Vanagon EuroVan
Previous messageNext messagePrevious in topicNext in topicPrevious by same authorNext by same authorPrevious page (July 2008, week 5)Back to main VANAGON pageJoin or leave VANAGON (or change settings)ReplyPost a new messageSearchProportional fontNon-proportional font
Date:         Thu, 31 Jul 2008 18:12:01 -0700
Reply-To:     Evan Mac Donald <vanagon_dad@SBCGLOBAL.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Evan Mac Donald <vanagon_dad@SBCGLOBAL.NET>
Subject:      Re: ECU and lean idle
In-Reply-To:  <48924AC8.4050801@gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1

Have you looked at the contact surfaces on the ECU, where the wiring harness connects? If there is any corrosion / crud on the contacts, that may cause this. I also had a heck of a time once with mine, when I found the contacts were bent up, and were only making intermittent contact at the ECU. Drove me crazy, because it was on-again-off-again. I had never had the ECU off, so I never suspected the contacts were messed up. Your "magic" ECU may have cleaner contacts, or it may just have the contacts in a slightly different aliggnment, and so makes better contact.

Mike Elliott <camping.elliott@GMAIL.COM> wrote: Yesterday I posted about the problem I have with my 84: after it's warm (barely), it doesn't idle well, it starts to act like it's missing, the rpms spiral downward, and it dies. It also has this huge flat spot when accelerating from a stop. Usually. Not always.

This is something I'd like to have tidied up before I head out of here and begin our move to Bend, Oregon, on August 10.

So my local shop stuck a sniffer on it and found that when it gets weird like that, the mixture is way lean. They tried this and that, including another O2 sensor, jiggered with the air flow meter, then eventually popped in their test ECU and the problem went away, the van drove great. Put mine back in, and the problem returned.

So okay, the problem is the ECU, right?

Not necessarily.

I have two other pieces of information that suggest otherwise. First, a loaner ECU from a nearby Vanagon guy didn't fix the problem (although I was really paying more attention to fuel economy at that time, so maybe it helped? Don't recall). Second, the O2 gauge on the dash doesn't show any lean condition.

So maybe the loaner ECU was also whack in the same way, and maybe the dash O2 meter is not seeing what their sniffer saw for some reason?

That's two out of three ECUs that show the problem. A small sample with a 66% failure rate.

I can't deny the fact that the engine was much happier with their ECU. So here's my plan:

1. I asked the shop to tune the engine to work well with their ECU, had them put mine back in, and drove it home this afternoon. Boy it runs like doo-doo right now, but the shop owner is willing to pop his back in and show me what a peppy little puppy the van is with everything working so I think I'm ready for:

2. In a couple days, I'll be receiving a couple more loaner ECUs from fellows here on the list (thanx, guys!) and also hope to visit the automobile graveyard in Otay Mesa (near San Diego: wrecking yards covering hundreds of acres, cars packed behind chain link fences -- that's a Superfund site in the making!) and if I'm lucky I can pull a couple more ECUs.

So unless my service shop has a magic ECU, I'll find one that works swell. But even if I don't find a good one, (and here's the cool thing) the shop owner is willing to let me borrow his ECU for my drive to Bend and ship it back when I get there. Nice guy.

Once there, I can try a few more ECUs, and if that don't work, then maybe even buy a rebuild. Looks like Bus Depot has the best price, at $300 vs $405 (Bus Boys) and $430 (GoWesty).

BTW, they put the van on the lift and poked around and didn't find anything that might cause worry on a 1,000 mile drive towing a little utility trailer. Other than the fact that I'll be doing that in 24 year-old vehicle.

--

Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott 71 Type 2: the Wonderbus 84 Westfalia: Mellow Yellow ("The Electrical Banana") 74 Utility Trailer. Ladybug Trailer, Inc., San Juan Capistrano KG6RCR


Back to: Top of message | Previous page | Main VANAGON page

Please note - During the past 17 years of operation, several gigabytes of Vanagon mail messages have been archived. Searching the entire collection will take up to five minutes to complete. Please be patient!


Return to the archives @ gerry.vanagon.com


The vanagon mailing list archives are copyright (c) 1994-2011, and may not be reproduced without the express written permission of the list administrators. Posting messages to this mailing list grants a license to the mailing list administrators to reproduce the message in a compilation, either printed or electronic. All compilations will be not-for-profit, with any excess proceeds going to the Vanagon mailing list.

Any profits from list compilations go exclusively towards the management and operation of the Vanagon mailing list and vanagon mailing list web site.