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Okay, to sort out some misinformation/understanding….and I can totally understand where you guys are coming from-I tied the trigger voltage for the solenoid that allows power to start and run the E fan. I’m using a dual solenoid set up at the moment, where I’ve tapped into KOKO power with a 20 amp fuse to trigger the fan and am running power to the fan itself directly off the battery accessories port on the fuse block ( engineered in for conversion van conversions )
In short , the fans are wired in in a similar fashion to a factory installation. I could get the computer to control the solenoids for the fans, but I don’t have the programming capability to do that. And as far as the computer goes, it’s running pretty much the same as a 2001 Chevy Express van, with the tire size and fuel tank size changed to accommodate for the different sizes to keep the fuel and speedo accurate. Also, since the Astro only had 1 rear 02 sensor, it was simply removed from the fuel mapping, as well as the EGR valve. This type of mod has been done dozens of times, and as a base tune, the van has run beautifully. It starts immediately, idles @ 650rpm smoothly and doesn’t belch out a plume of black smoke upon heavy acceleration. I was getting 15.56 mpg consistently with it until this code hit…the last tankful returned 14.87mpg, so I’ve lost half a step.
The bigger issue for me right now is the smell of exhaust in the van after driving it for a few miles, which makes me question the exhaust donuts. I had to pull the exhaust down to bore out the O2 bungs on the dual exhaust because the original holes weren’t drilled large enough for the new O2 sensors. I reused the donuts as they seemed to be in really good shape still, being that the exhaust had just been put on the van recently. There are no catalytic converters on the van either ( MN doesn’t require them currently…no inspections ).
I took video of my scanner with freeze frame and running PID data. I will get it loaded to my youtube account and post it back here tomorrow/today. Short term fuel trim was hovering around 5-7 on bank 1 and 3-5 on bank 2 if I recall correctly.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXW0bx_O … ature=plpp
Not sure how to post links here, hope this works. My favorite sales pitch…definitely LOL.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDjmylmX … ature=plpp
How NOT to remove a car from a snowbank….
My favorite tool? That’s a hard question to answer when you have so many, but I’d have to say that the tool I turn to a lot is a stupid self adjusting wrench my wife bought me for Christmas many eons ago. It’s one of those spring loaded type that bite like a pipe wrench, but the 3/8ths ratchet version of a pipe wrench, if you know what I mean. It’s great for things like rounded off rear brake line fittings or things you need to get a little extra bite on it, or metric and standard just don’t seem to get a good enough grip on. I bring it to the junkyard everytime I go.
My favorite tool to get? A garage. I’ve been working outside for far too long ( over 15 years ) and I need a space. The day my garage gets built and I open the door for the first time is going to be a major celebration. Many a beer will be spilled on that floor before the first drops of oil are, let me tell you what! C8-)
Pulled the doghouse off and did some checking. Some of the questions answered first though. The cone filter is a Spectre non oiled filter. You refer to the oil getting on the MAF sensor causing problems with it being able to read properly. I have cleaned the MAF with MAF cleaner, but I think I will give it another shot as I did not reclean it after I blew a load of tranny fluid out of the vehicle during a catastrophic line rupture ( 6 quarts blown out ) I did notice a little oil residue in the bellows when I was servicing it during the E fan installation.
Every connection I could find inside the engine compartment appeared to be functioning properly.. the PCV was replaced earlier this summer because it was being very noisy, though to be honest, I wasn’t hearing the buzzing noise it made even after replacing it now that I think about it, and it is on the cylinder bank that is giving me the freeze frame data, though that should affect one bank like that as it services the entire engine block.
I did both a fuel pressure test and a vacuum test. I’ve got video of the fuel pressure test and the vacuum test gave me 18 in/hg @ idle with a rock solid needle, it reacted to throttle input as one would expect it to, pretty much the same way my fuel pressure gauge did. I replaced the fuel filter last weekend with the thought that maybe I was having a restricted flow problem and couldn’t deliver enough fuel. The fuel pressue test confirmed that I was getting the pressure I need, though I did not perform a flow test to see if I was pumping the amount of fuel needed. However, since the problem is at idle and not under load, I don’t suspect a fuel delivery problem being the culprit…even if the pump has the whine to it.
One thing that drew a curious flag was a small spring on top of the intake manifold just sitting there. I don’t recall seeing it there before, but I can’t put my finger on what it could possibly belong to. It’s 2 1/2 inches long and about 3/8 to 1/2 inch in diameter and it’s a pretty weak spring..very flexible like something you’d see holding something in place, more than something that would help reset something to a position. Short of it possibly being from under the dash when I took the doghouse off, I can’ t place where it would/should go.
I’m going to upload the video I did take and then post it here so you guys can see what I’m dealing with…I might be overlooking something simple.
Nope, no solution yet. I did shoot a quick couple of videos with my cell phone though. I had hoped it was going to be something simple, like a hose disconnected or something.
