Help! Fuel pump relay problem?

[JPFREEK]

Ok.. this is bugging me now.. recently, the explorer has occasionally died on me when driving. Speed/RPM's aren't the cause as it's died at 50mph, and in stop and go traffic.

All the times, the engine just stops.. no sputtering, no nothing..just stops. Engine Temp, oil pressure etc are fine according to guages.

I have to wait about 2-5 minutes and keep trying to turn the key until I hear the fuel pump prime. If I don't hear the fuel pump prime when turning the key to on, it wont start, just turns over.

If I hear the fuel pump prime, it starts right up like a champ.

Fuel pump relay suspect?

Any help would be awesome!

 

[Albino 94LTD]

Sure sounds like it, although when mine started to go it just wouldn't start. It never died once it was running.

Cheap fix, about $9

 

[JPFREEK]

Well, I stopped by NAPA on the way home from work and got a new fuel pump relay. Immediately, the exploder started running smoother and had better acceleration. I'm hoping that fixed this issue. This weekend, it's time for a tune up, new coil pack, and the usual maintenance. I'm hoping all that will get rid of the bad idle issue.

I did check the KOEO codes and only have a DTC:111 to report. So, that is good news.

 

[Albino 94LTD]

Don't forget to clean the Mass Air Flow Sensor

 

[JPFREEK]

Don't forget to clean the Mass Air Flow Sensor

Yup.. IAT, MAF, Clean air cleaner (I have a K&N), and resetting the PCM by disconnecting battery terminal.. = all part of the "usual ford exploder maintenance"..

From this board, learned much has this padawan.

 

[Albino 94LTD]

Then you'll be ready for the next NWX run!:roll:

 

[Albino 94LTD]

intermitten engine stall

Didn't you have this problem around this time last year?

 

[JPFREEK]

Didn't you have this problem around this time last year?

Yeah.. I replaced the fuel pump relay about this time last year after the person i got the car from warned me of this problem. it was REALLY intermittant back then. (he had reported it happening only once in the 12 years of ownership).. I had personally witnessed this happen to me a couple times before replacing the fuel pump relay.. Although, I replaced the relay with one from schucks or autozone.. forgot which..

all I can say is that I hope this works for the engine stall problem.

I've still had uneven acceleration/stutter from 1.5K-2.5K on the tach.. still trying to chase that demon down.

Makes me want to pull out my hair! The Ex is "finicky"..

But, it's time for a tune-up anyway.. I've had the parts for several months and have yet to do it. So, we'll see what happens after replacing plugs/wires/new coil pack/clean MAF/Clean IAT valve/Check fuel pressure/check vacuum pressure/and reset the PCM.

 

[Cobraguy]

This is what I would suggest since it's a repeating problem. I've seen this before. Start searching around on eBay or Craig's List and find an ECM same code as yours. You should find one and not have to spend much. Make sure it's coming from a vehicle being parted out so you are pretty sure you aren't getting one that is someone elses' problem like you have now. If this problem happens again, replace both the relay AND the ECM. See if that doesn't fix it. I had one once that did the EXACT same thing. I tried everything to no avail...including a fuel pump. Owners were terrified it would kill them one of these times when it died in 7 lanes of traffic at 80 mph. I finally replaced the ECM. That fixed it permanently. We figure a driver in the computer was going south. We're not sure why a relay would temporarily fix it, but it did.

One other test you could make is to quickly bypass the relay when it dies and see if the pump runs.

 

[JPFREEK]

This is what I would suggest since it's a repeating problem. I've seen this before. Start searching around on eBay or Craig's List and find an ECM same code as yours. You should find one and not have to spend much. Make sure it's coming from a vehicle being parted out so you are pretty sure you aren't getting one that is someone elses' problem like you have now. If this problem happens again, replace both the relay AND the ECM. See if that doesn't fix it. I had one once that did the EXACT same thing. I tried everything to no avail...including a fuel pump. Owners were terrified it would kill them one of these times when it died in 7 lanes of traffic at 80 mph. I finally replaced the ECM. That fixed it permanently. We figure a driver in the computer was going south. We're not sure why a relay would temporarily fix it, but it did.

One other test you could make is to quickly bypass the relay when it dies and see if the pump runs.

Thanks for the advice.. I had checked a junkyard for an ECM about 6 months ago.. they wanted to much and I wasn't convinced yet that it would fix anything to just buy it and try it. I'll definately try ebay for it.

I've tried to chase down this weird idle issue as well with not much luck. I've done a tune-up and coil pack on it when I first got the vehicle about a year ago. Between then and now, I had already replaced:

Fuel filter
Fuel Pump Relay
IAT valve
DPFM
Air filter (K & N)
TPM
Air Temp Sensor
Transmission/Radiator flush
oil changes every 3-5k miles

I always clean the MAF every time I do anything on the vehicle. I had visually and physically checked the vacuum lines to see if I could hear/see any leaks (I did not do a vacuum test yet).

Still, I've always had a miss at idle. Also, the vehicle would hesitate or stumble if I was holding a steady speed (accelerator peddle not moving much) and I was between 1.5-2.5k on the tach..

Some of the fixes made the situation "better".. but nothing totally fixed it. I just had been figuring with 175K on the odometer, I'm lucky to have it run and be in as good of shape as it is. (We bought it from my wife's parents and they took good care of it since they bought it new).

For a '95, this explorer is in REALLY good shape.