My beloved standard, 2000 Ford Ranger, with an estimated 170,000 miles on it, has a problem with stalling that keeps getting worse.
2 different garages have failed to fix this problem three times. Many parts have been replaced/checked (like battery, plugs/wires) and the fuel and induction system was cleaned, fuel pressure, Compression and engine vacuum were all fine. The Check Engine Light goes on and off all the time and does not seem to relate to the problem. When the last garage hooked it up to the computer, nothing related to the problem was identified, they reported. The invoice/report from them is attached to this posting.
My problem began about 2 years ago. The truck would only stall out when I first began driving, after about a mile, and only if I was going downhill and was coming to a stop. Then it would putter and choke and ultimately stall out completely. After my 30 minute commute (near highway speeds) the truck would then be fine the rest of the day, with no problems stalling when I drove to a meeting or out to lunch. Since it began, it has gotten steadily worse. Now, pretty much whenever I decelerate downhill, and come to a halt, it will stall out unless I leave it in neutral and keep fluttering the gas peddle to give it more gas. It even happens when I’m not going downhill. It does not happen when I first start driving, but after a mile or so, it happens almost whenver I come to a stop. It sounds like the truck isn’t getting enough gas, and if I don’t keep pumping it with signifcantly more gas, it will stall.
Once stalled out, if I try to start it up again immediately, it is VERY hard to make it start. I have to keep turning it over before it finally sparks to life. It sounds pretty awful. otherwise it starts easily. IF, however, I let it stall out in a parking lot at a gas station, for example, and I go into the store and make a couple quick purchases, when I go out to start the truck, it fires right up with no problem. It only has a VERY hard time starting up when I’m in an intersection and try to re-start it immediately after it stalls out.
The two different garages that have failed to fix it were both able to easily replicate the problem, so that was not an issue. Amount of gas in the truck and temperature outside are both irrelevant.
My username is accurate: I’m not mechanically inclined at all, I’m ashamed to admit. But I keep hoping/assuming that my detailed description of the behavior will enable craftier folks that me to diagnose it. Thank you.