Automotive Technicians Technical Discussion and Fixes for May 21, 2012

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	Help Request	Answers
	2002 Audi A6 3.0L acceleration VIN: WAUJT64B72 We replaced CVT transmission with factory reman unit from Audi dealership due to violent shudder/engagement. External filter assembly was replaced and lines flushed. After installation and adaptations performed, original concern no longer present but new condi...	View
	2006 Cadillac DTS 4.6L battery VIN: 1G6KD57Y86 Vehicle has intermittent parasitic draw.One time vehicle driven and draw goes to .035 mA. Next time vehicle driven comes back parked for 20 mins and has .700mA draw. next time .300mA draw.I have narrowed draw down to rear fuse panel under rear seat. Draw is al...	View
	1995 Chevrolet S10 4.3L No Start VIN: 1GCCS14ZXS Thank you in advance for any help u can provide. I have this s10 pu that keeps shorting out ign control modules, i have installed four distributors, three reman and one new. It will run fine for two days and then no fire or inj pulse. I have checked all ground...	View
	2000 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 LT 5.3L Excessive Emissions, Misfire VIN: 3GNFK16T6Y OK Gentlemen I need your help this month we had a lot of vehicles come in this month for troubleshooting problems, we fix all of them until this one came in. It failed smog at other shop for high emissions, and a check engine light on. The light also flashes ... Trouble codes: P0300, P0153, P0154	View
	2001 Chevrolet Corvette 5.7L speedometer VIN: 1G1YY22G21 I would like to thank all who reply in advance... I have a vehicle here which has had the speedometer recalibrated for larger wheels. The customer has reinstalled the factory wheels on this vehicle. Now... I need to recalibrate the speedometer back to factory...	View
	2004 Chevrolet Trailblazer LS 4.2L Stall VIN: 1GNDT13SX4 Vehicle arrived with a complaint of dying or stalling. There was a code in the system P0410 set. This is the secondary pump system. I initially erased the code and it has not come back on yet. Still runs erratic. Trying to get the vehicle to reset codes but un...	View
	2005 Chevrolet Express 3500 6.0L Turn Signals VIN: 1GCHG35U45 Hi Guys, This van has a problem with the turn signals flashing way too rapidly but all are working. The 4-ways flash normally. We changed the flasher module but with the same result. Checked bulbs and am not finding anything unusual. The 4-way switch is an ind...	View
	2006 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 LT 5.3L 4x4 VIN: 2GCEK13T36 Im not familiar with gmc nor 4x4 systems very well. This truck was just poned on to me from my boss and now i have to try to fix it.4x4 is inop and i got code c0321 with snap on scanner.its got 4 buttons as follows:auto,2wd,4lo,&4hi if i remember correctly. Wh...	View
	2007 Chevrolet Impala LT 3.5L cooling VIN: 2G1WT58K37 I want to ask how many have seen something like this before. This post may represent two separate issues but herte goes. About a month ago the customer brough his car in for his engine "runs hot", as he relayed the information to us. We retrieved DTC P0128 tha...	View
	2001 Chrysler Sebring LXi 3.0L MIL Lamp on VIN: 4C3AG52H21 Customer brought car in for check engine light on code P0401 and we checked all valves and replace all components. Freeze frame data rpm 1445, ect 205*,mph 52, short term fuel trim bank 1 0.0% long term 0.8%, short term fuel trim bank 2 0.0% long term 2.3% and... Trouble codes: P0401 (insufficient egr flow detected)	View
	2003 Chrysler PT Cruiser GT 2.4L driveability VIN: 3C8FY78GX3 Customer complaint on this vehicle was that at times it surges and gets to the point it almost not driveable. Never completely stalls out. It had p0300, p0201, p0202, p0203, p0204, p0300 and p0344 in it initially. I cleared them and had them drive for a few da...	View
	2005 Dodge Grand Caravan SE 3.3L Poor Idle Quality, Hesitation, Cuts out, MIL Lamp on VIN: 1D4GP24R55 Haven't had to hit you guys up in a while, knock on wood, Got this one with a consistent -15 ish degrees on the cam/crank pid. So... is it more often a fltwheel or the cam tone ring. The scope shows good breaks and the code sets immediately. Any input would be... Trouble codes: P0016	View
	2006 Dodge Ram 3500 SLT 5.9L revers VIN: 3D7MX48C96 I have replaced the clutch and found that it is hard to shift the truck into revers. But it does not happen all of the time. There is no other shifting problems. has eny one run into this before.	View
