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confusing issues


bostonshouse

Member
Joined
Jul 24, 2017
Messages
5
Vehicle Year
2003
Transmission
Manual
Hello all! I am 1500 miles into a 2400 mile drive in my 2003 Ranger FX4 level 2 with manual transmission and manual transfer case. It has all gone well except for 2 weird issues that have me stumped.

1- Yesterday after about 600 miles I made my final fuel stop. I needed to make a sharp right hand u-turn to get into the pump. in doing so the truck stalled. I am truly not sure if I stalled it or if it died but when I tried to restart it was dead. No dash lights, no buzzing, no starter not even a click. I popped the hood, pulled and replaced the negative battery cable and everything was better. Drove another hundred miles yesterday and most of the day today with no issues.

2- Today after about 6 hours of driving I again pulled in to a gas station. Checked fluids, filled up and got on my way. The car stuttered a bit pulling out of the station, then again, a few minutes later on the onramp and again when I reached speed (80mph). I pulled off the next exit, looked everything over and it all looked good. I checked the negative battery cable and it too looked ok ( in all fairness it is on but can be removed with no tools), I started driving again and drobe another 7 hours without issue.

Just wondering if the slightly loose negative cable could cause these issues and what else may be the culprit.

Background on truck, It has 146k total miles. I replaced the motor a few years ago with a low mileage replacement. The engine currently has about 40K miles. In the 2 weeks before the trip we have replaced the following

Fuel pump
Fuel filter
all front end components ( control arms, ball joints, tie rod ends, sway bar links and bushinfs, hubs)
all new brakes
New IAC
Of course all fluids have been changed

son also put on some cosmetic items (Led tail lights and 3rd brake lights
 
A slightly loose battery cable can do all sorts of crazy stuff. Tighten it up like it should be.
 
Thank you. I did tighten it up this morning and ran most of the day without issue. I had a couple of stutters after my last fuel stop. also noticed that it will idle at about 3K rpm for 10 seconds or so when I depress the clutch and takes about the same to drop after I start the car.
 
That sounds pretty normal if the engine isn't up to temperature. Maybe slightly high...
 
Now that the pcm isn't going crazy with voltage variations, it has to learn how to control the idle speed properly. That can take a week or so.
 
Thanks guys. Finished my trip today. Found the problem this morning. Turns out I am an idiot. The air filter housing was not closed it was just resting on top. I put it back together properly and all is good,.. Well except for the leak from the rear pinion seal that started today. Ill get that handled tomorrow. Thanks again
 

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