2G Dead Forever, Impossible to fix...

[4g63mightymax]

This is a story of a car that cannot be fixed......if you can figure it out, You are my hero forever. You also deserve some sort of lifetime achievement award.
A few weeks ago I posted this problem, and I was told it was the ECU, and I agreed......got a new ecu, and I still have the problem. Here is the Story...

My friend was driving his 95 Talon AWD 5 speed when it started to sputter and cut out. He tried saving it by pushing the clutch in and reving it up, but it died as soon as the clutch was pushed in. He then started the car back up, pushed in the clutch and the car died.....so he did it again.....he did this three times while waiting for the tow truck.
It is then towed to my house because I am his local DSM mechanic (never again). I find that the car has no spark, and no fuel (which is odd since he started it 3 times). The MPI relay is working, the coil gets power, but the ECU doesnt seem to be grounding it like it should. Same deal with the Fuel Injectors, they get power, but dont pulse because there is no grounding through the ECU. I tried a different coil and power transistor with no luck.....I replaced the ECU and it sparked the plugs and pulsed injectors for about 10 seconds of turning the engine over......then it stopped and wouldn't spark again. At this point I was baffled so the car sat for about 3 days. After a few days of thinking, I went back out and turned the engine over and it had spark and fuel again!........but only for about 10 seconds.....then it was gone. This has happened 3 times.

The question is: Why does the car spark and pulse fuel correctly for 10 seconds and then quit for 3 or 4 days.......and miraculously start sparking again for another 10 seconds.
I have checked all major grounds, the fuel pump turns on, all the fuses are good.
ANY HELP OR IDEAS IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!!!!
Thank you very much in advance!
Jeremy

 

[1998GSTAT]

Try checking the cam and crank sensors. I had the same problem with my Diamante. The car started up, then the cam sensor died (got eaten by a belt), it threw a CEL and ran like crap. Turned the car off and it wouldnt start back up. NO fuel or spark. You could reset the ECU and it would give fuel and spark for a few seconds then no more. It took me 3 months to figure out the first time.

 

[NitrousBob]

CAS .. I had the same problem on my 91 gs.

 

[GSXanimal]

check and recheck all the wiring from the ecu throughout the engine bay,including grounds,it sounds like a relay that heats up and kicks off ,something electrical is overheating , but without seeing the car its hard to have a clue,wiring can be a real bi*** I know,best of luck

 

[4g63mightymax]

Now this is a stretch, but is it possible that crank walk could have taken out the Crank angle sensor causing this whole problem? That would make sense because when he pushed the clutch in, the crank hit the crank sensor and killed it. I am told this car has a low milage crate engine in it, so I cant imagine it walking, but I am a 1G guy so I dont know a whole lot about it. Any input? I know that the red wire going to the sensor has 12v, the black wire is ground, and the blue with white stripe has a 5v reference signal.....
any ideas?
Thank again
Jeremy

 

[luv2rallye]

Now this is a stretch, but is it possible that crank walk could have taken out the Crank angle sensor causing this whole problem? That would make sense because when he pushed the clutch in, the crank hit the crank sensor and killed it.

...and the blue with white stripe has a 5v reference signal.....

If crankwalk is severe enough, yes it will definately take out the crank angle sensor since the sensing blade will then start cutting through it (see pic on post #3 in http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=143349 ). The blue/white stripe wire is the signal wire to the ECU and should be pulsing between 0.4 - 4.0 volts while cranking (connector on). While idling it should be between 1.5 - 2.5 volts.

 

[wagman]

I sort of had the same problem with my 1g......the car had spark and the fuel pump would turn on and the car would start for ten seconds then sputter out.....i tried changinge the fuel pump relaya nd tat wasnt it ...but it was the ground wire that goes from the ecu to the fuel pump relay........maybe that can helpp....i dunno.......

 

[bleacf1b]

I had the exact same problem with my 1g. All the wiring was fine. All the sensors were fine. The ecu was fine but no power. What it came out to be was the body control module (BCM). It controls all the power to every thing in the car from the ecu to the coil to the power windows and anything else. It's located behind the passenger side kick panel. As soon as I had this repaired, the started right up and has worked great ever since