Hey guys! Been meaning to join this forum for awhile, but had too many other irons in the fire.
First about me: I'm almost 60. Live in Missouri and can't wait to move back to Seattle! I very mechanically inclined. For the last ten years I've been into the older BMW e21 320i sedans. I've owned 2 and my current '78 is my pet project. I've rebuilt the engine from the block up in 2006. I pulled all the EGR stuff and drilled tapped and plugged all the ports, and put on a header. 4 years later the oil pump died and I spun a bearing. Since that time I swapped out the 4-speed manual for a 5-speed, replaced the front and rear suspension as well as the control arms and tie rods. I put in an all new sound system with all new wiring. At the moment, I'm just waiting to get the engine bay painted before I drop the engine back in after the 2nd rebuild.
So as you can see, I know my way around the wrenches pretty well. My failure point, however is electrical issues. They drive me bugchit and I have NO idea about using a voltmeter.
Story on the car;
I met my wife in Texas in 2008. She moved here to Missouri to marry me and trailered her 1998 Marquis up here when she moved. She said the car started to overheat and when I asked her about what happened she said that she was told it had a plastic intake and that it had cracked. So, fast forward to 2009.She gets the car here. I found a retrofit kit on Ebay for $200 and she and I replace the intake.Prior to all this she said the car ran fine. Okay, back to the story. So we got that done and then the car won't fire. Turns over but won't start. Come to find out the in-tank fuel pump is shot. So I buy that and get that installed. The wires to the battery are disintegrating near the posts so I replaced those. Our Forrd Ranger needed a battery so we could sell it so the brand new battery went bye-bye. Last year I put $10 of gas in but with no battery to start it, it sat until today.
Today I go and buy a new battery with 850 cranking amps. The car turns over but won't fire. I turn the ignition off and go reset the switch and all the power drops out when I go to turn the ignition on again. So I'm checking fuses and I find nothing. I have a fat, thick 1998 Crown Vic/Gran d Marquis Service Manual I bought some time ago and it mentions a Powertrain Control Module. The manual says it's in the engine compartment on the passengers side of the dash. I couldn't find it. I pulled all the fuses and put them back one at a time. No change. Then I see something on the drivers side that is a panel with three relays and the panel slides out of this plastic case. I reset those relays. Still no interior light with the door open so I go to try the key again and I have power. I try to start the engine but the second I switch the key to on, the power drops out again.
So, give me some ideas. First off, where is this PCM the manual talks about? Are there any other relays to be concerned with? Reset switches? Where do I go next with this? As I said before, in 2010 after we replaced the intake the engine cranked just fine. It's sat several years now and I can't seem to keep power. I don't see signs of rodents or mangled wiring.
Thanks guys and I hope I can get to the bottom of this quickly! I need to have this car running as the Bimmer is months down the road before it's done. I'm disabled and I go to college full time.
UPDATE: I found a wire that is suspect near the battery terminal. I can get it to turn over now. It acts like it did before, like it's not getting fuel. When you guys turn the ignition to "ON" can you hear the fuel pump engage? Is there a certain sequence I should do when starting when the lines have been empty of fuel?
First about me: I'm almost 60. Live in Missouri and can't wait to move back to Seattle! I very mechanically inclined. For the last ten years I've been into the older BMW e21 320i sedans. I've owned 2 and my current '78 is my pet project. I've rebuilt the engine from the block up in 2006. I pulled all the EGR stuff and drilled tapped and plugged all the ports, and put on a header. 4 years later the oil pump died and I spun a bearing. Since that time I swapped out the 4-speed manual for a 5-speed, replaced the front and rear suspension as well as the control arms and tie rods. I put in an all new sound system with all new wiring. At the moment, I'm just waiting to get the engine bay painted before I drop the engine back in after the 2nd rebuild.
So as you can see, I know my way around the wrenches pretty well. My failure point, however is electrical issues. They drive me bugchit and I have NO idea about using a voltmeter.
Story on the car;
I met my wife in Texas in 2008. She moved here to Missouri to marry me and trailered her 1998 Marquis up here when she moved. She said the car started to overheat and when I asked her about what happened she said that she was told it had a plastic intake and that it had cracked. So, fast forward to 2009.She gets the car here. I found a retrofit kit on Ebay for $200 and she and I replace the intake.Prior to all this she said the car ran fine. Okay, back to the story. So we got that done and then the car won't fire. Turns over but won't start. Come to find out the in-tank fuel pump is shot. So I buy that and get that installed. The wires to the battery are disintegrating near the posts so I replaced those. Our Forrd Ranger needed a battery so we could sell it so the brand new battery went bye-bye. Last year I put $10 of gas in but with no battery to start it, it sat until today.
Today I go and buy a new battery with 850 cranking amps. The car turns over but won't fire. I turn the ignition off and go reset the switch and all the power drops out when I go to turn the ignition on again. So I'm checking fuses and I find nothing. I have a fat, thick 1998 Crown Vic/Gran d Marquis Service Manual I bought some time ago and it mentions a Powertrain Control Module. The manual says it's in the engine compartment on the passengers side of the dash. I couldn't find it. I pulled all the fuses and put them back one at a time. No change. Then I see something on the drivers side that is a panel with three relays and the panel slides out of this plastic case. I reset those relays. Still no interior light with the door open so I go to try the key again and I have power. I try to start the engine but the second I switch the key to on, the power drops out again.
So, give me some ideas. First off, where is this PCM the manual talks about? Are there any other relays to be concerned with? Reset switches? Where do I go next with this? As I said before, in 2010 after we replaced the intake the engine cranked just fine. It's sat several years now and I can't seem to keep power. I don't see signs of rodents or mangled wiring.
Thanks guys and I hope I can get to the bottom of this quickly! I need to have this car running as the Bimmer is months down the road before it's done. I'm disabled and I go to college full time.
UPDATE: I found a wire that is suspect near the battery terminal. I can get it to turn over now. It acts like it did before, like it's not getting fuel. When you guys turn the ignition to "ON" can you hear the fuel pump engage? Is there a certain sequence I should do when starting when the lines have been empty of fuel?
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