Occasional jitter, could it be a problem?

My '96 Taurus will, occasionally, (about every 2000 miles or so) jitter once or twice, almost like a misfire. It only does it when I am significantly on the throttle (accelerating hard), though. What could that be a sign of? Hope it isn't something like the tranny "catching" (a Nissan truck I drove for awhile did that once or twice, but within the day, the transmission failed completely). It doesn't sound like a misfire, but does feel like one. I bet it could be almost anything.

I'd start by running a bottle of fuel injector cleaner through the system. If it's been awhile since the fuel filter has been changed, change it. Pull the spark plugs and check their condition. Also, check the condition of the air filter. If it's restricted, replace it. You may also want to clean the Mass AirFlow (MAF) sensor elements. If these are coated with dirt, etc. they can cause the PCM to improperly adjust the air/fuel mixture.

If you have access to a scan tool with the datastream feature, monitor the bank 1 and 2 sensor 1 oxygen sensors in particular to make sure they are responding quickly. If they are slow to respond, they may cause a slight hesitation like you describe.

You may also want to check the back of the throttle plate to see if it has a considerable carbon buildup. If so, cleaning it may help with the hesitation.

-Rod