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Ford Probe Repair Questions
Question:
1997 Ford Probe mileage:
144,000. My car just
stopped, I found the
fuel cutoff switch
tripped in the trunk,
but I still am not
hearing the fuel pump.
And the fuel cutoff
light is still on. What
next?
Answer:
Check for 12-volts to the fuel pump while cranking
the engine over. If 12 volts is present, replace the
fuel pump. If you don't have 12-volts, check the
fuel pump relay.
Question: 1989 Ford Probe LX
mileage: 108,000. I have a question regarding my
car's charging system. It has a history of charging
system problems. The system completely failed about
three years ago, I ended up replacing the battery,
alternator and power distributor. Everything was
fine until about a year ago when the system quit
again, I had it checked and it was the alternator
again. I replaced it myself and it was fine again
until now. However, now it has some occasional
problems with overcharging. I have not had any
problems with light bulbs or fuses burning out.
However, a couple times a week the voltmeter will
read slightly above normal. There were a few squeaks
in the belt, after which I tightened it and although
the noise is mostly gone, the same problem with
overcharging still exists. I have also noticed that
the car seems to lose some power when it is doing
this, but the acceleration will pick up again once
the voltmeter is reading a normal charge. Do you
have any ideas on what might be causing this?
Answer:
Your intermittent charging problem may be caused by
poor ground connections somewhere in the system.
Replace the belt for the alternator. Belts squeak
due to slippage and must be replaced.
Question: 1989 Ford Probe mileage:
149,000. My husband is at his wit's end trying to fix
the clutch on our probe. One day the pedal started
losing pressure and traveled all the way to the
floor. He replaced the slave cylinder and it still
wouldn't work. He bought a master cylinder rebuild
kit and the pedal still won't build up any pressure.
We have bled the system several times. At one time,
we actually did get pressure and went to bleed the
system for any remaining air and lost the pressure
and have never been able to get it back. When we
bleed the system the fluid runs through the lines
but the pedal just won't come off the floor.
Answer:
Your clutch problems may be caused by the clutch
release fork inside the clutch.
Question: 1993 Probe GT mileage: 108,000. I've been
noticing this for a long time and even asked local
automotive repair shops with no success. When I
reach a stop sign (downhill) everything is fine but
when I start accelerating away the car smokes out
the back, yet if I am at a level stop sign and
accelerate it is fine. I also noticed when I take certain turns too fast and
accelerate there is smoke. I have no idea what this
is. HELP!
Answer:
We have found similar problems with other cars
approximately 60,000 or more miles. Replacing the
valve stem seals reduces the oil use and smoke. They
are made out of rubber and over time become hard and
brittle and no longer seal.
Question: 1997 Ford Probe mileage:
102,000. The car quit while my wife was driving. I
am not getting any fire from the distributor. I
tried another distributor, crank position sensor,
relay and PCM. Still cannot get any fire at the
plugs.
Answer:
Check the timing belt as it may have failed and
consequently the distributor may not be rotating.
Question: 1996 Ford Probe mileage:
112,000. When I test drove my car it ran and started
just fine, but about two weeks after I bought it it
did not start at all it did not have any power what
so ever; windows, stereo, lights, etc. When I want
to start it I have to jump-start it and it will
start well all day long, but when I let it sit all
night it will run out of power over night. The thing
that gets me is that when I bought it it went two
weeks before it went completely dead and I just let
it sit because I had no insurance on it, but now it
loses all power just sitting all night. Do you have
any idea what drains the power out of it? Thanks.
Answer:
From what you tell us, it sounds like you may be
having trouble with your charging system. Have your
battery load tested and check the alternator output
for voltage and amperage. You also may have a drain
on the battery that, overnight, would result in a
dead battery. Here is the procedure we use to
isolate a battery drain. Remove negative battery
cable from the battery. Using a 12-volt test light,
hook one end to the negative battery post the other
end to the negative battery cable you just
disconnected. The test light will glow or "light" if
there is a drain. If the "light or glow" is faint,
that is probably normal draw for the clock or
computer. If the "light or glow" is bright, then
there is a large drain. That should be corrected.
Now start removing and replacing the fuses one by
one until the light goes out; that one will be the
circuit with the drain. Remember to hold in the
button in the door jam for the interior lights.
MORE:
Ford Probe Repair Questions
Question: 1994 Ford Probe GT
mileage: 60,000. My fuel cut-out light is on and it will not start.
I have lost my manual. I have checked the
fuses that I think would affect the fuel pump.
I have also looked in the trunk for the reset button
for the electric pump. What I think to be the
reset button in the trunk is sitting in the driver's
side rear panel covered with a rubber boot. I
pushed what looks like a reset button with no
results. What am I missing? Help!
Your help would be greatly appreciated.
Answer:
Check the fuel pump relay, as this may be causing
your no start problem.
Question:
1995 Ford Probe GL mileage: 75,000. I live in
Minnesota where you don't use the air conditioner
during the summer. Last week it finally
got warm enough. When I try to activate it
nothing happens. Well, something does happen.
If the car is at idle, it will rev up slightly as if
the car is expecting to be bogged down. That's
it. I don't hear the compressor engage and I
don't hear the engine bog down. I've checked
the fuses. The A/C was working fine last summer. I'm willing to have
it looked at by a professional, but want to exhaust my own options first.
Answer: Your air-conditioning system
may be low on Freon. The compressor will not
engage if the system is low on Freon due to the
low-pressure cut-off switch.
