Idle problems
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Idle problems
I've read quite a few posts and advice here but am still unable to fix/isolate my problem. I was hoping some of you guys might have some insight for me.
I drive a 2001 F150 supercrew 4x4. Over the last few months my truck has been experiencing idle problems. The previous problem over the last few months has been after starting the engine it would immediately die. That is unless I kept the accelerator down a bit. It would drive pretty good, but anytime I left off the gas, the RPMs would go to 0 and it would die. The truck only acted this way about 50% of the time but lately has been getting worse.
From reading some posts here, I thought I had it isolated to the Idle Air Control. I replaced it and now it will always idle by itself w/out hold the gas pedal down. BUT, now the problem is when I put it into gear it idles very rough. And when driving down the road the truck continuously shakes. Very little power.
Once again, before changing the IAC, the truck would run fine as long as I was keeping the RPMs up. After changing the IAC, it stays idling by itself but is very shaking and rough when put into gear and driving.
Any thoughts or advice from anyone?
I drive a 2001 F150 supercrew 4x4. Over the last few months my truck has been experiencing idle problems. The previous problem over the last few months has been after starting the engine it would immediately die. That is unless I kept the accelerator down a bit. It would drive pretty good, but anytime I left off the gas, the RPMs would go to 0 and it would die. The truck only acted this way about 50% of the time but lately has been getting worse.
From reading some posts here, I thought I had it isolated to the Idle Air Control. I replaced it and now it will always idle by itself w/out hold the gas pedal down. BUT, now the problem is when I put it into gear it idles very rough. And when driving down the road the truck continuously shakes. Very little power.
Once again, before changing the IAC, the truck would run fine as long as I was keeping the RPMs up. After changing the IAC, it stays idling by itself but is very shaking and rough when put into gear and driving.
Any thoughts or advice from anyone?
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From: Louisville, Kentucky
How many miles are on your truck? What engine? Do you have a check engine light on? Sounds like it may be a vacuum leak. If it is then there should be a CEL that is on. If so, have the code read and report back with the code number. Good luck! 
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From: Louisville, Kentucky
You can usually get the codes read for free at Autozone or some other similar location. Just don't let the guy talk you into buying anything to fix it till we can tell you what the code actually means. Have the spark plugs ever been changed? Fuel filter? MAF cleaned? Any mods that are not listed? Good luck!
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Plugs, fuel filter were changed a while back along with the dealership having to change a couple of coils due to some bad misfiring. No modifications done to the engine. Thanks for the feedback John. I'll get back with the codes.
John Franklin
John Franklin
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I have the same problems as above with my truck. The code I have is po401 egr insufficient flow. I havent gotten the throttle body off yet but plan to. I did find last night my pvc tube by the valve cover completely sucked shut. I hope this new hose might help but will watch this post as to what else I might check.
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I went by last night and got the codes:
P0301 Cylinder 1
Misfire Detected
P0302 Cylinder 2
Misfire Detected
P0301 Cylinder 1
Misfire Detected
P0302 Cylinder 2
Misfire Detected
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From: Louisville, Kentucky
John, a misfiring plug problem can be a faulty plug, plug boot, COP, injector, or even a wiring problem. New plugs won't necessarily fix the problem. You haven't tried washing the engine recently have you? Water on the top of these engines causes misfiring problems.
I would suggest that the plugs be pulled for inspection. Look over the plug carefully, inspecting the insulator of the plug and the color of the plug. Take a good look at the COP and plug boot. If the plug boot is worn or torn, replace it. If the case of the COP is cracked or otherwise damaged, replace it. Check the spring of the COP that fits over the spark plug terminal. Anything that looks out of the ordinary is what you are looking for.
If nothing is found during the inspection, it may be worth your while to replace those two spark plugs, especially if a plug is something other than a light tan color.
Reset the codes and drive it again. If you still have trouble, try swapping the COP(s) on these cylinders to some other location on the engine. Reset the codes again and see if the problem moves to the cylinder where the COP(s) were moved to.
As for the injector possibility, These can be swapped around too. Before you try this though, look over the wiring connectors and harness for both the COP and the injector on these cylinders.
I hope that this isn't overwhelming for you. Good luck!
I would suggest that the plugs be pulled for inspection. Look over the plug carefully, inspecting the insulator of the plug and the color of the plug. Take a good look at the COP and plug boot. If the plug boot is worn or torn, replace it. If the case of the COP is cracked or otherwise damaged, replace it. Check the spring of the COP that fits over the spark plug terminal. Anything that looks out of the ordinary is what you are looking for.
If nothing is found during the inspection, it may be worth your while to replace those two spark plugs, especially if a plug is something other than a light tan color.
