It has two tanks, so yes...I've driven it until the tank runs dry (65L). I know that technically it might be getting what the book says it should - it's just never done this before. The pedal doesn't feel any different when I drive it. I was thinking that the computer might have had me running rich when I had the weight behind me and now that I don't it can't shift back to a leaner mixture. *sigh* Vehicles suck sometimes.
One other thing to consider, is that certain cities require the gas stations to sell certain blends of gas for emissions purposes. Also, the gas blends being sold change depending on the season. The more ethanol and other "emissions reducing" shit they put in the gas, the worse your mileage will be.
Disconnect your battery for 5 min or so and then reconnect. You're not completely off with the vehicle running rich as I've seen it happen a bunch of times when we've towed with an old truck that hadn't been used for it in a few years. Does the truck sound any different? Are the RPMs spiking or dropping? I'd check the PCV valve too if you haven't replaced it lately. For some reasons on Ford sixes they create a world of trouble when they go bad.
I'll try the battery tomorrow if I have the time. To me, it sounds like it's labouring a bit more than normal (i.e. like I'm punching the gas hard to accelerate), but that's just me and I might be overly sensitive to it since I've driven it for so long. Otherwise I haven't noticed anything except the poor mileage. Oh, and the brakes were replaced the week before I left, so I don't think they're an issue. Thanks everybody for all the help. I'm pretty well convinced that I'm going to have to take it to a mechanic and see what the engine is doing. Blah. It's my fault for owning so many books and weighing down that trailer like I did.
If you've just had brake work done, you might check for a dragging brake. The easiest way to check is to drive for a while and then check and see if any wheel is significantly hotter than the others. If things are not adjusted correctly, this can impact mileage.
I have to move soon and I'm considering putting a trailer hitch onto my 2002 Impala. thehitchstore.com seems to have a pretty good price on a complete hitch package including same day shipping, however I can't quite seem to figure out how I get lighting to the U-Haul trailer system. Anyone have experience doing this? Temporary or permanent solutions welcome.
Actually, U-Haul is quite helpful about this. I strongly recommend calling ahead to book a trailer. When you do, they ask you everything; make, model, year, type of hitch, etc. Explain to them your situation and they can make a recommendation. Do this before you buy anything, because different hitches fit different trailers. My truck had to have a 2" ball to fit the trailer that it hauled last month - your car might require something different. Sometimes U-Haul can even sell or rent you the parts you need, which is way easier then buying something in advance and hoping it works. Also, when you go to pick up the trailer they will help you...they typically put the trailer on the hitch for you, hook up the wiring (make sure you have an outlet for the wiring) and chains. Lastly, I recommend going with their insurance. It'll be around $60, but for that price you don't have to give a shit if anything happens to the trailer. If you go through your insurance company and something happens, you don't submit a claim...you pay U-Haul cash and deal with your insurance yourself. Hope this helps.
So I found that it was the mounting holes in the armrest that cracked, which IS a replaceable part (woohoo!), but this has led to the armrest pulling on the doorcard, causing a crack (boo-urns). I started searching for fiberglass cloth, but I realized I have no fucking clue what I'm looking for. How much is 6 oz of cloth? will that be enough to repair an 8 inch (horizontal, if that matters) crack? How much epoxy will I need? (For instance: Will THIS cloth and THIS epoxy be enough? Too much?)
Just go to Wal-mart. In the automotive area, next to the touch-up paints, they'll have fiberglass cloth and resin.
On that car, it's most likely going to involve tearing apart the trunk to get to the wiring, and splicing into the wiring going to those lights. Most U-haul places will install hitches and do the wiring for you. Or, you can install the hitch, and just get them to do the wiring. If you want to do the wiring yourself, go to http://www.clubgp.com/newforum/default.asp and sign up. Post your question in the 97-03 Car Audio and Electronics thread. Someone there will be able to help you. (It's a Grand Prix site, but the Impala is the same).
Sorry to chime in with this again, but it's making me nuts. Once again, 1996 F-150, 4.9L straight 6 standard. As a reminder, its fuel mileage has fallen anywhere from 30-50% ever since I hauled a heavy trailer about 1000 miles. (Note: I looked at an old fuel log of when I was in downtown Calgary traffic. The mileage is currently 45% lower than it was.) I took it to a mechanic who read the computer and found nothing. Disconnected the battery to reset everything and the mileage is still poor. It's started doing something new, though: stalling on me. In the last week it's stalled 3 times and almost stalled 3 more. It typically stalls when I've come to a stop, with the clutch fully pressed down. When it stalls it's difficult to re-start. When it almost stalls the lighting in the cab (dash, radio, etc) also dims down. And, of course, the mileage still sucks. If I get out and have occassion to stand by the passenger side after I've shut the engine off, I strongly smell gas. Whatever this is is not causing the engine to code...any ideas?
I'm not at all familiar with the F150, but does it have a Mass Air Flow sensor? I had a car that did crazy things (admittedly it was a Porsche 996 Koni car) like that until we replaced the MAF, and then it was all good. I've never had luck testing MAFs... basically borrowed one to see if it fixed the problem.
Did you check the PCV valve yet? They're cheap so I'd recommend buying one and replacing it since it'll only take you a couple minutes to swap out. My family has owned tons of Ford Explorers and F-150s over the years and half the time when the vehicle was running like shit it was PCV related. For some reason Fords are very temperamental when the PCV is gummed up.
Does anyone else think it might be alternator related? If the lights are dimming when it almost stalls, there's gotta be something electrical going on, right? And if the alternator is going out to the point that it's a lot more difficult to turn, wouldn't that hurt fuel mileage? I honestly have no idea, just throwing it out there.
The first thing I thought of when I first read about stalling and lights dimming was alternator, but that wouldn't explain the gas smell. It still wouldn't hurt to grab a multimeter and see what the alts putting out, or even take it to autozone and have it tested. (I think they still test for free?)
That was the first thing I thought of last night. It was the first time it had stalled out after dark, and when I saw that the lights were dimming, then brightening up again, I thought "alternator." It goes in to a Ford dealership (FML) on Tuesday, so if anyone has any ideas I'm all ears. I'll make sure to get them to check the alternator and the PCV. And anything else you guys think it might be.
If the alternator is not putting out enough voltage for the ignition system, you could get some raw gas getting pumped through the exhaust. I really don't know if that's it, but it's possible.
What do you mean by difficult to restart? Like the motor has a hard time turning over or it turns over a lot before firing? Lights will dim like that with a stalling motor. Have you done a tune-up[plugs, wires, cap, rotor, distributor]? Are you sure you aren't leaking fuel anywhere? Easiest way to check for a fuel leak is start up the truck then shut it off, then find the bleeder on the fuel rail and get a little screwdriver and push it in. If after a few minutes a decent stream of fuel comes out then you shouldn't have a leak anywhere. Usually a gas smell that isn't a leak is caused by some part of your ignition system[plugs, wires, cap, rotor, distributor]. Some free things you can do are at least pull the cap off and check to see that your distributor or rotor aren't all corroded, check your air filter. You could get a can of brake cleaner and spray down your vacuum lines for a possible leak. If your ignition system is fine you could then look at your fuel pressure regulator or possibly an EGR type valve. I can't remember if the 4.9l uses an EGR valve though, I tried on napas website but didn't find one. I doubt your alternator is bad, you would have a dead battery every few days even if it was partially charging and generally you will notice other electrical problems before your motors electronics start to get affected.