Ford gurus-?

[gnoahhh]

I have an old Ford T-Bird ('88, w 3.8L V-6) that I use as a work car, so as not to abuse the 'good' car (or to rely on it for reliable daily transportation)- a vintage MG. The problem is it has started to miss and buck badly when under load- accelerating, or climbing a hill. I was advised that it's probably due to a faulty MAP sensor, which I dutifully replaced with an OEM new part. It didn't fix the problem. Note also there aren't any unplugged wires or anything else of that nature readily apparent.

Now, I figured I would canvas for some advice before taking it to the shop where a simple fix may well end up costing hundreds of dollars. In the meantime, I'm relying on a 50 year old British car, and short of spending big bucks on a new truck (which is not in the cards) I must fix the old Ford. Help!

[Lloyd Smale]

check your fuel pressure. Could be a bad pump

[Jim Flinchbaugh]

Step one verify engine integrity
do a compression test or leak down test to make sure it is sound
2: verify that the exhaust system isnt restricted -ie, convertor plugged up
3. check plug wires for shorting, run engine after dark, spray around the plug wires with a water bottle (like a windex bottle) the mist will light up any shorts and be visible in the dark.
4 check you coolant level, 3.8's blow head gaskets like most of us blow our noses
5: check fuel PSI, filter plugged etc

[dmize]

This stuff just like the Chevy truck and F 150 thing just kills me.
Check fuel pressure. Do you have a fuel pressure gauge and attachments? Do you know how to check the fuel pressure in the first place?
Check convertors. Do you have a backpressure gauge? What if you bust an O2 sensor off in the rusty old exhaust trying to get it out?
Or drop the exhaust to check convertors. Do you have tools to remove exhaust flange bolts that break?
Or my favorite throw **** at it because someone told you something,parts store experts are the best at this.
I agree with Jim,most likely bad plug wires or headgaskets. I cant remember how many hundreds I have put in.
Bottom line you are dealing with a 24 year old car with a bunch of 24 year old sensors and miles of 24 year old wire.
Last month I worked on a F250 that somebody had thrown close to $1000 dollars at,new all most every VISBLE sensor had been replaced and the friggin PCM for a intermittant die while driving and no start. Found the problem in less than 5 minutes,insulation had rotted off of VPWR wire to the TP sensor which shut down the EEC system... 1.0 labor and $75 for the new Ford part

[geargnasher]

Step one verify engine integrity
do a compression test or leak down test to make sure it is sound
2: verify that the exhaust system isnt restricted -ie, convertor plugged up
3. check plug wires for shorting, run engine after dark, spray around the plug wires with a water bottle (like a windex bottle) the mist will light up any shorts and be visible in the dark.
4 check you coolant level, 3.8's blow head gaskets like most of us blow our noses
5: check fuel PSI, filter plugged etc

YUP! Probably has the original fuel filter, plug wires, and fuel pump.

Not enough head bolts on that engine, either. Had one one time when I worked for Ford that would flag #2 for a misfire and you could barely feel it at idle, otherwise it ran like a top. It had two new heads on it when it came in, and I checked compression and did leakdown tests and coolant pressure tests, all showed just fine. Ended up yanking the heads and found #2 piston wouldn't come quite to the top. Previous blown gaskets/cracked head had evidently caused coolant to fill the cylinder on shutdown, and on restart it bent the rod. Gotta love the 3.8L.

Gear

[starmac]

Generally head gaskets are more than cutting out on a hill or accelerating.
it doesn't cost anything if you have a fuel pressure gauge or you can possibly rent on at the parts house, to check your pressure.

When was the last time you changed your fuel filter, a semi clogged filter has been the death of many fuel pumps.

[lesharris]

My 1990 Jeep had similar problems.
Solution was a bad EGR valve and a bad part inside distributor.Could also be a bad electric sending box on firewall etc.

[Skrenos]

I had a 1990 Plymouth Laser turbo that had a similar problem. I had those Bosch fine wire platinum plugs in it. Turns out that the engine was a little too worn and was fouling the plugs and totally sealing the center electrode off. Switched to a plug with a normal sized center electrode and all was well.

Those Ford 3.8L Essex V6s are notorious for blown head gaskets. Do a coolant system pressure test to see if there's a leak somewhere. Alternatively a compression and leakdown test if the coolant system is not involved.

[dmize]

Geargnasher with all due respect,it wasnt headbolts,it was difference in expansion between aluminum heads and cast iron block and gasket material. After 96 when Ford went to MLS head gaskets that it wasnt really an issue anymore.
As for the rest ie. My Jeep and My Plymouth........I am finished with these threads. Back to melting lead.

[firefly1957]

If it has them check your plug wires My 2003 impala did the same I had a bad plug wire a miss throws the computer into confusion.

[geargnasher]

Geargnasher with all due respect,it wasnt headbolts,it was difference in expansion between aluminum heads and cast iron block and gasket material. After 96 when Ford went to MLS head gaskets that it wasnt really an issue anymore.
As for the rest ie. My Jeep and My Plymouth........I am finished with these threads. Back to melting lead.

I hear you, we've whored ourselves out for years, now we're givin' it away for free!

Gear

[gnoahhh]

Thanks guys. Going in the shop Monday. If it's too involved/expensive- to the knackers she goes. The irony is the '62 MGA, with an engine you could darn near rebuild with a hammer and a cold chisel, has been running sweetly- but being old British iron, you know how long that's going to last!

If the T-Bird Slumrunner is toast, I swear I'm going to buy a 50's-60's era truck and restore it. Granted, the reliability factor isn't high compared to current stuff, but when it does break down, a shade tree mechanic has a fighting chance of diagnosing the problem and fixing it.

[3006guns]

Reliability factor? Hold on a second.......most of the problems with the older rigs were from the points and condensor. As an old mechanic said "99% of carburetor problems are electrical." Solve that little problem and you have a nice, reliable, easy to work on engine...with lots of room under the hood.

Aftermarket electronic ignition is available for many of the older trucks and are easy to install.