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Ford ThunderBirdFord thought they'd take their own stab at the nostalgia business. There are quite a few last-century icons that wear the blue oval. For a revival subject, why not use a car famous enough to have been the subject of Beach Boys songs, starred in George Lucas movies, and has been gone long enough to be missed? Why not indeed. In 2002, the Thunderbird was reborn.
I have a 97 ThunderBird that is running fine but I can't get the check engine lite to go off. Does anyone have any suggestions short of taking it in for Ford to tell me what it is. Everything looks fine under the hood. Thanks
i found advance auto will check codes for free and tell what part is needed. my sons 97 bird showed needed mass air flow sensor , but they told me to first to take it out and clean small wire size human hair ,w/ rubbing alcahol and Q-tip ,check engine light went out and runs fine . my 95 bird however it didn't work and i replaced mass air sensor.
i found advance auto will check codes for free and tell what part is needed. my sons 97 bird showed needed mass air flow sensor , but they told me to first to take it out and clean small wire size human hair ,w/ rubbing alcahol and Q-tip ,check engine light went out and runs fine . my 95 bird however it didn't work and i replaced mass air sensor.
well, those Q - tips have ruined as many MAFs as they have saved .... use spray solvent , and a fine tipped atrists brush , c a r e f u l l y.... allways use genuine Ford MAFs and O2 sensors , calibrated for your vehicle Not parts store one size fits all parts store stuff. The check engine light is usually trying to tell you something, It's important to check it out. You can clear the light/ code by disconnecting the battery for 15 mimutes, and start over.....
dont disconnect the battery for that 15mins it is pointless go into the fuse box and remove the #15 fuse then try to start your car for a few seconds it will not turn over because that fuse turned off the eec then put the fuse back in and your good to go removing the battery will reset the clock and radio presets
most of the shit that hooks to the computer that sets off the check engine light isn't visable under the hood, for example oxygen sensors, maf, knock sensors etc etc. go to a local parts store, have them print out what codes you have, dont listen to them yet and just get the codes, they should do it for free. bring them home and post up. we'll go from there. dont go a dealership, they'll charge you around 100 bucks to pull the codes, it takes even the most retarded clerk at a auto parts store a few minutes to pull the codes and print them out.
good luck and let me/us know what it comes up with. my guess is egr if the car is running fine.
Yeah my guess is either the maf is throwing the banks off saying they are running lean, or the egr as stated, i cleaned the maf up in both of my 95 4.6's and it kept the light off w/o replacing anything, i'd go for the stuff you can do for just a couple of bucks before i'd jump into anything big, i bought a 95 t-bird the person couldnt figure out why the codes kept coming back, picked it up for 300 bucks doesnt look perfect but it works as a dd' and keeps miles off the 95 i bought when it was brand new, hasnt touched the 30k mark yet. but either way, i would try to clean the maf and if it comes back again chances are you'll get p1402 i believe the code is which is egr no flow, or 7 which is restricion in egr
Yeah my guess is either the maf is throwing the banks off saying they are running lean, or the egr as stated, i cleaned the maf up in both of my 95 4.6's and it kept the light off w/o replacing anything, i'd go for the stuff you can do for just a couple of bucks before i'd jump into anything big, i bought a 95 t-bird the person couldnt figure out why the codes kept coming back, picked it up for 300 bucks doesnt look perfect but it works as a dd' and keeps miles off the 95 i bought when it was brand new, hasnt touched the 30k mark yet. but either way, i would try to clean the maf and if it comes back again chances are you'll get p1402 i believe the code is which is egr no flow, or 7 which is restricion in egr
along with what he just wrote, those p1402 and p 1407 codes are "dealer codes" they wont be removed by just using a hand held device, you'll have to fix the issue or deal witht he light. a egr going bad wont really hurt much in the short term, but it is an emissions issue which can lead to other ugly stuff down the road but that usually takes quite a bit of time. but chances are with it being an older vehicle its either the egr or the maf. if u decide to clean the maf, make sure it is completely dried before throwing it back on. Good luck
Travis
My codes pinpointed a # 5 spark plug wire ,,I replaced the set and that was 30,000 mi.ago& still no light .Wires are around 50.00 at autozone and 120.00 at a dealer,its a no brainer
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Check Engine lite stays on 
Linear Mode
