B16 electrical issues

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yeah I see what you mean,
I wish I was 100% sure it was my ecu thou cuz the more I look at my slim bank account the more i realize that if its not I will basically be screwed!
I wonder if my car can cause damage to an ecu? it seems wierd that the ecu would go out just like that.
 
I know ECU's can go bad but have never ever experienced it or know someone who did.

Maybe run an LS ECU for awhile? (they're cheap)

Or search and wait to find a cheap re-programmed ecu
 
So after all of this crap I think I found my problem to be the alternator, well the voltage regulator. I ran the car at idle and it was running like crap as usual out of curiosity i unplugged the voltage regulator plug from the alternator and the car started running fine plugged it back in and ran like crap again. So hopefully after I get this new alternator in I'll have my solution.
 
I get prematurely excited so I will have to revive this topic. The problem is not fixed,
I installed a new alternator and it did not fix the problem.
I got a p30 to run my car and that did not fix the problem
I still have the same issues car runs fine in the morning and when first starts up even after reaching the operating temp.
With the high temp outside car starts to act up or when driving hard.
New symptom: engine surges when coming to an idle, it surges between 800 and 1200 rpm (roughly), it only does it for a while, after a while it goes to regular idle.
If the car is running rough I can turn my lights, or A/C fan motor, or windshield wipers on and the car will run better for a while.
If I unplug the green connector out of the back of the alternator the car runs fine, plug it back in runs like crap.

I appreciate any input
 
Man....man......man this sucks

Check the IACV and TPS (I know you replaced them but check again)

Also look into whats connected to that damn alternator.

Wonder why your symptoms went away when you borrowed that ECU (maybe it was a fluke?)
 
Yeah maybe, maybe its like you said the ecu fooled me cuz i didn't use it for a long enough period of a time.
Today I checked the coolant temp sensor with a multimeter reading at 2500 ohms, I need to do this test again as close to the operating temp and when the car cools down.
I also tested the ignition coil it read 1.1 ohms on the primary and 18,300 ohms on the secondary
Further I tested the ICM which also checked out fine.
The IACV... while the car was idling (like crap) I unplugged the sensor, and there was a drop in idle and still ran like crap
I have a sawed-off cold air intake lol on the car that was previously on the d-series (its diameter is smaller than TB so it has a stepdown coupler) it makes a whole lot of noise lately at idle both when running fine and when running horrible, also had the filter off today put my hand in front of it and i thought i was gonna loose it, its got more suction at idle than my vacuum cleaner at full blast.

Also this has to be ambient temp related. For the last week it has cooled off down here to the upper 70s and the car was running until yesterday when it got hot again (upper 80s mid 90s)and I had to drive an hour, within the first 15 min it has started messing up.
 
As far as the alternator the plug is for the voltage regulator and it works with the Electric Load Detector (ELD) and the ECM the correct power within the cars electric system I think still not sure exactly how I would appreciate if someone could elaborate on this thanks
 
Those ohm readings seem crazy!
Get online and look for Helm manual for your engine.
Sometimes you can find it on a share site in a zip drive

This way you will know what things should read when you test stuff.
I would think it would be a volt measurement for the coolant temp sensor.
The temp thing could be fooling you. Wait until its nice and cool at night
and drive the crap out of it to see if your hypothesis is correct.
 
The value seems high because most books list stuff in kiloohms, so it would be 2.5 for the CTS and 18.3 for the secondary ignition coil check.
I followed a haynes manual when i did all of those the coolant temp sensor is basically a resistor and to check it you check the resistance between th two prongs in the sensor, than you check if the signal send wire is giving of 5 volts, the resistor reduces the voltage and the second wire, reciever wire sends voltage back to the ecu and based on the voltage drop the ecu registers the temp.
As far as driving the crap out of it. I drove it fairly hard this morning (it was cool), i hit v-tec about three times while going to work and the car ran well for the duration, with the exception of the surging idle.
 
Check out the IACV and the coolant line going to it. This may be the problem b/c hunting idle can come from there and it has radiator fluid going through it
 
I pulled the IACV off today and found out one of the hoses was leaking ( got scallded like a hell) so i fixed that. the IACV was clean no dirt on the mesh and the little plunger looking thing was also clean however, i don't know what is a good way to test this,
the haynes manual said that once the car is at running temp pull the IACV plug and the idle should change significantly, well i did this and nothing happened. This leads me to think that its bad but i am not so sure cause its new.
My question is how do I test the IAC valve
Thanks
 
thats very good information, but I don't think its my IACV after all , i was messing with it today it did seem to have an effect on the idle, also try to set the idle and it did not fix the problem .
I still think my problem has something to do with the charging system. The only think i haven't changed is the ELD the test in the haynes said to 2.5 to 3.5 volts on the ecu wire when I tested it I got 2.11 volts when the low beams are on
 
But did you see in the article where it talks about all those other things (like a/c) that are associated with the IACV?
 
yeah this would mean that the IACV is working right?
I mean the car runs like crap until I turn on one of those accesories therefore it is allowing more air into the intake, so I guess the car needs more air to run correctly.
Which would mean the TPS is bad or the MAP sensor right?
 
Just try to get a hold of an OEM IACV Or read the article and find out how to check to see if its a problem.
did you change that hose with a tear in it?
 
I fixed that hose, but I have been reading around and some people disconnect the water supply to it all together-- wierd. I am looking around for sale threads right now.
they are ridiculously expansive new. talking about like $175,
which cars can I use them off of?
 
Ok, so this is pretty wierd.
Today I changed my oil, it needed to be done and replaced a vacuum hose (from intake to pcv), i go to take the car around the block and its running ok for a while but I notice that I got a cel. I get home immediately and check the cel I got 2 codes code 14 - IACV and code 23 - knock sensor!!!!!!:rawr:
well i check to make sure I have proper amount of oil in the car or if any is leaking, the oil is at a good level and there are no leaks.
I reset the ecu and crank it up, no more cel , - wtf car stop playing games with me!!!
Should I be worried about the knock sensor??
What triggers that to go off?
 
Knock sensor could have come undone at the ECU

IACV...well...like I said...change it.
 
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