Questions and Answers

Jeep Wagoneer Loses Power Q. This vehicle occasionally loses power and starts backfiring if you give it additional accelerator pressure. It appears to idle okay during this power loss. The power loss is evident when I accelerate the engine either in or out of gear. It stays in this mode for several minutes and then fully recovers to normal operation.

• 1988 Jeep Grand Wagoneer
• 360 V-8
• Automatic transmission
• 105,000 miles
• Carburetor
• P/S, A/C, Cruise Control

It has done this at least 10 times. What can cause this problem? I am thinking that it is something that affects the timing since it backfires.

Thanks for your help,
Roger

A. Checking the ignition timing is a good place to start, so do that first. It could also be a partially clogged fuel filter. Another easy thing to do is to just replace it.

If it still does it, then we will need to look at the fuel pump and/or carburetor for a problem.