Still having problems, car is nosing over, won't idle, fan is on all the time...LONG!

[Killercanary]

I made a thread about two weeks ago about a problem I suddenly developed. The car has run great for 700 miles and then it developed a nosing over issue (it feels and runs like the spark just quits under load and the car noses over as if it were a carb'd car that flooded out while still cold). It ran great one day and the next I had this issue. All I did was to go into my EEC Tuner and lower the fan temps and lower the global spark added a degree due to high temps we've been having here. The only thing I did differently this time from all others was to tune from the driver's seat versus the passenger seat. I fell I may have pulled on the serial cable a little since it was stretched to make it that far. I went for a ride the next day and it started this nosing over problem. I then replaced all the spark plugs and gave the car a once over to make sure none of the plug wires had come off, were loose, were burnt, etc. the dizzy is still tight and in the same spot it has been since I started the car this year, the TFI is plugged in, the MAF is plugged in, I put the eec settings back like they were before I messed with them, etc. I took the car for a ride and it still had the same problem.

I then pulled the codes, cleared them and then disconnected the battery. I also removed the computer from the car, took off the back plate and removed and reinstalled the serial cable into the eec tuner. The tuner itself was firmly seated into the computer, but I did not remove it. I put it all back together and went for a ride. I made it about 5 miles with no issues so I thought I had fixed the problem.

I went to take the car for a ride on Saturday and before I even made it out of my driveway it started acting funny and didn't want to idle. I kept giving it running via the throttle and attempted to pull out onto my street. I didn't make it but 15 feet and it shut off and didn't want to run. I did manage to get it started but it was all I could do to keep it running. It exhibited the same symptoms again. I made it into the garage and it shut off.

I went down last night to pull the codes and I am unable to. I connect my code scanner and then cycle the key forward. When I do the fan kicks on and doesn't shut off, and the scanner won't pull any codes, it acts like its not connected to anything.

Is my computer dead??? Or is my eec tuner shot? I'm going to attempt to totally remove the eec tuner today, check for codes again, and if that works I will attempt to drive the car with no eec tuner. I'm really thinking its an eec issue since all I changed was eec settings and I'm now having issues with the fan not shutting off with the key in the on position, and the code scanner can't seem to connect to the computer now.

Can a computer be checked by a garage to see if its bad or not? Does anyone else have any other ideas? Is eec tuner still in business?

 

[final5-0]

Hey Paul

IIRC your old combo used 24's and a meter caled for them

If you are still doing the same

Seems like you could do away with the interface for a valid test

While it would not have some of your subtle changes in place ........

You should be able to see what is what for a WOT application

Grady

 

[BlackVert]

frustrating, huh? i have had my car for 3 weeks and it still isn't right. i want so badly to get in and step on it, but i have to wait ...

are you using the stock computer? i don't know why, but i thought i remembered you were using an aem.

if the stock computer, you could take the add on thing off the j3 port and put stock injectors and maf on just to see if it idles then. that is what i did while breaking in the engine before i installed the 42#ers and LMAF. that would let you rule out (or not) the pcm.

fwiw, when my filter came off the maf, it didn't want to run, similar to what you are describing. so you might check the maf electronics ...

 

[Killercanary]

Grady- I am still running the 24lb injectors and a cal'd MAF. I had to tune the WOT settings to 7% richer to get the AF in check, although with where the FP is right now I was still in the low 12:1 range at WOT as I haven't had a chance to finish tuning it. I just pulled the EEC and EEC-tuner out of the car. I will re-install the EEC and see if I can pull any codes first of all, then take it for a ride if it will run, and then if everything seems OK I will re-install the eec tuner and try it one more time.

Chris-I am still running the stock T4MO. Next year I planned to swap to an AEM, but I was going to just "get by" this year without it and continue to use my eec tuner for the time being due to funds. I should be OK with the injectors and MAF I have now on the stock EEC, at least for trying to sort out this problem. I just hope it will idle enough for me to test drive it as that was the big issue and why I bought the eec tuner in the first place many moons ago.
I will totally remove the MAF and check everything just to be sure.

 

[Bosko5.0]

Sounds like what happened to me. maybe a ground issue with the pcm or ccrm

my car started ran for a minute or two then died, then everytime I tried to pull codes and I got pcm failure, and the fan would stay on. iam not real sure how I fixed it, I removed my radiator, ccrm, overflow tank and then put them back in then and after that my car ran.

