So my 96 v6 has been having a little trouble. It likes to stall out when I go on a cold start. I can sit and idle it for like 10 minutes then go and drive and I will just lose all power and it will stall. My lights go dim and all. Also if I turn my wheel sharply while driving it will sputter and stall. Do you think thin is alternator or battery or is it something more. My friend hooked up the engine diagnostics on it and ran it but it showed a higher vacuum reading which may stall a car if a leak but that wouldn't explain why my lights would go dim or anything. So if anyone would have a clue what it may be. Thanks

 

take the car to autozone they will test you battery and alternator there for free, best place to start

 

Autozone ran a test and seen it was at 10 volts and 10.5 volts with a load on it. They say battery which is only 1 year old.

 

that sounds about right for the problem, the cars controlled by the ECU, the ECU is made to run on 12V power so when the voltage dips under 12 to 10 the ECU doesn't function properly anymore and the car stalls. a battery can get whats called dead cell where one of the cells to increase the voltage gets disconnected, from manufacturer defect, vibration, or shock(physical not electrical), im not sure what kind of battery you have now but i got a duralast gold 750CCA it was like $70 or $80 or pop for a optima deep cycle red top.

 

Thanks for the info definately helps me understand it better. I called the place I got it from to find out it has a 5 year warranty and I just got this battery last November. They said they are going to test it again to be sure that it is but I got like 2 mechanics, Autozone, & this telling me its battery. Now when I put up my window my battery light comes on as well so its obviously getting worse. I am bringing it by tomorrow morning so I should get a replacement. And if they say its not the problem than man I feel sorry for them my wife will rip them a new hole lol. BTW it is a Deka battery I paid $61.99 for it and a 5 year warranty.

 

lol note to self... never get Deka

personally I've always used duralast gold batteries and no one that I've goten to use them regrets it, i run both my stereo amps off my duralast gold and still have room for more so i guess when they stop honoring the warranty u should get one too

 

Yours sure sounds good to run a 750CCA I think mine is listed at like 600. It was cheap. As long as it comes with a good warranty I dont car but I know the next battery I buy wont be a Deka

 

Ok so update on this. I brought it to the dealer they say no definitely not the battery if it were battery it would need to be jumped and it wouldn't start back up after a stall. I got pissed told them off and left. I just brought it to Midas next door to my job and they said no way battery it sounds more ecu. So what does that mean I know its the computer but is it like 1 whole piece. Like do I need a whole new ecu for this car. Anybody have any experiences with how much this costs?

 

Yeah the ECU is a single unit, it is inside the car on the passenger side behind the kick panel underneath the dash. It unplugs and a new one with the same code can go in. HOWEVER! The problem you are describing make me believe that it is in NO WAY related to a ECU problem. Proof point, the headlights are in not connected to the ECU, if it was the ECU causing the problem the headlights would not dim when the engine stalls. the problem is being caused by a electrical/charging system problem.

About the not restarting if the battery was dead... excuse the language but that's bullsh*t there's a HUGE difference between VOLTS and AMPS that's why a optima deep cycle with huge amps can crank a car for hours yet a $40 walmart dies after a cold night yet both still have 12 volts on them. The opposite is said for electronics. Under voltage makes them go screwy and they could care less about how many amps you have. Try taking the battery to another autozone and have it retested on a different machine to see if it is in fact a battery problem.

Although reading back at you original post you mention sharp turns stall the car. The was another post on here within the last month or two that had that problem. Turned out his baffles in the fuel tank had come loose. Another thing to check is find out what the fuel pressure is running at. There is also the possibility of multiple problem because the symptoms you are experiencing seem to be related to more than one system.

 

After looking at AllData with a friend at his shop we came across a service bulletin from Ford on the 1996 3.8l mustangs. The description was pretty much exact to whats happening with me. It is the IAC vavle (Idle air control valve) So im probably going to replace that and see the part is cheap enough