Hi All It's been ages since I posted here and this forum has always been a fantastic source of information for me over the past couple of years (so Thank-you) I have searched through the forums but its now becoming a tad urgent. Anyway down to the nitty gritty. My '91 300 TT (auto) stalled last night and wouldn't start again. I had to leave it about 5kms from home (Rockdale area) parked up on the side of the road (safe for now) and need to walk there shortly for another attempt before I call out the tow truck. Problems started about 3 days ago when I was cruising along and the car stalled upon deceleration/braking all of a sudden. As odd as it was it took about 4 cranks and started again - running smoothly all the way home (I booked it in for auto elec in Rosebery for yesterday but didn't manage to get there due to breaking down) Last night the same occurred except I couldnt get it started again so had to leave it where it lay. IE: Driving along, car stalls, dash lights appear, power steering gets heavy, pull over to the side road. Tried cranking it but nothing (although one crank had a spark where it almost started but not quite enough) I'm not overly mechanical but understand the basics. The car turns over but I am getting no spark at all. The battery is brand new and has lots of grunt. I can hear the fuel pump priming when turning on the ignition. Car has half a tank of fuel. Car has had 100k major/timing belt and has been running really reliably since. Car has been boosting ok. No other noticeable problems at all recently. Pod filter installed 3 years ago without any issues After Market ECU (but installed 10 years? ago with no related problems) All fuses seem to be ok (inc. engine cont fuse) I have wiggled/tapped injectors but don't think it can be these as Im getting no spark at all (IE: hasn't been running rough at all and fires on all cylinders) Car has not been coughing/spluttering at all so not sure it's fuel related. The problem definitely seems electrical in nature like a loose connection or something. Question 1/ Is there anything else anyone can recommend for me to try when I walk down there this morning (I have limited tools available) to give it another go? Otherwise is a costly tow truck to the local auto elec/mechanic. Question 2/ Recommendations for a mechanic/auto elec in the Rockdale / Bexley / Kogarah area? Thanks in advance for any assistance! Cheers
hay man do you still have a s1 ptu if so I would start there if not I would be looking towards your fpcu maybe do a tempary bypass to see if that solves any issues. My money would be on the ptu though.
Check error codes. Sounds like a dead S1 PTU to me. Look in the tech section on how to use the diagnostics.
check that all the plugs to the ECU are all in correctly ,same goes for the plugs to the PTU and CAS.they may look like there plugged in correctly but can work their way loose .
Also check the cas sensor plug, when I got my car it was suspect and would do random cutouts, I found that the movement of the engine while trying to start it would sometimes make the thing work again, it took ages to identify the issue as it was very intermittent. (in my case this was not corrosion but it was missing the wire retainer and slipping out enough to break contact)
Update Cheers for the replies. I walked back to the car and it started first crank no problems! It drove smoothly all the back home. I have pulled the carpet back and currently looking at the ECU error codes. Will see what it comes up with and re-post. PS - one of the connectors does look a tad loose (circled red) Ta
ECU Error code 21 Error code 21 appeared indicating ignition signal circuit. I cleaned the connectors and re-tested the ECU codes and now get a 55 (normal operation) Re-checked again (to be sure) and I am still getting a code 55 yay! Car seems to be starting first crank (so far...) I will nurse it around the block a few times (cold start/warm start) and see what happens. Thanks for all of your help on the forum - I will post updates with the results. Cheers
Good news. As others have said , make sure you don't have a series 1 p.t.u as they can play up intermitatly so if you do have one get a series 2 off Vader or somewhere else. Do a search if you don't know the difference.
Great news that you didnt have to get it towed. As lots of others have indicated, get a S2 PTU the SI PTUs are prone to failing when they (the engine) gets hot. Good luck
and get an NRMA membership .. $100 or so per annum is damn cheap towing and you do not leave your Zed exposed to unspecified nasty elements ...
