Hi folks,
About a year ago I had a problem with the IAC on my '99 Ford Explorer SUV 4.0L causing bad idle or stall. Vehicle has now 129,500km. At the time other things were going on as well, such as pinging under load when driving on the highway with CC on and starting an uphill climb. It didn't take that much of a hill either for the vehicle to shift down a gear.
At that time I went onto the internet and this newsgroup to find out what was wrong with the vehicle, not knowing at that time that it could be the IAC, didn't even know what that was. Two main suggestions were:
- to clean and 2. to replace.
I decided to take the unit off the engine, easy to do, takes longer to find the correct size socket than to remove, and cleaned it with WD-40. After thoroughly cleaning I replaced the unit and fired up the engine. This seemd to fix the problem, idle was smooth, ran better so I left it like that and ran the vehicle all summer.
Just as winter was getting a good hold on us, the unit failed again. This time I drove into town to replace the unit with a brand new one. Funny thing, I went to the Ford dealer and asked if they had one in stock. The person behind the counter asked which 4.0L engine I had, I said, I don't know, all I know is that it's a 4.0L, is there any other kind? She said I would have to come back once I found out so she could order one. Cost was for one, 124.00CDN for one type and 189.00CDN for the other type.
I decided to drop into another parts dealer who I knew dealed with Ford parts. Cost here was 109.00. Same question, which 4.0l engine? I said I didn't know, the parts person asked me for my VIN number. On the VIN number is the engine code and from that he was able to go back and get the correct unit.
I got home, took the old unit off and replaced with th new one. Fired up the engine, purred like a kitten
Now I noticed something else. Before this replacement there was still the consistant ping under load. That is now gone....totally! Also when in cruise, it now takes a seriosly steep grade before it shifts down, instead it powers up and contnues up the hill with ease. Also notice that when slowing down from highway speed that the vehicle slows fast now, before it felt like free wheeling.
So to end this long story, I just want to thank all and everyone who helped me at the time. Sure feels good to drive a vehicle that feels like brand new again!
Thanks again and a Merry Christmas to all!
Allan