96 Tracker hot idle issue (MAF reverse engineered!) look!

[gorkyb]

Ok, so bought stereo for the tracker, got home and went to install, besides speaker wires and antenna, there are two wires, one hot at all times for the stereo memory and one hot when key is on acc, pretty straight forward (at least that's what I thought)

Finished installing harness, radio works somewhat ok (only grabs a couple stations) but then tried to start car and nothing, not even the commonly heard clicking on these cars, battery measures 12.8v, I have headlights, interior light, side blinkers and all lights go on dash, including cel. But not even the slightest attempt to crank or start, all fuses under driver's left knee and on right fender test good for continuity. When they key goes to the "on" position it makes a weird sound, not the usual noise of the fuel pump, it is the same "grasping" sound that it makes when I used to pull the FI fuse on the right fender when doing compression test. I guess next step is to measure all inputs to Ecu?

Something else I did before installing the stereo was to get to of a sunpro oil pressure gauge that po had installed, he had the copper tubing going through the firewall into the big grommet where all the thee wires go to Ecu, maybe when I pulled the tubing out I broke a wire or something?

[TRACKERHACKER]

By side blinkers did you mean turn sinals? I was just wondering if everything that was not working were things that would only run with ignition in run position.

[gorkyb]

Yes, turning signals, everything works, except the car doesn't start, no cranking neither, kind of when one tries to start without depressing the clutch, I'll check the basics this morning, clutch switch first.

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Edited post:
hehe, ok as you can see on the picture, I must have disconnected the red/blk wire going to the safety clutch switch when I was under the dash pulling the oil pressure gauge out. The buzzing of the fuel pump with key on still sounds different than before, but car starts and runs fine so...that's that. Unless it could be something in the fuel delivery system starting to go?

[fixkick]

mr. Gorky:
but the clutch only stops cranking, and never kills the CEL. (the cel glows keyon, clutch up or down, always)
CEL dead, means (intermittent in this case , suggesting lamp is good) means the main power to the ECU Died.
C35 pin 12/13 pair were dead. , key on.
seen here (left page)
http://www.fixkick.com/ECU/1996/EFI1.jpg

on a work bench, you can connect up 3 wires to the ecu and the ECU will glow the CEL
pin 12 on left page. above.
CEL lamp ( spare #18 lamp) at pin 14, (other lead to 12) and then ground the ecu at (right page) pin 1 or 14 right page.
the ecu boots up and glows the CEL.
(right page)
http://www.fixkick.com/ECU/1996/EFI3.jpg

you have 1 more bug. (sorry!) blue-black I think is going dead.
we can set traps to find them if you want. there are ways...
G117 ground bad , kills ECU too....seen on page right.
the traps id set are C34-p12 (find a way to add a wire here to the vast connections, on that blue-black
if you find it dead, then check main relay. (on heater box)
that relay has 4 pins, if any of the other 3 die, the relay drops out.
FI fuse is on such input. if the FI fuse drops out (as they love to do, on salt belt cars) then the relay goes DEAD.
also the Fuel pump relay and Main are same P/N so you can swap it, if the CEL stays on now, and pump dies, bingo bad relay.

one trick i do is take some 22 gage wire, (test wire) and strip both ends. then slide 1 bare end in to the pin under test and push on the connector.
i try to get the wire in the socket and then run to a volt meter, to catch the drop out.
extreme intermittent. if the car dies regular , then just back probe main, id leave the glove box off until the car is back running perfect.

ID be all over BLUE-BLACK ! and MAIN.

question, someone didnt put in HUGE AMP fuses in the FI or IGcoil locations? right? illegal fuses?

[gorkyb]

mr. Gorky:
but the clutch only stops cranking, and never kills the CEL. (the cel glows keyon, clutch up or down, always)
CEL dead, means (intermittent in this case , suggesting lamp is good) means the main power to the ECU Died.
B13 was dead. , key on.

you have 1 more bug. (sorry!)
we can set traps to find them if you want. there are ways...

Yes, this issue is not related to the Home Depot parking lot incident, I am carrying my tools now so next time it happens I can try to diagnose, interested to hear about those traps, if it makes life easier

[fixkick]

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the HL good, means
the main power in the fender box was good, (not necessarily the FI there)
it also means that power made it to the Ignition switch.
that is why wiggling the key , finds a bad Ign switch. here.
the Ign. switch is complex in that it power 3 main feeds in the, not only EFI.

finding bad feeds is always hard on cars. they make them hard to diagnose. I hate cutting wires to make T-Junction, ever time there is a failure.
that leaves only 2 choices, back probing , a live failure or the sneaky wire , using tiny wire , inserted at any connector pin of choice.
in the factory or shop that have breakout boxes (an intermediary connector that allows testing) not sold .

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watch out for relay reversals on the heater box. the pink wire is pump and blu-red relay is MAIN.
bug 2 comments.
more to come , will send , the Ignition switch page next.

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my comments are all for bug 1 ,post 29 and not bug 2 , start line dead (clutch switch)

all speedo lamps dead but, not parking lamps (2 dim bulbs in speedo work )

the main relay red-black wire (FI) is hot at all times. not going thru, key switch.

the main distrabution , shows, the ignition switch feeds blue-black to 3 fuses, wiper, turnback and IG coil. if the wipers and turn sigs work then the wire is hot here.
when the idiot lamps in the head go dead this means,(only them not wiper and turns) that means the IG-coil line is dead. the is black-white. and runs all speedo lamps , except (park dim)


that leaves the IG-COIL feed or loss of Blk-white power, this loss kills main relay dead, so the FI is not even used, with Blk-white dead.
i read all my huge section on 96 schematics, ill compress it and send it later.

the key switch was suspected, but is not that if wipers work and turn/backup.
that leaves only those connections exiting IG-coil fuse., black-white.
for sure , all that counts , runs off this wire, including MAIN. relay.
if pull glove box. and monitor this color wire there. this wire is failing , not main relay, because the dash lamps fail, main can not work at all.

a new IG-coil fuse, may be it has a hair line crack inside. it.

[gorkyb]

27.8 mpg max speed at 65 mph, mostly highway driving

[fixkick]

perfect.
the 2305 lb body + 1.6L , really sips fuel. if driven easy. ( sammi were 2090 2d/4wd)
happy trails.