Intermittent issues of will not stay running and deceleration at cruising speeds

DESIREE2323

MEMBER
1992 LINCOLN TOWN CAR
V8
2WD
AUTOMATIC
103,000 MILES

I have 2 intermittent issues to address.

Issue 1. Engine suddenly shuts off. I turn the key to start engine, engine starts, then suddenly shuts off before I can shift into reverse. Try starting it again, turn key, engine starts, give it gas for about 20 seconds, and engine stays running. This doesn’t happen on every start up either.

Issue 2. Deceleration at cruising speeds: I’ve noticed that around 45-50 MPH the car starts to lag or slow down for a couple seconds. It feels like it’s struggling to maintain the speed. I’d like to mention that I have never used the cruise control feature while I’ve owned this car.

This doesn’t happen every time I drive it either. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

3 Replies

JACOBANDNICKOLAS

MECHANIC
109,758 POSTS

Hi,

The symptoms can be caused by a few things. My first thought is there is low fuel pressure to the engine. However, we need to do a little checking before we start replacing things.

What I need you to do is scan the computer to see if there are diagnostic trouble codes stored. If there are, they should point us in the right direction.

Here is a link that shows how it is done. This vehicle has an OBD1 system and it doesn't require a scan tool to retrieve codes.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/ford-lincoln-mercury-obd1-1995-and-earlier-diagnostic-trouble-code-definition-and-retrieval

Perform the scan and let me know what you find.

Take care,
Joe