North American Turbocoupe Organization



Got the new ECT Sensor in, car still runs like sh!t when cold, no, all the time now!
Speeds8erM-1 Offline
Member
#1
This car is officially about to drive me insane, I mean, I am supposed to have this for a beater, so when I get my other Mustangs sold and find one to build, I have something to drive when it's broke. It's pretty much the only thing I can drive around right now, the LX is broke, the GT isnt legal really anymore, the 95 Thunderbird I am going to wholesale isnt legal.

I am pretty much relying on the Turbo Coupe for right now and it's starting to seriously p!ss me off. The new ECT Sensor is in, it STILL runs bad when it's cold, pretty much undriveable at all, like before. Well, I warmed the car up and it still ran bad all night, I can rev it with the clutch pushed in, all the way to 5500 without a problem but it stuttered all night, had a pretty bad bobble once I picked my cousin and her boyfriend up. It started easing off to a slight bobble but at WOT, it was hesitating bad. It did that all night, it was running like sh!t bigtime. I have noticed it always seems to have a big hesitation at night and it always shows it's ass when somebody rides with me. It ran fine all day for the most part, except for the slight hesitation up top, got the ECT in but it was getting colder out, ran like sh!t since.

The car has NGK TR5's with less than 2000 miles on them, just did the lower intercooler hose, put a pcv line on it because I broke the other, it has newer Motorcraft Plug Wires (unknown milage), new TFI but didnt do the PIP, Gillis Valve set at 16-17 but falls off to 15 by 5200 RPM's, I checked the fuel pressure last night and it stayed in the 50's the whole time, had the cat cut off the other day, has a new fuel filter.

When I first bought the car and couldnt figure out what was wrong with it, thats when I didnt realise it was actually driveable once it warmed up, I tried everything that never effected it's cold running performance. New VAM, didnt work, took it back, new BAP sensor, didnt work, took it back.

I sprayed around under the hood today with some carb cleaner and the idle never changed. The vacuum hoses look good. The o2 sensor looks pretty new but it was there when I bought the car, like the wires.

So, let's recap, it WILL rev with the clutch it but only when warmed up, it's kind of sh!tty when it's cold, the car is UNDRIVABLE until it gets up to temp, it's driveable when it's warmed up, it runs good during the day usually but at night, it has a bobble, sometimes pretty bad, it hesitates during the day too but not until the upper RPM's in third and fourth really. It just depends.

The car was well maintained by the previous owner, I got all the reciepts and the maintainence record he kept. He thought the 85 MPH he had gotten up to on the Interstate one day was fast. [Image: smile.gif] He kept up with the car pretty good, it just has these weird a$$ problems that I cant figure out. He was selling it, when the problem started, I havent been able to figure it out.

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1989 Mustang LX Hatchback, Black, 5 Speed, 306, TRW's, F303, 3.55's, alot more
1988 Mustang GT, Black, 5 Speed, Explorer Intake, 93 Cobra Cam, 3.55's, alot more
1988 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe, Silver 5 Speed, K&N
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Chuck W Offline
Posting Freak
#2
Just for shits, did you disconnect the battery after you replaced the ECT to clear the ECM? It may not make any difference, but try disconnecting it for 1/2 hour or so and then hooking this back up and giving it a try. Have you run codes on it? How did you determine the ECT needed replacing?

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Any connection between your reality and mine is purely coincidental..
83 TC Clone, 87 Ranger (soon to be 2.3T), 84 XR7, 86 XR4 and 62 Mercury Monterey (old n slo)
NATO Member
83 TC Clone, 85 Mercury LTS, 97 Volvo 850 T5 Turbo, 78 Volvo 240, 93 F150
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Speeds8erM-1 Offline
Member
#3
I didnt disconnect the battery, infact, I only have once since I bought it and that was when I locked the keys in the car with the headlights on, hood was popped though. [Image: smile.gif] I guess I could but knowing my luck, it will do nothing. I havent been running codes, it never told me anything important before so I havent bothered with it much. My friend has my scanner anyway and we are at odds at the moment, I guess I could do the jumper wire thing to flash codes.

I figured I had tried about everything, couple people on here mentioned something about it, it was only like $10, so I figured it HAD to be it. With it usually only running bad when cold, it had to be the ECT. I was wrong. [Image: smile.gif]
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Speeds8erM-1 Offline
Member
#4
Finally updated the sig. [Image: smile.gif]

