1988 Ford F150
351W 5.8L V8
Engine is out of a 1995 - Exact same engine as sro k just different year. Didn't change much.
Every piece of evidence I've found combined is pointing towards a bad PCM. The truck wouldn't idle worth a **** and stalled out many times for no reason. The truck will only run with the SPOUT connector removed, taking the PCM out of the equation as far as advancing the timing. For a while it would run fine with just the SPOUT connector disconnected, but after a while it started stalling out again the same as it was. I tried a few things, but the only thing that kept the engine idling without stalling was disconnecting the MAP sensor too. It's like the computer is slowly losing control and can't read the information sent to it. I believe the timing is off a little bit due to the outer ring on harmonic balancer being spun, but it's only about 5 degrees out. Which isn't enough to kill the truck like that, it would at least idle.
New parts include: MAP Sensor, Distributor, and ICM.
Is there an easy direct way of checking if the PCM is bad for sure? Without doing a complicated run around of tests. I heard you could open the metal casing of the PCM and see if it was burnt, cracked, or had blown capacitors. Is this true?
Read more: How to check if my PCM is bad?
