clicking and stalling

[eoseitz]

Hi guys. I've read through all of the information I can find about the ecu and I'm still not sure what my problem is. A few weeks back I had put Bosch +4 in my car and it ran horribly. I took out the plugs and put NGK in along with new wires. The car ran great all weekend. However coming home last night this changed.

The car just randomly shut down while I was driving it. All the lights lit up on the dash. I was about a mile from home so I waited about a 1/2 hour and the car started up and made it home. The check engine light flashed on and off a few times though.

This morning I go to start it and the ecu starts clicking like mad and the car dies. I waited a few minutes and tried it again. It did the same thing. Finally I started it and left my foot on the gas so it wouldn't stall. After about 30 seconds the ecu quit ticking and the car ran. However, at stop signs it felt like it really wanted to stall.

I'm lost. I took my cat off a few weeks back when I installed my new turbo. Could it be due to that? Or is it a sensor, ecu, fuel problem? When I took the bosch +4 plugs out they were black. Doesn't that indicate detonation?

Any help is appreciated. Also, can the obd1 be read out if the cel is not on. The thing goes off when the car runs. Where can I have it read out? Autozone/Advanced Auto?

 

[eoseitz]

I just ran across something that got me wondering.

"Any interruptions of the power feed from the battery would cause the MPI relay to click and reboot the ECU".

This was taken off one the ecu clicking topics. I have a car audio battery in the trunk of my car that is connected to my main battery under the hood. Could this cause the MPI relay to reset? I didn't run the power wire the best way. At the time I couldn't find a hole in my firewall so I ran it through the fender and through the bottom of the door. Maybe its pinched and shorting. Or the car audio battery is causing power spikes.

Anyone think this could be an issue?

 

[Colt4G63 also]

If I HAD to make a wild guess based on my experience with these cars, I would say it's the ECU and MPI relay. I've had the problem exactly as you described at least twice. I always solved it with a used ECU, and this last one has lasted me 3-4 years of daily driving so far.

That being said, if it were a customers car at my shop I would rack up an hour and a half labor minimum on diagnostic time just to make sure it really WAS the ECU before I bought anything.

 

[eoseitz]

So do you think I should buy a new ecu or take it in to have it checked out first. I found an ecu at advanced auto for around $300. Seemed to be a good price.

I had my car checked out a few weeks ago. They claimed they did a full system diagnostic. They charged $40. I am wondering if they really did anything besides take my money.

 

[Colt4G63 also]

If you have an intermittent issue it my be difficult to diagnose. If it was running, and not throwing codes when they checked it, it would check out fine. Like I said,I put a used one in mine. It would usually click and freak out in the morning, but after I tried it for a while, it would reset and start running. Knowing that it wouldn't stay screwed up long enough to complete any conclusive tests, I opted to replace it with used. Obviously if it were a customers car and I bought an ECU and it still didn't run, I would have had a sticky situation.

If you plan to buy new, I would at least check that you have power and grounds at all the connections to the ECU where you should. Also you should check all the other pins to make sure they aren't shorted to ground or anything. If it starts sometimes this can be really touch and go.

There are like a hunrded pins or something, so you can see why I just said "the hell with it, a used ECU is only $30-$50 at a boneyard".

 

[eoseitz]

I finally figured out what was causing the issue. I really wouldn't have thought about this had I not noticed a slight clicking noise while inspecting my fuel filter.

I tracked down the noise to the boost actuator solenoid. The car was running horribly. I unplugged it and the car immediately straightened out. Test it a few times with it plugged in and every time it was plugged in the car missed and the computer kept resetting. Luckily I have a MBC ready to hook up, so I wont be needing this part anymore anyway.

 

[eoseitz]

I was wrong. After a day or two problem arose again. It was leaking caps in my ecu. Put a new computer in and the car runs amazing.