1988 stalls when turning left

[Thunderbird88]

Just strayed happening, my 1988 Thunder 5.0 LX just started to stall out when I take a left turn. I’m able to put it into neutral and start it back up and it runs, or if I’m lucky and can stop(not in the roadway) I can put it in park and start it right up again. Has not done it when turning right. Any help?

 

[biddle]

You can search for general solutions to different makes/models to troubleshoot.

When your car stalls by turning left or right, usually a loose or a glazed belt is suspected. reason being is that the pump is being put under a load by the power steering piston. making belt slip because it needs more torque to spin pulley. also draws more current, so check idle speed and spark plugs.

Also could be a loose ground, power steering pump and other issues.

 

[74 Harley]

Interesting issue. I have not worked on on of those for many years now, so refresh my memory. Does it have a serpentine belt or v belts? Will it stall while turning left at a complete stop? (Like in your driveway). Are there any stuff spots while turning left,or is the wheel smooth until it dies?
My initial thought is a problem in your rack and pinion, but you really need to dig deep to isolate the issue.

 

[cruiser88]

Just strayed happening, my 1988 Thunder 5.0 LX just started to stall out when I take a left turn. I’m able to put it into neutral and start it back up and it runs, or if I’m lucky and can stop(not in the roadway) I can put it in park and start it right up again. Has not done it when turning right. Any help?

I fixed this exact problem on my 88 tbird. Actually, my car also stalled when I put pressure on the top of the steering wheel. It was the ignition switch "case" that was the problem. Not the key mechanism, the actual switch itself. I removed all the plastic trim behind the steering wheel, ran the motor, and wiggled the wiring harness plug around. That would kill the motor. The plug connector looked solid, but the two halves of the switch seemed to be less than solidly connected together. I removed the switch, and carefully tightened up the crimp where the metal half of the switch is connected to the plastic half. Problem solved.