Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting 95 Mystique stalling problem

I had to park my 95 Mystique (4 cyl Zetec engine, 150,000 miles) for the past few days, because it stalls out after driving 2-3 miles. It will restart after sitting for 10 minutes or so, but then stall out again after driving another 2-3 miles. (Needless to say, this doesn't make for a very speedy commute!) It's had a CEL on for the past 6 months, but it's never affected driveability before. Any advice on where to start?

Wow, seems like you are having the same problems I was having about a year ago. Tell me, has the original wiring harness ever been replaced? I't a recall ya know. The originals melted due to the high temps under the hood and would cause the wires to touch and short out. If it was the slightest bit damp outside... you didn't stand a chance.

My 96 did this while driving in rush hour traffic in Dallas TX. It took a FORD dealership four months of trying to figure out what the problem was. They replaced ever sensor, wire, pump, valve and filter and still the car wouldn't run.

Finally they asked me about the recall on the wiring harness. I had taken the car to the LINCOLN MERCURY dealership where I purchased the car when I received the recall in the mail. The dealership never replaced it. Told me they had... but didn't do the work.

The FORD dealership turned in the LM dealership to the main office... big deal right? Anyway... after the recall work was finally finished, the stalling stopped.

Good Luck - Happy Holidays,
Eurythmian

I was able to use a code reader to get some codes, but am not sure how to read all of them.

The key on/engine off test gave a 335 and a 111... from the chart, it looks like the 335 is "EGR feedback signal is/was out of range - EVR or PFE", and the 111 is "System checks OK". Can anyone tell me what I should do for the 335?

With the key on/engine running, I get a 2 for the engine code, which is correct for a 4 cylinder. That much makes sense. Then I get a 1, followed by a series of fast codes. That's followed by the following series of numbers, which is repeated twice... 159172327411538536521653. Can anyone tell me what that means?

Thanks, Gary

Thanks for the tip on the wiring harness. I'll give a call to the dealership tomorrow to see if it was every replaced.

Thanks, Gary

Welcome to CEG

I believe the wiring recall is for the V6 only.


159 (O,R) MAF sensor is/was out of range - MAF

172 (R,M) Oxygen sensor not switching - system is or was lean - Single, Right or Rear HO2S - Fuel control

327 (O,R,M) EGR feedback signal is/was low - EVR or PFE

411 (R) Idle speed system not controlling idle properly (generally idle too high) - ISC

538 (R) System did not receive "goose" test - TESTS

536 (O,R,M) Brake On Off open or shorted to ground - BOO

521 (R) Wheel not turned during test or PSP problem - PSP

653 ???


I take it you ran the KOER test and did not follow the instructions to press the throttle, turn the steering to lock, hit the brakes, etc... This would be the cause of the 538, 536, and 521.

MAF out of range either is a defective MAF, or the wiring to it. This can cause the car to stall if perhaps the output wire is shorting out. Check the condition of the connector contacts and wiring. Of the codes given, this is the most serious!

The upstream O2 sensor has gone bad.

The DPFE (differential pressure feedback EGR) sensor has a problem. Since it has been both out of range and too low, you should have the cat's checked and make sure the hoses from the DPFE box to the exhaust manifold have not blown off.

The idle speed has not been stable either because of the ISC motor itself, or because of the other problems with engine management. You may want to clean it.

Not sure what that last one is.

The cam position sensor is often the cause of problems like this. If the engine will not fire at all until it cools off this could be the problem. For this kind of problem, run it till it quits and then use a freeze spray (gum remover) on the suspect part.

Originally posted by Rogerm60:

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Welcome to CEG

I believe the wiring recall is for the V6 only.

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Nope... My 4 Cyl had the recall as well. Absolute mess, and took the dealer over 2 weeks to get the work done!

They gave me a Taurus and said, Hey, don't complain, your in a nicer car...

Even the dealers did not get it on the Contique...

Go get the harness done! It is worth it! (even after the pain of being without my baby for sooooo long.)

I don't think the wiring harness 'recall' was really a 'recall'. I think it was an extended warranty, up until 100,000 miles.

Well, I dropped the car off this morning at the dealer, to have them take care of the recall on the wiring harness. The person I talked to had a printout of the recalls for my car, and the wiring harness was one of them... so apparently it's an issue for the 4 cylinder as well.

I was able to get a glance of the printout about my car, and I saw that bothered me. The printout had some language on it about the wiring harness that said something like, "fix this recall if the wiring harness presents a problem". Shouldn't they have replaced the wiring harness when I had the vehicle in 6 months ago to have work done because of a different recall? If they'd have changed the wiring harness at that time, I wouldn't have been without the use of my car for the past week.

From what I could see of the printout, it looked like there were three other recalls listed... are they required to take care of these right away, or do they have an option of waiting "until they present a problem"?

Thanks, Gary

Like I said, I don't think it was a 'recall'....I think it was an extended warranty, up until 100,000 miles. So, unless you could show that it was defective, they aren't likely to replace it. With the miles that you have, you'll be very fortunate if they go ahead and replace it anyway. Maybe I'm wrong, but if Ford would replace it, I would count my blessings (quietly).

Yes, it does apply to the 4 cyls as well.

The wire harness is listed as a General Recall. Similiar to the Heater Blower Switch and Resistor recalls. And yes, it was on Zetecs. Ford will not perform repairs or replacements on a "general" recall unless the part is broken. And if the part breaks after their warranty time (ie 100K miles), then you have to pay out of pocket. If it is a safety recall, they will change the part whether broken or not. This is what two local dealers told me the last 4 times I went to them this year.

Hey zaphod fl, at least they gave you a car, man. I had to pay out of pocket for a rental for a week. When I called 1-800 Ford customer service, they said they do not reimburse owners for rentals. So I was out $120 bucks.