92z71

ok i got a 98 ford ranger, 2.5 -4 cylinder runs and drives great , will set and purr like a kitten in the yard, when i drive it down the road to work, whenever it feels like it , it dies, you have to turn off the key -then turn it back on- and pop the clutch. she fires up and away again. sometimes more often then others. i took it to auto zone= no codes, told me change the fuel filter(i did) kept doing it, took it to a mechanic shop hooked it up to a $20,000 computer and ran it up and down the rpm's, no codes said maybe the crank shaft sensor,(i changed it) and that was a little doing to change that also!!!, Now still doing the same thing, has anyone else had this problem , i just dont want to keep throwing money and parts at it, not knowing what the problem is....or if someone know who can fix or figure it out. thanks

Hurstmeister

Sound like a fuel delivery problem. Check/replace any other inline filters. Kinked fuel lines.

If none of those. Check the fuel pump. Check the connections going to the fuel pump.

At this point its difficult to second guess what your problem is simply from your descriptions. It could honestly be anything. I've done a couple clutches on 4 cylinder rangers. Not my favorite to work on. But beyond that,.. I'm not too familiar with those little trucks. Maybe someone else who had a similar problem can help. Have you tried googling your problem?

I've had good success in the past googling and reading other forums while trying to diagnose a problem. If it happens to one,.. its surely happened to others.

Hurst

Graves

maf? Does it have PATS?

GNs-r-slow

Did they put a scanner on it and try to get it to duplicate the problem, or just check codes while its idleing fine? I'm with Hurst on fuel delivery....my reasoning is the computer, if I'm not mistaken, is not monitered by the computer. So there will be no codes. Sounds like a weak fuel pump. Have a pressure gauge hooked up to reach the windshield, so you can moniter the pressure while testing. May have sufficient pressure to keep the motor idleing but not enough pressure when its (fuel pump) put under load.

HELMUT RONER

How many miles are on it? If they are high it could be a coil pack going bad. Coils won't always trigger a code. Coincidentally, my 2003 Ranger 3.0L had a coil go bad after developing a miss at idle and horrible stumbling at cruising speeds. I had a couple of misfire codes, but nothing related to the coil being bad. I dished out the $75 for a new coil and it runs like a new truck since replacing it. Those 2.3/2.5s have 2 coil packs since they have eight spark plugs.

fuelie327

does it feel like its running out of gas or it just quits? One would point to fuel and the other to ignition. Why do you have to pop the clutch? it wont start back up with the key? Does this have the ignition switch on the column? With out it actually acting up , no scanner will help find it. You have to duplicate the problem. it could be anything from an ignition switch, to a pcm , to a fuel pump. I wouldnt keep throwing parts at it . Unfortunatly it might have to get worse, or at least get to where it does it everytime you take off , next time it does it , when you try to restart it dont let the key return all the way, if thats the reason you have to pop the clutch. if it starts , then there you go.

92z71

its just easy to pop the clutch, lol. but yea you have to completly turn the ignition all the way off and then back on, and yes it will restart with the key, but like i said its quicker and easier when your in traffic just to turn it off/on and pop the clutch and your off again, it doesnt feel like it runs out of fuel (like stumbling) it just like it stalls out like you lose power.

Hurstmeister

That could be a fuel pump relay getting hot and then tripping, Turning it off resets it. Thing is,.. what would cause it to get hot. Faulty pump? Bad wiring?

Hurst

fuelie327

switch the fuel pump relay with another one , like the a/c if its the same. See what happens