	2007 Dodge Grand Caravan SE 3.3L Rear evaporator VIN: 1D4GP24RX7 This van arrived with A/C inoperative. Pressures indicated that system was empty. Used Dry Nitrogen to try and narrow down leak location but was no help. Followed the entire system back to the rear evaporator with an electronic sniffer and had a strike at the ...	View
	1992 Ford Probe 2.2L No Start, Stall VIN: 1ZVPT20C8N It came to the shop on the tow truck. Ichecked pressure spark everithinf seeme d to be ok ,but still no start, to make it start i have toi mov e the distributor, but i sounds retarded, to keepi it running i have to advanced, everithing is good, but to make it ...	View
	1994 Ford E-250 Econoline 5.8L Cuts out Hello fellow techs, Customer just purchased this van with a few problems. brought in for transmission repairs as it was slamming into reverse, check engine light was on and running poorly. original owner claimed ignition distributor was replaced but needed t...	View
	2002 Ford Explorer XLT 4.6L Surge, Cuts out VIN: 1FMDU73W72 Cruising at freeway speeds above 60mph vehicle will start what feels just like a missfire. No codes will set. Plugs and coils did not correct problem. Vehicle has to be fully warmed up for problem to occur. Problem will not happen at low speeds. Fuel pressure ...	View
	2003 Ford Escape XLT 3.0L gauges sweep VIN: 1FMYU03123 This escape is Rough. Has bad mounts and misfires. but customers main concern is Gauges intermediately does full gauge sweep. sometimes when you hit a bump, sometimes when you turn and pretty regular when you accelerate hard. tried wiggling and tapping on abou...	View
	2005 Ford Thunderbird 3.9L Poor Idle Quality, Misfire, MIL Lamp on VIN: 1FAHP60A65 This car looses injector pulse on 4 of the injectors intermittenly.I have checked for wiring problems,replaced the tps&pcm.Any help will be appreciated.Bill Trouble codes: P2107	View
	2007 Ford Focus SES 2.0L Direct Clutch & Band VIN: 1FAHP36N47 This vehicle only has 41000 miles on it. Boss is in a hurry to get it out as it belongs to the local Judge's wife. Tore down and found Direct clutch fried as well as Intermediate Band. Pistons all still soft and pliable. Servo piston still soft and pliable. Ha...	View
	1994 Geo Tracker 1.6L Excessive Emissions VIN: 2CNBE1862R HI there everyone and HELP. I have this 1994 Tracker with CA emissions that has high Nox, oxides of nitrogen. At both speeds they are approximately 1200. The CO is very low, like zeros across the board. We found the exhaust manifold cracked on two runners badl...	View
	2006 GMC Sierra 1500 SLE 5.3L No Start VIN: 2GTEC19Z96 This truck came in from another shop with the right head off. They had found a bad lifter and cam lobe.They didnt want to do the job so I took it on.I pulled the engine and changed the parts.The truck would not start (had spark,noid,fuel pressure and no codes)... Trouble codes: P0342, P0343	View
	1999 Honda Accord EX 2.3L MIL Lamp on VIN: 1HGCG6670X I hated to Post this because it seems such an Easy Thing to be able to Diagnose But I have tried all i know and To gain as Much information as I Could, I Originally posted in Discussion Forums and had a Few Replies but they didnt repair the problem. After 2 k... Trouble codes: P1165 (A/F Ratio Sensor sensor 1 Performance)	View
	2000 Honda Accord EX 2.3L Cuts out, MIL Lamp on VIN: 1HGCG6672Y The customer complaint was mil on, long crank time for start up, engine runs rough. When i went to test drive it i immediately turned around and came back. It was like the fuel shut-off started at 2200 rpm. I went to check codes and had no communication with t...	View
	2007 Honda Ridgeline RTL 3.5L cluster dropping out This ridgeline has can communication codes in tpms,abs,vtm4.pcm.the guages drop to zero about every minute or so and then work for another minute.it looks like it has a k line buss issue.i have dissconnected every module one at a time(pcm,abs,vtm4,tpms,) with ...	View
	2002 Hyundai Sonata 2.4L Hesitation, Cuts out, Stall VIN: KMHWF25S12 First found the main engine grounds loose and alternator feid wire melting. Tps reads 4.9 volts all the time thought it was the computer.Installed known good computerstill the same problem. after further inspection found tps installed upside down and tps and i...	View
