My '86 244 just started doing this sort of soft stutter when accellerating from a complete stop. It's fine at speed, no loss of power or unevenness, and no backfiring.It only does it under load, otherwise it's as smooth as can be. It just feels as if you were pulsing the gas pedal as you take off from a stop.
Any hints are welcome.

Just a couple of other things that could cause problems like yours...

Something else to check is to make sure you have sufficient voltage in your battery and that your alternator is charging properly. I've had issues with slipping alternator belts which caused the alternator to not keep the battery sufficiently charged. As the voltage decreased, I was getting a stuttering (from ignition misfire) similar to what you describe while at cruise and under load. Fixed the slipping belt issue and the stuttering went away.

Just last night, my wife told me that the car was occasionally "hiccupping" at cruise speed. Since I hadn't changed the spark plugs lately (can't remember when they were last changed- shame on me!), I put in a fresh set of NGK's and the problem went away. The old plugs have been in there at least 5 years, and had some white fluffy deposits on them. The gap had opened up from erosion to nearly .050", gap is supposed to be set at .028"-.031".



billy242
1980 242DL with lots of GT and IPD stuff

Here is the checklist of stuff that caused that sort of issue in my 86:

Pull the vacuum line off the Fuel Pressure Regulator, you smell gas, change it out. (that was my biggie)

Check the wires and plugs replace as needed.

In Tank pick up pump may be going out, easy to change and not expensive.

Look for vacuum leaks and for nothing loose. Be sure to check the underside of the large air intake hose in the corrigated section. The oil and gunk are actually normal.

Clean the throttle body and replace the gaskets when you reinstall it.

Bet one of those will solve your studder leaving the light.

Does you idle have a little hitch in it or is it smooth? Smooth would make me take the vacuum lines off the list.

Good Luck and Regards,

Paul

Idle is smooth.
The fuel pressure regulator sounds like a likely culprit, as I caught a mysterious whiff of gas while driving the other day - bad enough that I pulled over to check for leaks.