Rotary Rasp

iTrader: (2)

How much did the car cost you? This would be such a fun little project. How many miles are on it?

Spin9k

You checked all the fuses you can check under the hood, and at drivers footwell?, you looked in the ECU box and made sure there's no water?, perhaps even take the ECU out and apart to make sure no water inside if you find water in the box? If you can turn the engine over...ummmm...I would think that would be most of the battle...have your coils been underwater? you took your sparkplugs out and made sure no water inside?, and no water in the gas?, and the "engine" fuse is OK your sure?

there are really only a few things needed..

1) engine can turn over
2) fuel
3) spark
4) ECU working

4g63mightymax

Well......here is what I found....

- The engine only turns over IF you jump the starter relay. You absolutely can't turn the engine over with the key because of the security issue (I assume).

- All of the fuses are 100% good. I checked every single one under the hood and inside the car, and then I rechecked all of them over again. When I was done with that, I checked them a third time, (including that 15a engine fuse). If there is a blown fuse somewhere on that car, I will officially be a monkeys uncle.

- The ECU...... Ugh...... I took it apart today and the circuitry looks perfect. However, the metal box that it sits in has some corrosion on the edges of it. This basically tells me that it DID in fact see water at some point. I don't know for sure, but judging by the corrosion on the case, it probably did booo......

- The coils are an unknown. *IF the ECU saw some water, than the coils must have. However, I think the security immbilizer issue is where this all stems from.

- I have checked the oil, and it is used-looking oil that is at the correct level. Since the engine spins fine, and the oil looks normal, I am under the impression that water did not enter the engine. So, I haven't pulled plugs or looked for water in the gas. Once I can have the engine crank with the key, I will look for those things.

What else you got?

-Jeremy

Spin9k

Hey, have you taken the exhaust pipe apart somewhere...it would surely be filled with water to (not that that would be the problem discussed)?

Otherwise, only thing else I've got is my 'neutered ECU'. If that did get it working, you'd know the problem...and I couldl sell it at my cost if you can't get the real key. You'd eventually need a cat delete pipe for street use, as it is a "race flash" and will kill a CAT.

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

I dont get it, why cant you just bring the car and have dealership plug it into their WDS to see if the ECU is still alive.

Just pay 1 hour of labor, all problems solved.

4g63mightymax

spins9k - I would love to try a spare ECU to see if it starts up. The only catch is that I would really prefer a stock ECU once I get this car up and running. It will need to pass MA emissions and have a working catalytic converter

nycgps - The reason why I didn't / haven't done that is because of the "pain in the ***" factor. I would have to tow it both ways, AND I have never had anybody else work on any of my cars before.... So..... that is tough for me




Also, for those of you at all interested, here is a quick sidenote about myself since I am the new guy in the place: I was a technician at a Cadillac dealer in Woburn Ma from 2000-2003, since then I have been one of the product development guys for www.1AAuto.com. I have had about 17 cars, and a motorcycle. Currently I have a 1964 Impala convertible that I have owned for 12 years, a 1960 Pontiac Ventura that I'm doing a body off restoration to, a 1989 Ram 50 (Mightymax) that I put a fuel injected, turbocharged, DOHC 4G63 in (and it passes emissions tests!), a 2000 Galant that I converted from an auto to a manual transmission, and my 1988 Honda Hawk 650, which is.....interesting to say the least. You can see all of these creations on my website at www.hotrodcoffeeshop.com/forum if you're interested. (Not to mention some other projects I have in the works)
I know what brake fluid taste like, and how brake cleaner feels in my eyes (and mouth!). I have grease stains on my hands that can't be washed off, and I have been on fire more than once. The reason I mention all of this is because it is tough for a guy like myself to hand over one of my vehicles and trust it in the hands of somebody else, when I have never done that before. That is why I have been so determined to diagnose this without bringing the car to a dealer.

Thank you again for all your help thus far, and hopefully I have the pleasure of meeting some of you in person in the future!

-Jeremy

olddragger

iTrader: (3)

my kind of member---i understand what you are saying----on fire more than once--gotta love that one.
if the ecu took on water then the electric power steering did also--check it out when you do the ecu--? do all the lights in the dash go out ( the little warning lights?) if they do then the ecu is not completly fired.
you can pick a used one up but a dealer will have to set it up for your car--cant escape that one.
are you getting power to the ignition switch?
hooked an obd 2 scanner up to her yet?
olddragger

mazdaverx7

iTrader: (6)

although you havent lived until you've watched someone sit on a tray of used GL-5 and watch the tray turn from sitting horizontal to sitting vertical against the other person's back and watching the trans fluid pour down the back of their pants...*** crack completely exposed.. its been 9 years since i watched a friend do that. we were changing the trans on his 90 Talon Tsi.. i still rag on him to this day..

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

I see what you mean. but sometimes there are things that you simply can't fix at your garage. especially when its something thats computers-related

U might wanna ask if anybody local has the Cobb Access port, so at least u can see if u can flash your ECU with it.

