Makes sense to me. I would use a good silicone hose as they can withstand heat better. Most heater hoses are made from Synthetic EPDM rubber that is only good for temps up to +257° while GATES makes a Silicone rubber hose (blue in color) that is good for up to +350° and more flexible.

 

There seems to be no end to the ongoing saga of Freestar electrical problems, and never a definitive answer to any of them. The latest quirk is engine starts to run rough, the check engine light comes on, then the A/C quits and then blows hot air like the heater came on. We have become addicted to the computer codes which in the case of the Freestar are next to worthless. I started with the Trac Light and that was the only thing that had an easy fix. The most common thread on the forum seems to be engine intermittent miss with or without the Check engine light. I have been plagued with this for over two years and every single recommended fix seems to work, but then it is only temporary and the problem is still there. I can accomplish the same thing by disconnecting the negative battery cable and letting it sit for a while, then connecting it again. The codes are cleared and the check engine light goes off and it runs beautifully for a few days and then back to square one. I will go one more round with the cam synchronizer and if that doesn't cure the problem I don't know where to go next. I feel like I am chasing myself in circles.

 

Boomerang53,

What are your chances of putting the codes you're getting on this forum? Codes most of the time only provide some direction to pursue, and just maybe we might be able to offer some assistance. If you want to wait until you replace the cam synchronizer to see if that corrects the problem , we'll wait !

 

Can't remember if I asked you this on another Freestar subject...

Have you cleaned and applied dielectrical grease to all of the numerous grounds located under the radiator cover, at the A/C dryer/receiver, under the dash/kick panel on the drivers side and so forth? Since the Freestar communicates over the ground system, I would make sure you have good contact surfaces.

I've had some weird Gremlins caused by bad/no ground(s). Here's just a few...Headlights on and off when they want, engine starting on its own when it felt like it (like at night setting in the garage), doors not opening/closing, thinking the key was in the ignition switch when it wasn't. All because of ground(s)...

Plus the codes would be nice to work with...

 

My thanks to Use Common Sense and hanky for their timely answers and suggestions related to the electrical problems of the Ford Freestar. My history with this set of problems goes back a couple of years and as I said in my last post there seems to be no definitive answer. I had copied the codes as they popped up but didn't keep them after I thought the problem of the moment had been solved. In the future I will record and save any that pop up. To date I have replaced the spark plugs, plug wires, coil, and cam position sensor, removed and sprayed the ECM connector with electronic cleaner, (Insides of plug and connector were bright and shiny as new with not even traces of moisture or corrosion). I removed all of the ground connections one at a time and sanded the paint off beneath them and polished the washers before reconnecting each one. I Just replaced the Cam position sensor yesterday and I would recommend that anyone experiencing these problems start here as this is the cheapest part to replace, and a ten minute job for even the least experienced among us. As of last night when I parked it everything was operating as normal but I have been lulled into this short lived peace of mind before. The possibilities remaining might be cam position synchronizer or ECM. I'll keep you posted on new developments. I have always loved my Freestar but right now there is a serious strain on our relationship.

 

This post is not intended for you to go changing any parts that you were not planning to change. It might be considered as just a little FYI.
This is what I thought of since the problem is so intermittent and it has been haunting you for around 2 years. I believe the computer(PCM) is going into limp mode and disabling different functions. If one of the codes you have been receiving was P0340 cam sensor , there may be nothing wrong with the sensor, but an alternator problem could be driving the PCM nuts with voltage spikes . One way to prove this is to unplug the alt plug(s) and drive the vehicle, but you can't drive it too long that way because battery power would drop and the vehicle quits and that's about as bad as the problem presently driving you up the wall. Unfortunately there is no way to confirm this suspicion without a recording tool to observe what we call PIDs and then we might be able to see if something is going on.
Has the alt been changed since you purchased the vehicle? If not , OK, but if the problem appeared a while after it was replaced the possibility does exist that the alt or the connections there could be causing the problem.