Car Stumbled Badly - Died

[351carlo]

Hoping to save time on diagnostics. Was driving down road at 30-35 mph, car started to break up/stumble bad/slow down. Worse with more gas pedal. Was able to baby it, barely, 1/2 mile back. Eventually it cut out completely down the street. The lights may have gotten dimmer when it was stumbling,

After parking it fired up again, but still would stumble with any gas pedal.

I'm thinking COPs, Fuel Filter, Fuel Pump or Cats. I'd think if it were the alternator the car wouldn't have fired right back up. Likewise if it were the battery it wouldn't have done it while already driving.

I had a cold start rattle, but it's so damn cold I just figured it was a hanger or something.

Anyone?

[Comin' in Hot]

I would start by seeing if it has any codes

[MOTOWN]

I would test the Alternator, and the battery , just because the car turns over doesn't mean your alternator is charging properly, or that your battery is holding a a charge @ 14 volts

[fastblackmerc]

I would test the Alternator, and the battery , just because the car turns over doesn't mean your alternator is charging properly, or that your battery is holding a a charge @ 14 volts

+1.

How old is the battery?

[tbone]

If it was the alternator it dies a slow death. Your headlights would slowly start to get dim. You would know.

COPS are not it because they don't all go bad at the same time. The car would just stumble if 1 or even 2 went out.

Cats aren't it. You would just notice a general loss of power over time.

From your description, it sounds like the engine was starved for fuel. Take it from there. 1. Filter. 2. Pump.

[fastblackmerc]

If it was the alternator it dies a slow death. Your headlights would slowly start to get dim. You would know.

COPS are not it because they don't all go bad at the same time. The car would just stumble if 1 or even 2 went out.

Cats aren't it. You would just notice a general loss of power over time.

From your description, it sounds like the engine was starved for fuel. Take it from there. 1. Filter. 2. Pump.

OP did state that the headlights "may" have gone dim.

I'd replace the fuel filter also. :beer:

[rayjay]

FWIW, my original battery was fine one day and deceased the next time I tried to start her.

[tbone]

OP did state that the headlights "may" have gone dim.

I'd replace the fuel filter also. :beer:

"May" have gone dim is the key word here. It's typically a slow death, not a rapid one with a suddenly bad running engine that still has cranking power after it finally stalls. The lights slowly fade to zero. He would know and there wouldn't be a "may" in the description. It happened to me in my Marquis.

[fastblackmerc]

FWIW, my original battery was fine one day and deceased the next time I tried to start her.

Had that happen in many of my previous rides.

Had a '97 T-Bird I drove 3 hours to Charlotte, stayed overnight, drove 2+ hours to the Asheville area, stayed over night, drove 4 hours home... no problems. Two days later I drove to the store, came out and the car was dead..... jump start from AAA, and I installed a new battery.

[tbone]

My money is on the fuel pump.

[Motorhead350]

Before you spend money, see if the car has gas.

Throw a gallon in it.

This happened to me a week ago. Gage was stuck at 1/8th. Simply ran outta gas.

[rayjay]

Before you spend money, see if the car has gas.

Throw a gallon in it.

This happened to me a week ago. Gage was stuck at 1/8th. Simply ran outta gas.

NO diesel...:eek:

[351carlo]

Before you spend money, see if the car has gas.

Throw a gallon in it.

This happened to me a week ago. Gage was stuck at 1/8th. Simply ran outta gas.

Just filled it up the day before. Full tank. I'm afraid water in the gas or something similar.

I agree it sounds like a fuel delivery issue, my first bet is fuel pump.

I just picked up a new toy out of state and won't be back to diagnose until Saturday. I'll fill back in when it's fixed.

[tbone]

Do you hear it whir when you turn the key to on position?

[351carlo]

Do you hear it whir when you turn the key to on position?

Unfortunately this happened the night before I left for a 3 day trip. Hence my frantic post. If I had time to troubleshoot I doubt I would've said anything.

What's a fuel pump replacement take on these cars? On the Cobra it required dropping the tank. Same here?

[Zack]

Unfortunately this happened the night before I left for a 3 day trip. Hence my frantic post. If I had time to troubleshoot I doubt I would've said anything.

What's a fuel pump replacement take on these cars? On the Cobra it required dropping the tank. Same here?

30-40 minutes if you've done it before.
Otherwise a few hours.
No tank dropping required

[Motorhead350]

Before you go at the fuel pump do a few things first.

Get a buddy, have him crank the car is listen to the fuel pump relay. If you hear it clicking the relay is fine.

Next check the fuse for the fuel pump.

Third when you have someone crank the car, make them turn the key to the on position. Open up the fuel door, uncap the fuel cap and listen for the fuel pump to kick on.

I hope this helps before things get messy.

[tbone]

Getting mine out was hard because I couldn't get enough wire clearance. So I had to cut the wires and splice them in later. Make sure to disco the battery!

Not nearly as hard as I thought being the first one (and hopefully the last) I've done.

[Zack]

Before you go at the fuel pump do a few things first.

Get a buddy, have him crank the car is listen to the fuel pump relay. If you hear it clicking the relay is fine.

Next check the fuse for the fuel pump.

Third when you have someone crank the car, make them turn the key to the on position. Open up the fuel door, uncap the fuel cap and listen for the fuel pump to kick on.

I hope this helps before things get messy.


Or you can do it the intelligent way and go straight to listening for the fuel pump and diagnose backward.....like a mechanic would.

[351carlo]

Thanks guys. I've done quite a few fuel pumps in my Mustang/Cobra days.

So there's an access panel on the Marauder? Thanks.

[tbone]

It's vertical above the axle. Hopefully you're low on gas.

[351carlo]

It's vertical above the axle. Hopefully you're low on gas.

Nope... Full tank the night before!

Just getting back into town. Was out for work and picking up a C6Z06. With the weather this nice it's going to be hard to work on the car.

Oh well, I'll post back when I figure it out. Thanks for the help.

[tbone]

I misaligned the gasket when I did mine. Old one stretched. New one wouldn't fit properly. Very stiff and not pliable. Broke off the little tabs to pull it through the plate. Used the old one. Filled up car. Leaked like a sieve. Lost 7 gallons or so. Where is a secret. Had a hard time getting the old stretched out gasket to fit. Take careful note of the alignment on it. It's a little tricky since it can fit in a couple different configurations. Finally got it. Not a ton of room to work under there. Don't use an electrical 120v trouble light in case you break the bulb. Fumes, you know? DISCONNECT THE BATTERY!!!

[351carlo]

Finally got back to the car. Started right up and drove the 5 miles home without issue. Moved it in and out of the driveway a couple times, nothing.

Guess Fuel Pump is on its way out or the fuel filter is clogged.

[351carlo]

Looks like the end result may be the easiest fix I've ever had.

The air filter had fallen off. It's got an aftermarket cone filter and it was sitting down obstructing the air flow. My guess is the MAF was going crazy trying to figure out what was going on and the car ran poorly as result.

I haven't had the time to put it back together and drive it, my schedule has been so crazy that yesterday was the first time I was able to pop the hood!

[Mebot]

At least it's an easy fix. Occam's Razor strikes again!