	2002 Isuzu Rodeo Sport S V6 3.2L Engine/Trans VIN: 4S2CK57W42 I have a seized engine that customer wants me to replace. Problem is getting torque converter bolts out. Tried removing timing belt, knowing it should spin freely because it's a non interference motor, still seized, must be in bottom end. My next try would be ...	View
	1995 Land Rover Range Rover County LWB 4.2L Dome Lamps VIN: SALHC1341S Is there anything besides the mutli funtion unit that could cause the dome lamps to stay on if the ignition switch is on? All the door switches, hatch switch & manual lamp switch work. If the ignition switch is in the off position all dome lamps work correctly...	View
	1993 Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.6 2.6L No Start VIN: WDBDA29D2P Here is a 1993 Mercedes 190E. I don't work on too many of these. The vehicle has good spark. There is no fuel pressure. I tested the voltage at the fuel pumps and there is battery voltage for 2 seconds when key is turned on and when cranking. This is on both f...	View
	2000 Mercedes-Benz SLK230 Kompressor 2.3L No Start, Stall VIN: WDBKK47F4Y Hello Mercedes guys. Have this SLK230 that will die out approximately once every week. Customer states it will usually start right back up. We went with the K40 relay and ignition switch for starters. Same problem. Are the crank sensors common on these? We hav...	View
	2001 Mercedes-Benz C240 2.6L Interior VIN: WDBRF61J61 Hello fellow techs, This C240 was purchased by my employer. He did some cosmetic repairs throughout and replaced the srs module due to srs light being on, among other various repairs. The battery was going dead and I was asked to repair. I discovered a 1 amp...	View
	2004 Nissan Xterra SE 3.3L low power VIN: 5N1MD28Y74 Thanks to everyone for their help. This truck came in for a low power when warm complaint and request for a tune-up. Found a bad knock sensor and that the computer was commanding the supercharger to go into fail-safe(by pass). After doing the tune-up and the k...	View
	1992 Oldsmobile Custom Cruiser 5.7L Cust states a/c comp stops intermittantly. VIN: 1G3BP8376N This Olds is from another shop that gave up. The customer states the air conditioning will 'shut off' randomly when running, but can't remember when specifically or how often. It has not happened in the service bays yet after 15 minutes of idling and 2000 rpm ...	View
	2000 Toyota 4Runner SR5 3.4L Excessive Emissions VIN: JT3GN86RXY Hello everyone, I have a customer who tried to get the smog inspection done on his vehicle; however, the check engine light showed up lately and when he went for the pre-test he mentioned that the smog technician told him that the NOx readings were too high (... Trouble codes: P1025, P1135 (A/F sensor heater circuitj fault B1-S1)	View
	2000 Toyota 4Runner SR5 3.4L MIL Lamp on VIN: JT3HN86R6Y this is the third shop its been to. sets code on second key on all the time P1780 park reverse nutrel switch, one shop replaced the park nutrel switch on transmission, another installed a computer. Noticed that when in other gears the reverse light in the clus... Trouble codes: P1780 (Nutrel prnd indicator)	View
	2006 Toyota Tundra SR5 4.7L Brake lites on VIN: 5TBDT44186 WE replaced the brake lite switch and had ajusted it for good cruise cancellation. Customer had a dead batt again and said the brake lites were on and off again over the weekend. Thanks for any help in advance.	View
	2001 Volkswagen Cabrio GLS 2.0L Cruise Control VIN: 3VWCC21V71 Hello. This Cabrio is eating my lunch. The cruise control does not function, it doesn't try to function. As far as I can tell, this is basically a "diesel" cruise system on a petrol car. It has it's own vacuum pump, and an interesting cable system. The thrott...	View
	2002 Volkswagen Golf GTI VR6 2.8L Passanger Air Bag VIN: 9BWPH61J92 Air Bag lamp is on. Code 00589 was retrieved. We checked the entire circuit from air bag igniter to module and found no 0.3 Ohms (my leads). Tested through air bag with low impedance fluke meter 2.5ohms. Replaced bag with one from a Jetta that we were assured ...	View
	2004 Volkswagen Beetle GL 1.9L No Start VIN: 3VWBR31C94 Hello VW Diesel guys.This vehicle is a 1.9 pumpe duse diesel and got towed in.According to customer engine was running fine all of a sudden while driving 70mph engine lost power but remained running at idle speed.There was no trottle response.Customer shut off...	View
