First, a sincere thank you to all you unsung heroes out there going out of your way to help others diagnose/repair their vehicles for free. Without you guys, I would have surely ended up paying outrageous diagnostic fees and labor rates for simple do-it-yourself jobs. Thank you.
I have been browsing thread after thread looking for something to help me figure out this 2 year issue, to no avail. I have been to several mechanics, none have helped (never heard that one before) So I've finally decided to register and start my first thread.
2000 Grand Marquis - 135k miles
2 years ago I bought this car used at 120k or so, started its issues 2 months or so after. On acceleration only, light or heavy, at any speed, the temperature light comes on, and the tranny disengages. This last about 3 seconds, and goes away. When it first started happening, it would do it once a week or so. No check engine light, no stuttering, no sound, no other indications of any kind. It would go away for a month or so, and come back. At some point, I started getting a really foul smell like burning hair when I would accelerate quickly, like getting on the highway. The smell would go away after a minute or two. Later on, I started getting some transmission slippage, mostly on downshift from 4th to 3rd, but also sometimes on upshift through all gears. It was also shifting out of overdrive on it's own (never saw that green light before). Soon after this started, the car died with a hard shift. After letting it sit for a minute, it would start right up a drive fine. I had a mechanic look at it, he replaced an air flow meter/valve (don't remember exactly), nothing changed. A day or two later, it died it again, and fortunately I coasted into a transmission shop. He hooked up a Snap-On OBD, and this time it gave a code for a faulty Vehicle Speed Sensor, something the AutoZone OBD didn't find. He cleared the code and said to drive it until the light came on again and come back. The slippage/dying issue stopped, and the check engine light never came on, so I never went back. It would do the 'temp light and disengage' thing from time to time (never when I had a mechanic drive it), so I just let it be. I drove it on a 1500 mile trip, dealing with only four or five instances, and the issue stopped altogether. So now, a year later, it's back. I left the car sit for a week (20 degree weather with snow/ice), and the first time driving it, the check engine light flashed, and I felt like I was driving on a gravel road. OBD says... 8th cylinder misfire. I hoped it was just because it sat for a week, so I left it for a day, and drove it again. This time, once at running temperature, the check engine light flashed, the 'temp light/disengage' thing happened back to back to back (something new) and the car died. Let it sit, started it up and it did it again. I rolled into an AutoZone, and this time the OBD gave a TCC code along with the misfire. I unplugged the battery and fiddled with the 8th coil pack wire/connector. Plugged the battery back in, and it ran fine until it got warm, and it happened again. It does not misfire on idle.
I would just start replacing various parts, but I really get the feeling that all of these are just symptoms of a bigger (or smaller) issue, and I don't have the money to play guessing games. Please help!
P.S. The windshield wipers quit working at the same time, now only works on high. This has to be more than coincidence.
I have been browsing thread after thread looking for something to help me figure out this 2 year issue, to no avail. I have been to several mechanics, none have helped (never heard that one before) So I've finally decided to register and start my first thread.
2000 Grand Marquis - 135k miles
2 years ago I bought this car used at 120k or so, started its issues 2 months or so after. On acceleration only, light or heavy, at any speed, the temperature light comes on, and the tranny disengages. This last about 3 seconds, and goes away. When it first started happening, it would do it once a week or so. No check engine light, no stuttering, no sound, no other indications of any kind. It would go away for a month or so, and come back. At some point, I started getting a really foul smell like burning hair when I would accelerate quickly, like getting on the highway. The smell would go away after a minute or two. Later on, I started getting some transmission slippage, mostly on downshift from 4th to 3rd, but also sometimes on upshift through all gears. It was also shifting out of overdrive on it's own (never saw that green light before). Soon after this started, the car died with a hard shift. After letting it sit for a minute, it would start right up a drive fine. I had a mechanic look at it, he replaced an air flow meter/valve (don't remember exactly), nothing changed. A day or two later, it died it again, and fortunately I coasted into a transmission shop. He hooked up a Snap-On OBD, and this time it gave a code for a faulty Vehicle Speed Sensor, something the AutoZone OBD didn't find. He cleared the code and said to drive it until the light came on again and come back. The slippage/dying issue stopped, and the check engine light never came on, so I never went back. It would do the 'temp light and disengage' thing from time to time (never when I had a mechanic drive it), so I just let it be. I drove it on a 1500 mile trip, dealing with only four or five instances, and the issue stopped altogether. So now, a year later, it's back. I left the car sit for a week (20 degree weather with snow/ice), and the first time driving it, the check engine light flashed, and I felt like I was driving on a gravel road. OBD says... 8th cylinder misfire. I hoped it was just because it sat for a week, so I left it for a day, and drove it again. This time, once at running temperature, the check engine light flashed, the 'temp light/disengage' thing happened back to back to back (something new) and the car died. Let it sit, started it up and it did it again. I rolled into an AutoZone, and this time the OBD gave a TCC code along with the misfire. I unplugged the battery and fiddled with the 8th coil pack wire/connector. Plugged the battery back in, and it ran fine until it got warm, and it happened again. It does not misfire on idle.
I would just start replacing various parts, but I really get the feeling that all of these are just symptoms of a bigger (or smaller) issue, and I don't have the money to play guessing games. Please help!
P.S. The windshield wipers quit working at the same time, now only works on high. This has to be more than coincidence.
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