cruiser54

My thoughts exactly. Welcome.

cruiser54

That's not good.

Multiple things not getting power could be a connection/ground issue.

I'm with freegdr on this. I think you should verify fuel pressure. Fuel pump could be getting hot after a while.

Maybe due to a poor ground?

salad

Another vote for fuel pressure. Also check that the ECT and IAT sensors are working properly and reporting correct temps.

95cherokee89

OK, so I will check every ground and connector I can find and make sure they are getting a good connection. I would like to point out though, the issue does not arise once its up to operating temperature, but sometimes over an hour - two hours afterwards. Its unpredictable and doesn't even always happen, but once it starts, it continues to do it, and more often until I shut it off and let it cool down. I have driven the vehicle long enough to know how it feels, and something is not right, when I first got it on the road there was an issue with it not getting enough fuel, we narrowed it down to sediment in the tank (there was water condensation in there and it rusted the inside of the tank but only on a very small scale, not enough to need to be replaced, we also replaced the filter) once we cleaned it out it ran fine, we took the fuel pump out and tested it, thinking it was going bad, but I think its an aftermarket one that has been replace fairly recently. I don't think the problem is getting enough fuel or air, but rather spark. If it was wanting to die once it got up to operating temperature, I would think something like the coil pack is going bad (its likely the original) but since it runs fine even for an hour or so afterwards I don't know. If it had something to do with the fuel pressure, then why does it run fine for that amount of time then suddenly just start backfiring as often as the cylinders are firing(there is no warning, it literally just start starts doing it), also, it does not do that at idle, just once I try and drive it.

I will still try and test the fuel pressure though

jedijeb

I forgot the mention, the distributor and cap are brand new, same with the plugs, and last week when I had them out, they had no carbon on them what so ever, so thats not the problem either. (the plug wires are fairly new as well)

Just because you don't see black carbon doesn't mean the plugs are not showing you there is a problem.

http://www.jockeyjournal.com/forum/s...8674&showall=1

About halfway down the page there is a good chart with what plugs look like with different problems. It is really good for learning to read plugs.

You mentioned blowby, but did you ever pull the PCV from the valve cover just after starting the engine and see if there is a lot of white smoke blowing out, or just open the oil fill cap and see if it is blowing out smoke? If it is then it sounds more like a ring problem. Valve seals should only cause some exhaust smoke at startup, not blowby. If you are getting blowby from the valve area then the valve guides are badly worn.

I have an 85 with 2.5L that is doing some of the same things, I am pretty sure the rings are shot because it sat unstarted for at least 6 years before I got it last summer. Once the weather is warm it is getting at least new rings and gaskets and timing chain, maybe a full overhaul. I hope yours can be solved with less work, but be prepared to go a little deeper just in case.

95cherokee89

Yesterday I pulled the PCV hose off and left it running, there was a some white smoke coming out of the hole, so that indicates bad valve seals? interesting.

95cherokee89

I would also like to point out, that when it is cold, it runs better and has more power.

freegdr

No that indicates its cold out.

jedijeb

Could easily mean a problem with the rings being worn. Could be once the engine heats up, the cylinder walls are expanding to the point where the rings are sealing less and you lose compression.

The white smoke when the PCV hose is off could be combustion gasses getting past the rings, which is more likely than the valve seals leaking. Valve seals work more to keep excess oil from leaking down the valve stems into the combustion chamber than keeping the combustion gasses from leaking out.

I had a 2.3L Ford in my 79 Mustang that had a broken ring, it would run like crap once it got warmed up, well until the broken ring finally wore a grove in the cylinder wall almost all the way through to the water jacket I learned then not to ignore oil in the breather and rough running engines.

95cherokee89

Its starting to become more frequent, today it seemed to happen once it got to a little over 100 degrees, it was running fine, then it wanted to die, then perked up, then wanted to die, then started backfiring, I didn't know it was possible for an engine to backfire that much...

95cherokee89

Today it drove fine when I was going to work, and once it got to operating temp, it started to want to die and back fire like normal, but I was almost at work so I left it, then when I started it up when I was leaving, it sounded and felt really rough, it seems that 1 or more cylinders are not firing at all, and once it got to operating temperature, it started dying and backfiring again. I was barely able to make it home.

So now I am having the vehicle want to die and backfire once its at operating temp, and I'm getting no ignition in 1-2 cylinders.

95cherokee89

would a bad temp sensor cause this? I cant really figure it out

cruiser54

A bad CTS? Not likely.

95cherokee89

So today I did some more digging, I replaced to pressure regulator with the old one to see if that would change anything, no change. Now it has barely enough power to even move, I had to floor it just to go around to block, I am certain that 1 or more cylinders are not firing at all, it idles and runs like crap, I don't know why, what could cause this? bad timing chain?

jedijeb

If the timing chain has jumped a few notches it could do that, but if the chain was that loose I would imagine you would have been hearing it slapping on the inside of the cover.

Did you ever get a good compression reading on all of the cylinders?
Do you smell unburnt gasoline when it is running poorly?
Have you checked all the electrical connections and grounds?
Is the air filter clean?