Automotive Technicians Technical Discussion and Fixes for Mar 19, 2013

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	Help Request	Answers
	2003 BMW 330i 3.0L Engine / Oil Temp Sensor Hello fellow technicians. We've got a BMW that has sent us for a spin. This motor has a noise that sounds like a lifter ticking, but it's difficult to isolate. However, with the oil temperature sensor disconnected the noise completely STOPS. Lifters have been ...	View
	1994 Cadillac Seville SLS 4.6L Heater core VIN: 1G6KY5298R Hey there fellow Techs. I am working on a 1994 Cadillac Seville STS with no heat in the passengers compartment. The customer claims that he is usually running around 200 degrees and is now running 216 and has no heat. I verified no headgasket issues with the b...	View
	1999 Chevrolet S10 LS 4.3L No Start VIN: 1GCCT19WXX This truck lossed power and stalled with no restart back fires and kicks back like the timing is off pulled codes p0340. R&R cam sensor changed gas soaked plugs and then the cam sensor connector still no luck it dumps to much fuel when you crank it but no fuel... Trouble codes: P0340	View
	1999 Chrysler 300M 3.5L Stall VIN: 2C3HE66G6X I'm having a little trouble with this fine Chrysler product. Customer stalled coming home from work and tried to limp it to our shop before killing the battery and needing a tow. He was able to start it a couple times and feather the gas to get a little closer...	View
	1997 Ford Expedition Eddie Bauer 5.4L Right Rear VIN: 1FMFU18L7V This vehicle has a problem with the air suspension. The right rear air bag bottoms out intermittently while the vehicle is parked. There is a c1726 code in the air suspension for rear pneumatic fault. The diagnostic trouble tree says to test air pump and to te...	View
	2001 Ford Taurus SE 3.0L Stall VIN: 1FAFP58U41 This is my Son's vehicle and we are 600 miles apart. So testing has been done by phone, so please bare with me on this. Vehicle will start, run for several minutes then start to stall. Warning lights in cluster come on, tach & speedo go to zero and the vehicl...	View
	2004 Ford Focus ZX5 2.0L No communication VIN: 3FAHP37364 Hello iATN, I have a 2004 Focus ZX5 here with a problem. The lady brought it in with the complaint that every once in awhile a ticking noise would develop in the engine, the dash warning lights would all come on, and the car would occasionally quit running. I'...	View
	2005 Ford Taurus SE 3.0L Poor Idle Quality, Misfire VIN: 1FAFP53U55 This car is making me go gray quickly! We initially got this car in our shop around 63,000 miles. We did a full tune up (plugs, wires, and fuel filter) as well as intake gaskets. I don't have what the codes were then, but I would assume lean and misfire. That ... Trouble codes: P0300 (Random cylinder misfire), P0316 (Misfire detected on startup)	View
	2005 Ford E-350 Super Duty 6.0L Starting VIN: 1FTSS34P35 Ok, first off thanks for any help. Secondly im asking for help a little prematurly on this one. Van came in on the hook. Customer complaint of lack of power for the last few days followed by now a no start issue. Codes U0105 Loss of communication FICM and U030...	View
	2006 Ford F-250 Super Duty XL 5.4L No Start VIN: 1FDNF20566 Also has codes= P0198, P0201, P0203, P0205, P0207, P0223. All kodes are KOEO hard fault codes. To extract plugs I disconnected PCM, vapor management valve all ignition coils and some injectors. Everything is hooked back up as it should and it looks like you ca... Trouble codes: P0053 (p0113-), P0113 (p0121-), P0121 (p0122-), P0122 (p0183-), P0183 (p0193-), P0193	View
