Chrysler Repair: auto shutdown relay, plymouth acclaim, 91 plymouth acclaim

Question
The codes that show up or 12, 42, 11, & 55 in that order.  Code 12 I believe is battery disconnect which I did a few weeks back.  Code 42 is about the auto shut down relay.  I remember reading about code 11, but it was something about starting problems and just assumed you would get that code if you tried to start the car after having the relay problem.  I dismissed code 11 and maybe should not have.  Since code 11 did show up, do you think it is the distributor causing the problem and if so, do you think it is the pick-up or how is the best way to diagnose the problem with the distributor?

I've put one new and one used relay on and neither fixed the problem.  Since the fuel pump I know is good when you put power directly to it and the relay seems to be okay, I keep thinking about the distributor.  I'm hoping that maybe it is simply a part that needs to be replaced and exhaust that area before I start checking blown fuseable links and wiring problems.   

Thanks for your help.


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Followup To
Question -
Re:  91 Plymouth Acclaim, 2.5L, automatic

You responded to a relay problem I was having and I've not had a chance to check everything out.  Hoping to this weekend.  Did have a couple of additional questions.

The auto shutdown relay controls the oxygen sensor, fuel pump, fuel injector, and the coil.
If one of the four goes bad, does it shut down the relay so the other 3 do not work?  From some reading I've down, if the power control module does not receive a signal from the distributor pickup, it shuts down the relay, but would that only give you trouble code 42 which is the relay?

Thanks.
Answer -
Hello M. Johnson.
Only the failure to receive the signal from the distributor pickup sets a code 11 AND shuts down the power to the items that you described via shutting down the ASD relay. A mal- function of the oxygen sensor, the fuel pump, the coil, or the injector will not cause the ASD to shut any of them down. The 42 code would only be set if there was a problem with the ASD or its circuit, not its normal and intended function. Please feel free to ask a followup question if this answer is not clear.
Roland

Answer
Yes, the 11 code is the most important because it says the pulsation signal from the rotation of the camshaft/distributor shaft is not being received by the engine controller, so it can't produce a timing pulse to the ignition coil. So that is the first order of business. You can check the electrical connector from the hall effect sensor which is located close to the distributor body, and then once you have it open you could go further and check for the continuity of the 3 wires all the way to the 60-way plug at the controller. The black/light blue goes to pin 4, the gray/black goes to pin 24, and the orange goes to pin 7, though each of them pass thru other disconnects along the way so if you don't get continuity on any of these wires you would want to check their respective disconnects.* If the wiring checks out, then it is appropriate to buy a new hall effect sensor and install it in the distributror(remove splash shield and dist. cap, rotor, and the next item below is the sensor; simply change out the old for the new; no need to remove distributor or re-time it, etc. though if you have a timing light it would be prudent to verify that it still is at 12BTDC with cooland temp sensor removed, warmed/at idle.)
That will most likely get you back on the road. The 42 may have been set up by your work with the ASD relay if for example you cranked it over with the relay removed, or one of the relays you tried was defective. If it doesn't start with a new hall effect sensor, then checking out the ASD circuit is in order. Write me about that, if necessary.
The Hall effect sensor is about $40, and they do fail from time to time.
Roland
P.S. You can get a sense on the state of the ASD and the Hall effect sensor by simply measuring the voltage at the + post of the ignition coil during a 5 second cranking. If you get 12 V for 1-2 seconds, then you know the ASD is o.k. but the hall effect sensor signal is not getting thru because the engine controller takes a couple of seconds to decide that it isn't getting the signal before it shuts off the ASD activation coil. If you don't get 12V at all during the 5 second crank, then the ASD circuit/relay may also be bad. If you get 12V for the full 5 seconds, then neither the hall effect nor the ASD are bad and the problem then is related to the spark coil or its wiring.
*The pin assignments on the 60 way-are as follows:
Hold the plug with the pins facing you, horizontally with the short tab up. The left hand top row is #1 and on across to the 20 at the right hand end, then back to 21 at the left hand middle row, etc.