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So I hit a pitchfork....

crazymayhem

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Yep.. you read that right.. couple of weeks ago I hit a broken off pitchfork head lying in the road. It must of been lying in the road with the pitchfork tines curved up and forwards, so the splitter pushed up the broken off shaft and that was jammed into the rear drivers quadrant, im guessing somewhere in front of the rear axle, general area of the rear passenger seat on the drivers side. All this happened at around 50 mph and a pretty decent bang and shudder...

Long story short - stopped the car amid a massive amount of metallic scraping coming from underneath the car. Saw the pitchfork, car started no issue, drove maybe 1/2 mile to a tire store where they jacked up one side and pulled it out. Nothing leaked, no weird noises, car started again - seemed fine. Drove another 1/2 or so to the garden center I was actually going to, and went in. Came back out maybe 20 minutes later, and the car barely started. Turned over a coupe of times, gauge cluster went dark a few times, cam to life, fuel gauge and miles to empty went to 0, then climbed back up to what it was. Checked the ground, no fluids.

Drove off to the dealer, they had the car up on the lift, looked around, saw nothing. Since then, no issues. Maybe 4 weeks or so. As of 2 days ago, very similar reaction. Slight hesitation, that has been getting more in the 3 starts or so since then. I came back home earlier, parked the car on flat ground to check the oil level, which is fine. Put the dipstick back in closed, the hood, turned on the car, and bam, couple of turnovers, darkened cluster, dimming notice in the cluster panel, fuel gauge and miles to empty go to 0, then go back up to what they were.

Searching the forum I only found one thing of interest - Fuel gauge problems. That issue seems to have been the fuel sender. Looking at parts.ford.com its definitely the area where It hit.

Ill be heading off to the dealer tomorrow, but in the meantime any thoughts?

- Could pulling the dipstick trigger something like that? Vacuum or something?
- I might be mistaken, but after I parked at the garden center after the incident, I think the gas lid was popped open. Pressure, Vacuum, something like that?
- Maybe it nicked the fuel sender power line, or maybe the fuel sender itself? Maybe bent and/or punctured something?

Thanks!
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Interceptor

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Oh well I'm not much help.
But I would do a complete battery test.
 

svassh

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Possibly the electrical ground to the engine or battery got nicked or loosened. Not sure where they are grounded to the frame. But would exhibit similar behavior.
 

68Stang

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Sorry for your misfortune. I'd venture to say this is the first time anyone has ever hit a pitchfork in a gt350...but it is 2020 you know. I have no knowledge to help, but no way to not read a thread with this title!
 

StangTime

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That really sucks. Get it up on a hoist or bare minimum jack stands, so you can get under it and inspect every inch. Go slow, from the front belly pan all the way back.
 

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traktrbeam

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Gotta love the stuff you see on Florida roads...like almost crashing to avoid a 6ft step ladder in the fast lane on the freeway at 80 mph. Good luck with your issues.
 
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crazymayhem

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Lol, unfortunately my camera phone has a cracked lens, so pics of that woudl of been crap anyways. Not that I was thinking of pic at that time - I was too busy pissed off about a frickin pitchfork on the damn road.....
 

honeybadger

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There's a vacuum line that runs down the length of the car on teh drivers side to the fuel tank/charcoal canister. Wonder if you pinched that?

I didn't take any pics of mine during my EVAP delete, but follow the black tube from this thin behind the diff. Those long black tubes that I cut in half are the vacuum tubes running from the engine.

1607704196597.png
 

JZTRK

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a wile ago I read somebody had similar issues and it turned out to be a lose starter wire
 

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Cobra Jet

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I don’t know if your State has it, but some in States if you hit debris on their roadways (and have proof of it) and had out of pocket expenses, the State will reimburse for those expenses. Check your Home State’s Department of Transportation website - many DOTs are responsible for safe and debris free roads and have contact info for lodging a claim or complaint.

If you had no issues before the pitchfork incident, then your sporadic problems are definitely related to that incident. Check what others have said above, but also check for any damaged, loose or disconnected wiring harnesses under the vehicle.
 

526 HRSE

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Apparently, if you hit anything lying in the road, even if it fell off the back of a truck and is now stationary, it's your fault per your insurance company.
 

Tank

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