It's been a while... Sold the Tundra but have an issue...

Hey guys,
It seems like yesterday I was here everyday asking for help with my misfire issue. I'm glad I got it figured out. Turns out I ended up selling the truck. But I am not done with odd issues.

My daughter bought a 2003 Ford Ranger (I know, but she couldn't afford a Toyota) and it has an odd issue where it shuts off on the highway right about 65 mph. I have a video of the issue. Much like my Tundra I have changed just about everything trying to figure this out.

Cam sensor, cam synchroniser, crank sensor, cleaned all the ECU connections and more.

I was wondering if anyone had ever seen anything like this and can point me in new direction. I am starting to think it is a vibration issue that is shaking something loose. At 65 the truck really shakes due to the tires she has on it.

Anyways, I missed you guys so I thought I would come back and throw a challenge to you.

 

Ground? Fuel cutoff? Vacuum hose collapsing?? ECU shaking? Oxygen sensors failing

 

Apparently not uncommon issue for that vintage Ranger w/ 4.0. Might want to check F-O-R-D forums. Google search mentions crank position sensor, coil packs and fuel pump but no specific answers. Do you have a CEL or any codes on your scanner?

 

this is what I am thinking.

 

obviously ford forums were my first stop but no one responded so i thought I would ask here where I know people will respond.

this truck is the 3.0l. I did replace the plugs and wires and tried a different ignition coil. Didn’t fix it. I also did the cam and crank sensors. The fuel pump is possible. No CEL lights.

 

why not change the tires, if this is what is causing the problem? ...Rotate and rebalance or replace start there !

 

My friend had a similar 4.0 Ranger with similar issues. To his luck, he got T-boned at an intersection by a drunk driver.. He got a fat check since the Ranger was discontinued and prices were increasing. He went and got a FGT Crew Max. He's been happier than a pig in shit as he describes it.

 

i would totally do that but if it’s not the tires and the vibration then I just spent $1000 and we might just have to cut our loses on the truck and get rid of it.

 

I mean, violent shaking will cause any number of things, including bad connections, and even cause PCB joints to fail eventually. You need to fix the core problem with the wheels/tires first.

But if you think it’s the ECU, you can buy reconditioned ones from FS1 (Flagship One) for a small piece of change, and see if the issue stops. But unless you fix the wheel/tire problem, you may damage the new one too.

 

If the truck is vibrating badly at 65mph, and the truck shuts down at 65mph, I'd be temped to change the tires out (or get them balanced) just to see if that changes anything for you. I would think it's knocking something out of place that needs to be in place.

 

that’s funny. I stumbled onto flagship one yesterday and ordered a new ecu. It’s a lot cheaper than new tires.

 

I agree. My wife decided to give it to the local mechanic today to see what he thinks. Maybe he will have seen it before.

 

When you say the tires vibrate, do you mean old and worn out or big gnarly mudders? If the latter is it lifted?

 

A little of both. They are old tires that came off a jeep. They look like off road tires but they are old and starting to crack a bit.

 

Yes, the truck is lifted a little bit, mostly due to the taller tires. It does have wheel extenders on it too.

 

If it's using spacers, you may want to inspect very carefully. Most spacers these days are alloy and are VERY sensitive to torque, they'll crack when over-torqued, each manuf'er has a spec, and you need to (and ensure any mechanics/tire guys) follow that spec to the letter. Your kid's safety is on the line here. I know @KNABORES can post just one example, IIRC one of his was cracked. I used to see it all the time when I was neck deep in MKIII/MKIV VW world

 

That vintage of Rangers have crash sensors whose job is to shut the truck off after a crash. There’s one on driver and passenger side behind the bumper. May be worth checking those to see if they’re vibrating “off” (although I think those are a one-and-done/consumable part, but not sure)?

Also, any corrosion on the battery cables?

 

That’s a good thought. I’ll have to check that out.

I did clean the battery terminals really well and that didn’t make a difference.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hrm-rPSCIBw

 

Hey guys, it’s been a few months and this issue has still been happening. I finally got around to putting in a new engine harness that I bought from someone on Facebook. When I took the old one out I noticed the crank sensor wires looked a little odd. (See pic)



I’m hoping that was the issue. I assume if the truck is driving and it loses crank signal the ecu would shut off? That’s what I’m hoping.

Merry Christmas!

 

Is that a crank position sensor harness, or knock, or camshaft position?

As you'll see in this thread that has a ton of diagnostics info with pictures etc. a LOT of people misroute the crank position sensor and the wires get chewed up but that's not normally what it looks like, note bold red text.

• These trucks usually don't have a ton of other electrical issues. Hidden corrosion inside the battery/alt cables happens. Sometimes, a couple thousand miles after timing belt changes, people will have startup issues because the crank position sensor wasn't properly tucked away and gets rubbed by a belt (pic), correct routing info here. There's also a similar problem with camshaft position sensor under the cam cover, where the belt will rub through (pics). There's the rodent issues mentioned earlier. Occasionally, water leaks can send water down into the ECM behind the glovebox (pics), or into the fusebox inside the cab/dash (pics & pics & pics, it happens a LOT). Many drain/vampire issues trace back to aftermarket add-ons whether the owner knows they exist or not - alarms as mentioned earlier, brake controllers, poorly installed trailer receptacles, those are some big ones.

Anyway, that looks almost like what you'd see with knock sensor wiring up under the intake, where rodents love to nest and chew up the wires.

FYI: If the crank position sensor wire gets damaged to the point the ECU can't detect if the engine is running, it shuts off power to the fuel pump as a safety feature. Don't want the fuel pump to keep pumping gas if the engine isn't running.

 

Yes, that is the crank position sensor connector. I would assume that it was grounding out at higher speeds and causing the ecu to shut off but who knows. It is a ford ranger so there is no telling.

 

Ah, it's a ford ranger.

I mean, one way to find out. Either depin the connector and heatshrink over those spots, then use some brush-on liquid electrical tape on the other spot, and see if it fixes it (or just brush the liquid tape on everything) and see if it stops or not. But yeah, if those two wires are arc'ing, I assume Ford does the same as Toyota and either shuts down the engine to prevent damage, or if it shuts down the fuel pump or what.

I believe in our Toyotas (maybe not that Ford) the crank and cam position wires (and I think even the knock sensor wires) are shielded. Knowing Ford, they may not give a shit.