I have a 06 Taurus SE, 3.0L 12v, Engine Code U. 40K miles. Bought at 27K miles. A few days ago, I drove 3 miles to a store, turned off the engine and this happened.

It will start, but the engine vibrates and sputters like misfire. Engine light is one. Hit on the gas and the engine is not running faster or responding. The car would not go either. There is also dark smoke coming out of the tail pipe.

This car has a history of hard cold start. I had to try 2-4 times to start the engine in the morning. Meanwhile, I had to hit on the gas pedal hard while cranking the engine. I have got 9 codes:

• P0190: Fuel Rail Pressure Sensor Circuit Malfunction, or Fuel Rail Pressure Sensor "A" Circuit

• P0191: Fuel Rail Pressure Circuit Range/Performance, or Fuel Rail Pressure Sensor "A" Circuit Range/Performance

• P2196: O2 Sensor Signal Biased/Stuck Rich Bank 1 Sensor 1

• P2198: O2 Sensor Signal Biased/Stuck Rich Bank 2 Sensor 1

• P0190(pd): Fuel Rail Pressure Sensor Circuit Malfunction

• P0191(pd): Fuel Rail Pressure Circuit Range/Performance

• P0300(pd): Random/Multiple Cylinder Misfire Detected

• P2196(pd): Undefined code

• P2198(pd): Undefined code

Any idea what could cause the problem? How to find out which part to replace? Thanks a lot

 

Based on the codes, I would start with the fuel rail pressure sensor. If it's bad, you will get excessive amounts of fuel causing hard starts, rich O2 sensor readings and black smoke out the tailpipe from the unburned fuel. Replace the fuel pressure sensor/regulator, clear the codes and start the engine to see if all stays clear.