Hai, owned this car for 3 years never had this problem :/

Ford Ef 4.0ltr Falcon.
Symptoms:
Sometimes its starts fine and idles decents but other times it has starting problems idles low and sounds like its running on 5 cylinders.
Its been going like this for the past month :/


i have replaced Plugs, leads ,coil packs, MAP sensor and this problem is still on going and know what it could be?

Any other symptoms? Losing any coolant? Does it run fine above idle? Is one spark plug perfectly white while the others are all tan/brown/grey? I'm thinking could be failed head gasket leaking coolant into one cylinder. That can do what you describe, and it's very common on pre-AU sixes.

Ignition is basically all new, so unlikely to be the problem. But worth checking for a worn shaft on the cam angle sensor, as that can sometimes cause uneven firing. Unfortunately, need to pull the unit out to check it for play - a bit of a pain.

You can determine which cylinder is not firing by unplugging your injectors one at a time while it is running like it's on 5 cylinders. It should idle worse (or stall) each time you unplug an injector. If it doesn't, you have found the cylinder that wasn't producing power anyway.

That's all I can suggest. Getting an auto electrician to put it on the 'scope should cost very little and maybe isolate the source of the problem.

Have you pulled the error codes from the ECU? There is a sticky somewhere on Fordmods describing how to do it and what the codes mean. This will also be in your Haines or Gregory's manual if you have one. (if not, get one )

put a piece of clear pipe on the fuel pressure regulator vacuum port and connect it as usual to the manifold..if you see fuel in the pipe while the engine is running its stuffed....(fuel pressure regulator)...

Hey guys thansk for the reply's. Its sputters n sounds like its running on 5 maybe 4 cylinder and drives bad and stalls... Coffee milky liquid in the engine so blew a head gasket im pretty sure. So im guessing im replacing a new head? engine?... this car is a 5 speed btw

definatly sounds like a head gasket mate.

When the head gasket goes, the head is usually still OK. Just get the head checked for cracks, and you will need to get it skimmed a little to make sure the gasket surface is perfectly flat and smooth. You might also want to get a 3-angle valve job done while the head is in getting skimmed.

Replace the gasket with the multi-layer steel (MLS) one from the AU. It is much more reliable, and will give you a couple extra points of compression, so a little more power.