	2008 Ford E-350 Super Duty 5.4L Misfire, MIL Lamp on VIN: 1FTSE34L08 The vehicle came in barely able to accelerate. The DTC's were P0300, P0305, P0306, P0307. We replaced the spark plugs and it reset a P0305. We replaced the #5 ignition coil and tightened the pins in the #5 coil connector. We cleared the codes and test drove th... Trouble codes: P0305 (Misfire Cylinder 5)	View
	2009 Ford E-450 Super Duty 6.8L cam/crank sync VIN: 2010E45069 engine was removed for cam and lifter replacement as a needle bearing from the lifter went thru the oil pump.front cover also replaced.timing reset using ford tool(cam and crank).engine wiring harness replaced with new.all parts replaced were from dealer.probl...	View
	2007 GMC Sierra 1500 Classic SL 4.8L 1st Gear VIN: 3GTEK14V67 Hi guy's, I have a noise (a low knock/rattle/growl)which seems to be coming from the transfer case, noise was loudest at pump area of case, noise only happening in low/1st gear at 2-10 mph seems like the noise goes away when shifts to 2nd but really hard to sa...	View
	2009 Hyundai Sonata SE 2.4L MIL Lamp on VIN: 5NPEU46C49 Well this one has me a bit stumped, cust came in about 4 months ago with mil p0449 evap vent solenoid circuit. Solenoid replaced no issue till a week ago, p0440 returned, bench tested vent solenoid was sticking shut after 5 or 6 tests, replaced as defective. l... Trouble codes: P0449	View
	1997 Mazda 626 DX 2.0L Ect wiring VIN: 1YVGE22C6V Hello, i got this vehicle w/ disconected ect sensor, other shop replaced this sensor. When i conected the vehicle dont start, so i checked and found that, when disconected insted or reading -40f it reads around 60 to 70 and when conected around 200f. The fun...	View
	1999 Mercedes-Benz a160 1600CC Excessive Emissions, Poor Idle Quality, Hesitation, Poor Fuel Economy Vehicle first came in for performance issues, it started and seemed to idle ok but felt very hesitant (fuel restricted) while driving and sometimes even stalled. Plugged in generic scan tool and found "fuel adaption" code in memory. Checked for air leaks (ok)....	View
	2003 Mercedes-Benz E320 3.2L MIL Lamp on VIN: WDBUF65JX3 hello mercedes techs. i got this car from a used car lot in for a MIL light. and im very confused so far. not realy sure where to begin. all the codes are listed exactly from the my otc genisys. notice the double codes. but i did some basic wiring checks on th... Trouble codes: P2010 (p0138 o2 sensor 1/2 circuit high), P2083, P2083, P20C3, P20C2, P2009	View
	1998 Nissan CaraVan 3.0L Abs No communication Hi friends this is a nissan caravan MiniBus 1998 KG-CWMGE24 has only 3 ecu's Tcm,Abs,AirBag ecus. i am asking this behalf of my friend. He said Abs light is on he can`t talk to Abs ecu but can talk to other ecu`s.And there are 2 relay's one powers the abs pum...	View
	1998 Nissan Altima GLE 2.4L Excessive Emissions VIN: 1N4DL01DXW we got loss on this one, car came in fail on smog due [...] egr valve during accelerate and manually lift up egr valve, wil cut off at idle. perform smoke pressure test and only minor leak at egr gasket. r...	View
	2007 Nissan Maxima SL 3.5L Tcm VIN: 1N4BA41E87 Has anyone ran into this before and is there a way to undo the initialization? We have had very little experience with the Nissan CVT transmission and on the scanner I cannot see tcc lockup info. Any one with some experience in this transmission would appretia...	View
	2001 Subaru Outback VDC 3.0L Misfire VIN: 4S3BH89661 hi there i am on working on this 01 subaru 3.0 liter that sets misfire codes for cylinder 4 and 6.checked vacuum 18-20 inhg did noticed left side bank goes rich was it goes to close loop a/f sensor reads .84 lambda and fuel trims area at -22 total fuel trims t... Trouble codes: P0304 (Cylinder 4 misfire), P0306 (Misfire on cylinder 6)	View
