1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

Hello,

I have a 1996 F-250 powerstroke diesel. The past couple of days, it has been running fine, then dies. It dies like the key has just been turned off. Luckily, the truck has restarted every time thus far and I have not been stranded. It will die momentary, less than a second or two. Only once did it die enough I had to restart the truck with the starter motor. The truck has missed/died 5 times the past two days. Please help me solve this issue.

Since it’s a diesel and they way it’s dying, I REALLY think I have an electrical issue that is interrupting the signal for the injectors to fire.

The battery idiot light (looks like a battery and is red) has been VERY sporadically flickering the past couple of months. Generally it will flicker on a bumpy road. Again, the voltage has been rock solid and the truck has run well until this point. I’m not sure if the idiot light flickers when the truck dies yet.

When the truck dies, the head lights and dash lights do not dim. I’ve checked the battery terminals and ground straps to the engine and they appear to be good. Also, the voltage meter on the dash does not move, it stays 14V. When the truck is running, the volt meter reads approximately 14V.

I’m thinking I have a loose ground somewhere, but have no idea where to look other than the obvious points on the battery and negative terminals on the engine. The part that puzzles me is when the truck dies, the volt meter does not change. If you have any ideas on what to check, please share.

Thank you,

Chris Hill
270-933-2054

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

Chris,Check all the grounds around the batts,( the 10 ga. wires that run off the neg cables),also a quick connect that gets batt acid in it on the pass side10 ga ground cable.
If all looks good replace the ignition switch,over the years i've seen a lot cause trouble.
Good luck
Rich Aman,1631 G/S

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

Try this site. It seems to be pretty informative.

http://thedieselgarage.com/forums/

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

try the CPS (cam position sensor) on the front cover just below water pump. A very common PSD part that does exactly what you're describing when it goes bad.

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

X2 Cam sensor is almost always the problem most ford dealers stock them due to their frequently going bad

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

My 96 powerstroke had the same problem, last month, and it liked to die going around turns (not good for a rollback!), I suspected a lot of expensive, dramatic things.....

The local diesel shop swapped out the cam position sensor for me and its as good as new.

I purchased another one from Wabash Ford off ebay for something like 15 bucks for the dash for a spare.

You will need a 10 mil wrench.

You might want to call the ford dealer first before you schedule it, the part according to them was $150 bucks.

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

Another helpful site is
http://www.thedieselstop.com/

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

Cam Sensor.........put the latest level in it.....

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

Thanks for the replies. I'll try and get a cam sensor tommorow.

Could the cam sensor cause the battery idiot light to go off?

I also need to change glow plugs. Any recomendations of brand to use?

Thanks,

Chris

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

Chris, you can get the Autolite Glow Plugs at the following website:

http://www.sparkplugs.com/results_ap...1&AAIA=1354643

They are great to do business with.

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

My 94 Powerstroke with a stick would intermittently die if you touched the throttle just right, it is a throttle by wire deal.

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

Hopefully it is just the cam position sensor which is the most popular problem. Another issue is behind the primary fuel filter on the top of the engine, there is a small part about the size of a small cup. Unscrew it and there is a screen that can become plugged with debris, rust etc that can effect fuel pressure. Before finding this it killed my fuel economy.

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

Trace your fuel pump wires in the harness. A friend of mine had an issue with the wire harness being pinched at body drop at the assembly plant. The fuel pump wire got chaffed and would ground out when conditions were right. His problem was intermittent like yours. He took it to the dealer once and they couldn't find anything. The second time it happened, Ford had a bulletin out on it. Call the dealer and find out from them, they will tell you what models were affected.

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

There cam sensor is under factory recall. You can take your truck to your local Ford dealer and they will replace it for you free.

Jeff Johnson

Re: 1996 Powerstroke Dies Intermittently
 

My 97 did the same thing, changed the cam sensor and the problem went away, I keep a spare in my glove box, of course Ford sent me a recall notice about two weeks after I changed it. I put Champion glow plugs in mine, they work fine. Be careful removing the valve covers as the gasket is also the injector wiring harness.

Joey