What has me perplexed is the fact that the van was running perfectly, no codes, none pending and then I install the e fan and now I’m getting this code, which I hadn’t gotten before. I’m getting the code at idle, the freeze frame data is at idle. I have a custom programmed computer, but just a baseline program. I had the rear 02’s deleted and the EGR disconnected as I was having EGR codes initially when I got the van. We don’t have emissions testing here, so I wasn’t worried about that causing problems. It’s physically there and hooked up electrically, but the computer doesn’t control it, it stays closed.
I have a true dual exhaust and the drivers side ( which is the freeze frame data code ) exhaust smells rich and I get vapor out of it with a little “exhaust smudge” on the bumper above it, whereas the passenger side is much cleaner and blows clean…smells normal @ idle.
The one thing I found odd though, I pulled the doghouse off and on top of the intake manifold was a thin gauge wire spring about 2 1/2 inches long and about 3/8ths in diameter. I’ve been in there often and never noticed that before. I can’t imagine what it goes to, if anything…but my bat senses tell me to look into it further and try to figure out where that could have come from.
Not being a professional, I always look at my tool purchases in this regard….pay good money for good tools when you need to depend on them every time. Maybe not so much when they might get used a half dozen times in my lifetime.
The accumulation of tools is a lifelong quest. Tools get lost, tools get broken, tools get modified to get the job done when you don’t have the specific tool to get it done. I don’t care about what brand tools I have more than that they get the job done and more importantly, that I can FIND THEM. Tool organizers are a must. I hate searching for the right tool when I’m in a junkyard because I have a hundred of them in one metal box and I have to sift through it to get to the one I need ( if I remembered to bring it along…did I? I don’t remember…I thought I did. There it i…nope, that’s not it. Damn it, did I forget to put that in there?
See what I mean? Nothing worse than finishing a job and looking in your toolbox and not knowing if you got all your tools back.
Oh, and make sure you get a good magnetic retriever and extendable mirror set so you can find those tools when you drop them into the engine compartment!
I had to restart my tools due to theft. I had craftsman and ended up buying a set from Home Depot ( Husky brand ). Can’t say that I have been disappointed with them, that’s for sure.
As far as actual tools that you are going to want to have, there’s the odd ball ones that make a lot of sense. In particular, tool retrieval tools, whether it be magnetic or a telescoping mechanical claw. Don’t forget mirrors with telescoping handles and swivel ends to see where you dropped the tools, and to see where you can’t get an eyeball otherwise to diagnose a problem ( like a leaking water pump )
I really like having my magnetic tray also, it prevents me from whacking a bucket full of bolts and spilling them everywhere.
Another tool that I have really become fond of is the dogbone wrench. It’s sooo nice when you are doing oil changes! You’ll always have the right size socket to get the drain plug off! Every quick lube place should have one IMHO.
Buy specialty tools when you start finding yourself working on a particular type of car often. You may find that where you work, you run into a ton of one particular brand of vehicle over others and having the specialty tools for that brand make some sense. Everyone would love to own their own MAC/MATCO/SNAPON tool truck, but it’s just not feasible. You just have to make smart purchases. Pay good money for tools you will use often, find the cheaper alternative when you find something that you will only use in a blue moon.
Well, all those products came from somewhere before they were marketed to the public in their own special marketable containers!
I bought a nice bottle of it at an auto value store for $25 and haven’t looked back. I’ve been using it like crazy since I found out about from Eric’s videos. No more sticking calipers for me!
I got to get a hands on demonstration on using an O scope on an ignition system to show what a good looking cylinder looked like next to one with a fouled spark plug. It was interesting. Like anything, it would take a little getting used to reading the wave forms and learning what a clean signal looked like and then being able to tell what the dirty signal was telling you. It’s old school, but so is using a vacuum gauge to diagnose the mechanical integrity of a motor. Just because the cars are computerized, doesn’t mean the old techniques can’t be used, because at the heart of the beast still sits that old ICE block refined over a hundred years.
Let’s see if we an get some more information on this problem…specifically this. You say the vehicle starts and runs for 10 seconds and then dies. Will it always start for 10 seconds and then die, or did it start for 10 seconds, die and now won’t restart? That is going to help steer any online diagnosis tremendously. If it’s a replicable problem everytime you start the ( attempt to ) vehicle, it changes where we want to start looking in regards to the component(s) that control the fuel delivery.
Have you checked to make sure that you haven’t kinked any of the fuel lines by accident? It may run for 10 seconds and then starve itself for fuel afterwards if the line had been kinked and is now restricting fuel flow.
If it starts and runs for 10 seconds, it’s likely not the fuel pump, it’s likely something shutting OFF the fuel pump, or the ignition. Like Eric said, the alarm system comment throws up a flag, you’ll wan to make sure it’s disabled, especially if it’s an aftermarket unit to make sure it isn’t interfering with the engine management system.