Question-------------------------
Followup To
Question -
I have a 1996 Crysler T&C while transmission sitting in park it cut off and would not restart? Any info would be valued. Thanks
Answer -
Hello Greg,
The typical approach to a 'no start' is to determine if you have a spark. Because I don't know which engine you have let me give you one approach that works for all: take a phillips head screwdriver with a plastic handle and insert the metal tip of it into one of the rubber caps that you can remove from a spark plug (don't pull on the wire, just grasp the cap itself, rotate it back and forth while pulling to free it from the spark plug). Once the tip of the screw driver is put in the cap so as to touch the wire clip at the bottom of the cap which normally touches the tip of the spark plug, hold the 'assembly' via the plastic handle and position the shaft of the screw driver about 1/4" from the cylinder head of other metal part of the engine which is in contact with the head or block of the engine and which serves as a ground. Then have a helper crank the engine while you observe whether a spart jumps across the gap from the screwdriver shaft to the metal ground point during a 5 second cranking period. See if you get spark for 5 seconds, 1-2 seconds or not at all. Then we can take the next step in diagnosing the no start.
You might also want to check the engine controller for any faults it may have observed and stored as two digit code numbers. Try using the ignition key: turn it "on-off-on-off-on" and leave it "on" (doing this quickly, no longer than 5 seconds). Then watch the 'check engine' light to begin flashing, then pause, flashing, pause, etc. Count the number of flashes before each pause and keep track of the numbers. Repeat the readout and verify the counts are correct. Then group them in pairs in the order that they came out, thus forming two digit numbers. You may notice that the pause is shorter between the digits of a given number, and longer between the numbers themselves. Then send me a 'follow-up' question telling me the results of your readout. By the way, 55 will be the last number (two groups of 5 flashes each) and that is the code for "end of readout".
I have the troubleshooting manual for several of the engines and we can look up the possibilities of what is wrong based upon what fault codes you show.
There is also an essay on fault codes at the site:
http://www.allpar.com/fix/codes.html
which gives the meaning of the code numbers. But then you need to get specific info for what exactly might be the diagnostic tests or parts to replace to complete the repair. When writing back tell me the engine and displacement if you happen to know it.
Roland
Use my email: rfinston@hotmail.com if I am shown as "maxed out".
FOLLOW UP
Hello Roland,
THE mechanic got the van started After changing spark plugs but now it has a hard vibration while running in P/park so we did not try to drive it. I have the code from the check engine light and it is 12/43. Thanks
AnswerHi Greg,
That hard vibration along with the code 43 means that one of the "primary" circuits that operate the low voltage side of the spark coil is not functioning properly (not drawing sufficient current to operate the high voltage secondary winding of the coil that produces the spark, thus the vibration). There are either two or three such circuits depending upon whether you have a 4 or a 6 cylinder engine (each circuit operates 2 spark plugs simultaneously). There are also 3 possible reasons for one of the two or three circuits to be bad: the primary winding is shorted or open, the wire from the engine controller to the winding is open or shorted, or finally that the control circuit for the winding (called the "driver");located in the engine controller is bad. The likelihood of each of these three possibilities is probably in that order: coil most likely, controller least likely.
If you have an ohmmeter you can check out each of these possibilities easily. It would be good to determine which of the pairs of spark plugs operated by each of the 2 or 3 circuits is the bad one. You can do this by idling the engine and in turn pulling one spark plug cap off the spark plug (twist and pull on the insulator at the plug not on the wire itself) and noting whether the engine idle remains the same (which means that plug IS one of the pair that is impaired in its function) or if it gets even worse or dies (which means that plug and its mate ARE working properly). Once you do that, you can focus your attention with the ohmmeter on the circuit you have identified as being the one at fault. The wire colors and corresponding pins of the electrical plug-in to the spark coil depend upon which engine you have. So if you want to try and troubleshoot this yourself write back and tell me which engine you have.
Otherwise a mechanic who is specializing in engine electrical/tune ups can diagnose the issue pretty quickly.
It is possible that the mechanic who replaced the spark plugs accidentally disturbed the electrical plug or wires, but that is hard to know; it may be that the problem you now observe was the cause of the "no start" as well, and that by changing the plugs he improved the operation of the other cylinders enough so that the engine will now idle, though roughly. Either way, some more diagnosis is needed on the primary sides of the spark system.
The code 12, means that the electrical power to the engine controller was lost sometime in the recent past (50-100 ignition key cycles). If the battery were disconnected, for example, that will cause that code. On the otherhand, if to your knowledge the battery cable(s) haven't been disconnected then it would be worth checking the clamps and the terminals at the battery to be sure they are clean, shiney, and clamps are on tight after you inspect them. You might also use some anti-corrosion compound on the terminals which you can get in a tube at an auto parts store.
So that is how I interpret what you describe and the codes that you read out. Let me know if you want to do the troubleshooting yourself with an ohmmeter but tell me which engine you are working with. There is a good chance I have the wiring diagram for it. Otherwise, go back to the mechanic who put in the plugs, or if you don't think he is too competent limp the car into a auto electric/tune up shop.
In either case I would be curious to see how this is resolved.
Roland
