Automotive Technicians Technical Discussion and Fixes for Jan 24, 2009

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	Help Request	Answers
	1987 BMW 325i 2.5L No Start, Misfire VIN: 1616849849 my name is matt im cuurntly have a 1987 bmw 325i that wont start it came in for a rough idle and check engine light was on. while the vehicle was running we hooked up our otc genesis when we turned it on both my scanner and the car died. now i have no injector...	View
	1991 Buick Century Custom 3.3L battery VIN: 1G4AH45N3M I do not have access to a low amp probe,all i have to work with is a test light hooked between the negative cable and the negative terminal on the battery. The only diagram i have to work with is in a chilton diy book,not much detail. I did find that if i remo...	View
	2005 Buick Rainier CXL 4.2L MIL Lamp on VIN: 5GADT13S45 Came back a week later has same problem and told making winding noise (maybe be from air pump in which stays on all the time or something else?).Also do I in need of reprogram the ecm? Your help will be greatly appreciated it. Thank You, Trouble codes: P0410	View
	1996 Chevrolet Blazer 4.3L No Start VIN: 1GNDT13W6T This one will not start cold. Once it has started and run for only a minute it will re start and run good all day. When its in the no start I get good spark good fuel pressure and no obvious sensors like map, tps, or cts out of range. Once I give it a whiff of...	View
	1997 Chevrolet Blazer 4.3L MIL Lamp on VIN: 1GNDT13W6V Hello I need help on this one,this truck came in with starting problem when left sitting,so I checked it and found low fuel pressure,so I replaced the fuel pump with OE one an the truck starts fine now the only thing there is a problem with the fuel gauge it d... Trouble codes: P0463	View
	1999 Chevrolet K1500 Suburban 5.7L Parasitic drain on battery VIN: 3GNFK16R5X This is becoming a headache for me and of course this happens to be my personal vehicle. Original alternator failed 6/2007. Decided to upgrade from 105 to the 140 amp alternator. Installed AC/Delco reman unit, just had to change the regulator harness. It worke...	View
	2002 Chevrolet Tahoe LS 5.3L Surge, Misfire, MIL Lamp on VIN: 1GNEK13Z42 Thanks in advance for any help offered with this one. When driving the vehicle under hard acceleration power falls off and the engine begins to surge. If the throttle is backed off a little then the power returns. The first code to come up was a P0301 so I mov... Trouble codes: P0300 (Random Multiple Cylinder Misfire), P0301 (Misfire cylinder 1), P0303 (Misfire cylinder 3), P0430 (Right cylinder bank catalyst below efficiency)	View
	2003 Chevrolet Astro 4.3L low power VIN: 1GNEL19XX3 My customer bought this vehicle a year ago. It seemed a bit sluggish then, and now it has gotten worse to the point that it will not climb the hills around here. Per a TSB, I installed a new distributor(aftermarket-complete)no help. Then I got it to pop a code... Trouble codes: P0101	View
	2002 Chrysler 300M 3.5L Suspension VIN: 2C3HE66G62 This vehicle came in with the usual strut clunk in the front end. but it also has squeek or creeking noise when turning the steering to LH or RH side. We quote for struts and mounts. The lower spring insulator were bad so we included them as part of the job. W...	View
	2001 Dodge Grand Caravan ES 3.3L No Start VIN: 2B4GP543X1 Hey guys have this 01 caravan when you go to start it it will not start and no dash lights you turn key back and then try again then it starts the customer already went to the dealer and they put in a body control module and ign. switch still same problem anyb...	View
	2005 Dodge Grand Caravan SE 3.3L unknown VIN: 2D4GP24R45 your help is requested again.. 2005 grand caravan..maintained well..has a low speed steering wander..steering wheel will go left then right for a second or two at speeds around 25-30 mph..almost feels like the front end is dog tracking like an old monoleaf nov...	View
	1999 Honda Odyssey LX 3.5L Unknown VIN: 2HKRL1863X Hi fellow techies out there, this is a problem a friend is facing in Mali,West africa, no dealers there. Now his problem is it runs for a while,shifts to neutral or disengages after which he has to wait awhile before it moves again and then repeat. Can Honda t...	View
	2000 Hyundai Elantra GLS 2.0L No Start VIN: KMHJF35F7Y i have a problem with the computer not grounding the fuel pump relay. the car came in with a no start problem, found fuel pump to be bad. i replaced it, still no fuel pressure, but now can apply power to pump and it works. i found 2 bad fusable links. to make ...	View
