steverowbotham Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 I'm almost happy to take on the "Exploder" name lately. I have a 1998 Ford Explorer, 292,000km (i tow the boat a lot haha) LAst night, she started fine, then everytime I take my foot off the accelerator, she would stall and the battery light would come up. When I touch the accelerator, my headlights get brighter even. Is this the alternator? Air filter? Gaskets?
misfish Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 Battery Steve. If not then the alternator.
steverowbotham Posted November 16, 2008 Author Report Posted November 16, 2008 Battery Steve. If not then the alternator. It starts with little problem, I have to give it gas, but she starts every time. would that eliminate the battery ?
misfish Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 Mis read your post.Sorry. Maybe the fuel sending unit.Whens the last time you changed the fuel filter.
Bernie Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 (edited) Steve it can be tricky to diagnose without verifying but from what you are saying it's probably your alternator. It looks like only a portion of it is charging. There are 3 windings inside and one is likely open circuit. when you rev up the engine the other two are capable of bring the voltage up enough to turn out the battery light. I think I have misread as well. Did it stall first and then the battery light come on? Edited November 16, 2008 by Bernie
steverowbotham Posted November 16, 2008 Author Report Posted November 16, 2008 battery light is on after it stalls. battery guage drops when i release the accelerator, then it stalls
Bernie Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 Can you read what the voltage drops to before it stalls. Is it below 12.5 volts?
steverowbotham Posted November 16, 2008 Author Report Posted November 16, 2008 the very bottom of the gage
Bernie Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 When you crank it over to start does it seem to crank slowly? If your battery was good the voltage should stay at least 12.5 volts. If the alternator was working properly it should maintain voltage and not stall. It's possible if the battery is in poor condition it may have overloaded the alternator and burned out a winding. Still need more info.
steverowbotham Posted November 16, 2008 Author Report Posted November 16, 2008 my battery gage only has and H and an L, no numbers, so for voltage, I dont know. It goes right down to the L then stalls. I just went out to check it, she started and stalled, i started it again, gave it some gas this time, it revved up and idled just fine, battery gage held fine, and she drove fine. started her a bunch and seems fine, but the check engine light is on. So I dont know.
Bernie Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 Geez. Hate when that happens. Was it raining when this started to happen? Need to scan it to find the code.
Wild Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 In order to find out why the engine is stalling you need to check for computer codes and vacuum leaks. The electrical system needs to be in good shape before pulling computer codes so that means a battery voltage test with a good voltmeter and making sure that all connections are clean with proper grounds as a first step.
steverowbotham Posted November 16, 2008 Author Report Posted November 16, 2008 yes it was raining, had been for a while.
Bernie Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 (edited) By any chance has your alternator belt been squealing lately? It's possible in the wet weather that your belt was slipping. The automatic belt tensioner on these models were susceptible to siezing and allowing a loose belt. Wild. Vacuum leaks usually cause high rough idle. There are still several things that it could be ..I'M just trying to hit the common ones first. I don't think it's an alternator issue now. Edited November 16, 2008 by Bernie
jdmls Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 100% its your alternator...probably be cheaper to buy another exploder for $500 and use it as a parts truck, then to fork over 3-4 hundred for the alternator alone....
steverowbotham Posted November 16, 2008 Author Report Posted November 16, 2008 my neighbour said to try gasline antifreeze, last night when it happened, it was raining/snowing. But he's kind of a stoner, so i dont kn ow if i believe him. I just took it to the store and she ran fine, no problems at all. Im so confused
Wild Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 By any chance has your alternator belt been squealing lately? It's possible in the wet weather that your belt was slipping. The automatic belt tensioner on these models were susceptible to siezing and allowing a loose belt.Wild. Vacuum leaks usually cause high rough idle. There are still several things that it could be ..I'M just trying to hit the common ones first. I don't think it's an alternator issue now. The o2 or IAC will compensate for a vacuum leak, but before diagnosing the mechanical and electrical needs to be in good shape and we need to know what engine of course
Bernie Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 Steve whatever it is/was I'm almost sure it the problem is moisture related. Get that belt tensioner checked. The voltage should not have dropped out if the engine continued running. The starter did continue to crank the engine so it must have decent reserve capability. If the alternator was pooched it would not have came back up at idle. So that only leaves me the wet/loose belt theory. Shoot me a PM if you need any more help.
ScarSnake Posted November 16, 2008 Report Posted November 16, 2008 Great resource for all matters Explorer: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/index.php?
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