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26 Posts
Thank you in advance for reading this!
1998 Taurus SE Wagon... (V6 3L DOHC)
Yesterday, after driving the wagon for about 20 minutes in the hot city, the engine began to stutter. The driver immediately pulled over and by the time she got into the grass, the engine stopped. Just before this happened the engine was running too hot (not in the red though) - this is probably due to another problem it has been having where it frequently purges coolant when parked. I have since added more and replaced the cap which looked damaged on the inside (the overflow tank is new). Once pulled over, we could not start the car again, the engine would not turn over, but would try... violently.
After a good bit of googling, it fits the description of a failing fuel pump. I bought a fuel pressure gauge and followed the directions. With the key in the ON position, just before engine start, the gauge displayed a constant 15psi (I tried this twice). I turned the key to crank the engine (and it did after a couple spurts). At this point, the gauge displayed 30psi and stayed at 30 for a couple minutes.
The battery is new. The fuel pressure regulator is new. The spark plugs are a year or two old. I have a nice scan tool, but it is not detecting any error codes or pending error codes. I admit that I frequently allow the fuel level to go well below a quarter of a tank, which I now know is not good for the pump...
What do you all think?
Thanks!
1998 Taurus SE Wagon... (V6 3L DOHC)
Yesterday, after driving the wagon for about 20 minutes in the hot city, the engine began to stutter. The driver immediately pulled over and by the time she got into the grass, the engine stopped. Just before this happened the engine was running too hot (not in the red though) - this is probably due to another problem it has been having where it frequently purges coolant when parked. I have since added more and replaced the cap which looked damaged on the inside (the overflow tank is new). Once pulled over, we could not start the car again, the engine would not turn over, but would try... violently.
After a good bit of googling, it fits the description of a failing fuel pump. I bought a fuel pressure gauge and followed the directions. With the key in the ON position, just before engine start, the gauge displayed a constant 15psi (I tried this twice). I turned the key to crank the engine (and it did after a couple spurts). At this point, the gauge displayed 30psi and stayed at 30 for a couple minutes.
The battery is new. The fuel pressure regulator is new. The spark plugs are a year or two old. I have a nice scan tool, but it is not detecting any error codes or pending error codes. I admit that I frequently allow the fuel level to go well below a quarter of a tank, which I now know is not good for the pump...
What do you all think?
Thanks!