 

[BlackVert]

lol, i just noticed the "fan running all the time" part. that usually indicates a bad calibration. with the tweecer, you can load any calibration onto the pcm. when you load a, for example A9L cal (for an 87-93) onto a CBAZA (94/95) computer, the fan turns on and stays on. that is the computer's way of saying "something is not right".

i'd disconnect the J3 port and make sure the stock pcm and calibration works, then i'd start over with a fresh tune on the eec tuner. if the fan comes on even with the J3 port disconnected, then i think your computer may have gotten hosed somehow. also try disconnecting the battery for like 30 minutes.

 

[Pokageek]

CCRM or PCM in my o. Get a puter out of the junk yard for cheap or borrow a friends and hook it up. Fans staying on a KEY INDICATOR to those 2 possibilities. When I had a short, nothing would come on. I had tightened down the manifold and CRUSHED an injector.

p.s. if you try another pcm and with the tuner, you know it ismostly likely the tuner that is having an issue SAVING settings....

 

[HISSIN50]

Paul, if this thing is Jekyl and Hyding on you, I'd wiggle test the PCM (and EEC tuner connection), along with the puter wiring harness.

I also kinda like the ground idea. The computers use heat-sink tech and a bad ground totally screws with the whole premise (one reason the puters use a dedicated, shielded ground). There are a handful of pins which utilize the puter ground, one of which is for pulling codes.

Regarding the fan, as I recall the default is to have the fan come on. It actually requires computer intervention to shut the fan off (that's why the solid-state EDF relay control exists).
Random thoughts to try and find commonalities.
Good luck Paul.

 

[Killercanary]

UPDATE: I fought with this for a few weeks and I finally gave up. I'd think I had it fixed and then out of the blue it'd act up again. It was really hit or miss. I obviously have a bad connection in either my EEC Tuner or my EEC itself. I bit the bullet and bought an AEM stand alone to solve this problem. I wanted the AEM next year anyway, so it was on my list of things to get. I will send the eec tuner out soon to have it checked to see if the problem was with it or my EEC. I want to use the EEC Tuner on my '90GT when I get it running, so I have to get it checked out.

 

[Pokageek]

Good luck with it. Dam that is frustrating. AEM. That is a whole new engine computer right?

 

[Killercanary]

Good luck with it. Dam that is frustrating. AEM. That is a whole new engine computer right?

Yep! Its a complete stand alone engine managment system. It replaces the factory EEC, and along with it the MAF is replaced with a MAP sensor. You don't have to do it this way but it seems much easier to tune with.

 

[Pokageek]

I bet you can get a more power AND driveability out of it too. I may upgrade to this one day but right now I am at the budget limit and just want to get it on th road lol.

 

[HISSIN50]

Paul, thanks for the update. Sometimes I think you go around breaking stuff just for an excuse to upgrade. J/K.

That's neat that you'll be doing the SD set-up.

You also have a fox III? I didn't know that.

 

[Killercanary]

Paul, thanks for the update. Sometimes I think you go around breaking stuff just for an excuse to upgrade. J/K.

That's neat that you'll be doing the SD set-up.

You also have a fox III? I didn't know that.

LOL! I think my wife would agree with you on that!!!

I bought a '90GT back in 2003 from my wife's uncle. It was his step son's car who passed away that same year. Its pretty beat and it needs a lot of work. Supposedly the engine is blown (there is definitely something majorly wrong with it) and the AOD is shot too. That's the bad stuff... the good stuff is that it is stock right down to the air silencer, it has black interior, and virtually no rust. The plan has been to get it on the road ever since but everytime I think I'll have the time and money to mess with it I break something on my '95. I bought the car with the intention of turning it into my drag car using all of my old combo parts. I wanted to see what my old combo would do in a car that could potentionally weigh a good 500lbs less than my '95.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it now though. My love of drag racing has drindled a lot over the last two years, especially since I took my wife's '00 MR2 spyder to a SCCA SoloII event. I'm HOOKED! I may now make the '90GT into a SCCA car. Yet lately I've been thinking of just restoring it to showroom condition as a clean stock fox is a rarity these days. Luckily, my '95 will suck up enough time and money over the next year or two that I won't have to worry about the '90 for a while!

 

[Guero]

So the new tuner fixed your problem?

 

[Killercanary]

So the new tuner fixed your problem?

So far I would have to say yes. Its hasn't done anything like it was doing. I still have a high rpm miss, but its nothing like the old problem.