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

wont idle when cold....

  • Thread starter Thread starter 86turbo
  • Start date Start date Sep 27, 2008

86turbo

Member
Apr 8, 2006
183
0
17
Sep 27, 2008
#1
  • Sep 27, 2008
  • #1
just another wont idle when cold thread. Only codes the eec is throwing are for egr, canister purge and the airb solenoids, codes 34, 81, 82, 84 and 85

I start the car up and it will start then die maybe 3 times immediately. I have to give it gas to keep it running and even then when i give it gas there is a delay and it still tries to surge. If I hold my foot steady at half throttle it will rev up then try to drop down again so i have to pretty much give it throttle every few seconds, its crazy.

- ect and act resistance levels and they are correct for cold and hot running.

- I sprayed my whole intake system with carb cleaner and it didnt change the idle at all.

- My tps is at .94 volts and i used an analog meter to see if it skipped which is did NOT.

-Volt drop across leads of iac give me 1.5 volts varying +/- .2 at a hot idle

Last night I installed the ford iac spacer plate and when i started it up it revved way up which was good but when i tried turning in the screw to cut off the air it dropped to a really low idle but at least it ran. Im thinkin my iac is bad....

advice?

Drew
 

86turbo

Member
Apr 8, 2006
183
0
17
Sep 27, 2008
#2
  • Sep 27, 2008
  • #2
btw i tried clocking my maf and it seemed to affect my idle, ill probe the appropriate wires via the surging idle sticky and try to get it around .6
 

86turbo

Member
Apr 8, 2006
183
0
17
Sep 28, 2008
#3
  • Sep 28, 2008
  • #3
couldnt get the maf voltage below 1.1 in any position, i think itd trying to put the eec in the wrong load table for being at idle..........

40 views and no replies? Is that because nobody knows??? haha I figured there would be some good troubleshooters floatin around here...

Drew
 
L

LxVert

Member
Dec 26, 2003
80
0
6
Sep 28, 2008
#4
  • Sep 28, 2008
  • #4
My car had the same symptoms before and it turned out to be the Air Charge Temp Sensor, the sensor was all gummed up, once I changed it the car ran great from a cold start.
 

HISSIN50

"How long does it take to get help in here?
15 Year Member
Nov 29, 1999
31,179
33
129
Sep 28, 2008
#5
  • Sep 28, 2008
  • #5
86turbo said:
couldnt get the maf voltage below 1.1 in any position, i think itd trying to put the eec in the wrong load table for being at idle..........

40 views and no replies? Is that because nobody knows??? haha I figured there would be some good troubleshooters floatin around here...

Drew
Click to expand...

Part of the issue could be that you have multiple threads going, no mention of what parts are on the car or your tune parameters, or why you are chasing one tangent of the issue.

I'd not sweat the MAF reading you saw but that's just me.
 

86turbo

Member
Apr 8, 2006
183
0
17
Sep 28, 2008
#6
  • Sep 28, 2008
  • #6
one thread is about my maf, the other my iac and the third is about cold start. Some of the stuff is interrelated...

This is on an 85 coupe w/efi swap. Typical h/c/i swap, 65mm bbk tb, 75mm pro m bullet. 24 pound injectors...
 

HISSIN50

"How long does it take to get help in here?
15 Year Member
Nov 29, 1999
31,179
33
129
Sep 28, 2008
#7
  • Sep 28, 2008
  • #7
If you've ruled out a hard part issue, and because you do your own tuning, I'd post or search in the EEC tuning sub-forum or dedicated tuning forums.
It might be easier to tune around the issue (there are several ways to tune-out an idle issue and the guys who are smarter than I will know the best work-around).
 

86turbo

Member
Apr 8, 2006
183
0
17
Sep 28, 2008
#8
  • Sep 28, 2008
  • #8
i could pull the pms off my other car and see what i can do however i'd like to "try and get it running as well as possible. I've had two other mustangs with h/c/i efi engines and noen were this bad. Im gonna try and swap out the iac from my 86, even my turbo car has a better idle!! haha
 

HISSIN50

"How long does it take to get help in here?
15 Year Member
Nov 29, 1999
31,179
33
129
Sep 29, 2008
#9
  • Sep 29, 2008
  • #9
I misunderstood you earlier. I thought you were loading values into a tune (the talk about load tables).

If the car was healthy except for a bad IAC, you should be able to crack the throttle open a little to compensate for a lack of IAC DC/flow. The fact that it surges suggests some other issue.

Have you put a vac gauge on a manifold vac source to see if it's near 20" hg?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

7
Engine Random hanging idle
  • 706 Saleen
  • Feb 11, 2026
  • Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech
Replies
9
Views
432
Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech Feb 19, 2026
86HO5.0
8
Hard to start when engine is cold
  • 86_Capri
  • Mar 11, 2026
  • 1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk-
  • 2
Replies
31
Views
749
1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk- Mar 21, 2026
86_Capri
M
3.8 start problems. New edge 2003
  • Mayk.i.
  • Oct 2, 2025
  • 1996 - 2004 SN95 Mustang -General/Talk-
Replies
2
Views
160
1996 - 2004 SN95 Mustang -General/Talk- Oct 3, 2025
manicmechanic007
Engine Surging idle on start-up
  • keel
  • Aug 11, 2025
  • Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech
Replies
16
Views
764
Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech Oct 31, 2025
keel
8
Engine Rough idle and aggressive sputtering when accelerating
  • 88vertible
  • Aug 13, 2025
  • Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech
Replies
4
Views
1K
Fox 5.0 Mustang Tech Dec 13, 2025
Jarhead67
J
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?