89 GRAN MARQUIS cold start problem

[RON WIENS]

Picked up a good 1 here for next to nothing ($350.00 Can.)
It has been running great for a couple of months. The other day it took a bit of crankin but it fired up. Then driving it would die if I hit the throttle but when it was warm it ran great. Yesterday started the same but died on me on the highway (8 min into the drive) I towed it home after 6hrs of sitting and again it fired up at home. I can hear the fuel pump cycling through and I checked the fuel valve (has good volume there) Anybody have any idea. I'm desperate and cheap. (Wife hates this car. Hopefully I can get her something she likes by being cheap on this one.)

[fredjacksonsan]

If you've got the 5.0 liter engine, it could be the distributor. Ford used an item called the "hall effect sensor" inside the distributor on alot of the 5.0's. It has a sort of an inverted cup inside the distrubutor, with slots along the sides; the sensor detects when there is a "hall" or opening on both sides of the cup, and tells the engine when to send juice to the spark plugs. The distrubutor has to be taken out to replace the sensor; I had a 5.0 Mercury before that had the sensor go out; it was an intermittent problem like you've described, left me on the side of the road, but later (after a tow home) started right up. Check with a reputable shop and ask them about it, there may be a test that can be done. Good luck...

[DJBobbyB]

This has happened to me before, but only when I was turning. I had assumed it was because I was just running too much juice, because each time it happened, I had my stereo (dual 1,000 wat 15's, baby), my headlights, CB, and fuzzbuster on, plus it was about -35 out, and I'm sure I wired things in wrong when I hooked up the electronics. But since you had this problem, too, I'm gonna look closer into it. I'll post again if I find out anything.

[fredjacksonsan]

Hey DJ, just as a friendly suggestion, try not to bring back older posts; last post on this one back in April of last year. (Generally frowned upon)

Might be better off starting a new one with your specific problem; but the hall effect sensor can do some screwy things with reliability.