	2002 Jaguar X-Type 2.5L whel speed sensors VIN: SAJEB51D82 02 Jag x-type. We have fault codes 1165 and 1175. Only the lt.front wheel speed sensor is reading on our Launch X-431 scanner when the wheels are put in motion. The wiring checks out. If I swap sensors, I still dont have a signal on the right front (we havent ...	View
	1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited 4.0L poor heat VIN: 1J4GZ78S9W Vehicle has poor/no heat in cab while driving/idling. Replace heater core and check blend door operation and seal. Made no diff.. Found out after had heat core put in 1 year earlier. Tried new thermostat. When runnig vehicle in shop, heat great 80 deg in cab, ...	View
	2000 Lincoln LS 3.9L No Start VIN: 1LNHM87A3Y Vehicle arrived DOA/rods hanging out of the pan. Sourced a known good running used replacement. Installed unit and get no spark or injector pulse. PATS light proves out,comes on with key on then goes out. Does not flash when cranking. Scoped crankshaft positio...	View
	1999 Mazda Millenia S 2.3L Poor Idle Quality, Hesitation, Cuts out, Misfire, MIL Lamp on, CNT REV OVER 2200RPM VIN: JM1TA2227X Car starts fine, idle is poor, and clearly misfiring. After 2-3 minutes of driving "TCS off" and TCS Lamp comes on and engine can not rev over 2200 rmp. Had prior O2 sensor codes fixed by replacing downsteam sensors one was cracked. Had replaced spark plugs ... Trouble codes: P0300 (random/multiple cylinder misfire deteted), P1402 (EGR valve postition sensor), P1540 (ABV contol system malfunction)	View
	1998 Mercury Grand Marquis LS 4.6L anti theft VIN: 2MEFM75W6W customer wanted 2 xtra keys programmed now wont even start with original key. replaced transponder and pats module. Have a ngs and ngs web flash wont program keys. checked pwr. and grnd. at module all good. 5vref at t.p.s. Programmed many keys with no problem....	View
	2001 Nissan Quest SE 3.3L Lock cylinder VIN: 4N2ZN16T91 Owner left vehicle in store parking lot. Removed the ignition key and locked it with the remote. Returned to the vehicle unlocked it with a remote. Inserted the ignition key in the lock. The lock cylinder would not turn. Customer called me. I got another key ...	View
	2001 Nissan Quest SE 3.3L Lock cylinder VIN: 4N2ZN16T91 Owner left vehicle in store parking lot. Removed the ignition key and locked it with the remote. Returned to the vehicle unlocked it with a remote. Inserted the ignition key in the lock. The lock cylinder would not turn. Customer called me. I got another key ...	View
	2002 Nissan Maxima SE 3.5L Misfire, MIL Lamp on VIN: JN1DA31D62 need some help from the nissan gods we have a 3.5 maxima that keeps setting a p0300 random misfire you can drive this car and it drives perfect plenty of power but at idle you can feel a very faint inermitant miss fire not always there you clear the code and i... Trouble codes: P0300 (random missfire)	View
	1995 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera 3.1L Starting VIN: 1G3AJ55MOS cannot locate the fuel pump relay, unit cranks no start has no audable fuel pump noise, aldata has a confusing digeam that doesnt reflect the present system. i just want to jump out the fuel pump	View
	1996 Oldsmobile 88 Royale 3.8L Poor Idle Quality VIN: 1G3AH52K4T Help please I have this oldsmobile that when stated the idle will go to 2500 to 3000 rpm and when warms up or restart car idle will go down to 1700 rpm it all very the thing I see and think is causing idle to go up is with my tec2 watching the tps the percent ...	View
	2000 Pontiac Montana 3.4L cooling system VIN: 1GMDX03E5Y vehical came in for a CEL (egr) while diagnosing found oil in coolant. does any one have any experience with finding out how the oil got into the cooling system or knowen issues for this engine. customer states another shop did an intake gasket about 9 months ...	View
	2004 Porsche 911 Turbo 3.6L eng/trans VIN: WP0CB29934 Good Day Folks, I have this 04 996t.(prd.date=2/04) We need to do a clutch/flywheel job. I know we can do this with the engine in place. Could I trouble you experienced Porsche techs with a procedure on this job. I know the engine must come down a few inches ...	View
