Been looking at a 94 5.0 gt (am in UK so not too many locally, and only 1 for sale in 100 miles) problem is, when i road tested it yesterday i was extremely disappointed with the performance    the car is a japanese import fresh in and its got an auto transmission but it felt really slow. At present i am driving a 95 merc sl320, 0 to 60 8 seconds, and mine would have left it at the lights without a problem. the 'check engine' warning light was on, and being Master Technician in UK know that this can make a huge difference, does anyone know if the 94 has a limp home mode that reduces power output, does the auto drain that much extra power? Am in turmoil, love thecar to bits but am worried that if this car is running normal it will be too slow and will be making ,istake swapping from the merc. Any UK members reading this in the Middlesbrough area that can show me what these things can do please get in contact. Please pleasse please help on this, Thanks for taking the time to read and reply  

I'd see if the owner will let you find out what the trouble code is first before buying. If he's not willing to do that, I'd pass on the car, chances are there's a problem lurking around you don't want to deal with.

If they guy's willing to let you diagnose the problem, if it's a minor fix and causing the car to be down on poer, you should be good to go. If there's a bad O2 sensor (common for this car) or somethign up with the ignition module, the car will either run too rich or the timing will be off, and it won't make the power it's supposed to.  

Thanks for advice, will try to contact tomorrow. I know there are all sorts of threads regarding 0 to 60 times but not sually referring to auts, are they that much slower? appreciate any input i can get  

Hi Gilla,

The manual GTs ran around 6.5-6.7 in 0-60 tests. The AODE in the 1994 would slow down this car by about .7-.8 secs as the electronics generally had a delay built into the fuel curves to allow the trans pump time to build necessay pressure to handle the torque. That is, the trans pump pressure lags the engine torque rise and the electronics slowed things a bit to allow the hydraulics to cope.

If the car seems that slow, you are definitely in "limp home" mode. This car uses 3 digit diagnostic codes, which you can access without special tools. Just jumper the proper leads in the diagostic terminal, run the key on, engine off, diagnostics and count the flashes on the check engine light. Pre OBDII is a plus here.


I suspect that coming from Japan, this car probably has not been run all that hard, as I believe their speed limits are low. It may be as simple as fresh plugs and wires and an "Italian tuneup".

I sympathize with your need for info on an import; I picked up a surplus Ford Puma Diesel powertrain a few months ago and I'm still looking for the right PCM. If you find a 2000 Mondeo 115 Hp TDDI PCM, pls let me know! A 50 mpg driver will let me waste more money on toys.

Hope this helps.
Gary