4g63mightymax

olddragger - Yes, the electric power steering.... I have no idea if that will work or not. Is there a way to test it without the engine running? The lights on the dash are odd because some have never come on since I have owned the car, others come and go normally with the turn of the key. The entire right "pod" of the cluster is dead. Nothing in it has lit up yet. The left two seem to be ok though. I have a feeling that the cluster is partially dead. All of the engine related lights are the ones that don't come on. Coincidence? or ECU related? Anybody want to unplug their ECU and see what happens with the gauge cluster? Also, I have hooked up an OBDII scan tool to the car, and it won't connect. It just says that it cannot communicate with the vehicle. (Dead ECU?)

mazdaverx7 - That reminds me of when I stepped into my parents garage really early in the morning, and found myself standing with 1 foot completely submerged in a low-profile waste oil drain bucket. Not a good way to start the morning. I wrote THIS a while ago to describe a typical day in a "car-guy's" world.

nycgps - Good thought on the Cobb. I will see what I can find. I currently have all of my friends calling their friends trying to find somebody that can borrow a WDS from a dealer for a weekend. That would basically be sweet. If not, I will likely succumb to towing it to a dealer and handing them a fist full of cash to do something that I am completely uncapable of doing... reprogramming stupid (ok, fine, really really smart) keys..

Thanks guys, and as always, keep the ideas coming.

-Jeremy

P.S. I have the whole interior of this car stripped, can anybody benefit from pictures of anything while I have it all out?

olddragger

iTrader: (3)

sounds like the ecu has complety died.
the power steering should work if it is getting power--the ecu does give instructions to it--you do have dsc and traction control model i assume.
if the water was that deep then i would be wary of the power steering also---the main module is below the ecu--also the radiator fans may not work---guess all of that is to come once the ecu is replaced and mated to your car. that would be the 1st order of business
olddragger

4g63mightymax

Ok, at this point, I have an ECU and a new uncut key on the way. Once I get them, I will regretfully be taking it to the dealer to have them program the keys for me.

The good news (well... maybe?) is that today I did an oil change to it and while sliding around under the car I noticed bright green front springs! Sure enough, the front of the car has tein springs on it, and the rear of the car has stock springs! What the heck? Do people really do that?

-Jeremy

G3tR3DDY2GR3DDY

iTrader: (8)

so i guess you wont be needing ECU from me? or the other stuff? lmk please

zoom44

well could have just sent the pcm to racingbeat for their flash and remove the immobiliser. would be much cheaper than a pcm

Spin9k

I was told they could only disable that bit on an '04 ECU and only by installing their race flash on it...unless they've gotten smarter since ...

4g63mightymax

I read their website and that is the impression that I got also. However, I think my ECU is questionable at best, so sending it out to have it modified is risky to me.

-Jeremy

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

Oh yes some people are "stupid" enough to do that.

The previous owner probably some kind of moron ... moron ... oh since he is a moron, you might want to check and see if those Tein springs are Real ... there are quite a lot of fake Tein springs out there so ...

I just thought of something, have you try to plug any Can-Bus OBD II port scanner to the port ? Just to see if u can get any codes ?

olddragger

iTrader: (3)

yea he did that already and the scanner could not link to anything.
OD

4g63mightymax

Random question: What is the module-looking thing mounted to the transmission tunnel under the stereo. Has some yellow connectors going into it?

Thanks
-Jeremy

Spin9k

probably the air conditioner controller...I'll try and see if I can find that.

4g63mightymax

That would be very good! I was hoping it wasn't anything "important"!


So here is another update for you guys:
As crazy as this sounds, I actually talked to (and pretty much became friends with!) the previous owner that had the car when it was flooded! How crazy is that? So now I know the whole story behind it. Let's just say.....it got wet.

As for the tein springs on the front and not the rear.... Apparently he installed the full set of springs and there was some rubbing in the rear, so to get an immediate fix, he threw the old springs back in. One thing led to another, the car gets flooded, and biggity bam, I now own the car with mismatched springs.

Now that I know the full story, I think my guess at the dead ECU is probably right. The new one arrives tomorrow, and hopefully I can get it to a dealer within a few days after that. I really want this immobilizer problem out of my life.

I cleaned up the rear seats this evening and they look really nice. I can't wait to reinstall them this weekend. I also took the front seats apart because I couldn't get them to dry properly. So, they are currently hanging in my basement with a dehumidifier running full blast next to them. It worked great for the rear seats, hopefully it works for the fronts. The only crappy thing is that the metal seat pans have gotten a little rusty, and I had to cut out all the hog rings. Luckily, I have done seat upholstery stuff in the past and I still have a box of hog rings laying around. As for the rust.... I coooould sandblast them, but its cold outside, so I think I may just use a couple scotch-brite pads to clean them up, then I will shoot them with some paint to prevent rust in the future.

Anywho, thats my update....

-Jeremy

jjc3925

iTrader: (1)

hey man goodluck in getting that thing running. I am also in MA....im in Tewksbury. basically like 10 minutes away from NH

4g63mightymax

Now that I am an Rx8 owner, I am always on the lookout for others in my area. When I get this running, am I supposed to give other 8's "the wave" or "the nod"? I picture it being like that, maybe it is just my wacky imagination though.

UPDATE TIME!!!:
I got a new ECU today, and plugged er' in. Guess what?! The fuel pump cycles and it gives me a security code 23 instead! To me, that seems like a very positive sign. I also got all new padding for the carpets, so I can reinstall most of the interior this weekend. I am pumped!
Last night I took apart the seats, so they are going to be "hanging out" until they are 100% dry and clean. Gosh, I actually feel like I am making progress now!

-Jeremy

Spin9k

I've had my driver's seat apart and the metal is bare and it was rusted too, I think that's normal I wouldn't worry much, it's covered up anyway. I do remember getting the seat leather back on was a bitch...but then I added some extra padding to make a better bucket for the track.

How about what happens when you put the key in and fire her up? Does it crank?

4g63mightymax

Sadly, the engine still does not crank. The key definitely doesn't match the ECU now that I have one from a different car. However, I do get the code 23 security light instead of 16, and I can finally hear the fuel pump turn on, which is a good sign.

-Jeremy