Neglected 1993 F-150 fun...sputtered and died.

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Of all vehicles, the first to break down on me was a 4.9L I6, manual transmission, 1993 F-150 today.
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Basically I was handed the keys and asked to see if I had any ideas about why it was "acting up." The first couple miles were fine. Then I gave it a good amount of gas while pulling out on to a four lane road, and it started to sputter and just didn't have power. It kept running though, and smoothed out as I pulled on to a residential street going into my neighborhood. It made it maybe a half mile, then sputtered again going up a hill, then stalled. I let it roll to a stop sign at the other side of the hill, then tried to start it. All it did was click.

I called the tow truck to come and get it, but did check under the hood to see if there was anything obvious. The solenoid on the fender was an old Napa Echlin. The battery was a 4/14 dated Autocraft, but tested at only around 100 CCA after the truck was towed back. The plug wires said "Ford" on the boots, so they may very well be original. The dist. cap was a Motorcraft and obviously old, not sure if OE would say "Motorcraft" on it or not. The plugs clearly hadn't been touched in a long time if ever. The radiator hoses were OE and stamped with 1992 dates! I think aside from oil changes, this truck only ever got maintenance or repairs when it broke.

It's getting a battery, terminals, and the solenoid on the fender tomorrow or Monday.

It apparently got a fuel pump installed about a year ago, but I'm sure it was whatever was cheapest, so at this point it's suspect for the sputtering.

Given the lack of ignition system maintenance though, I think it will need a full tune up just to baseline it.

CEL may not be working. It didn't light up, but the whole cluster was acting up. Codes have not been checked yet.

The truck only has around 115K showing on the odo, but I do wonder if maybe the fiber cam gear could be suspect for the sputtering? I'm not really familiar with that issue beyond hearing about it, but I doubt this thing had the oil changed on schedule. The truck has no timing chain or belt, just gears. I also wonder if the distributor gear needs to be checked.

The truck will be diagnosed further next week. Just thought I'd share the fun so far. I didn't think an EFI 4.9L manual F-150 would have me calling a tow truck.
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It was crazy how untouched it was under the hood though. This truck really got the bare minimum to keep it going...nothing preventive. It has the tree sap/pollen/fungus coating on the paint to prove it.
 
Haven't checked it yet, but it's old like everything else. It will be checked, but it's getting a battery regardless. Voltmeter on the dash is inop or it's not charging.

This truck is going to need a few things to get back to reliable. The owner let a lot of things pile up. They just used it as a dump run type truck for years. It's rust free though, and doesn't even have a rip in the seats.
 
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The 2G alternators have a tendency to short out internally and kill the battery, keep that in mind. That has the potential to cause all kinds of driveability weirdness.
 
Good to know...maybe that's what's ultimately causing the sputtering since it did that just before it was unable to start (cranked right up 10-15 minutes before, not sure if it had been on a charger). Not sure how much it has been driven recently...I was just handed the keys and told to drive it.

Bad alt may also explain erratic gauge cluster...seems to be adding up. Definitely going to check that out next.
 
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These trucks have extremely poor grounds as well. I took my hydraulic wire crimper and ordered a few feet of heavy gauge wire and replaced the wimpy factory grounds as well as adding a few extra grounds.
 
Sounds like a fun project, seriously.

1st I would check the charging system. If it were me, at a minimum I'd do a full tune up, replace all the coolant/heater hoses & accessory belts, flush coolant, brake fluid, clutch fluid.

Great truck, have fun!
 
Originally Posted By: BTW
Sounds like a fun project, seriously.

1st I would check the charging system. If it were me, at a minimum I'd do a full tune up, replace all the coolant/heater hoses & accessory belts, flush coolant, brake fluid, clutch fluid.

Great truck, have fun!


Oh yeah, stuff like this is fun. This is one of multiple side project old pickups we have in the parts department at work. There is also a 2000 Dakota Sport Club Cab 4.7L V8 my boss found under a tree somewhere (so far freeze plugs, 4 pressure washings, and a back window on that one), and a '72 C-10 that was resto-modded in 1994, driven for 10 years, then sat for 10 years.
 
Get the battery and do a full maintenance tune up(don't forget the fuel filter).. You need a full battery for the ignition system to work correctly.You can get the alternator tested.I drive an 87 F150 4.9 W/ manual and these will go forever. Test, don't jump to conclusions and start replacing everything.. You need spark, fuel and a compression test will tell you if you jumped time which is unlikely.For my 87, some weak links were the TFI ignition module, dist. pickup coil,alternator and the ignition coil.
 
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The hard part of this problem is licked, you got it to act up for you. Square your charging system/battery concerns away first. If symptoms continue, go from there, but get your electrical cleared up first before putting effort into a drivability diag for now.
 
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The truck is up and running again.

After the battery replacement, the charging system tested good and the truck hasn't acted up again. Right now it's looking like it may just be a bad battery.

The truck got plugs, wires, cap, rotor, both radiator hoses, fender solenoid, and a fuel filter. I drove it around today with no problems at all. No sputtering, stumbling, or any other drivability issues. The gauge cluster voltmeter read normal the whole time, so it wasn't inop, the battery was really that dead.
 
I have driven 5 speed fox body mustangs without a battery whatsoever. I had a field car I'd roll don out driveway to start it. Never had a battery at all. Newest might have been a 1990 though.
I wonder when fords absolutely needed a battery to run.
 
Lot of you are going to argue with me but when I have *any* type of electrical problem and if the battery has more than couple of years on it, I put the new one in before I bring out my multimeter. There is a little bit of exaggeration but I really don't bother to do any parasitic current tests etc before putting the new battery. It is plainly not worth to me.

I am having huge argument with one of the youtube star on my approach but he makes money by providing his services. I tell my relatives/friends to spend $100 on new battery before handing that money to the mechanic to diagnosis the electrical problem.

If new battery does not fix it, at least now you have ruled out the bad battery. Batteries do die suddenly aka internal cells short.
 
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