	2000 Suzuki Grand Vitara JLX 2.5L Excessive Emissions, No Start, Poor Idle Quality, Hesitation, Cuts out, Stall, Misfire VIN: JS3TD62V3Y Hi, I am looking for some help from the Suzuki techs out there . Have a 2000 suzuki with a 2.5 v6 come into the shop for a complaint of hesitation. Test drove it and it ran good for roughly 20 minutes then started to hesitate and barely run, soon after it kill...	View
	2006 Suzuki Grand Vitara Luxury 2.7L No Start VIN: JS3TD94796 vehicle was towed in for no start,(first start of the morning) it ran fine until the no start customer pointed out...fuel gauge not reading (customer put fuel in it thinking it was out) we noted there is no "check engine" light even when key is switched on and... Trouble codes: U1100, C1091	View
	2001 Volkswagen Cabrio GLX 2.0L low beams VIN: 3VWDC21V81 veichle came to us with low beams flickering.lights on with key on, go off with hd.light sw.on. checked fuses,s1,s2,s3,s7,s8,s10,s11,s12.o.k.checked head light sw.looked wet inside,ordered new one, still inop.installed daytime running lamp relay,still inop.tes...	View
	2005 Volkswagen Passat GLS 2.0L MIL Lamp on, Limp mode VIN: WVWAE63B65 We received this passat after programing the key to this vehicle for a customer. Vehicle goes into limp in mode as a result it have reduce power. I have checked the circuit to the boost pressure sensor With Out Load and With Load. Those were the test results o... Trouble codes: P1592 (18000 005522 Altitude sensor Boost pressure sensor implaussible ratio)	View

Fixes & Summaries for All Makes and Models

	Fix/Summary	Answers
	2007 Audi Q7 3.6L shift lock solenoid buzzes VIN: WA1AY74L37 Phillip is right the TCM is in the transmission and part of the valve body or Mectronic unit. The voltage drop test I performed before posting directed me to a poor ground. But according to the wiring diagram, the solenoid is grounded by the TCM. So this ve...	6
	2003 BMW 760Li 6.0L MIL Lamp on VIN: WBAGN83483 We sent the car to the dealer 3 times and it still there. The first time They replaced both purge valves. The same code was back 1hr after the customer picked it up. The second time they replaced the canister. The same thing happened. So they gave the customer... Trouble codes: 276D, P0441.	4
	2006 BMW M5 5.0L Electronic VIN: WBSNB93516 We had already done the re-learn procedures with the AutoLogic scanner. The main problem with working on this vehicle is trying to get information. We felt the control unit could of been at fault. Customer wanted us to guarantee a fix if he let us install cont...	4
	2006 BMW 325i 3.0L right side power window VIN: WBAVB13506 Well this is my sons car and he has decided to live with it for now, they never use the rear windows anyway.I wish we had a test method on that hall sensor inside the window motor, which I suspect to be bad. He is not ready to try a $200.00 motor in the hopes ...	17
	1999 Dodge Intrepid 2.7L inj/coil VIN: 2B3HD46R0X Timothy and Dave hit it as a team !! This is what I love about IATN. Yes, the vehicle had issues before repair and yes it would crank with the cam sensor unplugged. New chains set and it was off and gone. Thanks guys, once again you made my day a h%^$ of alot...	6
	2003 Dodge Neon SXT 2.0L engine VIN: 1B3ES56C33 Big thanks to everyone for their suggestions, very helpful. After running a compression and leak down test found zero compression in cylinder 1. Valves were good, leak down would hold once rockers were removed. Found a bad lobe on exhaust side of camshaft for ...	16
	2003 Dodge Ram 3500 5.9L Knocking VIN: 3D7MU48C03 Thanks to everyone for your guidance. I really appreciate all of the replies. This one is fixed. I removed the injector and compression tested cylinder #6. The compression was good so I replaced the injector, and the noise is gone. I wanted to share a great ...	13
