Engine light and runs bad!

[power-stroker]

My 2000 P/S has a new problem. I was on the way to a friends place tonight and a few miles before I got there the engine light came on and it acted like it was running on 4 cylinders. I pulled over and shut it off. I then restarted it and it started and ran fine. (No light) A half mile down the road it did the same thing. Mine truck is a stick, when it acted up, I turned the key off while still rolling and turned it back on and again it cleared it's self. This continued to happen until I got to his place, probably 10 times in 5-6 miles. After the truck cooled off, I left, and the same thing happened a couple of times until I left his city, it was fine the rest of the way home. I teased him and told him that it just didn't like the city, it likes the country, but of coarse I'm sure it's something else.
I noticed that it appeared to act up when I was de-accelerating, it didn't appear to happen while powering up to speed. I stopped and rented a code reader and it came back with "no errors".
About 1000 miles ago I replaced the CPS unit that you guys suggested when it had a "stumbull" and it seemed to take care of that problem. The truck was used very little this past winter. It pulled our sled up north to go snowmobiling 3 times.
You guys are great, I sure hope you can lead me down the right road again. As always, thanks for your help.

[howardtm]

Speaking from a sim. experience with my 03 E550. It turned out to be a lot of crude in the fuel tank clogging up the intake screen. Was a VERY expensive lesson...NEVER! EVER!! believe what a dealers shop tells ya...especially if it happens to be Allegheny Ford in Pittsburgh! Just a thought...might be your problem.

[Dagnuten]

sounds like a harness issue to me, check the 2 plugs on the engine harness, if one is loose or going bad it'll kill from one to all four cylnders per side.

just a thought...

[lilredpowerstroke]

Make sure you pull the valve covers off and check the wiring harness.

[djsdiesel]

Check under the valve covers, if there is one that has come loose, ford sells a little metal clip that you install under the latch to keep it from doing it again. If one has come undone I would go ahead and put the clips in both sides.

[ridgerunner98570]

drain the fuel water seperator before doing anything else. Then follow the suggestions of the other tech's.