Slow acceleration please help
Thread Starter
|
New User
Joined: Dec 2013
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
Slow acceleration please help
This may be long winded but I am in need of help.
I bought a junkyard van ( that may be my first problem, lol)
1989 e250 with the 351. 42k original miles. The van had been registered till 2003 and had sat since then. I did a full tune up. Plugs,cap,rotor,wires. New fuel pumps/filter and sending units in both tanks. All lines flushed, oil changed ect...I took it to a mechanic afterwards for a once over. He did mention a "tick" at idle, possibly a bad injector or map sensor, but he said it wasn't bad enough to worry about.
I then took it on a 450 mile drive. It ran great for the first half of the trip. The engine shut off once on the highway. It turned out that the wire to the external fuel pump had rattled loose. After I reconnected the wire it fired right back up but that's when the problems started.
The engine would surge while trying to hold a steady speed. Then it began losing power, I could barely maintain speed up hills. Acceleration was extremely slow, but I managed to get it home.
Since getting it home, it will start and idle, but when you try to accelerate it runs like a dead dog.
Might also be worth mentioning that it was warmer the week it ran great. 30 degrees or better. It has since gotten quite cold here and the engine stalls u till warmed up at idle.
I bought a junkyard van ( that may be my first problem, lol)
1989 e250 with the 351. 42k original miles. The van had been registered till 2003 and had sat since then. I did a full tune up. Plugs,cap,rotor,wires. New fuel pumps/filter and sending units in both tanks. All lines flushed, oil changed ect...I took it to a mechanic afterwards for a once over. He did mention a "tick" at idle, possibly a bad injector or map sensor, but he said it wasn't bad enough to worry about.
I then took it on a 450 mile drive. It ran great for the first half of the trip. The engine shut off once on the highway. It turned out that the wire to the external fuel pump had rattled loose. After I reconnected the wire it fired right back up but that's when the problems started.
The engine would surge while trying to hold a steady speed. Then it began losing power, I could barely maintain speed up hills. Acceleration was extremely slow, but I managed to get it home.
Since getting it home, it will start and idle, but when you try to accelerate it runs like a dead dog.
Might also be worth mentioning that it was warmer the week it ran great. 30 degrees or better. It has since gotten quite cold here and the engine stalls u till warmed up at idle.
Hotshot
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 11,141
Likes: 25
From: south louisiana
I'll bet you need to drop both tanks and clean em out thoroughly. It sat that long with old gas ? That's not good. The fresh fuel loosened up the gunk and that got passed up stream to the filters.
Fleet Owner
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 21,254
Likes: 1,656
From: Reynoldsburg, Ohio
^^^That's the same direction I was thinking---a fuel supply issue. Its very, very possible tank gunk has clogged the fuel pick ups. Not the easiest task to drop and clean a tank but would be well advised. IF you have access to an inspection cam with a long shaft that could maybe save you a lot of work.
Since it starts and runs but won't accelerate that certainly suggests fuel issues. Back in the day when we had block mounted mechanical fuel pumps when going bad they'd act this same way. Start and drive just fine, bog down when trying to kick the secondary throttle plates in.
Can you measure engine on fuel pressure---do you have those tools?
Since it starts and runs but won't accelerate that certainly suggests fuel issues. Back in the day when we had block mounted mechanical fuel pumps when going bad they'd act this same way. Start and drive just fine, bog down when trying to kick the secondary throttle plates in.
Can you measure engine on fuel pressure---do you have those tools?
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Mutt1984
1973 - 1979 F-100 & Larger F-Series Trucks
13
Jul 30, 2015 06:15 AM
nerdpcr
1980 - 1986 Bullnose F100, F150 & Larger F-Series Trucks
2
Mar 23, 2014 08:27 PM
87_gt
1987 - 1996 F150 & Larger F-Series Trucks
4
Sep 26, 2009 11:21 PM
paddler
1994.5 - 1997 7.3L Power Stroke Diesel
3
Apr 6, 2009 03:04 PM
fordjeeps
1980 - 1986 Bullnose F100, F150 & Larger F-Series Trucks
3
Mar 10, 2004 11:02 AM
