droptoppony

ok something i missed in your original post is that you have the symptoms on the highway also...so it will stall/shut off on the highway? Have you changed the fuel filter? Also did this start doing it after you installed a certain part ie; CAI etc?

Poobs

Fuel filter too of course.
Not a bad idea to check the fuel pump pressure and volume too. This is hard for a back yard mechanic however.

Stang Bang98

The check engine light has never came on for these problems, The intake is a bbk cold air system, that was already on the car when i baught it. all ive done is switch filters to a K&N. This did not affect the problem. The maf i believe, is a stock piece. I have heard that the fuel filter is not the problem because if it is clogged at all, the car would show symptoms all the time. This would not be the case because if it seems confused, and i push the pedal down as to get deep into the next gear, it shows me that the car still has the get up and go. The fuel pump is going to get checked by shop at last resort. Tonight i checked for vacuum leaks with a spray, none were found. Not sure how clear i was on this but the missing, or "cant-tell-what-gear-it-should-be-in" problem im having is occuring when the (automatic) tranny should be smoothly shifting to the next gear....but not all the time. Probably at about 60% of the time. If i get on the highway for a few minutes, then take back roads for a while this problem seems worse or more noticeable than before i got on the highway. Something new happened too...tonight as i started the car, it ran for about 20 seconds and idled at about 1000 RPMs' and then the motors surged to about 1500 and shut off while surging. anybody heard of that? Oh, and how if possible, how do you check 02 sensors? ...hope this gives a little more insight. Thanks a lot.

Poobs

Don't believe the BBk ar K&N can cause this unless like I said there is a major leak after the MAF.

True that problems with hesitation and engine bucking can feel like trans, problems but your car may in fact be having problems with transmission controls/shifting. The problem would be more obvious on roads where the transmission has to do more shifting like back roads.
The transmission problem should not make the car stall however or make it act up when it is in "park".

Easiest ( cheapest) way would be to go to one of those places that have free transmission checks. Just play dumb and tell them you want to know what is wrong with yout tranny and if you need a rebuilt etc. [&:]

As far as the fuel pump - the motor rund fine until its fuel needs are not met then it tries to compensate so the fuel shortage can show itself and strange ways. [:@]

If you were talking about a carburated motor and a pump simply lacking pressure it would most likely run out of power at high RPM or under heavy load where/when more fuel is needed.
Since you have an electric pump that can be intermittent because of electrical problems or the pump motor wearing out it is not as cut and dry.

The mustang ( I think) has a shrader valve in the fuel loop where a fuel pressure gage can be located. There is also a fuel pressure regulator. This is the small chromed thing with a vacum line coming out of it. Check the line for leaks

The O2 sensors have 4 wires two are for the heater element and two are the signal. I'll try to get a diagram. The signal should be around .5 v ( guess)

Some things that U can easily check with a volt meter are the Throtle Position Sensor as described earlier/ U may also try to clean the MAF and air temp sensor.

Stang Bang98

Ok...so here we are, possibly about to crack the case. My buddy has a 01 cobra (its beautiful)....but anyway, his friend let him borrow his personal "snap on scanner - model series MTG 2500", and bless his heart, he remembered my struggle. He called me up today and we plugged up my car. Now, it threw two codes, but since neither of us have access to find out exactly what they mean...I turn to you guys. The codes are "P1157 HO2S22 SENSOR INDICATES LEAN" and "P1780 TRANS CONTROL SWITCH OUT OF RANGE". If anyone has one of these scanners or has ever come in contact with these codes, please....help me end this nightmare. Thank you.

Stang Bang98

anyone? any takers?

Stang Bang98

Anyone whos interested.....i dropped the car off tonight at a ford dealership...im paying $80 to find out whats wrong with the car....with no gaurentees. I just payed $30 to have a local shop tell me that they cant fix it, but when the cars not starting, their diagnostic machine says its not getting a signal from the computer. They say that means either a bad computer, or the computer needs flashed. Tomorow i should be finding out what exactly is going on....i'll let you guys know. Also...the small shop informed me that my cars vin number is titled as a 99, but its a 98 bodystyle...?? anyone got some info about that for me? thanks.

Stang Bang98

I should have checked my solutions one by one, cuz i dont know which helped...but i changed plug wires and seafoamed it. now its fine. Actually when i baught it, it had a slight hesitation and i didnt know it but it was lacking a noticable amount of power. But now that its fixed, im a happy camper. thanks for the ideas everyone.