I've had some problems with my 95 5.0 bronco not starting sometimes and then it will start at random a few hours later. I've read many posts that I beleive have helped me narrow down my problem but am confused about some terminology. Some people say to replace the "stator" in the distributor. Is the stator the same thing as the pickup-coil? What about the term "PIP?" I searched autozone's and Napa's wepsite but could not find the word stator. I did however find pickup coil. Thanks.

 

I think all three terms refer to the same parts in the distributor. Most just replace the distributor as it is much easier for a little more money. Did you pull codes and find 211 in continuous memory? You probably saw my marathon thread on the same issue. I wish I found the bad ground first but at lease I have all new ignition now. Have you checked the grounds first?

 

Yes I did see your posts and thats what helped me cause I had alot of the same problems. The only weird thing is that mine wont restart for a few hours. Maybe a bad ground. Since all the wires plug into a harness, would I check the ground at the harness or at the other end? Thanks.

 

Oh by the way, what type of dist did you buy, where did you buy it and for how much?

 

I forgot, another term for the same thing is Hall Effect Sensor. After replacing everything I found the bad ground near the battery. The negative battery cable has an extra wire going to the fender. It was tight between two nuts. However the second nut would not budge either way and would not tighten down on the two ground wires under it. Where to purchase a distributor? The two big auto supply stores I usually frequent get their rebuilts from Cardone. The first was labled correctly but the shaft was about 5/8 " short. The second ran fine until warm up then died so I am guessing they bench tested it and did not replace the sensor, but the heat was causing the failure. The third is doing absolutely great! When shopping, look at the part the rotor fits against. You want it to be bright and shiney. I think the price was eighty something. So check the ground first, then the ground "ribbon" running from the passenger side of the engine to the cab above the A/C. Read your continuous memory codes. When it dies, someone suggested, snap off the cap and try an upside down can of keyboard duster to cool it. If it starts you found the fault. A couple of pros suggested changing the stator and ICM together as they have about the same failure rate but the ICM costs a hundred bucks. It was the first part I threw at it. Mine was more likely to die with the temperature in the 90's and high humidity. It was that way Sat and Sunday pulling a trailer to the deer lease both days and it ran better than ever. Good luck on yours.

 

More info..I was getting codes 211 and 212 in CM. I cleared the codes after each repair or replacement. 212 did not return after fixing the ground. Then 211 did not return after the final distributor replacement. I don't know if my original 179K miles distributor pickup was bad but suspect it was and the gear showed some wear. Be sure the gear is the same on the new distributor i.e. replace steel gear with steel gear, etc.