1993 Mustang LX notchback.

[Fuzzylogic]

Hey all,

First off, I'm freaking psyched about this car. I got a great deal on it, and the body/interior is in great shape. The engine IS struggling a little. I want to keep the 2.3L for now. I'm attending the police academy and like the fuel mileage. But the car will be heavily modified next year.

On start up, the car has difficulty. It struggles to stay going, bogs, backfires occasionally, and tries to stall. Really have to massage the clutch/gas to keep it going. Once it is warmed up, however, it runs and sounds perfectly fine, unless you give it too much gas - it'll start sputtering/bogging. Once you clear the lower RPMs, it cleans up and pulls, until the next shift. What do you think? We noticed some of the spark plugs appear loose, the air filter looks fine, we're not sure about the fuel filter... Maybe a clogged catalytic converter? Something else? The check engine light is on (!!!), so I'm planning on going somewhere and having them hook up a diagnostic and see what codes are being thrown.

I don't plan on modding the 2.3L, besides little things like a K&N, and basic maintenance items, but I will be starting to order parts for the suspension and body. The stock hood is freaking HEAVY!

The codes we just pulled from the engine are:

181: FUEL SYSTEM AT RICH ADAPTIVE LIMIT AT PART THROTTLE SYSTEM LEAN BANK 1.

186: INJECTOR PULSEWIDTH HIGHER THAN EXPECTED

222: LOSS OF IGNITION DIAGNOSTIC MONITOR SIGNAL RIGHT SIDE

556: FUEL PUMP RELAY PRIMARY CIRCUIT FAILURE

Any ideas? The guy we talked to suggested checking the 02 sensor and fuel pump relay. Also looking for any connections that are loose/broken/unattached.

Thanks all! Glad to finally join the ranks, even if it's not a 5.0+. Yet.


Thomas

 

[Fuzzylogic]

I'd like to see if it's the MAF causing the problem. I have the rubber boot unhooked, and the connection that plugs into the MAF box unplugged. Can I start the car like that? I don't want to damage anything.

Tried it, no change. Oh well. Going to do a search for a couple things soon as I post this, but if anyone can point me to a spark plug removal and catalytic converter removal FAQ, I'd appreciate it. Want to check all the plugs and see if the cats are clogged.

When we turn the key to on, we can't hear the fuel pump clicking on. Shouldn't we be able to? Could the fuel pump relay be bad? Not sure how to check, other than the key on/listening for the pump test.

Not sure how to check the injectors, but I saw another post mentioning running injector cleaner. Will try that as well if spark plugs/cats are good.

 

[Fuzzylogic]

Any help with this is appreciated. I'm banging my head against the wall, I just want this car to run smooth to get me back and forth to work. My girlfriend's Honda is killing me.

 

[stykthyn]

do the easy stuff first.
change the fuel filter and the 02 sensor and see if that helps. Clean the Idle Air Control Valve, change plugs and wires, and check the fuel pump relay. It almost sounds as if you are running rich I would wanna say that it has something to do with your plugs and wires.

 

[Shinlee]

yea, you prob just got it without it being tuned first.

give it a good once over tune up, run some lucas injector cleaner through it, not some crap stp stuff, and if your really wanting to, when you change your oil replace one quart of oil with a quart of rislone. you can buy it at autozone, do that for like 2 or 3 oilchanges and it'll really clean the inside up alot. did it on my 2.3 and on my first oil change after running the rislone through a cycle, all kinds of stuff came out of my oil pan, and i mean some NASTY stuff too