	2007 Volkswagen Jetta 2.5 2.5L Drain VIN: 3VWSG71KX7 Vw tech, please help. Car came in with a battery drain problem. Found battery drain jump up [...] 1.7 amp every 20 second and back [...] 0.14amp. Pull radio out, same issue. You can hear the comfort module is clicking when 1.7amp draw happen last for 3 seconds and b...	View
	2008 Volkswagen GTI 2.0L MIL Lamp on VIN: WVWEV71K48 This car won't set readiness, and these two faults come back almost within minutes of driving, and right away if I try manual readiness setting with VCDS. Sensor is new, connector shell is new, new gold-plated terminals spliced in with proper heat shrink conne... Trouble codes: P0140 (000320 Lambda sensor B1 S2 no activity), P1114 (004372 Lambda sensor B1 S2 internal resistance too high)	View

Fixes & Summaries for All Makes and Models

	Fix/Summary	Answers
	1991 BMW M5 3.6L Hesitation, Cuts out, Stall VIN: WBSHD9311M Well As much as I hate to admitt it this is where going back to basics really pays off. I again called the customer and asked for the third time if he could please tell me everything that he had done to the car prior to bringing it to me. This time he had ment...	10
	1997 BMW 528i 2.8L Brake warning light VIN: WBADD62090 Hi all, well I've admitted defeat with this one. I replaced the thermal oil level sensor as it was logging a fault code but although it fixed the fault code, the light remained illuminated. The light would turn off if the light control module was disconnected ...	16
	1996 Buick Riviera 3.8L Poor Idle Quality, Misfire, MIL Lamp on, No power VIN: 1G4GD2212T Thank you to all who responded, your inputs were very insightful. I hooked up guage to exhaust, at 1500 rpm it was at 1.5 psi, at 3500 rpm's the pressure guage jumped to 5psi under load & down the road. Extreme back pressure. I have notified the customer but a... Trouble codes: P0300 (Cylinder misfire detected), P0171 (Bank 1 lean), P0174.	20
	1997 Chevrolet K1500 Suburban LS 5.7L MIL Lamp on VIN: 1GNFK16R0V thanks for all the ideas,turning the distributor gear one half turn got timing within [...],slight gringing hold down got me to zero.all is well know,i will certainly try that right away whenever i have trouble with a reman timing problem. Trouble codes: P1345.	34
	1999 Chevrolet Lumina LTZ 3.8L misfire VIN: 2G1WN52K3X thank u all 4 the help after i use my scope in the injectors and the maf wich was bad i also found a bad icm and bad coil thank u all so much codes are gone costumer happy	26
	2001 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 5.7L Poor Idle Quality, Misfire VIN: 1G1YY12S81 Thanks to everyone for all the help. Just to clear up, i had already done the crank relearn before i posted-just forgot to put that in there. I changed out the injector with another new one and all is well. I guess even AC Delco lets some bad parts get by some... Trouble codes: P0300 (random misfire).	13
	1998 Dodge Grand Caravan SE 3.8L No Start VIN: 1B4GP44L9W Thank you for the help. I used ecm, and bcm out of a running van to start and run this van. The customers ecms and bcms are all junk. He still will not allow me to purchase 2 reman units. That is why it took so long to close. Was hoping he would purchase the n... Trouble codes: 04 (No engine controler data).	9
	2006 Dodge Magnum SE 2.7L abs VIN: 2D4FV47T26 The abs module eneded up to be the problem, but the customer did not have the money to fix.	5
	2006 Dodge Ram 3500 SLT 5.9L compressor coil VIN: 3D7MX48C96 Thanks for all of the help. to start of i found that the a/c system was over charged. I evacted and rechaged the system. Then found that it would still not op. correctly. I found that the connector at the coil had intermitant contact through the terminals. Fi...	9
	1998 Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer 4.0L All gears VIN: 1FMZU34E4W Thanks to all, those who diagnosed as transfer case win the round. Sorry for the delay the customer took a while to get funds available to fix and confirm!	15
	2005 Ford F-150 FX4 5.4L Hestitation VIN: 1FTPX14565 Hello, Thanks to all for the input. I have tried to use all the suggestions that you gave me. So far I have had no luck. The customer has decided to take the truck to Ford. Thanks again	13
	2005 Ford F-250 Super Duty King Ranch 6.0L Cuts out, Stall VIN: 1FTSW20P35 I did clean the e.g.r. to no avail. WE reprogrammed the ficm, pcm, tcm, and the symptom changed, now it dosen't seem to stall anymore but when you shut it off it's got a very long crank. Monitoring it with the scanner I see the desired icp at 600lbs and the ac...	6
