Car has a slight hesitation while at constant speed

Tiny
DDOGG12369
  • MEMBER
  • 2010 FORD FUSION
  • 3.0L
  • V6
  • 4WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 154,756 MILES
My car listed above SEL model has a slight hesitation while driving down the road around 40 mph. It doesn't completely stall and it isn't hard to start, just started a quick slight hesitation out of nowhere. I've been on different forums and came to learn that the Throttle Body/Throttle Position Sensor (TPS) is known to fail. I bought this car used and it ran like a dream until yesterday May 4th, 2019. It does have a little above 154,600 miles on the car and I just got it two weeks ago. I just want to get opinions before I go replacing a bunch of parts. At first I was thinking that it could need a tune up (new plugs and wires) but the plugs look fine. Please help!
Sunday, May 5th, 2019 AT 6:28 AM

3 Replies

Tiny
KEN L
  • MASTER CERTIFIED MECHANIC
  • 47,513 POSTS
Hello,

It sounds like the car is misfiring which will cause the issue you describe. I would start with a tune up using Motorcraft parts and I would replace the MAF sensor and service the throttle body (leave the wires connected) Here are three guides that will get your car running smooth again.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-tune-up-a-car-engine

and

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-replace-a-mass-air-flow-sensor-maf

and

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/throttle-actuator-service

Please run down these guides and report back.
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Monday, May 6th, 2019 AT 3:35 PM
Tiny
STEVE W.
  • MECHANIC
  • 13,443 POSTS
Hello and welcome to 2CarPros. A faulty TPS will cause a hesitation because the common failure is a small break in the resistance path that the wiper in the sensor follows. In your vehicle this isn't as likely as it uses 2 different TPS sensors to provide feedback. However you also have the full electronic throttle control and those can act up and cause issues.
There are a couple TSBs on those cars for the throttle bodies. They extended the warranty to 150,000 miles and have a reprogramming item as well to deal with internal contamination. You are just out of the warranty area but they might still help if it is the throttle body. A phone call with your VIN to a local dealer may show if yours has been done or if the reprogramming was done.
It isn't a hard part to change, Remove the air duct from the filter housing, unplug the wiring connector and remove the 4 bolts. Use a new gasket and reverse the process for the new one.
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Monday, May 6th, 2019 AT 3:59 PM
Tiny
KEN L
  • MASTER CERTIFIED MECHANIC
  • 47,513 POSTS
Can you please shoot a quick video with your phone so we can see what's going on? That would be great. You can upload it here with your response.
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Tuesday, May 7th, 2019 AT 11:29 AM

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