Removing Throttle Position Sensor
 

I have a 2004 Taurus SES w/ 24V Duratec DOHC. I have all the symptoms of a flakey TPS. Late shifts...hesitation sometimes, lazy throttle, over sensitive throttle..more throttle than needed to get a shift up a hill... unnecessary shifts at wrong speeds..rpms jumping up and down on the tach holding steady throttle on flat road at certain speeds...and more.

I cannot get the two phillips head screws (who in their right mind would use phillips heads in a place like this...allen heads would have been better) out to remove the TPS. I've tried an offset phillips...a posidrive phillips...tried biting it with a vise grip and finally hitting it with a chisel to get an edge started so I can break the screw loose. No luck with any of it and this is the top screw that you can get at...never mind the bottom one that's tucked in so tight with the brake fluid reservoir you can't even get a semblance of a screwdriver in there.

They must have lock tighted them in. I'd zip them off with a dremmel, but I don't know what size they are to replace them.

I'd like to know:

1) Is there any hope of getting these screws out?
2) What size and length are these screws so I can buy a couple of allen heads to replace them with when I finally do have to cut the heads off with a dremmel?

Thanks.

RE: Removing Throttle Position Sensor
 

Bump....come on. Somebody out there must have a manual that lists the size of these freekin screws!?

RE: Removing Throttle Position Sensor
 

In the first place, if the TPS is a problem you would have a CEL and code.

Secondly, yes the screws are loctited, real bitch to get out. The phillips head, as you found out, don't hold up well. I have had to cut some sensors off and then remove the screws with visegrips. Don't know the specific size, but probably metric.

RE: Removing Throttle Position Sensor
 

Thanks for your response. I don't know why they think they have to locktite the screws. If there's that much vibration at the TPS location, the TPS potentiometer windings would give up.

I've replaced TPS's that were bad before that didn't once throw a code or a CEL. Those codes are as useless as yesterday's news. I once had a code telling everyone the torque converter solenoid was hanging up. My local Ford dealer replaced 6 rebuilt Ford Certified tough transmissions before they realized the oil cooler was plugged and the trans fluid was cooking the transmissions. So much for codes and CEL's. Yeah...right...tourque solenoid LOL!

use a socket set
 

I used a phillips bit in a socket and it worked, a bit tight but worked.