I have a Ford sedan with a 6 cylinder. Yesterday morning it stalled at red lights and died, it was warmed up and had gas. I noticed several seconds before it died the gas guage light would light up.
This morning while going down the road the car seemed to idle down as if it was dying but it did not die. I immediately pulled over and then noticed the clock and radio had reset. Would could be the problem?
I just purchased the car and it had been sitting for atleast 3 – 5 months. Any suggestions on what I should check or do first, in your opinion? My budget is tight and I know nothing about cars but I do have some friends that can check out “simple†stuff.
Thanks,
Kathy
Howdy there Kathy,
When the engine died, how did you get it started again? If the battery was not dead….then my first thought is you probably have a dirty throttle body and idle speed control motor, both of which can easily be cleaned by a mechanic …and even a mechanic at your local fast lube can do this routine maintenance for you. This would be the first place to start anyway and both of these items really should be cleaned periodically anyway.
If the engine died AND the battery was dead……you might have a bad battery, loose or dirty battery cable connection or a problem with the alternator.
I would have a mechanic inspect the “throttle body†and if it is dirty….clean it and the idle control motor. They should not charge you anything to look inside the throttle body and see if it is dirty or not. If you were at my shop I would start with this and see what happens. You could have something more serious going on like an intermittent fuel pump problem but I like to rule out the easy and obvious issues first. Ford’s are notorious for dirty throttle body issues.
Here is a blog entry I made for someone else
Throttle Body
Keep me posted as to what happens will ya?
Blessings,
Austin Davis