	1994 Toyota Corolla DX 1.8L MIL Lamp on, SEVERAL CODES VIN: JT2AE09B2R Has anyone encountered such an issue? This has been ongoing for 3-months now. Customer will be fine for a week and then all these codes appear. It does not seem to hamper the vehicle running condition or driveability at all. Codes that have been encountered in... Trouble codes: 52 (left knock sensor signal abnormal), 12 (faulty rpm signal no rpm), 14 (igt or igf circuit of ign. system fault), 24 (air intake temp sensor signal abnormal), 22 (coolant temp sensor sig abnorm.), 21 (left o2 sensor ouput voltage lower than 0.)	View
	2007 Toyota Camry XLE 2.4L pump VIN: 4TIBE46K17 customer got stuck in the snow and burnt the transmission up and broke the cv axle. not sure of steering noise before becouse we could not drive vehicle. but now the steering is hard and noisy sitting still at idle and trying to turn the wheels. raise the rpm'...	View
	2001 Volvo V70 T5 2.3L No Start, Poor Idle Quality, Cuts out, MIL Lamp on VIN: YV1SW53D61 this is my wifes 2001 volvo v70 t5 wagon and she called me yesterday in a panic. she said the car was shaking and the brake pedal was really hard and it wouldnt go over 15 mph. she managed to limp it home and when i got home it started ok for me, but it would ... Trouble codes: P1600, P1603	View

Fixes & Summaries for All Makes and Models

	Fix/Summary	Answers
	2004 Audi A4 Quattro 3.0L front fender marker lamps & right front turnsignal VIN: WAULT68E54 A combination of your thoughtful input, logic and some measure of courage to buy the expensive General Module solved this lighting problem. Interestingly enough, the initial VAG scan (VagCom is a killer tool) showed no faults in the module. After replacement a...	10
	1998 BMW 740iL 4.4L misc VIN: WBAGJ8321W Thanks for the replies, Although I did not have a factory scan tool, I was confident enough from the replies to Check the powers and grounds at the lighting control module, I then checked inputs from the turn signal switch and confirmed everything was fine. Be...	5
	1995 Chevrolet S10 LS 4.3L No Start, backfire thru intake VIN: 1GCCS19W6S pulled timing cover down and rotated cam 180 with the timing chain off, removed & reinstalled the distributor per alldata, and vehicle fired up immediately, thanks for all the help!!	26
	1997 Chevrolet K1500 5.7L No Start VIN: 1GCEK14R2V Thank you for all the replies. I would say most replies were about the pigtail connector, but this is not the correct connector I was speaking of. Pre 1998 have a connector directly under the top of the sending unit, inside the tank. This is not the fuel pump ...	25
	2000 Chevrolet Express 1500 5.0L power steering pump VIN: 1GBFG15R4Y Thank you to all who replied. Most were correct to say that Napa and other rebuilt GM pumps only replace seals and not the shaft, which is the weak link in this pump. The shaft tapers down to 1/3 its diameter and this is were they always break. It is a design ...	18
	1999 Dodge Ram 2500 8.0L heat VIN: 1B7KF23W6X Replaced the thermostat a third time with the factory part. It did bring the engine temp. up. Still did not have proper heat. Noticed that the A/C compressor was running at all times, even with the controls set just for heat. Replaced the compressor pressure ...	13
	1993 Ford F-250 XL 5.8L Poor Idle Quality, MIL Lamp on, LONG CRANK HARD STAR VIN: 1FTHX25H3P sorry for taking so long in closing this help iwent and tested supplys and grounds to ecm and relays all good cust had changed tps him self i readjusted tps and truck will start now but still have no communation with ecm and pumps still run all the time wiyh k...	12
	1995 Ford F-150 Special 5.0L Hesitation, Stall, pops through intake VIN: 1FTEX15N45 I should have thought about this in the first place but I guess there are times my brain seems kind of slow. The Problem ended up being clogged converters. Thanks so very much for all the help.	9
	1998 Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer 4.0L Excessive Emissions, Poor Idle Quality, Misfire, Poor Fuel Economy, MIL Lamp on VIN: 1FMZU32E1W well finally fixed. the grey vaccume line that had me stumped was for the heater hose valve at right fron of engine beside the water pump. but this still left me with the lean codes and after resealing the lower intake manifold and retesting and the fuel trims... Trouble codes: P0171 (engine lean bank 1), P0174 (engine lean bank 2), P0302 (engine miss fire 2 cyl), P0430 (cat below threshold bank 2), P1130.	18
	1998 Ford F-150 Lariat 5.4L drivers electric window VIN: 1FTRF08L8W Well it is fixed. When the customer brought the truck last Saturday, as he said, the window did not work at all. He was correct, so I grabbed the wiring harness that passes between the door and the door jamb, and as you might guess, the window started workin...	14