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1989 Mustang LX Hatchback, Black, 5 Speed, 306, TRW's, F303, 3.55's, alot more
1988 Mustang GT, Black, 5 Speed, Explorer Intake, 93 Cobra Cam, 3.55's, alot more
1988 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe, Silver 5 Speed, BBK Filter, 12 Degrees of Timing, Gillis Valve at 16-17 PSI, Removed Cat
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Kev Offline
Posting Freak
#5
I noticed that you have played with the timing. Did you take the spout out when you set the timing at 12 degrees? With the spout in and the car running, it should read more like 30 degrees.
Just to rule it out, go to your local autozone and have them check your altenator. If the battery is having to keep the car alive, it won't run very well, if at all, but the problem would be significantly worse at night. Also check your spark plug wires to make sure that they are on the right spark plugs. You also said that you did something to the pcv valve hose, make sure that the hose is plugged back into it's base at the side of the head, and plugged back into the lower side of the upper intake. You said that your fuel pressure is ok, so the only other thing that I can think of is your vam and intercooler hoses. I realize that you've checked them, but it never hurts to check them again. Any loose hose clamp from behind the VAM to the upper intake will cause the bucking, sputtering, and bogging that you describe.
Kev
1988 TC 5spd
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Speeds8erM-1 Offline
Member
#6
Of course the spout was out, it's the same thing on Mustangs. [Image: smile.gif] Alternator dosent need checking, it is charging fine on the gauge, no dim headlights or anything at all, it's nothing like my GT with it's dimness at idle. [Image: smile.gif] The plug wires are on the right ones, or else I wouldnt have been able to put the 100 miles I put on it today. [Image: wink.gif] When I said pcv line, I mean the hard plastic one on the other side that the breather clamps into.

It kind of feels like a boost leak but it didnt sound like it, if it has one, it's small and just started tonight, I will see if it has a blown intercooler hose again and if it does, I am going to be pi$$ed because it's on their good and has been doing fine for the most part for the past couple of days. [Image: smile.gif] How common is it to blow them? I blew one so far and have a used one on there now. If it has a blown intercooler hose again, it's getting fixed and sold. [Image: smile.gif]

That might be the reason it started running sh!tty tonight but I still havent figured out why the car is absolutely UNDRIVEABLE when cold though. I am talking, bucks so hard it throws you around in the seat and people watching you drive by are laughing.
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Pete D Offline
Administrator
#7
I think you really need to pull the codes.

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NATO Member. it's not a vice, it's an obsession
It may be that your sole purpose in life is to serve as a warning to others.
88 TC X 2, 86 SVO, mods list at
http://www.turbotbird.com/showroom/pd_88tc.htm
Pete Dunham


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Walsted Offline
Posting Freak
#8
Quote:Originally posted by Speeds8erM-1:
...The car has NGK TR5's with less than 2000 miles on them,
Those aren't platinum or anything like that, right?
Quote:...I checked the fuel pressure last night and it stayed in the 50's the whole time...
I thought it was supposed to be about 40 with the vacuum line removed from the FPR, and then vary directly with vacuum/boost with it attached.

Hope this helps



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Mike Walsted - NATO member
1986 5-speed TurboCoupe and 1985 5-speed XR7
Mike Walsted - Sold my 1986 5-speed TurboCoupe
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Speeds8erM-1 Offline
Member
#9
They arent platinums, this isnt my first power adder car, so I know better, well, platinums suck in any car actually. [Image: smile.gif] The fuel pressure stayed in the 50's the whole time at WOT, I couldnt see perfectly because it was dark and I was having to drive, shift and watch the gauge with a flashlight. [Image: smile.gif] It was 35 at idle, rev it up and it would go to 40, then at WOT it would get into the 50's and stay there until I let off.
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jabobia Offline
Member
#10
Quote:Originally posted by Speeds8erM-1:
They arent platinums, this isnt my first power adder car, so I know better, well, platinums suck in any car actually. [Image: smile.gif] The fuel pressure stayed in the 50's the whole time at WOT, I couldnt see perfectly because it was dark and I was having to drive, shift and watch the gauge with a flashlight. [Image: smile.gif] It was 35 at idle, rev it up and it would go to 40, then at WOT it would get into the 50's and stay there until I let off.

hey whats up man...long time no see

did you try resetting the computer by leaving the battery disconnected like suggested, and then letting the car idle for a few minutes to figure itself out again?

how much vaccum do you get cold at idle? warm at idle?

pull the codes using the tried-and-true STO-STI jumper wire method [Image: biggrin.gif]

have you checked the ECT signal AT the ecu(KOEO voltage)

edit: and hey...if youre ever gonna be in the area let me know - we can get together and work it...it would be quite a drive though [Image: biggrin.gif]

-james

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87 Thunderbird TurboCoupe - 2.3T, T5, 3.55L - K&N, 18psi - 16.14@88mph(2.37 60')
88 Thunderbird Sport - 5.0SO, AOD, 2.73L - 16.77@82mph(2.39 60')

[This message has been edited by jabobia (edited 10-19-2003).]
87 Thunderbird TurboCoupe - 2.3T, T5, 3.55L - K&N, 18psi - 16.14@88mph(2.37 60')
88 Thunderbird Sport - 5.0SO, AOD, 2.73L - 16.77@82mph(2.39 60')
www.cardomain.com/id/jabobia
jabobia.com
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