Question:
1995 Ford Probe GT mileage: 124,200. My car
misses and idles very roughly. The idle will
drop down suddenly from about 900 rpm to 400-600 rpm
then pops back up again. It has had
degrees of this symptom for a few thousand miles,
possibly dating back to when the battery failed and
had to be replaced. A dealer tune-up and
a couple bottles of gas treatment have not made
things any better.
Answer: Your car is equipped with a computer controlled
engine management system. An independent auto
service center can scan your computer for fault or
error codes. The information should pinpoint
the malfunctioning components.
Question: 1993 Ford Probe mileage: 94,000. The
problem that we have with our car has been happening
for approximately the last ten months. On
occasion while my wife is on her way to work or coming
home at the end of the day the car will stall. This only happens when she disengages the clutch
and
the car is in the idle mode. Please keep in
mind that this only happens on occasion. We
have taken the car to four different places to have
tests done to the car (i.e. elec. diagnostics). Only until tonight when she asked me to take the car
out for a spin did the problem happen to me. I
know that my description may be a bit vague so
please e-mail me with any questions that you may
have. Thank you for your time.
Answer: Your car may be ready for a
major tune-up including spark plugs, plug wires,
distributor cap, rotor, fuel filter and air filter.
Also, perform a fuel pump pressure test. Clean
fuel injection system including throttle bore, idle
speed control motor and passages. If problem
still exists, scan computer for trouble codes.
Question:
1989 Ford Probe mileage: 150,000. Just after I
went over the 150000 mile mark on the odometer my
driver side headlight went out but is functional
with high beams. Have also noticed that the
radio, which has a removable face, is now also dim
3/4 of the length while the remainder is fully lit.
Battery on cold days usually dips in the lower part
of normal. Also have another problem; only
when defrost is turned on for front and back, it
seems that the belt is squealing and only in a
certain part. Belt is only three months old.
I know I have asked a lot but what can I do to fix
it myself. Do I have to replace a bulb or the
whole lamp on the headlight? With the
radio could it be a light within the facing or is it
a burnt fuse?
Answer:First replace the headlight.
It also sounds like you have a dash light bulb out. Check, the tension on the alternator belt, if it is
loose, tighten it.
MORE:
Ford Probe Repair Questions
Question:
1996 Ford Probe SE mileage: 62,000. There are two symptoms, possibly related. Both
problems are intermittent, but occur approx. 70% of
the time. 1.High idle at around 2200 RPM, only when
fully warmed up, especially when stopping at a
traffic light after highway driving. It will
stay at 2200, and then gradually reduce to around
1500 RPM before returning to normal. This
process usually takes thirty or more seconds, sometimes
over a minute. 2.When in "high idle mode",
the engine will cut out at full throttle. I
noticed this one-day when the high idle made, me
made and I tried to make a jackrabbit start when a
light turned green! Through each gear (5 speed),
it will drown out at full throttle, and I have
noticed that it smokes (gray) when I hold the pedal
down during this cutout time, and smells really
fowl-- like a combo of a catalytic converter and raw
gas. Any ideas? I have been putting this
off for a few months now, but it is getting worse.
I drive about 2500 miles per month and feel like I
may be stranded soon!
Answer: Your car is equipped with a computer controlled
engine management system. An independent auto
service center can scan your computer for fault or
error codes. The information should pinpoint
the malfunctioning components.
Question: 1997 Ford Probe GTS
mileage: 51,000. The problem we are having is somewhat
sporadic. The car starts and runs fine but sometimes
when coming to a stop and depressing the clutch the
idle drops very low and usually stalls. I have
replaced the spark plugs, but no change. If the car
is down shifted to the stop there seems to be no
problem. Fuel system cleaner/additive has been added
to the fuel tank. When car is stationary, you can
race the engine and the idle will return to 650-700
rpm. The only other observation I have made is when
the A/C is on the problem seems not to exist. What
do you think?
Answer: If a major tune-up has not been
done recently, this could be the cause of your
problem. Replace the spark plugs, plug wires, fuel
and air filters, etc. Also, replace the oxygen
sensor. In addition, service the fuel injection
system. Clean the carbon deposits from the throttle
bore and idle passages. You might also want to check
the ignition module for possible failure.
Question: 1993 Ford Probe mileage:
107,000. My cars' "check engine" light comes
on at higher speeds only. I have been told this may
be an oxygen sensor. Does this sound right and
if so do you have a ball park figure for how much I
should pay to have it fixed or at least a cut off as
to how high I should go.
Answer: Your problem may
or may not be the oxygen sensor. The
“check engine” light will “light” when there is a
malfunction in the engine management system.
The fault code is then stored in the computer.
The computer must be scanned to retrieve these
stored faults to pinpoint the malfunctioning
component. Because the check engine light
indicates something is wrong, a trip to you
neighborhood automobile service center sooner rather
than later is recommended. Parts and labor to
replace an oxygen sensor is approximately $75.00.
Question: 1991 Ford Probe mileage:
96,000. I have been hearing a high-pitched
whistling scraping noise in the front right side of
my car when my car is on the move. When I
apply the brakes, the noise immediately stops.
I thought perhaps it was the alternator, but the
noise level doesn't change if I flip on the
headlights. What do you think might be the
possible causes? I want to repair the problem
as soon as possible, but as a student struggling to
make ends meet, I guess I'm hoping that the problem
is minor. I'm trying to get some information before
planning my next move. Thanks for your
assistance. This is a truly wonderful service.
Answer: Sounds like brakes; have
them checked, they may need replacing, you can order
online and save by shopping at
eautopartstore.com for OEM brake pads and shoes.
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Ford Probe Repair Questions
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