	1997 Ford F-150 Lariat 4.6L Steering Control VIN: 1FTDF1866V Thank you for all the replies. We started by replacing the Pitman Arm which had some play in it, then adjusting the play out of the steering box. We then took it down for an alignment. Alignment specs looked good so we had them check the wheel balance. Whe...	18
	1997 Ford E-350 Econoline XL 7.3L MIL Lamp on VIN: 1FBHE31F1V Thank you all for your help. Unfortunately this vehicle has left and not returned. I found a lot of literature that claims it needs to have more than 39 amps or the code will set which obviously I have. Many also said I need 80+ amps. I checked each glow plug ... Trouble codes: P1395 (Glow Plug Monitor Fault).	7
	2002 Ford Explorer XLS 4.0L Poor Idle Quality, Hesitation, Misfire, MIL Lamp on VIN: 1FMZU72E92 Well, i agree with the majority of you that this is out of time. Seeing as how, i only have misfires on 1 bank and only a rich code on 1 bank, the pass side must be out of time. I am planning on pulling the valve cover and seeing if i might be able to loosen... Trouble codes: P0172 (System Rich Bank 1).	17
	2008 Ford Taurus X SEL 3.5L power steering pump VIN: 1FMDK02W08 sorry for the delay. one of my techs was playing around with this and was not sure the level of info that was required to garner any help from the site. This vehicle has been repaired and it turned out to be the rack that was the culprit. Thanks for any and al...	6
	2008 Ford F-350 Super Duty King Ranch 6.4L Misfire basics basics basics.two new batteries have appeared to solve this problem.	2
	2008 Ford Expedition EL Limited 5.4L Drivers Window VIN: 1FMFK19518 We were lucky on this one ,the customer said she did not even know she had auto-up/down and said "when I want the window to go down,I push the button down and when I want it to go up,I pull the switch up" Some techs suggested that the problem was in the window...	7
	2000 GMC Savana 3500 5.7L MIL Lamp on VIN: 1GTHG35R2Y Thank you everyone for your input they were all helpful. We ended up changing the fuel pressure regulator with a AC Delco which bumped up the fuel pressure 3 PSI and we double checked the intake gaskets and made sure everything was sealed and good. We also end... Trouble codes: P0171 (Fuel System Lean), P0174 (Fuel System Lean).	21
	1999 Honda Accord EX 3.0L Hesitation, Misfire VIN: 1HGCG1650X replace fuel pressure regulator and clear codes. misfired is gone. recheck fuel pressure 36 psi with new regulator. the fuel trim is good. Trouble codes: P0300, P0302, P0303, P0305, P0306, P1399.	23
	2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland 5.7L MIL Lamp on VIN: 1J8HR68246 some good news, although it is questionable. the check engine light has not come back on so I have not gotten the car back since I last cleared it. however the trim numbers did not seem favorable when it left so I still may see it someday. Thanks for the hel... Trouble codes: P2096.	5
	2007 Kia Spectra SX 2.0L head lights VIN: KNAFE12117 Checked the charging voltage as some replied. Volts never get over 14.31 Volts. Grounds are good. Inspected wire harnesses as much as I could in the time allotted, factory securing still in place and OBVIOUS rub areas. Suspect headlight connectors, seem ti...	13
	1992 Lexus LS400 4.0L Hesitation VIN: JT753UF100 Thanks everyone for posts and ideas. The ECU was the problem, ECU has been repaired and fitted road test all good. Bruce	12
	1995 Lexus LS400 4.0L Lock up convertor, warning lights VIN: JT8UF22E3S Ok this one is fixed and I waited untill the deadline to make sure it stayed fixed.Sometimes you can't see the forest for the trees and logic simply does not apply. In this case I took this job over from a frustrated tech and should have taken a different, mor...	9
