Rough idle and "Check Engine Soon" light - FIXED

[scarletgem]

Try disconnecting the battery for a while...good time to clean it up and then reconnecting it....I seem to remember it turned my light off. Sort of a reset.

 

[scarletgem]

Has anyone ever had this problem with a 5.0 V8?

 

[Beausdad]

Usually that works, bur Ford has truly dropped the ball on the 3rd gen X's. No tranny dipstick, 4 wheel independent suspension, push button woman's 4 WD.

Remember the good ole' days when you could work on your own trucks with a simple set of standard sockets and combo wrenches. I tell you what. Next vehicle I buy is going to be at least 20 years old. I need me a 1973 Ford Ranger Custom XLT Shortbed 4x4. Oh I long for manual locking hubs and solid front and rear axles and the ability to put a suspension lift on this piece of crap.

 

[scarletgem]

No kidding..I don't even have the push button...AWD

 

[shibbz]

I went to NAPA and asked the sales person for 1 foot of 5/8 inch fuel line thinking I could make it work. Then just out of curiosity I asked if they had any random elbows. SHE SAID YES! I almost wet myself. I cut off 2 pieces of hose approx. 1.5 inches, attached them to each end of the elbow. Then attached my new elbow to the appropriate ends and what do you know it worked.

I think this is what I'll end up doing. I don't care if it's pretty, don't want to wait for a dealer part!

 

[uefear]

Rather than disconnecting your battery like everyone on this forum says, just pull the 10 amp ecu fuse and leave it out for 10-15 seconds. Much easier way of "resetting" your engine codes than pulling your battery cables off.

 

[medicbro2000]

Similar problem??

Hey- Excellent post...
I have a 2000 Ranger with the small 3.0 V6 that is doing the same thing. I noticed the exhaust has a rich smell though.... Could my vehicle be experiencing the same problem? I am trying not to rip out the Caty if its not fouled, but familiar symptoms lead me to believe it may be the cat.... what do you think? What does anyone think???

 

[ATL_Mounty]

To reset you Check Engine Light unplug you negative battery cable for like 5 minutes the put it back on and the codes will be cleared. Then you have to drive for like 30 minutes for the computer to recalibrate.

 

[1991 F350 Crew]

I just wanted to post a thank you to SyberTiger for this thread. The other morning my 2002 Explorer (prod. date 7/02) started running rough. I scanned it with my hand held and pulled exactly the same codes you had. I poked 2002 explorer and one of the codes into google and it lead to to this thread and boy am I glad. Well i pulled the cover off of my engine and found the exact same torn boot as in your pics. I've never been so glad to find a problem. Anyhow I ran to autozone and grabbed a 5/8 bypass elbow and threw it on there. I cleared the codes and it has been good so far. I may pull it back apart and put a clamp on the valve cover end of the hose because it seemed a little loose. Anyhow thanks again.

 

[SteveT3]

Part# for Autozone Elbow used for Sybertiger Problem

Hello everyone, I'm Steve. I'm new to this forum. I have a 2003 F150, but the same elbow problem as Sybertiger on my 4.6L V8. I just figured out my problem yesterday unfortunately before reading Sybertiger's post. His great post with pics are identical to mine. Same hole and everything. If you are interested in using the Elbow Autozone has that fixed mine here is the info on my receipt.

#883116 S-3015

S-3015 Kelly Springfield Bypass Radiator Hose

It's just a hose, no clamps used. Cost $7.99

It fixed my problem of Codes PO171 and PO174. If you have run lean for a while with these codes you may have to run some "Lucas" fuel treatment or something similar for 100 or so miles if you have a little miss.

Just fixed yesterday and truck runs great. So far, so good.

The AZ mgr told me that this problem of the elbow is so common now that Ford has issued a bulletin on it. He says he sells a ton of these elbows.

I also sprayed the MAF sensor with MAF Cleaner from AZ without removing it while changing the Air Filter. DO NOT handle the two sensor wires or they will break. Just give them a good spray. Don't underestimate the benefit of the cleaning of the MAF, although most would advise to remove it first.

To see details of were this elbow is see Sybertiger's excellent post. It will save you $500.+ at the dealer to decode , find the problem and fix.

I hope I'm not speaking too soon as it was fixed yesterday. If so I will repost. I hope this helps some of you.

Steve T
Biloxi, MS.

 

[tombgo]

Tom

02 Ford XLT Explorer. 75 K on it - Check Engine Light - Same codes
I spent today replacing one of my upstream O2 sensors and also cleaning the MAF sensor. Still had check engine light. I resolved to going back to Autozone to replace the right side upstream sensor when I stumbled across your thread. Ran out to the garage- I just had to see!! Your case was exactly like mine. BAM!! The elbow has a gapping hole in it and first appearance it looked exactly like the photo you provided.The rubber is not dry rotted and when I put my finger on it the hole got a lot bigger. I also smell some gas, is this normal? I will go to autozone and do the cheap quick fix , But I will get the actual replacement part from Ford. Can I expect the Check engine light to disappear after repair? Or do you have to go Autozone to clear the warning? Man just imagine bringing this problem to the dealer they would have you by the nads- and your money. Thanks

 

[guillo99]

you are the men!!!

