Engine Sputtering while in Gear @ Stop

Hello Crew,
I read most of Codes 171 & 174 TSB # 03-16-1 update It's sounding like my 1999 3.8L (113000 miles) may be due for this repair.

I do have a check engine light on. Error codes are P0171 and P0174.

As Title says, While the vehicle is in gear and stopped, the engine starts to sputter and the Battery light will come on. If I don't give it some gas, the engine stalls. If the van is in park, the sputtering still occurs however it's not as bad and hasn't stalled. It also seems like the sputtering goes away after the engine warms up a bit. I'm in Florida, so the weather is quite warm (78 degrees).

The check engine light has been on since purchasing the van on 12/08...but the sputtering did not start until after adding SeaFoam addative to gas & against my wishes, having my father spray the engine with a garden hose to clean it up.

Any Ideas?

do the 171/174 repair, clean the egr, plenum really well. Check the vacuum line on the front of the plenum (the little upside down "U" line). My old one had a very poor seal and when it sucks air the idle is very rough and "stallish". The 171/174 is your first step in my opinion. :2cents:

Piper

I have the exact same problem, where is the plenum i would like to check mine out.

on 99-03 windstar the intake plenum is the black plastic on top of the engine. The stalling problem could be from oil fouling up the Idle Air Control (IAC) which controls the engine RPM while doing driving menuvers. First thing is to do the isolator bolt fix, then clean the intake and IAC with a spray cleaner like WD-40 or Throttle body cleaner.