Intermittent shutting off when trying to start

1995 FORD THUNDERBIRD
116,000 MILES • 4.6L • V8 • 2WD • AUTOMATIC
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WESTON123454
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
Hi, i have the car listed above and i was wondering if y'all could help me. So sometimes the car you go to start up it cranks, fires and shuts off. then crank again fires right up everything is normal. When you start turning stuff on like windows etc., the RPM's drop and when you turn wheel same thing. Also when i am accelerating anything over about 2,500-3,000 RPM's the car sputters really bad and doesn't really go any higher. so I don't know what is wrong with it. Plugged catalytic converter? i already changed fuel filter, maybe just spark plugs, bad injectors? anyway let me know that would be nice thanks.
Dec 19, 2020 at 10:18 AM
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KASEKENNY
  • Experienced Mechanic
  • 18,907 POSTS
This could be a converter issue but I suspect the more likely issue is the fuel pump is failing. What I would do is monitor the fuel pressure when this is acting up and that will tell us if this has anything to do with it.

Here is a guide that shows how to do that:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-check-fuel-system-pressure-and-regulator

Also, here is a guide on how to replace the pump if that ends up being the issue:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-replace-an-electric-fuel-pump

Lastly I attached below the process from the manual which will help as well. Let us know what you find with the pressure and we can go from there. Thanks
Dec 21, 2020 at 8:47 AM
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