Northern Auto Tech - ECU and Blue & Me Repairs

Technical Stilo Abarth won't start; Ignition key off in MES?

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Technical Stilo Abarth won't start; Ignition key off in MES?

PhilStiloAbarth said:
Thanks again for your input. I've measured the wires of the CAM sensor, it all seems to be OK. It receives the correct voltage and even though I don't have an oscilloscope to see the exact signal it gives, I was able to measure that it gives pulses towards the ECU. The coil packs receive their 12V feed but don't receive commands to fire. I've tried testing this with a spark plug outside of the engine and I've measured it too just to be sure. The cambelt has been renewed recently, the only problem is sourcing the CAM locks for the Abarth engine. Here in NL this is seems to be mission impossible for some reason. I haven't tried asking the local dealer to loan them to me though. I can see in MES that the fuel pump is engaged whilst attempting to start, my sense of smell can definitely confirm this :D

I'll report back once I've made progress.
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OK - glad you've backed up some of the electronic checks with physical checks. I don't like and try not to become too reliant on the laptop stuff as what the computers see and command doesn't always translate into the physical workings of the motor.
 
dtimmins1985 said:
Did you set latency to 1ms in com port driver settings.

I had same issues as you and you will have the same issue with win7 if you don't change the settings under the com port driver settings (in device manager)
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I adjusted the latency settings on the computer, alas there are no noticeable differences, ignition key value remains OFF.

Artermis said:
OK - glad you've backed up some of the electronic checks with physical checks. I don't like and try not to become too reliant on the laptop stuff as what the computers see and command doesn't always translate into the physical workings of the motor.
Click to expand...

Couldn't agree more to that.

I'm still hunting for the right tools so I can check the engine timing, I hope to do this job this weekend.
 
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I mentioned earlier that I cleaned out the fuse/relay box, here's some pictures of that process:

Looks like a good clean won't hurt



And now I was sure:



Didn't expect it to have this many parts:



Looks a lot better now:



Job done!

 
Well, I've checked the timing. It's spot on. It injects petrol fine, it just won't spark and I'm at the point where I'm fresh out of options.
 
I'm trying to take another look at the ignition system. The crank sensor works fine (brand new and verified), the ECU feeds power to the ignition coil packs. When connected to the pack and ignition turned on, I measure 12V on both the outer wires of the connectors, I assume the middle wire is the pulse wire for firing the spark plugs? What value should be measured on the pulse wire?
 
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Are you measuring voltages with the 5 wiring plugs connected, or disconnected from the coils? If measuring while connected, you could be reading 12v feed-through via the coil primary windings.

According to the wiring diagram, pin 1 (various colour wires) of each coil connector should get a negative switching signal controlled by the engine management ECU. Pin 2 (should be all brown wires) should have a permanent earth connection with or without the ignition switched on. Pin 3 (should be all yellow wires) should have a permanent 12 volt supply via relay T9 and fuse F22, when the ignition is switched on.

According to the wiring diagram and connector descriptions, the wiring plug pins may not be numbered sequentially, i.e. pins 1 and 2 could be the outer 2 of the 3 pins and pin 1 the middle pin. Just to confuse the issue even further, the switching wires to pin 1 of some of the coils, could be yellow, the same colour as pin 3.
.
 
Davren said:
Are you measuring voltages with the 5 wiring plugs connected, or disconnected from the coils? If measuring while connected, you could be reading 12v feed-through via the coil primary windings.

According to the wiring diagram, pin 1 (various colour wires) of each coil connector should get a negative switching signal controlled by the engine management ECU. Pin 2 (should be all brown wires) should have a permanent earth connection with or without the ignition switched on. Pin 3 (should be all yellow wires) should have a permanent 12 volt supply via relay T9 and fuse F22, when the ignition is switched on.

According to the wiring diagram and connector descriptions, the wiring plug pins may not be numbered sequentially, i.e. pins 1 and 2 could be the outer 2 of the 3 pins and pin 1 the middle pin. Just to confuse the issue even further, the switching wires to pin 1 of some of the coils, could be yellow, the same colour as pin 3.
.
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I measured connected. Thanks, this helps! I'll check things out tomorrow!
 
Hi guys, fisrt of all apologies for going silent. I've solved the problem by buying an Alfa Romeo 166 :D (that car is absolutely amazing by the way, I truly love it!).

I just wanted to say thank you for your help in trying to solve this, I know now it's a fault in the camshaft position sensor circuit, but I got fed up searching for the source of the problem whilst being in need of a reliable daily. My Abarth will soon be going to either somebody who wants to continue working on it or it will be scrapped. Again thanks for the help, I really like this forum! Cheers!
 
PhilStiloAbarth said:
Hi guys, fisrt of all apologies for going silent. I've solved the problem by buying an Alfa Romeo 166 :D (that car is absolutely amazing by the way, I truly love it!).

I just wanted to say thank you for your help in trying to solve this, I know now it's a fault in the camshaft position sensor circuit, but I got fed up searching for the source of the problem whilst being in need of a reliable daily. My Abarth will soon be going to either somebody who wants to continue working on it or it will be scrapped. Again thanks for the help, I really like this forum! Cheers!
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Sorry to hear you never got to the bottom of it.

Love the 166s though.

I had a 2001 166 3.0 V6 Super with a manual box some years ago. Real under rated car and to this day the nicest most luxurious place i've ever sat on four wheels.

Post a couple of pics of her!
 
There you go :) You're right about it being luxurious, what a great car to be in. Really does feel special.
 
Well that's scary. That looks virtually identical to the 166 I had. even down to the wooden steering wheel. Same colour, same interior, the lot. Obviously mine being UK is RHD but that's the only difference I can see.

Nice car. I'd have said the interior was even better than the A8 I just sold. I have my ICS rigged up to play video / DVDs too. Less technical and not as man features but as a place to be the feeling unrivaled.

n630950359_5023047_5168_zpsahawf82f.jpg
 
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Artermis said:
Well that's scary. That looks virtually identical to the 166 I had. even down to the wooden steering wheel. Same colour, same interior, the lot. Obviously mine being UK is RHD but that's the only difference I can see.
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Thanks! Well that was unexpected haha! When I started searching for one I saw this one popping up and immediately I fell in love with the paint and colour scheme. That faint purple/reddish glow on that black base paint (Nero Vulcano) is so nice, especially in the sun, and with those rims and the tan interior and wood I was sold. It really does feel like it's in a class of it's own when driving doesn't it? There are times when I'm just driving along for work and such, being moody because traffic is terrible after a hard day at work. And the suddenly some detail in the interior catches my eye or I hear the engine grumble and woosh and poof I'm in my happy place :) never had something like this before.
 
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