	2006 Ford Explorer XLT 4.0L several engine wire connectors VIN: 1FMEU63E26 One thing that we often neglect to do is throughly interview the customer. He called and said "by the way, the truck is on it's fourth radiator and had been overheated many times". So the wiring has been through several very intense heat cycles, thus all the f...	5
	2006 Ford F-350 Super Duty XLT 5.4L Poor Idle Quality, Misfire, MIL Lamp on VIN: 1FTWF31586 WELL THANKS EVERYONE FOR YOUR HELP. I TOOK ALL OF YOUR KNOLEDGE AND IT HELPED ME REALIZE WHAT I BELEIVE TO BE A BROKEN VALVE SPRING,OR ROCKER. I DID FIND THAT BY UNPLUGING THE #8 INJECTOR, WHILE WHATCHING MODE $06 DATA THAT THE PCM WAS ACCURATE WITH THE #8 CYL... Trouble codes: P0308 (8 misfire).	28
	2008 Ford Taurus SEL 3.5L Pats VIN: 1FAHP24W38 Thanks to everyone who replied. The problem turned out to be a defective replacement instrument cluster. For some reason it just wouldn't take key programming, so after hours of self doubt it is finally fixed.	9
	2003 Honda Odyssey EX 3.5L Brake and Tailites VIN: 5FNRL18753 The problem with the brake and tail lites was aher the owner of the van had wired in a wire for trailer brakes and had the brake and tail lite wires connected togather repaired wiring problem solved thanks for all the help	10
	2000 Jaguar S-Type 4.0L no start VIN: SAJDA01D2Y only have one key local jag dealer will not let me order another key with out prouf of ownership can not find custumer to get title so am going to file for abandon vehicle title and see if it will run when that happens i will let everone know what worked ...	6
	2004 Jaguar Vanden Plas 4.2L Touch screen VIN: SAJWA74C44 This car was sent to the dealer to get the navigation software reloaded. We have not heard back from the customer to see if it's fixed.	1
	2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo 3.7L No Drive- No Reverse VIN: 1J4GR48K35 Thanks to all that responded, here is what happened. I took apart the valve body and found chips jamming the valves. I figured at that point it must be the pump that is failing so I informed the customer who of coarse thinks that replacing the plastic upper wi...	12
	1994 Nissan Altima GLE 2.4L Excessive Emissions, Poor Idle Quality, Hesitation, MIL Lamp on VIN: 1N4BU31D3R thanks for the replys, it all came down to giving the MAF its own ground, car still has intake leak the customer is aware of it & may bring back to fix once he has more $.00 Trouble codes: 12.	5
	2001 Nissan Sentra GXE 1.8L Misfire VIN: 3N1CB51D51 Thanks for all suggestions. I could never get the Mass Air Sensor to read anything outside of acceptable specs, but it felt like a mass air problem and I had exhausted all other possibilities, so I replaced the Mass Air Sensor out of desperation and hope. It... Trouble codes: P0300.	11
	2002 Nissan Maxima SE 3.5L cyl 1 VIN: JN1DA31A82 Ill call this thing fixed. As much as I hated to do it, I took it to the local Nissan dealer with a used ecm to have them recode it. Cleared it right up. Thanks for all the replies.	44
	2000 Rolls Royce Silver Seraph 5.4L Cluster VIN: SCALA61E1Y Thank you so much Don and Colin! Gos Bless ya'll! From Don [...] best place for info' for Rolls is : Albers of Zionsville. ...360 South 1st Street Zionsville, IN 46077 [...] Very helpful people in the parts department and will send you schematics if ...	3
	2002 Subaru Impreza WRX 2.0L MIL Lamp on VIN: JF1GD29692 We were going to install the O2 between the cats by drilling a hole and welding on a nut that fit the O2 in order to test the front cat by itself. Then we decided to get a rear cat and replace it since the front one was previously replaced by the dealership. W... Trouble codes: P0420 (Cat efficiency).	7
	2001 Toyota 4Runner SR5 3.4L Pinging/detonation VIN: JT3HN86R21 Problem solved! Thanks to everyone who replied! Colder plugs and a 160* thermostat did the trick! Pinging/Detonation was caused by higher than normal combustion chamber temp, due to lack of EGR valve.	11
	2001 Volkswagen Jetta GLS 1.8L MIL Lamp on VIN: 3VWSD69M41 This vehicle is fixed. I hooked the smoke machine up to the rear evap line and pinched off the filter at the carbon canister. I found smoke coming from one of the lines on top the tank. We took down the rear axle and then removed the gas tank and found a mice ... Trouble codes: P0455 (large evap leak detected).	8

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