Tank you...

 

[SteveT3]

Light WILL NOT go out after fixing

Hi,
The error codes have to be cleared first after your problem is fixed and then they won't come back on, at least that was in my case. I had bought a cheap code reader at Harbor Freight ($39.00??) when the warning light first came on that can clear the codes. Auto Zone might do that for you?? Or, I have heard you can disconnect the battery and clear the codes, but you have to run the engine at low, and high speeds for a while in order for the computer to readjust itself when you hook the battery back up. There is probably a post on here to explain that.
Gas Smell___I don't know?
My Truck is running as good as it ever did since the AZ fix hose. Plus I used that Lucas injector cleaner, because it ran lean for so long while the light was on. I think Ford makes you buy the whole assembly at a "Price!!".
Let me know what happens.
Steve T

 

[cincydru]

i have a 2000 explorer xls and it is running rough.

its throwing the P0304 cyl 4 misfire.

so far i've replaced: wires, plugs, pcv valve, pressure sensor, coil pack or whatever , and its still running rough.

i can not find out what the problem is. so far i've gathered from searches on this site is the lower intake manifold gasket? im CLUELESS..

it boggs down alot while accellerating in what seems to be 4th gear. it also boggs while going uphills under heavy accelleration.

when going around 70mph the check enging light flashes, but stays on.. it has a few other codes it throws cant remember exactly what it is right now.

has anybody else had this problem before? can anyone help with solutions! I WOULD GREATLY APPRECIATE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!

THANKS

 

[F1EA]

i have a 2000 explorer xls and it is running rough.

its throwing the P0304 cyl 4 misfire.

so far i've replaced: wires, plugs, pcv valve, pressure sensor, coil pack or whatever , and its still running rough.

i can not find out what the problem is. so far i've gathered from searches on this site is the lower intake manifold gasket? im CLUELESS..

it boggs down alot while accellerating in what seems to be 4th gear. it also boggs while going uphills under heavy accelleration.

when going around 70mph the check enging light flashes, but stays on.. it has a few other codes it throws cant remember exactly what it is right now.

has anybody else had this problem before? can anyone help with solutions! I WOULD GREATLY APPRECIATE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!

THANKS

I just came out of a very similar problem, it was with cyl #1. I got the Service Engine Soon light, read the error codes and got: P0300, P0301 and P0316.

The truck was idling rough, and under load, the truck would chug and pull with some hesitation and lack of power, mostly between 1,200 - 1,800 rpm.

Solved my problems with changing spark plugs, fuel filter and cleaning the injectors. So I suggest you change the fuel filter and get your injectors cleaned.

(since you have already changed the plugs and wires and coil) still check for the coil pack and plug wires in case something went wrong during installation.

 

[cincydru]

here's all the codes i told yall i would get for ya:


P0401
P0402
P0304
P0171
P0174
P1000

can you help me figure out what's the cause of my car running like this? thanks again guys!

 

[SyberTiger]

Y'all are welcome. I'm glad you came back to indicate your problem was fixed. I hate it when someone comes here for help but never reports if/how the problem was fixed. Many of us need to do a better job of being specific about the problem and the solution.

I'm not sure why the moderator hasn't made this a sticky thread. Seems like a lot of people are having this problem as the vehicle gets older. This problem is common on a number of Ferd products not just the Explorer/Mountainer.

P.S. Why does this thread now read: "Check vroom vroom Soon" light? Shouldn't it still read "Check E-N-G-I-N-E Soon"? Must be an April Fools Day thing. LOL!

 

[cincydru]

here's all the codes i told yall i would get for ya:


P0401
P0402
P0304
P0171
P0174
P1000

can you help me figure out what's the cause of my car running like this? thanks again guys!

please help!

 

[BlackHawk77]

Mine has the hole as well, thanks for the helpfull post!!!

 

[Blanketman]

Rather than disconnecting your battery like everyone on this forum says, just pull the 10 amp ecu fuse and leave it out for 10-15 seconds. Much easier way of "resetting" your engine codes than pulling your battery cables off.

Where is this located
i couldnt find it and its not labels as ECU fuse

also on the rockercover on the opposite side you have the same elbow
i just used that one and replaced the rocker cover elbow as it is much easier to acsess

looking for hitemp silicone replacements as used on turbos as it looks like the rubber elbow has degraded because of the higher than usual temeratures in that location