More electrical problems...

[Chris_Polley]

Hey again everyone... I just posted a message a couple days ago about my odd issue I've been having with a bad electrical connection or possibly bad battery wire giving me problems with starting my car... Anyways... now I have another problem. After playing around with my battery cables and connections again I decided to take it on a little trip around the area because it seemed to be working alright. I got about 15 miles from home and it started dying as I was driving down the highway... it would start to stall and die but it would get spark again and stay running almost instantly... so I pulled off and turned around and started for home... and it got extremely bad to the point where I didn't think I would get back home. I would pull up to a stop sign or light and it would kill, I would be accelerating and it would kill, I would be slowing down for traffic and it would kill. So I pulled off the road and checked my coil wire etc and didn't see anything out of the ordinary that jumped out at me. I did make it back home, but the entire rest of the way it would seem to lose all spark and almost shut off but then regain spark and stay running. Coil problem? Anything else to look at?
BTW, it's an '87 GT... just over 50,000 actual miles... really clean under the hood and all wires have been replaced, coil and plug wires within the past year, all connections are good.
Thanks guys!

 

[Rugged]

Hey again everyone... I just posted a message a couple days ago about my odd issue I've been having with a bad electrical connection or possibly bad battery wire giving me problems with starting my car... Anyways... now I have another problem. After playing around with my battery cables and connections again I decided to take it on a little trip around the area because it seemed to be working alright. I got about 15 miles from home and it started dying as I was driving down the highway... it would start to stall and die but it would get spark again and stay running almost instantly... so I pulled off and turned around and started for home... and it got extremely bad to the point where I didn't think I would get back home. I would pull up to a stop sign or light and it would kill, I would be accelerating and it would kill, I would be slowing down for traffic and it would kill. So I pulled off the road and checked my coil wire etc and didn't see anything out of the ordinary that jumped out at me. I did make it back home, but the entire rest of the way it would seem to lose all spark and almost shut off but then regain spark and stay running. Coil problem? Anything else to look at?
BTW, it's an '87 GT... just over 50,000 actual miles... really clean under the hood and all wires have been replaced, coil and plug wires within the past year, all connections are good.
Thanks guys!

Is your battery new? Alternator?

Sounds like your alt. is not putting any charge into your battery. Or your battery will not even take a charge. Have the system LOAD tested at any mechanic shop. They will tell you in 30 seconds if it is your battery or alt.

 

[Chris_Polley]

I actually had my battery tested at two different places a couple days ago when I was trying to figure out my other electrical issue. Battery was almost new anyway and tested out great at both places. My gauge inside the car shows the alternator is charging right where it normally would as well. I've never had a dead battery or had to put a charger on the car... I am thinking all that is working fine. It just seems like the car is completely losing spark for a second. Almost like I flip the key to off and then right back to on again to keep it running. The tach will drop... car will stall and then it will come right back up and stay running. And when it is running, it is running just like normal. Firing on all cylinders... idling smooth etc... and then all of a sudden it will just cut off again.

 

[04sleeper]

Sounds like a faulty coil or TFI module. I would try checking both.

 

[Kiknads]

agreed on the TFI module, sounds exactly what was happening to me originally

 

[HISSIN50]

dont forget the pick up and the ignition switch itself.
good luck.

 

[88hatchblack]

I had the exact same problem and it was the TFI module

 

[Stang951]

If not the TFI module check all of the connectors under the hood. The power wire to my coil in the grey connector shorted out and would not make contact inside of the connector. I had to jump it out.
Another thing to check would be all of the connections to the fusible links. I also had this problem that was intermitent and it ended up being a bad crimp at one of the fusible link connectors that was replaced.

 

[OL' WHITEY]

I vote for ignition switch. I've had the same problem with mine. Switch fixed it. Do you notice that if you jiggle the key certain ways, it helps or hurts? If so, change the ignition switch.