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from what i have learned recently, pulling the spout would disconnect the advance curve contolled by the brain. either you have a bad brain in the truck or a bad ground. i noticed your post since my car is a 1987 Crown Vic that was acting up and i did what you did. it solved the problem i was having but makes me think the brain is bad since it has good ground.
when did you realize it was the computer? i have been having issues and nobody wanted to believe the situation saying it was defective new parts though it was doing the same thing with previous parts. i changed the IAC, TPS, plugs, cap, rotor, wires, checked o2 sensors, changed fuel filter, checked for vacuum leaks, and had a cylinder check done and engine had no issues. it led me to believe this was an electrical issue since it would act like it had a dead cylinder/ miss in the engine at low RPM when it shifted to 3rd and 4th. made me think of the computer controlled advance of the engine and unplugged the spout as you did. when that was done i had no more issues.
Well, I had used the haynes manual and did all the checks with a multimeter. I got fed up and took it to my mechanic and he found a spare computer and tried it. That fixed it. He ordered a reman computer and installed it for me.