Reset the codes and drive it again. If you still have trouble, try swapping the COP(s) on these cylinders to some other location on the engine. Reset the codes again and see if the problem moves to the cylinder where the COP(s) were moved to.
As for the injector possibility, These can be swapped around too. Before you try this though, look over the wiring connectors and harness for both the COP and the injector on these cylinders.
I hope that this isn't overwhelming for you. Good luck!
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Man...how about that info!
How did you know I washed off the engine??? Funny how these things work. I was just hosing it off a bit in the area I was going to be working while changing the IAC and wouldn't ya know, it happens to be those two plugs. Luckily they are the two front ones b/c all the others look very tough to access.
Last night I took off both COPs and looked at the insulators(the rubber pieces connected to the COPs that the springs are inside) and springs, I found that the springs had on them toward the bottom, what looked to be a rust colored film that was stuck to the wire and it was also inside the rubber piece. I cleaned this stuff off both places best I could w/o any liquid, only with a screw to kind of scrape it off(didn't want to put anything else on it that could damage it). Is there a certain cleaner I should use to really clean this stuff off(carb cleaner)?
Also, do you still suggest taking both the plugs out and inspecting them if not just going ahead and replacing since they're already taken out? If so, will I need a special longer socket besides the regular spark plug socket, b/c they seem to be kind of deep down there?
Oh yeah, I am still still needing to disconnect the negative battery terminal before doing any this?
How did you know I washed off the engine??? Funny how these things work. I was just hosing it off a bit in the area I was going to be working while changing the IAC and wouldn't ya know, it happens to be those two plugs. Luckily they are the two front ones b/c all the others look very tough to access.
Last night I took off both COPs and looked at the insulators(the rubber pieces connected to the COPs that the springs are inside) and springs, I found that the springs had on them toward the bottom, what looked to be a rust colored film that was stuck to the wire and it was also inside the rubber piece. I cleaned this stuff off both places best I could w/o any liquid, only with a screw to kind of scrape it off(didn't want to put anything else on it that could damage it). Is there a certain cleaner I should use to really clean this stuff off(carb cleaner)?
Also, do you still suggest taking both the plugs out and inspecting them if not just going ahead and replacing since they're already taken out? If so, will I need a special longer socket besides the regular spark plug socket, b/c they seem to be kind of deep down there?
Oh yeah, I am still still needing to disconnect the negative battery terminal before doing any this?
Posting Guru
Joined: Oct 2005
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From: Louisville, Kentucky
Just a lucky guess. 
I've read other threads with similar problems.
You may want to replace the spark plug boots that are attached to the COPs. If the water got in that far, the boots may have leaked enough to crack the spark plug insulators. I would definitely pull those two plugs for a closer look. Use compressed air to blow out any debris that is down in and around the plug so that it doesn't fall down into the cylinder when the plug is removed. Also use the air nozzle to blow out any water that may be in electrical connectors for the COPs and the injectors.
Check those COPs for cracks in the plastic housing too. They will be hairline cracks if they exist. When you put the COPs back onto the plugs, use a little bit of di-electric grease inside the boot and put a small amount of anti-sieze on the threads of the spark plug. When you have the boots off of the COP, you can clean up the spring better. Try carb cleaner or throttle body cleaner to clean the spring. Just make sure that it is completely dry before putting it back together and make sure to keep cleaner off of the body of the COP too.
Good luck!
I've read other threads with similar problems.You may want to replace the spark plug boots that are attached to the COPs. If the water got in that far, the boots may have leaked enough to crack the spark plug insulators. I would definitely pull those two plugs for a closer look. Use compressed air to blow out any debris that is down in and around the plug so that it doesn't fall down into the cylinder when the plug is removed. Also use the air nozzle to blow out any water that may be in electrical connectors for the COPs and the injectors.
Check those COPs for cracks in the plastic housing too. They will be hairline cracks if they exist. When you put the COPs back onto the plugs, use a little bit of di-electric grease inside the boot and put a small amount of anti-sieze on the threads of the spark plug. When you have the boots off of the COP, you can clean up the spring better. Try carb cleaner or throttle body cleaner to clean the spring. Just make sure that it is completely dry before putting it back together and make sure to keep cleaner off of the body of the COP too.
Good luck!
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Thanks a ton. I'm going to try all that tonight. Since I have to go to the parts store anyway, do you suggest just picking up a couple of plugs to replace the older two that I'm having problems with? If so, how much should I pay for them?
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From: Louisville, Kentucky
Motorcraft plugs only. You can pick up a couple for the chance that the plugs in it are broken. I would expect something in the neighborhood of $5 per plug, although I haven't purchased any lately and may be off base here. Good luck!