QuestionQUESTION: First, let me say, I love my car! Not loving the money I have recently put into it. Replaced the following in Feb of 2005. Value vent, crank shaft sensor, vapor canistor and tie rods. Replaced the following in the last nine months. Battery, alternator, starter motor, distributor, wires,etc. as well as the transmission return line. Its been running fine. Driving down the highway a month ago and it developed a mind of its own! It started to "skip" never died out, just skipped between driving speed and no speed. The RPM needle was jumping and arcing and then the "service engine" light came in. Stuck on the highway, I kept driving and shortly thereafter, the battery light also came on. Brought it to three different places, got three different responses. One was the crank shaft sensor, one was the distributor, (both have been replaced). Third was the PCM (possibly). Makes sense that a bad PCM might give me the other false codes, but how do I know for sure. Different prices as well. $485 to install and reset to $600. Whats a girl to do. Can I replace the PCm with one from a "boneyard"? Had my car towed and was told my oil pan needs to be replaced. Can either of these things be easily replaced at home? Is there something I can do to seal the oil pan without replacing it. Oh, did I mention that my engine has 201,000 miles on it and it runs like a charm! Hate to throw in the towel but how much is to much. It's practially rebuilt already! Worth the continued investment if I eventually had to replace the engine? Still cheaper in the long run than a new car and the dreaded payments. HELP! Can I replace the PCM and oil pan without much difficulty and how would I reset it? Thanks.
ANSWER: What is the year, model, and engine of the car?
Roland
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QUESTION: It is a 1999 Sebring Convertible Limited with a 2.5
AnswerI wonder what the fault code numbers were if they read out your PCM at any of those shops. Did they give you the numbers? I doubt it is the PCM unless the number that readout was specific for that. If you can get a valid readout, that would be the way to go. You might try the ignition key to get a readout: "on-off-on-off-on and leave on" doing that in 5 seconds or less elapsed time. Then watch the odometer window to see if the mileage reading is replaced by new 4-digit numbers, which would be the fault codes. If that doesn't work then you can get a free readout at most Aurozone parts stores. Let me know what numbers you find to be stored in the PCM memory.
Is the oil pan damaged, or is it simply leaking around the edge? It is not a major job to remove and reseal it, but the starter motor has to be removed along with a couple of struts that connect the engine to the transmission. But it is not a job for an amateur. Let me know about any codes, and the specifics of the oil pan.
I think we can get to run right again without too great an expense.
Roland
