Finally..

[jchammbone]

So after a year and a half I got to tinker with my 88. i put the alternator back together , recharged battery, drained fuel and replaced with fresh gas....
She fired right up!!! so stoked about it but still doesnt solve my problem. wish me luck!

 

[gungfudan]

what is your problem?

 

[armadillon]

Good luck. I know some trucks give people a hardon, but if your problem is Erectile Dysfunction, this may not be the best way to solve it.



Glad you got it fired up hehe

 

[Rowdy Fitzgerald]

Good luck. I know some trucks give people a hardon, but if your problem is Erectile Dysfunction, this may not be the best way to solve it.



Glad you got it fired up hehe

Lmao!!! Good call ha ha ha ha ha!

 

[jchammbone]

what is your problem?

It dies on me ...randomly..while driving. like i turned the key off. usually just hit the key and it would start up and be on my way. Then other times it wouldnt hit with the key but i could pop clutch and it would start that way. BUT this last time (1 1/2 years ago) it wouldnot start no matter what i did, so i got it pulled home and in driveway and i gave up. turns over fine but wont fire up. There was one time i left for work and got 100 feet out of drive and it laid down on me...couldnt get it to start...left it till i got off work and put the key in and turned it...away she went!... probably needs everything but a starter. anyways just tickled it ran..!!!

 

[Blitzp]

does it have a cam sensor on it? ive had that problem before on a couple other vehicles.

 

[cody93]

nah, 88's were still distributor powered. just curious, when ever it died and wont fire back up, was there spark or fuel? next time it dies, give it a few shots of starting fluid and see if it will fire. If it farts, you got fuel issues, if not, you may have ignition issues.

 

[Mark_88]

Yeah, try a squirt of gas or starter fluid and if it fires your fuel delivery is wonky...

Could also be vac lines...especially on a 2.0...if it is fuel check gungfudan's recent thread on carb upgrade...could be the carb needs work...

Is this a one barrel or two barrel carb?

 

[jhammel85]

Betting on the TFI Module...

 

[jchammbone]

No carb. efi. Block came out of an 89 mustang. I just used the block crank pistons etc. I am thinking along those lines of a fuel or vacuum problem. Truck sat in field since 2005, i got it in 2008, only thing i did was replace block. New fuel pump, filter, oil and water pump. new head gasket and seals all around. I didnt mess with any electronic sensors etc. because it ran fine after i got it all back together..for about 6 months then started having the dieing (sp?) issue. I didnt drive it a whole bunch but did make few small trips to neighboring towns..45 miles one way. to and from work. after it started to strand me i replaced the battery cables , new ignition switch thinking that might help but it didnt. I did have the tfi checked when i put motor back in..clerk guy said it was good. I have read that those tfi can get hot but half block from my house it didnt get hot.

Could it be a ground issue?
I know i am not a mechanic but i think i know enough to get it to run on daily basis, but it is not crucial to have it done right away, hence year and half since messing with it.
Thanks for all the input.

 

[flaminranger]

the tfi thing is where I would start. and it doesn't take but 10 seconds of running for those things to get hot. also if the lube underneath it isn't there anymore I heard they can short out.
I helped a friend who had the same issue as what your describing on his mustang and he had his checked and they said it was good but it wasn't.he chased that problem for weeks until we tried a known good one and that fixed it.
Duane

 

[cody93]

any good self service wreckers in your area? might be a good idea to get some parts like a TFI module, fuel pump relay, inertia switch, etc out of a wreck/rolled ranger so you know the parts were working. might save you some headaches.

 

[shane96ranger]

the tfi thing is where I would start. and it doesn't take but 10 seconds of running for those things to get hot. also if the lube underneath it isn't there anymore I heard they can short out.
I helped a friend who had the same issue as what your describing on his mustang and he had his checked and they said it was good but it wasn't.he chased that problem for weeks until we tried a known good one and that fixed it.
Duane

I got lucky and got the only guy at Autozone who has any clue as to what a car looks like on the day I had my module checked. He cycled it several times before it failed. The next try it tested good again, but got very sporadic afterwards. Dude handed me a new one (lifetime warranty), and I was one my way.

 

[jchammbone]

Good point on the parts guy. Dont know about "good" yards here. last time i checked they didnt have 1st gen. rangers... ok. Thanks people i will give these a shot next time im out.

 

[gungfudan]

What is the difference between a TFI and the ignition module I have on my 2.0? The reason I asked is because I had a similar problem when truck stoped running. I was driving home and it started back firing and dying. So I go it towed home and figured I would save up and replace the carb because it needed to be rebuilt and I did not want to go back to that junky carb. Well when I got the carb on there was no spark. My uncle asked me a bunch of questions; what about your coil, distributor, ect..... Well I said it is all new from when I replaced the head gasket. The only thing that I had not was the ignition module. So went and picked one up and it fired right up.

Don't know if the tfi and the ignition module are the same or not?