Ford fiesta 1.6l diesel ecoboost issues - engine turning off when clutch is pressed/revs too low

I am at a loss with my car.

Had this fiesta since June 2023. Full service history since 2011, (minus a year or two during COVID). Had around 90k on the clock, now sitting at 119k.

Noticed around August 2023, when the clutch is pressed at lower gears, the car will lose power and turn off. Generally happens when I’m slowing down at roundabouts, crossroads etc, countless times I’ve been stuck on the road and having to be pushed to a safer location by random drivers until I can get it started again. Usually struggles to turn on for a good 5 mins, then runs again fine for a while.

The problem is so temperamental, could happen 3/4 times in one journey, then be fine for a few days or a week. Just for the record, I’m not stalling the car. I ride the clutch and change gear appropriately. It literally can’t handle going down to 1st/2nd gear. I’ve lately noticed it does this weird ‘pulling’ sensation like it is losing power even when driving at high speeds in 5th gear (excuse my lack of technical language)

Had the fuel filter cleaned at around June this year, had been fine up until recently.

Been advised to use premium diesel which I’ve done religiously at the expense of my income in the hopes it would deter it from whatever shite it’s doing.

Planning to take it back to the garage today, but my mechanic is very thorough and couldn’t find the issue before.

Had anyone else had a similar problem? I really love this car (minus this bullshit) and would be gutted to have to sell it, especially if it’s a cheap(ISH)/easy fix.

Any help would be appreciated. Pulling my hair out looking like a divvy female driver who doesn’t know how to keep the engine running and constantly worrying someone will smash into the back of me.

It could be a fuel delivery issue if you’re still experiencing power loss in higher gears and at higher speeds. Alternatively, it might be related to the clutch, such as the clutch disc.

I have a 1.6L diesel 2016 Transit Connect van (essentially a Focus). It started randomly shutting off while driving, hesitating as if it was losing power or fuel. This happened at both high and low speeds.

You could drive it for a week without issues, then it would suddenly start acting up. Sometimes it would stall once, but when you restarted it, it would drive normally again.

It turned out to be a faulty Fuel Rail Pressure Sensor. There were no engine codes or warning lights, and when the van was running fine, diagnostic tools showed no problems. It wasn’t until the sensor completely failed and no fuel reached the engine that diagnostics revealed the issue.

In the end, I had to buy a new van for £20k, and it turned out it was just a faulty sensor!

That’s exactly what mine is doing right now. It’s particularly bad at low speeds, and there’s no way to predict when it will act up, except for this strange jumpiness. Mine isn’t showing any engine codes or warning lights either. I’ll mention this to my mechanic and see if it could be a faulty sensor. Thanks! :slight_smile:

If you got blood on the sensor that might explain the issues. 9/10 mechanics recommend not adding blood to your engine.

1/10 mechanics say ‘get out of here you weirdo or I’m calling the police’.