Date: Tue, 29 Nov 2005 12:25:29 -0500
Reply-To: Mountaineer <vgonman@BELLSOUTH.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Mountaineer <vgonman@BELLSOUTH.NET>
Subject: 2.1L ignition/FI woes!!
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Folks,
Been a long time since i posted to the list. This is a lengthy post.
I have the van of a local fellow that has a problem. It is a late 80's 2.1
with digifant. It is an automatic.He has electrical problems. I offered to
help him for there is no reliable place in our area to work on a vanagon.
Here is what i know for sure.
Newish battery. Has 13 volts.
I personally cleaned all grounds, and mounted auxiliary ground from pin 19
of ecu harness to block. I even used copper anti seize on the bolt to
ensure good connection.
Fairly new rebuilt afm. He had replaced temp sensor II as well. Distributor
was replaced with a rebuilt one in the past few years. Cap and rotor in good
shape and are correct. Coil has been replaced in last year or so.
I thought i had the problem nailed early on....the wrong spark plug wires
were on the car..........early vanagon wires were on , not the later pin
type connections. But i switched, and result s the same.
He admits to once reversing polarity on the battery for about 15 seconds
once. This the wire from the starter to the alternator, which i replaced.
Starter engages fine.
Now here is what is bizarre. I hooked up digitool this AM. The car cranked
right up. all lights on the digitool functioned and the car was running
well. Then, suddenly, it died. I turned the key and it fired back up, the
digitool showing this result. Then the car died, and would not start.
While turning the key i would watch the digitool..occasionally the coil
light and afm would flicker for a split second and the car would try to
catch....but it couldn't the coil/fi lights did not stay on.
I have 12v to the coil on the black wire. I have 12 v in the relay box the
engine compartment as well. I have ruled out the ignition switch, for i
have jumpered from the battery to the starter pin on the switch and then
jumpered hot to the coil wires......same result...no coil light on the
digitool. The wires are clean and well connected on the starter.......one
wire comes off of the spade connector on the starter and goes somewhere in
the engine bay.....I have wondered whether the starter solenoid is
malfunctioning and not powering this wire.
I also noticed that when i leave the key on , and go in the engine bay, i
can hear the relays clicking and i feel a vibration in the idle stabilizer
unit......I unplugged it and turned the key, and the same result.
I have unplugged O2 sensor as well, and same result. The car never runs
long enough to get into the part of the ecu that uses the O2 sensor anyway.
I am at wits end on this thing, for there is nothing that is obvious.
Adam P
))><((
Charleston,SC Coburn, WV
"Mountaineers are always free"