Ford E350 - 460 "hiccup"

This may sound hokey, but I'd run some Marvel Mystery Oil in the gas and oil. It's a heavy detergent and cleans out a lot of "issues" such as sticking valves, carbon build up, clogged injectors, etc. Read reviews on the stuff. It works very well for many oddball internal engine probs. For $3 bucks, probably worth a try, and if it doesn't work, it will still cleanup your engine.

theoldwizard1 wrote:
Does this happen when driving down the road ? It could be the direct drive clutch of 4th gear causing the problem.

You don't state the frequency of this problem, but here is something to try. Drive with the overdrive turned OFF and see it occurs. If not, you have found the culprit.

Don't condemn the transmission right away. It could be a bad electrical connector or a bad solenoid.

Yes. I drive with the OD off when driving up or down the Cajon Pass and it happens then also. Idle. Driving. It's strange. However, I think we're onto something with the post further up that I responded to.

Thank you for your response. I feel a little less blind on this matter.

theoldwizard1 wrote:
It could be a bad electrical connector or a bad solenoid.

We had a smaller Ford van about that vintage (1992 Aerostar). It had a Vehicle Speed Sensor (VSS) mounted on the top of the differential. One 10mm capscrew and an electrical connector.

VSS went bad on a trip. First thing we saw was the Rear Antilock Braking System (RABS) warning light flashing. Then the cruise control dropped out and the odometer stopped rolling. Speedometer was electronic and we lost that. AND, it came out of gear!

We drove home in "D" and not "OD" and the transmission worked fine. Just no Cruise, or RABS, or Speed/Odometer. New VSS cured all that. I think the Ford automatic overdrives of this vintage have "electronic overdrive" but the rest of the transmission is conventional hydraulic shifting.

The VSS is magnetic. Things just might work better if you pull it out, clean it, and reinstall. It's on an O-Ring, so it shouldn't leak if you clean the area before removing the VSS and make sure you don't lose the O-Ring. Another member here has solved several problems cleaning the VSS.

Does this happen when driving down the road ? It could be the direct drive clutch of 4th gear causing the problem.

You don't state the frequency of this problem, but here is something to try. Drive with the overdrive turned OFF and see it occurs. If not, you have found the culprit.

Don't condemn the transmission right away. It could be a bad electrical connector or a bad solenoid.

fourthclassC wrote:
Spent a great deal of time trying to resolve this exact same issue on my 94 460. Fuel filter, ign. coil, and many other parts were replaced.... The fault was completely resolved by changing the ignition control moduel. It is the unit that requires the specialty thin wall socket tool (not very expensive) This module is located on one of the inside of one of the fenders accessable from under the hood.

Excellent. Thank you.

Yes, it's a 1994. Sorry to omit that previously.

I'll run this by our mechanic. Thanks you again ...

I have a 1992 chassis with a similar issue. I can be driving along for 500 miles and all of a sudden it acts like it dropped into neutral. The engine revs as if not in gear, no increase in speed. It may do it three or four quick times in a row than not do it again for another 500 or 1000 miles. Recently I noticed that it seems to do it when the cruise control is on for a long time and it has done it several times shortly after the cruise control has been switched off. Newer cruise control module just installed and same problem. 79,000 miles on a 460 with recent tuneup. Mechanic has no answer.

Spent a great deal of time trying to resolve this exact same issue on my 94 460. Fuel filter, ign. coil, and many other parts were replaced.... The fault was completely resolved by changing the ignition control moduel. It is the unit that requires the specialty thin wall socket tool (not very expensive) This module is located on one of the inside of one of the fenders accessable from under the hood.

By the appearance of the coach and OP saying "460" it'll be 1992-1996, but I'm pretty sure every 460 over those years is not the same.

If it's a 1996 Chassis Year, it should have OBD2 diagnostics with a test port under the dashboard. It may not offer all the information that newer OBD2 vehicles do, ***AND*** (emphasis added, this is important!) not all "code readers" will capture it.

If it's 1992-1995, then it's OBD1, and there's a trapezoidal-shaped connector with only a few pins actually connected, under the hood. Probably high on the driver side, say between brake booster and fender liner. The OBD1 "readers" only count signal pulses, so they can be read with a test light or a meter. Since that's all the OBD1 puts out, you count the flashes, needle movements, whatever, and look at a chart that provides the description.

BAT Auto is a good auto and light truck site. Try posting there, be sure to scan for codes, and see if those guys can help. Hiccups are about the worst to find. I doubt there'll be a code, but you owe it to anybody who's trying to help, to say you checked and what you found.

You can gOOgle "ford obd1 codes" and get a lot of ways to read and interpret them.

What year is it? Could be mass airflow sensor dirty, or throttle position sensor, O2 sensors, etc. When was the last full tune-up?

There are so many sensors that could cause a problem. Having an intermittent one will be extremely hard to find. Sorry to say.