off. ithad the same symptoms last winter but I muddled thru till spring and haven't had the same problem till winter this year. I changed the fuel pump relay, as well as the fuel pressure regulator...I am not sure what else to do with it. the fuel pump "seems" to be working because when the truck starts it runs perfectly normal no hiccups or sluggishness.. I have had to have it towed home three times and I am running out of freebie tows...LOL...Am I missing something else other than the fuel pump itself? not sure why it only does this in cold weather..oh I was under it today (laying in 4 inches of snow/slush/ice, and pulled the plug apart for the fuel pump it looks clean so I plugged it back together. also banging on the gas tank may have helped (I felt a bit better by banging on the tank. only other "major fixes was the ECU was replaced about four years ago new keys were made and it worked great. the security system "quit about a month and a half ago but It hasn't hampered the operation of the truck..

Sorry to be long winded on my first post , Any ideas or encouragement would be greatly appreciated..

Thanks again happy new year...

Crusty/Dave

 

push the schrader valve on the flul line in with a pencil and see if it squirts after setting overnight... YOu could also have a regulator leaking if your loosing fuel.

 

Dave, there's more to it than just the fuel system.
You need spark as well.
You have to find what is missing when it happens or your just in a guessing mode.
It could be the crank sensor plugup goes open from shrinkage but you need to check for spark first and for fuel pressure to see which it is.
If you have both then look into the cold start sequence for a failure that is temperature related.
These things are not impossible to find if you follow the operations that would affect it.
Good luck.

 

BlueGrass, Thanks for the quick reply.. when turning over it will almost fire but it acts like it is out of gas ( you know the spit spit sputter sputter sputter) even if I drop 160 bucks for the fuel pump is it gonna keep doing it? is there a sensor that I have missed that would cut off the fuel pump? I know new fords have that gizmo that sitts over the spare tire that goes bad from catching all the road grime... Crank case sensor? where would that be located?...LOL wouldn't tath sensor through a code? as of this moment I don't have any codes..at least no lights on the dashboard...

 

Steve thanks... no it isn't loosing any fuel outwardly anyway, the problem is centered around winter time cold weather only once I get it started it runs perfectly although the mileage is a bit off right now...

 

Dave, there's no use to asking about this and that.
Testing needs to be done to uncover the issue.
First test cold start fuel pressure to determine if there is a problem from that source.
Here is how it works:
First time key to 'run' powers the fuel pump about 2 seconds to begin to pressurize the fuel rails to about 10 psi then stops.
The rails will not stay pressurized much past 30 minites, normally.
When cranking begins the fuel pump is turned on full time.
If all is well the pressure is up to about 38 psi +/- within several seconds after cranking begins.
You need to know what it is doing to tell if there is still a fueling issue.
I hope your not thinking i'm giveing you a hard time but we can't fix your issue for you.
Next, if the intake air temperature sensor or circuit is in trouble the fuel won't be rich enough to run in cold temps.
Good luck, i'm out of it until you do some testing and I may be of help with the results.

 

You definitely need to check fuel press. when truck won't start. If it is a fuel problem I would change fuel filter before going any further. If not I would check throttle position sensor next, j.m.o. had similar symptoms before and that was my problem, wasn't on a ford though.

 

Bluegrass no offense taken..... so here is what I have done so far.... replaced the fuel pump relay ($16.00), fuel pressure regulator ($54.00) and then because I haven't done it since I bought the truck in 05 (105K miles) replaced the fuel filter, Mind you this wasn't all at once, the relay was first then the regulator then the filter...(I should have started at the bottom and went the other way...LOL, The truck has been starting pretty regularly since new years eve day... I had a code on the OBD2 that said the fuel level sensor... now my question is if this sensor is bad does it "trick" the computer into thinking that the tank is empty and then shuts the fuel pump down?....

 

Dave as far as I know that won't affect fuel pump operation. I know of an '07 that had bad sensor, only made fuel gauge not work, showed empty and low fuel light stayed on.

 

RLGJ, Thanks for the response yeah I was hoping LOL....

I don't want to have to drop the tank if it is bad then I guess I am gonna have to.... I can't really slide the bed (camper shell) hopefully I can get by until the weather warms up (April)...