• Mustang Forums
  • 1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk-
  • Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech

Electrical Why does my fox body keep frying eecs

  • Thread starter Thread starter brandyn200
  • Start date Start date Jun 20, 2026
B

brandyn200

Member
Aug 16, 2024
55
7
18
Iron river MI
Jun 20, 2026
#1
  • Jun 20, 2026
  • #1
I have a 1990 mustang gt 5.0 with a 5 speed it had a chip in the eec but from my investigations I have found the the engine is stock

New distributor with pip and tfi only year old
new ignition coil with plugs and wires
new fuel pump
I have been having problems now for 2 years
The first time the car was still running and driving fine but I had codes that would not go away I ended up narrowing it down to the eec being bad

Replaced it car was great drove it as my daily all summer no problems until one morning go out to leave for work car wouldn't start had spark but fuel pump and injectors weren't working

I looked through all the wiring and couldn't find any shorts or bad connections looked at all the fuse able links.

I just put the eec back in after getting rebuild again I thought maybe the chip was causing it and tried running it without the chip and didn't even make it out of the garage and same thing fuel pump won't prime and injectors arent pulsing.
eec doesn't even seem like it's booting up since I'm not getting the CEL when I turn the key on.

Am I missing something obvious or do I really have to dig into this thing more.

Thanks
 
J

JMG9350

Active Member
May 9, 2022
47
27
28
Wyoming
Jun 21, 2026
#2
  • Jun 21, 2026
  • #2
Have you checked the ECU ground wire near the battery?
 
B

brandyn200

Member
Aug 16, 2024
55
7
18
Iron river MI
Jun 21, 2026
#3
  • Jun 21, 2026
  • #3
JMG9350 said:
Have you checked the ECU ground wire near the battery?
Click to expand...
Yes it is intact and clean
I've also ohmed out all the grounds at the eec plug and they all come back with less that 1 ohm to the frame
Im thinking there has to be a short somewhere but it's not a dead short since the car was running but as soon as I drove the car even a couple feet it shorted out somewhere and fried it?
I just don't know where to start looking since it isn't consistent
 

AeroCoupe

lube between the nut and the face. I know my lubes
Founding Member
Oct 28, 2001
5,931
4,046
183
Claremore, OK
Jun 21, 2026
#4
  • Jun 21, 2026
  • #4
Who did the repairs to the ECU?
 
Reactions: Shakerhood, DadLife0724 and rednotch

rednotch

I'd like to remain having one chocolate starfish
Founding Member
Aug 14, 2000
1,387
621
143
south jersey
Jun 22, 2026
#5
  • Jun 22, 2026
  • #5
How or what is failing in the ecu will tell you more. I remember back when I had to explain when t5 swap cars would burn up 5spd ecu because of the wiring difference between the cars from the factory and people argued for years nah man it's works fine lol. Too many monkey see monkey due repair shops especially with these cars that will give you some stupid canned repair quote when all they did was recap the board and repair a broken trace or two.... Find out what's failing and look at the circuit.
 

Mustang5L5

That is…until I whipped out my Bissell
Mod Dude
Feb 18, 2001
43,264
17,952
224
Massachusetts
Jun 22, 2026
#6
  • Jun 22, 2026
  • #6
Was this car always a 5-spd?

Two things I'd check. I'd physically look at the O2 jumper and verify it's correct for year/transmission. And then i would put a DMM on pin 46 and check for voltage to ground during key on, and crank. You can do this with the ECU unplugged.
 
Reactions: General karthief and DadLife0724
B

brandyn200

Member
Aug 16, 2024
55
7
18
Iron river MI
Jun 25, 2026
#7
  • Jun 25, 2026
  • #7
Cardone rebuild the eec the last time I didn't get a report back on what was wrong. I'm going to send it out to ECU exchange this time so I know what component is failing or why it's not working

I can't see any physical damage to the circuit board or any of its components on any of the eecs that I've had problems with.
No burnt traces, leaking capacitors or anything that stands out so I'm not sure what is failing just the symptoms that I listed before

I will look at the car more tomorrow and check the things that have been mentioned
 
B

brandyn200

Member
Aug 16, 2024
55
7
18
Iron river MI
Jun 25, 2026
#8
  • Jun 25, 2026
  • #8
rednotch said:
How or what is failing in the ecu will tell you more. I remember back when I had to explain when t5 swap cars would burn up 5spd ecu because of the wiring difference between the cars from the factory and people argued for years nah man it's works fine lol. Too many monkey see monkey due repair shops especially with these cars that will give you some stupid canned repair quote when all they did was recap the board and repair a broken trace or two.... Find out what's failing and look at the circuit.
Click to expand...
I will mention that I'm not sure if the wiring was replaced or just repaired but it is labeled with a paint marker not sure if that could cause issues or not from what your saying sound like it could
 

AeroCoupe

lube between the nut and the face. I know my lubes
Founding Member
Oct 28, 2001
5,931
4,046
183
Claremore, OK
Jun 25, 2026
#9
  • Jun 25, 2026
  • #9
Salvage yards typically mark parts with paint markers.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

W
Engine My engine dies after running 10 to 15 minutes under high heat.
  • Wylieone
  • Jun 21, 2026
  • Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech
Replies
7
Views
197
Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech Jun 22, 2026
Mustang5L5
Electrical 88 EEC Injectors batch firing ?
  • Dustin 86GT
  • Dec 8, 2025
  • Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech
Replies
10
Views
458
Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech Jan 8, 2026
gkomo
Resolved 93 Mustang 5.0 - Cranks but does not start
  • dan50
  • Jul 18, 2026
  • Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech
Replies
6
Views
160
Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech Jul 18, 2026
dan50
B
Fuel 1990 mustang gt 5.0 no ground signal to fire injectors
  • brandyn200
  • Sep 5, 2025
  • Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech
Replies
6
Views
267
Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech Sep 6, 2025
Noobz347
X
Electrical 92 Fox 5.0 no start
  • xwhiskeyechox
  • Apr 24, 2025
  • Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech
Replies
4
Views
464
Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech Apr 25, 2025
AeroCoupe
Share:
Bluesky Email Share Link
  • Mustang Forums
  • 1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk-
  • Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech
Menu
Log in

Register

  • Forums
  • What's new
  • Media
  • Resources
  • Contact
  • Sponsor
X

Privacy & Transparency

We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:

  • Personalized ads and content
  • Content measurement and audience insights

Do you accept cookies and these technologies?

X

Privacy & Transparency

We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:

  • Personalized ads and content
  • Content measurement and audience insights

Do you accept cookies and these technologies?