Page 1 of 2
ridin rough
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 5:11 pm
by vinchez78
Started the car up this morning and it started idling rough, needle bouncing, even while driving noticed it was a bit rough, anyone know what it could be?? Thanks
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 5:58 pm
by Z282SLO
Fuel pump? Injectors dirty? Was your fuel level below a 1/4 tank this am?
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 6:21 pm
by vinchez78
About three quarters, last fill up I used Lucas injector cleaner, have u heard of Sea foam??? If so, does it work??
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 6:56 pm
by Z282SLO
Never heard of Sea Foam. The reason I mentioned the fuel pump and asked about the fuel level is when the fuel pump went on my 89 GT a while back, I started noticing problems with rougher idle and hesitation on acceleration, especially when the fuel level got low. Although if your pump is going bad it could happen no matter how much gas you have in the tank. Also, before my pump went it had become noisy to the point I could hear it from the hatch area while driving.
Another area to check are the distributor and spark plug wires. Make sure all connections are tight at the cap and at the plugs and that no wires are beginning to wear out.
Hope this helps. Good luck.
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 7:10 pm
by vinchez78
Thank u Z, one more q, did the sound from the hatch sound like it was vibrating??
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 7:16 pm
by Z282SLO
Yes ... it was like a steady buzzing sound. Before the pump went bad, I did not hear it while the engine was running.
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 8:21 pm
by RollTide93
fuel pumps on these cars and 5.0's are loud in general, could be the fuel pump, I'd try the fuel filter first easier and cheaper
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 8:27 pm
by WillyB93
Was it surging up and down while trying to start cold? What was the temperature? I am thinking maybe the IAC valve is going bad.
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 8:37 pm
by vinchez78
Yes surging up and down, temp was a lil above the second notch, I was looking at a product called Seafoam, anybody use this and if so, does it work?? And, Roll, I might do the fuel filter, like u said, cheaper. If it ends up being the fuel pump, what would be a good pump to get???
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 8:48 pm
by WillyB93
Was it cold out side this morning for you was what I was asking? Might even have a small vacuum leak causing the issue.
Here is a old link talking about it:
viewtopic.php?t=3506&highlight=sea+foam
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 8:52 pm
by vinchez78
WillyB93 wrote:Was it cold out side this morning for you was what I was asking? Might even have a small vacuum leak causing the issue.
Here is a old link talking about it:
viewtopic.php?t=3506&highlight=sea+foam
Wow this really helps Willy, thank u. And yes it was cold today, was thinking it would go back to regular idle, but it never did
Posted: Mon Oct 22, 2012 9:04 pm
by WillyB93
Might try the sea foam to see if it helps, if not then there is another issue at hand like stated earlier.
Posted: Tue Oct 23, 2012 1:02 pm
by buddha
FP's are generally all or nothing. Sounds like a miss possibly, or a number of other things. I'd check for the obvious spark related stuff, dirty MAF element, and check for any vacuum leaks as were mentioned. Kinda odd it went to crap so suddenly.
Posted: Tue Oct 23, 2012 1:40 pm
by vinchez78
Yeah, it was one day it wad fine then next it started with the surging, sux

Posted: Tue Oct 23, 2012 3:09 pm
by SVTchris
Here is a link to a possible cause of the idle surge. Hope it helps.
http://www.fordmuscle.com/archives/2002 ... ndex.shtml