	2010 Lexus RX350 3.5L door locks VIN: JTJBK1BA7A After a lot of hair pulling. I have come to the conclusion that this problem in no way a result from the accident. I suspect that one of the three wireless imobilizers is getting a radio frequency of feedback that is unlock/locking vehicle. Customer is returni...	8
	1988 Mercedes-Benz 560SEC 5.6L Low beams VIN: WDBCA45D4J Well, The vehicle was at the body shop a few months prior, everything looked good, grounds, power leads so I started pulling fuses and fuse #10 is for the fog lights, pulled fuse, turn off lights, turned parking lights back on and presto no low beams. The fog ...	7
	1997 Nissan Sentra GXE 1.6L MIL Lamp on VIN: 3N1AB41D2V Found evap. pressure sensor was bad. Recorded a movie and found when evap purge solenoid was turned on there was now movement on pressure sensor. Trouble codes: P1447.	6
	2003 Porsche 911 Carrera 3.6L engine VIN: WP0AA29983 Hello, First off thanks again for all your information on this vehicle, very helpful and ultimately has this vehicle diagnosed. So the #6 cylinder is the issue. After replies from Ron [...], pointing me back to cylinder #6. I should of know...	8
	1999 Subaru Legacy L 2.5L Hesitation, Misfire VIN: 4S3BG6853X First a big thank you the Mark who took the time to call this Yankee. Many of the posts here on Suby misfire is MAF or Knock Sensor, and Mark had a great sugestion, which is to unbolt the knock sensor tie wrap it up off the motor, and see if the power comes up...	9
	1986 Toyota Pickup SR5 2.4L Alt. Gauge VIN: JT4RN67S3G Sorry for the long delay. the customer has yet to bring the vehicle back to me for further testing. thank you for all your replies !!	8
	1990 Toyota Camry DLX 2.0L MIL Lamp on VIN: JT2SV21E5L Thanks all for responding. Several of you forgot that this is an obd1 vehicle - understandable since it's been around for 17 years and it gives us so much more of what we need. The fp reg had been replaced previously and vac line doesn't even smell like gas... Trouble codes: 26 (a/f rich malfunction).	9
	2006 Toyota Corolla S 1.8L Air bag VIN: 2T1BR32E46 Sorry guys, not a lot of useful info from this one. We put the car together friday a week ago so owner could use it. He didn't seem to have a lot of faith in our ability & wanted the body shop to have dealer fix it. When he took it in they phoned & said it nee...	3
	2007 Toyota RAV4 Limited 3.5L MIL Lamp on VIN: JTMZK31V17 Sorry for delay, waited on right rear speed sensor pigtail for 2 weeks, i replaced both bank 2 sensors. for o2 sensor codes, and pigtail for right rear sensor not reading speeds at times. thank you for all the replies. Trouble codes: P0158, P1578.	6
	2008 Toyota Corolla CE 1.8L Excessive Emissions, Poor Idle Quality, Hesitation, Surge, Cuts out, Stall, Misfire, Poor Fuel Economy, MIL Lamp on Customer failed to inform that computer was just replaced under warranty. New computer was bad. Dealer replaced again for no charge. All is well	2
	1984 Volkswagen Rabbit L 1.7L Stall VIN: WVWCA0159E Thank you for all the suggestions on this little Rabbit. I tried everything that was suggested and it still came back to the engine acted like it had a vaccum leak. So we removed all the vacuum hoses to the intake ports and tried running it and it ran great. S...	8
	2003 Volkswagen Golf GLS 1.9L No Start VIN: 9BWGP61J13 Based on my repair experience and the replys received the cause of this problem is a worn fuel pump allowing a back flow of fuel to the fuel tank. It was suggested either replacing the T at the fuel filter return as this contains a 1 way valve which may help. ...	15
	2006 Volkswagen Jetta 2.5 2.5L radio VIN: 3VWSF81K16 got a lot of great responses. i am going to get the serial number and email a respondent for the code. thanks again guys.	7

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