1989 T Bird starting suggestions....

MrSnow

Registered User
I've got a 1989 Ford T Bird SC that used to idle at 3k rpm back in 2002.... I replaced the air idle sensor, then added a new battery. The car lights come on and she turns over but will not fire... With carb cars I would just put some gas down the carb and they start fine..... Ok so I got some starter fluid and took off the air intake snorkle and shot it in there... It turns over still but didn't start.... Its got a Up arrow and the check engine light on when I have the key over.... So what do either of those mean? What other trouble shooting steps should I take?
 
I've got a 1989 Ford T Bird SC that used to idle at 3k rpm back in 2002.... I replaced the air idle sensor, then added a new battery. The car lights come on and she turns over but will not fire... With carb cars I would just put some gas down the carb and they start fine..... Ok so I got some starter fluid and took off the air intake snorkle and shot it in there... It turns over still but didn't start.... Its got a Up arrow and the check engine light on when I have the key over.... So what do either of those mean? What other trouble shooting steps should I take?

If you have a shift up light on while cranking the car that means your crank sensor is bad or you have a bad harmonic balancer that isn't triggering the sensor.

-Tim
 
If you have a shift up light on while cranking the car that means your crank sensor is bad or you have a bad harmonic balancer that isn't triggering the sensor.

-Tim

Do you guys have sticky's or pages on how to replace both of those on a SC? Which should I do first? How can I tell if ones broken or the other?
 
I priced out a new Crank Shaft Sensor and it was 133 bucks?! Anyone got a cheaper deals I should check with? I'm close to Napa and thats about it.
 
If you have a shift up light on while cranking the car that means your crank sensor is bad or you have a bad harmonic balancer that isn't triggering the sensor.

-Tim

Correction. It doesn't mean your crank sensor is bad, and you shouldn't just go and replace the crank sensor just because. What that means is that the Engine Computer is not receiving a proper CID signal. The CID signal is generated by the Crank Sensor. The CID signal could be bad because of any or only one of the following:

Problem with the wire harness to the crank sensor
* problem with the crank sensor
Problem with the harmonic balancer
* problem with the harmonic balancer striking the crank sensor

of those 4 possibilities, only 2 of them call for replacement of the crank sensor itself. So I suggest a bit more diagnostic work, i.e. inspect the harmonic balancer.
 
Correction. It doesn't mean your crank sensor is bad, and you shouldn't just go and replace the crank sensor just because. What that means is that the Engine Computer is not receiving a proper CID signal. The CID signal is generated by the Crank Sensor. The CID signal could be bad because of any or only one of the following:

Problem with the wire harness to the crank sensor
* problem with the crank sensor
Problem with the harmonic balancer
* problem with the harmonic balancer striking the crank sensor

of those 4 possibilities, only 2 of them call for replacement of the crank sensor itself. So I suggest a bit more diagnostic work, i.e. inspect the harmonic balancer.

I looked over the Harmonic Balancer and it seems to be in good shape. So that means it the crank sensor moslikely? The nearest autozone is like 100 miles away... I'll see what I can do about it....
 
I looked over the Harmonic Balancer and it seems to be in good shape. So that means it the crank sensor moslikely? The nearest autozone is like 100 miles away... I'll see what I can do about it....

To check the balancer you should:
Have the motor cranking while watching it for any odd motion.
Check the bolt in the end of the crankshaft to make sure it is intact.

If no odd motion, and the bolt in the crankshaft is intact. Then the balancer is o.k.

Then you are at wiring problem or bad crank sensor. If you replace the crank sensor, there is a specific air gap that needs to be maintained to prevent the sensor from being hit by the vaned ring.
 
For that Sensor they have it 100 miles away for 35 bucks! Its 133 at a ford dealership and 135 at NAPA..... ~~~?! Why is this part so cheap from Autozone? Is it a good idea to get one from them? I've heard on other forums that the cheap ones don't last.... Should I get it?
 
Is the upshift light ACTUALLY coming on while its cranking? You only said that its on when the key is turned to the ON position. You have to look for it while the car is cranking specifically. Just thought i would throw that out there, would hate to see you spend $30, or $130, or whatever for no reason when it could be something else.
 
Is the upshift light ACTUALLY coming on while its cranking? You only said that its on when the key is turned to the ON position. You have to look for it while the car is cranking specifically. Just thought i would throw that out there, would hate to see you spend $30, or $130, or whatever for no reason when it could be something else.

Yeah the light is on while the engine is cranking. I think the autozone one is built by there manufacturing co.... Not a motorcraft/standard part. Does it matter that much?
 
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