Soobkicker Posted August 31, 2006 Share Posted August 31, 2006 87 GL wagon, SFI. Had a plugged fwd cat. Yanked it, fired it up to see flames upon decel! Took it for a test romp to wake up neighbors and confirm that bad cat was causing power loss above 3K. Confirmed! Pulls hard all the way to 6K! After winding out 4th gear, shifted into 5th, let off some, and suddenly quiet with NO power! Felt just like somebody hit the kill switch. Lights still on, oil press good, 1/2 tank gas: push in clutch, rpms quit. Coasted to stop. (Did I mention it was dark, and we were way the hell out in BFE with vulture-sized mosquitoes??) She cranks normal, but won't catch. Towed home, all fuses/fusible links good. Cap/rotor good, rotor spins when starter cranks, so it's not T-belts. Horn works.(sounds anemic, but it works) Re-seated all connections going to/from dist and coil, No Joy. Checked all my pockets, can't find spark anywhere. Please send help before I troubleshoot further with BFH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syonyk Posted September 1, 2006 Share Posted September 1, 2006 You don't actually say where you tested spark. Pull a plug, ground it, have someone crank the engine while you look for spark. It could be a bad fuel pump or such. -=Russ=- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthWet Posted September 1, 2006 Share Posted September 1, 2006 +1 on spark check. Afterwards, if spark, try some carb-cleaner/starting fluid to see if it will show signs of life. Blowing fire back towards pump, lines and wiring??? See if you have pressure to injector, connect green connectors near wiper motor and turn on ignition, listening for fuel pump cycling on and off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soobkicker Posted September 1, 2006 Author Share Posted September 1, 2006 "connect green connectors near wiper motor and turn on ignition, listening for fuel pump cycling on and off." Those green connectors have been plugged together since we bought the car 3mos ago. Are they supposed to be DISCONNECTED at some point?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soobkicker Posted September 1, 2006 Author Share Posted September 1, 2006 "It could be a bad fuel pump or such." There was no sputtering or hestitation when it quit, it was rolling steady when it stopped like someone flicked a switch. :cool: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sister7 Posted September 1, 2006 Share Posted September 1, 2006 Are they supposed to be DISCONNECTED at some point?? Yes, they should normally be disconnected. They are used to check stored codes and to set your timing (and to listen for the fuel pump like NorthWet suggested). If you do verify that you have no spark, check for voltage at the coil. If you do have voltage at both sides of the coil, I would suspect that your ignition impulse amplifier is bad. It's the little transistor at the bottom of the coil bracket. Also note that this bracket acts as a ground, so make sure it's clean and tight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daeron Posted September 1, 2006 Share Posted September 1, 2006 the green ones are actually for the diagnostic mode, there is also a white connector next to them that needs to not be plugged in. the white ones are to check the memory on the ECU for CELs, and the green ones are to set the timing and to use the ECU diagnostic mode. have you had an annoying check engine light? the CEL should come on after a minute of driving with the green connectors plugged in... thats the cars way of telling you that it is trying to say something with the blinking LED on the ecu, underneath the dash... but its only telling you something, because you asked for something in having the plugs together. alot of us learned this the hard way, dont worry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soobkicker Posted September 2, 2006 Author Share Posted September 2, 2006 Well, there's 12V on both sides of the coil. I pulled it and ohm'd it from + to - and got about 10 Ohms. + to center tap, 1MEG, - to center cap 1Meg. Good. Checked the amplifier with Fluke/diode checker, and it's good. Yanked the coil and bracket, scrubbed/cleaned connections, re-assembled. Connector to ign amp was crusty, so I sanded/cleaned the blade connectors and WD40'd the female side. All to no avail. Time to check the ECU codes: Pulled dash panel, there's the ECU. Connected (again) the green test connectors by washer motor, turned on ognition: No flashes from little red LED. Disconnected green connectors and tried again. No lights. Tried white connector near green one, no lights. Swapped horn fuse with washer fuse, just cause, NO JOY. SOunds like I need another ECU.... Anybody got one handy??? If not, what's the running price for one?? Does anybody even CARRY these things anymore?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthWet Posted September 2, 2006 Share Posted September 2, 2006 I don't see any reference to you doing Syonyk's suggestion that you physically check for spark. (First posted response.) And, oh BTW, does your horn work? IIRC, ECU and horn share the same fuse... Edit - just saw that you played with horn fuse, but didn't say if horn worked before or after... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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