We have a church bus (1998), which is actually a Ford 1-ton van with a conversion kit on the back of it. It can carry 25 people and is custom made for different companies. We are having a problem when the bus is accelerated to go up a hill it will just quit running. All of the dashboard lights will come on as it does in ACC. It does not have any consistency to it what so ever. It may go a month and not do it or it may do it 10 to 15 times in one trip. The bus is almost ten years old but only has 35,000 miles on it. We need help. A local Ford dealership recommended changing the fuel pump but that was not it.
Lost in Ohio
My first guess would have been the fuel pump or the fuel filter. Has the dealer done a fuel rail pressure test? I assume this is a fuel injected engine. It’s not diesel is it? The going up hill bit gives me the impression that maybe the fuel pickup in the tank is part of the problem. That would change depending on how full the tank is and how steep the hill, so could seem very intermittent.
The bus runs on gas. It seems like whenever it kicks into a different gear (it is an automatic) is when it does it. If you drive it and keep it from upshifting it won’t do it. I called a local transmission company and he doesn’t think it is transmission related.Could it be electrical?
It could well be electrical because when the transmission shifts, especially while pulling hard the engine with transmission will rock on its mounts (mounts are not broken). You might have a mechanic hook up a scanner; activate wiggle mode; and move wires and connectors to see if an intermittant occurs. Also with the engine running wiggle and pull wires, to see if the engine quits. Another test would be to load up the engine in gear against the brakes (do it safely) and see if the engine moves excessively or if the stalling can be replicated.
Good luck – let us know if you find anything
Researcher