Hey guys. I'm having some trouble with my 1993 Ranger 3.0L. The truck has about 130,000 miles on it. The truck starts and idles fine (I park it with the front facing slightly downhill), but then I back out onto the road (so the front faces uphill) and as soon as I stop to shift from R to D it dies. Then it doesn't want to start back up, but I can get it to if I let it sit for a minute. It has done this twice now, the second time it ran like crap when I got it started and tried to die when I let off the throttle.

The starter was replaced maybe 15,000 miles ago and cranks fine after the truck dies. The battery was replaced last year and the lights still work after the truck dies. I also replaced the fuel filter maybe 8,000 miles ago.

I'm thinking it's either the fuel pump or possibly the alternator. I'm wanting to rule out the alternator since the battery seems fine and the gauge never drops, but I will confirm that with a multimeter if I can.

Has anyone had a similar experience? I don't want to go through replacing the fuel pump if it's not broken, but I'm not sure what else could be wrong.

Thanks guys!

 

How full is your gas tank? What is the condition of the straps holding your gas tank? The Alternator can be broke and you can drive fine. It would take power from the battery. If your battery dies the fuel injection won't work. So the truck would turn off. You said your lights still work.

Fuel pump sounds like the problem. The up hill down hill. Pump needs to work good to keep it running. It might also be a connection to the fuel pump. I mean trouble with the power line to the pump. Could also be a ground issue in there as well.

Hope I have got you closer to a fix.
Jim

 

Hey Jim thanks for the input. Tank is about 3/4 full. So I don't think it's a fuel level issue. Sounds like we have the same idea about why it could be the fuel pump.

I'll have to crawl under it when I get home and check the connections and lines. I had to go to work so I couldn't mess with it right away. I think I'll try to turn the truck around so it faces uphill too and then try to start it so it doesn't have gravity helping feed the fuel.

Thanks for input. I'll let you know what I find after I check all the connections.

 

You are welcome

I think to get to the fuel pump you need to take the bed off. The fill line goes right to the top of the tank. It is also pinched by the bed. I had a leak in the fuel fill down line. Instead of removing bed. I sealed the line up and fixed my vapor leak.

So this might not be easy to get to. Hope all goes well.
Jim

 

In case anyone stumbles on this thread, I thought I would give an update. The truck hasn't died since my original post so for now I'm leaving it alone.

I did check the fuse and relay for the fuel pump and they are both fine. The fuel pump turn on every time I turn the key. At this point I don't want to replace anything until it stops working completely.

My best guess is still the fuel pump, but also possibly the fuel regulator or distributor cap and rotor since they are original parts.

New2Ford - You are right about removing the bed to replace the fuel pump. It is by far the easiest way I have found to do it, as long as you can get the 6 bed bolts off without breaking them. After that it's easy to pull the bed back and get to the tank. This is also a good time to check the filler hose and make sure it's not leaking.

I'll update again if/when something finally stops working.

 

djpope09

I hope it doesn't stop working. Great update.

Jim

 

You have an automatic from the description

In automatics the computer should bump up the idle when you put the transmission in any gear.
When engine is cold the idle should be above 1,000 in any case, so you may not hear/feel it go up when you put it in gear.
But it should not drop when you put it in gear, thats what to watch for.

The computer sets idle using the IAC(idle air control) Valve on the upper intake by throttle plate.
These often need to be cleaned, and it is not hard to do.

If IAC valve was sticking then yes, it could stall when shifting from R to D, and yes it would be hard to restart because IAC Valve must be OPEN ALL THE WAY to start the engine or there will not be enough air.
When you turn on the key the first thing the computer does is to open up the IAC Valve all the way for starting, if engine stalls the first thing the computer does is to open up the IAC Valve all the way for restarting.

The fact you have to hold throttle open(let in more air) to keep engine running again points to IAC Valve problem.

Good thread with pictures here on IAC Valve: How to: IAC valve cleaning thread (w/pics) | Ford Explorer and Ford Ranger Forums - Serious Explorations

After you remove IAC Valve and can see inside it, reconnect its wires and turn on the key, IAC Valve should open all the way, then unplug the wires and it should close all the way, plug wires back in and it will open again, lol.
Just test it a bit.