I have a 2001 Ranger. We purchased it new and it has 67,000 miles on it. Here is our problem. Last Friday I cranked it and noticed it did not sound "right. Okay,I admit, I am a woman! Sounded like it was missing on a cylinder. Thought it would clear up. Drove it about a mile then the check engine light started flashing. I was on back roads so my speeds were about 35 to 40. When I got to the highway it was not idling well so I decided to head back for home. On the highway I put on my flashers and drove about 45 and it started shaking so I pulled over and called for a tow truck. It has not been driven since.

Fast forward to now...Husband who does have mechanical skills ordered a code reader that has special programming for the Ford/Mazda pickups. When he plugged it in it would not power up. So, we happen to own a Volvo which the code reader also works on so he checked the reader on the Volvo to make sure it was not defective. It was not.

Does this mean we have a bad computer or a bad/disconnected wire? What usually happens when the main computer goes out? Also, all of the fuses have been double checked. The reason I am suspecious of the wire is because last year the truck was at the dealer for a fuel pump. They also chased wires in the dashboard saying there was a bad wire. Needless to say, I do not trust the dealer.

I would really appreciate some suggestions before husband starts throwing things out in the garage.
Thanks!

 

Double check fuse 17 in cab fuse panel. Check for power at Cig lighter.

If the fuse is good and Cig lighter has power, check pin 16 at the DCL connector (see pin out below).

If pin 16 has power, set meter to ohms and check pins 4 & 5 to battery ground. Should read .2 ohms or less at each pin.

 

Thanks! He will try that this morning and let you know what happens.

 

Thought that I would give you an update, Rev. Your information was very helpful. It turned out that the last time it was in the dealer they put a 10 amp fuse in the #17 fuse slot instead of a 20amp. Of course, we missed that the other day and it was blown.
We put in the correct fuse and the code reader is now working. We now can diagnose the original problem. Husband is now looking up the codes online. It did say that it was misfiring on the #5 cylinder.
Once again, thanks for your help. Sure beats husband getting fustrated chasing wires! LOL

 

Not a problem. If its throwing a P0305 I'd check the following:

1. Spark plug and or spark plug wire for number 5 cyl.
2. Associated Coil Pack.
3. The fuel injector or its wiring for number 5 cyl.

 

For some reason we do not have a service manual so we have one ordered. So it is on hold at this point. From what we have found looking around on the internet it seems to be about 50/50. Neither should be a problem for hubby to fix. I will let you know how it goes.

 

Okay, went out to double check to make sure that we were getting fire to #5 cylinder and the battery (which the dealer told us over 3 yrs ago was bad) was dead. Not totally, radio and internal lights worked but not enough juice to turn over engine. So, we charged the battery and "fiddled with # 5 plug wire. Next day truck cranked, ran fine, check engine light was out. We bought new battery so either it was a loose plug wire on # 5 or the battery. Don't know if the battery could have caused the problem or not. Thought that I would put it here in case it might help someone else looking for answers in the future. Sure would beat tearing the injectors apart or replacing ignition parts, which is where we were headed.

Rev, thank you for your help along the way!