[Tricky]

I recently bought a 1990 Escort LX. When I took it for the test drive it ran good at first but after about 1 minute of driving it began to backfire and lose power. Acceleration response was sporadic. The seller said it had never done that before. I got a
deal on the car because of this issue. When I came back with my tools, the car would sputter when the starter was engaged but as soon as I stop turning the key it would die. I posted a question about this problem and got a few suggestions that it was most likely the ignition control module. I replaced the ignition control module and the car started up and idled. When I took it for a drive it began to misfire and backfire again. The exhaust smells very rich and smoking. Now I'm not sure if it is a ignition issue or a fuel issue. I tried adjusting the timing at the distributor and it doesn't seem to help. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

 

[Tricky]

I read about your problem, there is a small plastic black block on top of where the air exits the air-cleaner housing with 2 phillips head screws, the words " AIR FLOW are imprented on top with the arrow pointing towards the engine. By removing the screws it will lift right off. On the bottom side are 2 pair of tiny pins, between each pair there should be what looks like tiny springs. These are probably broken if they are not attached to only the 2 pins each. If you can absolutely be shure they are inplace and not hanging down , then it can be the plastic screw in " Air Temp Moniter ". This is located near the entrance side cover of the air filter assembly. Remove the 2 wire electrical clip and unscrew it out of the air filter cover. Using an OHM Meter ( red lead to Volt-ohm & black lead to common ) you can test this moniter by carefully touching the 2 male terminals where the electrical clip connection goes. If you get Zero readng on the amp probe, its bad, if you get continuity the meter will display a reading like 159 or 210, or even 108. An OHM meter Cannot Shock You ! Most auto parts can order these temp. sending units. Good Luck

Thanks for the advice. I will try that.

 

[Tricky]

Try wiggling the throttle position sensor connector while the engine is running... see if the engine hick-ups as you wiggle. I had the sensor and connector go bad on mine and it caused a random problem similar to what you've described.
Congrats on getting the car for a deal!

Thanks. I will try that. I hope it's something simple like that.

 

[Tricky]

I read about your problem, there is a small plastic black block on top of where the air exits the air-cleaner housing with 2 phillips head screws, the words " AIR FLOW are imprented on top with the arrow pointing towards the engine. By removing the screws it will lift right off. On the bottom side are 2 pair of tiny pins, between each pair there should be what looks like tiny springs. These are probably broken if they are not attached to only the 2 pins each. If you can absolutely be shure they are inplace and not hanging down , then it can be the plastic screw in " Air Temp Moniter ". This is located near the entrance side cover of the air filter assembly. Remove the 2 wire electrical clip and unscrew it out of the air filter cover. Using an OHM Meter ( red lead to Volt-ohm & black lead to common ) you can test this moniter by carefully touching the 2 male terminals where the electrical clip connection goes. If you get Zero readng on the amp probe, its bad, if you get continuity the meter will display a reading like 159 or 210, or even 108. An OHM meter Cannot Shock You ! Most auto parts can order these temp. sending units. Good Luck

Thanks. I'm not sure where the box is. Do you mean this thing?

 

[Tricky]

Sorry, I can't see what your talking about at all..Does that engine run on a carburetor ?

It's a throttle body injection system.

 

[Tricky]

A month later - inquiring minds wonder.....was it solved?

Not yet. Been busy. Was going to try replacing the ECU but it's difficult to access. I have to get the part number before I know if I can find a replacement.

 

[Tricky]

Thanks. I'll check those things. I suspect that it's not the distributor cap because the car ran fine when I first test drove it. It wasn't until it ran for a few minutes before it ran rough. Now it's running rough all the time and won't even stay running. I know it must be something simple. It is so frustrating. When I get more time I'm going to tackle it again.