Auto Parts: 2000 Mazda Truck Stalls, crankshaft position sensor, mazda truck

Question
QUESTION: I have a 2000 Mazda B2500 truck standard. Twice in last 3 weeks it simply stalled when driving. First time I weas able to start it immediately and it was ok for 2 weeks. Friday it stalled again and I couldn't re-start for more than 30 min. Each attempt to re-start was met with a failure. The truck shook violently and the shifter shook so much I thought it was going to break off the stem. Then as I said it simply started and ran fine for the rest of the day. I FEAR using it and stalling in traffic. I changed the fuel filter after the first time it stalled, but that obviously did not work. PLEASE HELP....

ANSWER:      It's almost certainly an ignition problem.  My guess would be either the coil or the crankshaft position sensor.  Check all of the connections to these two, in case it's a faulty connector.  You'll have to get a mechanic to check functioning of the ignition system, the tools alone could cost a couple of thousand dollars.  All of that shaking is coming from misfiring cylinders.  Since there are two coils, one for 1&3 and one for 4&2, a misfiring coil would knock out two cylinders and cause quite a shake.  If you just want to try something yourself, start with a coil pack.  Drive it for a while.  If it acts up again, switch them.  If it quits acting up, then you're good to go (but it wouldn't be a bad idea to replace both of them, as they're the same age).

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QUESTION: Mike:
I will try the coil packs....I will buy 2 ( my Mazda 4 cyl has 8 plugs)...but I failed to tell you intially that after both stalls I had the truck checked for codes and there were none. Can the coil pack fail and not throw a code or the crankshaft position sensor for that matter? Also truck only has 60k miles is it common for coil pack to fail? Should I also consider spark plug change with wires too ?  THANK YOU...I NOW HAVE A POTENTIAL DIAGNOSIS FROM WHICH TO BEGIN.....THANK YOU !

Answer
    Bad coil packs would not set any codes.  60K miles is not excessive for a coil failure, although we'd all like to think that they would last longer.  Changing the wires and plugs is a good idea, especially if they have never been changed before.  Coils will put out as much voltage as is needed to bridge the gap on the plug.  If there is excessive resistance to the current coming from the coil (bad plugs or wires) the coil will put out enough voltage to damage itself.  If the crankshaft position sensor fails it will set a code, and it will affect all 8 plugs, not just four.