My 18 yr old son drives a 1995 Ford Taurus that has the nasty habit of leaving him stranded on hot summer days. The car runs very well during cooler months and is otherwise dependable. However, as soon as the mercury climbs above 100, The car is basically undrivable. It’s a 3.0 litre V-6, fuel injected, not the DOHC version. It acts like vapor lock but I was under the impression that in fuel injection, that wasn’t really an issue. We recently replaced the map sensor at someone’s suggestion, but that seems to have made the problem worse. We’ve had advice ranging from the fuel pump to global warming and we’re basically left on the side of the road scratching our heads. School is getting ready to start and money’s tight, so any helpful advice would be greatly appreciated. P.S. we live in the southwest so the average daily temp is 105+ between June and Sept.
Your impression is correct. Since fuel injection systems are closed high pressure lines directly from the tank to the injectors, vapor lock is no longer an issue.
Heat sensitivity is very often caused by ignition system components breaking down when hot. Like coils, for instance. Go with him for a long hot drive, bring a spark tester, and when it stalls see of he’s lost spark. Post the results back here.
Diagnose first, then replace parts.