	1999 Ford F-550 Super Duty Lariat 7.3L auxillary idle control VIN: 1FDAF56F9X Thanks for all of your prompt replies. You all got me headed in the right direction. All I needed on this one was an idea as to how this system works. Once I was able to follow the various inputs to the pcm I found that pin 60 at the ecm was corroded. Simp...	4
	2001 Ford F-350 Super Duty Lariat 7.3L Surge, MIL Lamp on VIN: 1FTWW33F81 Thanks again fellow members! Many of you said i should investigate inside of left valve cover. I removed it and noted that the "zip tie" fix for the inside harness connection was previously made. I ran the engine, wiggle tested all connections and monitored oi... Trouble codes: P1668, P0276, P1293, P1294, P1316.	10
	2002 Ford Ranger Edge 4.0L No Start VIN: 1FTZR45EX2 Thank you for all your replies. Most all said PCM was bad. I'm sorry I forgot to mention that when it was dead it was also a no crank situation also. That is why I couldn't tell you if it was loosing spark or injection pulse. After letting the truck set ov...	8
	2000 Honda Accord LX 2.3L engine VIN: 1HGCG5647Y We recieved quite a number of replies to this request and the consensus was pretty much it could be taken out the top. It was'nt exactly a piece of cake but that's the way we did it. I think if you have a lift it would be easier to go out the bottom but ya wor...	20
	2001 Honda Odyssey EX 3.5L left sliding door VIN: 2HKRL18691 I want to thank all that replied to my problem .We pulled the fuses and then the battery and it was the same we pulled the door panel off and then found a cable out of its keeper reinstalled still didn,t work we tried a different controller still the same. We...	8
	1997 Jeep Cherokee Sport 4.0L MIL Lamp on VIN: 1J4FJ68S4V Well this one was simple and Dave from Minnesota hit it on the head. I pulled the line off the canisiter from the purge vavle, the scanner said I had 15% purge but I felt nothing at the hose. Reversed the hoses at the valve, and now theres vacuum. This guy jus... Trouble codes: P0441 (Purge malfuntion).	9
	2005 Jeep Liberty Limited 3.7L rwal module VIN: 1J4GK58KO5 WHILE MOST COULDNT BELIEVE THIS WAS A NON-ABS VEHICLE (RARE) IT DEFINATLY WAS NON ABS, I DID CHECK FOR FLASHES AND NONE TO BE FOUND, I DID HOWEVER FIND A TSB #08-048-05 THAT TALKED ABOUT REAR SENSOR CONTAMINATION (DIFF SENSOR)BY GEAR OIL AND IT TALKED ABOUT TH...	6
	2001 Kia Sportage 2.0L timing VIN: KNDJA72301 Thank you to all. The lifter bleed was the trick. I dont know the right way to bleed them, but i got it done. Interesting information that i could not find in a book. Again, thank you to all, I will try to reciprocate as needed. Jon; Uncle Rays Auto	11
	1997 Mitsubishi Galant ES 2.4L Surge VIN: 4A3AJ56G6V pretty much got it pointing towards the distributor as being the problem but the customer doesn't have the money for it right now.Thanks for all the help.	16
	1999 Nissan Pathfinder XE 3.3L Starting VIN: JN8AR07Y5X well it ended up being the security system.ecm will cut injector pulse if it does not reconize the chip in the key.the customer tried to boost truck before bringing it in.sent truck to dealer and all is good.a good way to check security system is to check egi ...	11
	2005 Nissan Altima S 2.5L MIL Lamp on VIN: 1N4AL11D35 Tested for intake and exhaust leak, none found. Both will affect the fuel trims. Air flow sensor readings are never questionable. Tested the A/F sensor (Front exhaust sensor) with conventional methods. Shows full rich and lean. Oxygen sensor (Rear exhaust sens... Trouble codes: P1273 (air fuel sensor 1 b1 lean).	9
	1995 Pontiac Grand Am SE 2.3L No Start VIN: 1G2NE15D2S found loose connection on starter fusible links are all there.someone replaced starter guess nut not tight enough. turned ont to that simple thanks for help.	5
	1990 Porsche 944 S2 3.0L No Start VIN: WP0CB2940L I'm going to close this because I'm running out of time on this post. There's a possibility we found the problem on this car but because the no start would only occur once every 3 or 4 weeks I do not know for sure. While following the wiring harness under the...	3
	2004 Volkswagen Touareg V8 4.2L MIL Lamp on VIN: WVGCM67L54 thank you for all the replies. I don't have a chance [...] pick car up next morning after this post. but i will update the repair if he bring it back. have a good weekend Trouble codes: P1423, P1411.	6

(Also Available: All, Asian, Chrysler, European, Ford, GM.)