idle

[Focused]

What are the most suspectable causes of rough idle when the car is stock? bad engine timing? fuel injectors are dirty?

i have this fuel injection detergent fluid that i will be putting within the next few days wheni get a fill up. I have ran my car on low gas enough times and i know that's not good for my car (college student = poor individual).

thanks for any info in advance.

e

[quaverous]

Richard - it can be problem because the fuel pump uses the gas as a coolant. so if you run really low, the pump is not being cooled properly. hence that is why most people discover their fuel pump recall when they have very little gas.

focused - I would say if you have 20k + miles, the cleaner will help. your engine timing is properly not off, since you haven't tinkered with it. do the cleaner with 93 octane gas, if it doesn't clear up, we're gonna need some more info. Does it run rough all the time, when cold, when warm?

[Focused]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by Richard Woodson:
Why is it bad to run your car with a low tank?<hr></blockquote>


to add to quaverous info, i heard the injectors get dirty from the sludge that gas leaves behind...and eventually over time it builds up and can lower the efficiency/performance of your engine...if this is incorrect, please do let all of us know??

Thanks again guys.

e

[quaverous]

exactly focused, an excellant point. this is why you would use injector cleaner or a gas detergent. [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Focused]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by quaverous:
Richard - it can be problem because the fuel pump uses the gas as a coolant. so if you run really low, the pump is not being cooled properly. hence that is why most people discover their fuel pump recall when they have very little gas.

<hr></blockquote>

Quaverous, i'm not sure if you read the post created by Stealth Zixxer about taking a turn hard and feeling as if your fuel cut off in the turn...i myself have experienced this too...would my not keeping gas levels high enough contribute to this fuel pump problem?

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr> focused - I would say if you have 20k + miles, the cleaner will help. your engine timing is properly not off, since you haven't tinkered with it. do the cleaner with 93 octane gas, if it doesn't clear up, we're gonna need some more info. Does it run rough all the time, when cold, when warm?

<hr></blockquote>

eh, only 15k miles but unfortunately, the low gas level has happened many times...would that change your answer in any way?

i'll try it next time i get my tank filled up with 93...what about 94? i'm not sure if i have 93 around my way but if i see that i will...i know i have 94 around here.

well i don't remember before my accident, it feels like years since i've had my car. but as for yesterday it was a bit cold outside and the idle was a bit jumpy...not jumpy over 1k rpm but in between 750 and 1000 it was rough and jumpy...is that normal with all Foci?

Thanks again.

[2001 ZTS]

I wouldn't think your car would be old enough to have any real fuel contamination issues, unless you buy your gas from a questionable source. Even if it sat in the shop for twio months it should still be OK.

I'm not sure about what mods you have but why the high octane gas in the first place? Maybe instead of going up and up in octane you should be going back to 87? I don't think we ever found a source to quote but it will take a few tanks of gas before the computer learns the new octane.

I tend to shy away from fuel additives as well.

If your car is not turbo/super charged I'm guessing the cold and high octane are are confusing your computer. The fact that problems occour at revs normally associated with start up/warm up it sounds like it is "hunting" for the right settings.

[Z X 3 Racer]

Originally posted by Focused:

well i don't remember before my accident, it feels like years since i've had my car. but as for yesterday it was a bit cold outside and the idle was a bit jumpy

I just wrecked mine too. I just got it back on Friday, and now mine is idling really rough. Mine has under 2500 miles on it. I know it wasn't like that before the accident. I'm taking it back to the dealership (body shop) tomorrow am, I'll let you know what the say it was. Maybe your's is the same thing.

[Richard Woodson]

Why is it bad to run your car with a low tank?

[Shiva Chaos]

I had mine replaced on a trip to Florida. I did a hand brake turn and then zoomed off for a grocery run. In the parking lot, it totally stalled. The dealer replaced the Fuel Pump and all was good. My engine actually felt a little bit peppier after that little ordeal...

[quaverous]

focused,

even since our tank is pressurized, gas can still move around causing air bubbles in the fuel line.

my car would do the same thing, loose power in hard turns, more to the left than right. which is normal considering how our gas tank is designed shape wise.

have you had the fuel pump replaced yet? Once I did that, it made the world of difference!

[Focused]

Hey thanks again for all the replies..


Silva, so should i tell my dealership that my car totalled stalled when after making a turn? will they replace the fuel pump for that complaint alone???

Thanks

[Shiva Chaos]

Well, mine had to be towed to a local dealership. It was quite a site to see it being put on a flat bed tow truck. So they had to really replace it so I could drive back to Michigan (!). I think the fuel relay and the pump were all funky.

I would explain to the service manager that it stalled and that you would like to know if you they could check out your pump on a warranty basis.

I'd call them first and explain it. I'd also call a local Lincoln-Mercury Dealership's service dept. Never hurts to look. Also, ask them if there is a service bulletin on your fuel pump. I believe that this was an issue way back when.

hope this helps!

[corey_dyck]

Hi Focused, check if you can make it stumble reliably. I did by finding a large empty lot, making sure to have between 1/8 and 1/4 tank. Get rolling in 2nd gear at about 1200-1500 rpm's and turning the wheel about 100 degrees to the right while flooring it. Mine would die very suddenly once you got moving fairly quickly, and if I then turned sharper as I slowed, I could almost come to a complete stop before it started getting fuel again and sputtered back to life.

If you can do this repeatably on your own, then go to your dealer and ask to take a tech out in your car so you can demonstrate the problem. They'd be hard pressed to try to claim that's normal!