Not sure what's wrong...
 

My car has been jerking pretty bad for a few months now whenever I accelerate. There isn't a check engine light, and I thought it was just bad gas at first, but it's still doing it. I'm not sure how to explain it, but it's getting really annoying, and does it even worse if going up a hill.

Sometimes it will run smooth, then later on that day it will start jerking again. It's a 3.8 with 78,000 miles on it, automatic. I don't think it's the spark plugs, since I had new ones put on it back in february. Maybe the fuel pump?

I'm not a car expert or anything, but maybe one of you guys can help me figure out whats wrong? Let me know if you need more info.

yeah sounds like the fuel pump, exactly what mine was doing when it went bad last month.

Under hard acceleration sounds like it may be that.

Can I order a new one from Ford, or is there anothe site you'd recommend? Do you guys know how hard it might be to replace it on my own?

any auto shop or parts store will have one, and no there not too difficult to install.

why not try the fuel filter first.

Good point, try that. I changed my fuel filter at that mileage, and mine was BAD, had black stuff running out of it.

Yea, I plan to in the next day are so. Just wanted a back up plan incase it didn't work. The car still runs fine other than the jerking... but it's getting real annoying, especially when friends ride with me, and are like 'wtf'?

plugs also cause this sort of thing.

I still don't know what the hell is wrong. I changed the fuel filter, but that didn't help, so I took it to the local car quest here, and they put a new fuel pump in... it drove fine for like 2 weeks... then one day I was going up a hill, the engine started making some weird knocking sound.. idk how to describe it... and the car wouldn't accelerate. I coasted into a parking lot.

Later that night I came back and got it, it barely made it home. Haven't taken it anywhere yet because of the snow. The car looks good... but when it comes to getting me place... it apparently hates me. I'll get it fixed eventually. :mad:

ouch for a shop to put in a fuel pump it aint cheap. i hate spending money on stuff and still having the same problems. hope u figure it out soon.

Well I got lucky, my Dad paid for the new fuel pump and the labor. What pisses me off is that the people at carquest hooked it up to a machine to see what the check engine light was on for... and the computer said it was the fuel pump. So I get a new fuel pump... but the problem still continues. I'm not an expert with cars at all... but hopefully it's something simple and I'll get it back soon.

I have a gt rear bumper cover, h&r ss springs, and m/m CC plates sitting in my room waiting to go on... and then this happens.

my brother had a chevy cavalier with the same problem. i don't remember what it was but we dropped the fuel tank and replaced the fuel pump about four times. there was some sensor or relay or something inline on the fuel system that kept killing the pump. we would put a new pump on and his car would run great for about a month or two then wouldn't start.

Well I finaly figured it out... I have a miss-fire in one of the cylinders. And the radiator wasn't getting fluid because of two leaks in the hose or whatever. Plus the heat went out, so now I can't drive on cold nights because the windows ice over.

Anyways, it's all getting fixed Tuesday.

(anyone know what I need to buy to get the heat working again?)