Engine Control System Failure Light

[Matt]

Hi All,

I appear to have a problem with my Bravo, Whilst driving from Bristol to Leicester yesterday the Engine Control System Failure light came on (somewhere along the M42), it stayed on until later that evening going off after a couple of short trips around Leicester.

Also the water temperature seems strange at the moment, normally it stays fixed at about half way between Cold and Hot (normally slap bang in the middle of gauge) its all over the place at the moment, heaters are still blowing out hot and cold air.

Anyway, as I said, this all stopped after a couple of short trips around Leicester but has now come on again on the way back from Leicester to Bristol (came on again on the M42!).

Does anyone have any ideas what may be wrong? Its a Bravo 100 HLX, 2001 with 37k on the clock, nothing out of the ordinary was going on before this trip, except I topped up the water.

Thanks in advance,

Matt.

 

[Matt]

bump

 

[LightWarrior]

topped up the water for the radiator? check the expansion tank isn't too full. the water expands when hot, so you shouldn't really fill it right up to the max line. how much water did you add? if it was lots, then you should top-up the coolant fluid too, not just water. Tom might recognise your problem...

 

[Anonymous]

I think it may have been filled up too far, probably up to near the max line (will need to pop outside and check though).

Would this cause this warning light?

Thanks,

Matt.

 

[Matt]

Hi All,

Well this morning I have started the car and the light didn't stay on!

Not sure if removing some of the excess water or resetting the ECU helped (did this but the light stayed on) but atleast it is gone for now.

Thanks,

Matt.

 

[Matt Sheppard]

Hi Again!

Well I made another journey up the motorway last weekend and i'm sure you can all guess what happened. The warning light came on and the temp guage had dropped to about a quarter of the way up........

A couple more short journeys and everything returned to normal.

Does anyone have any ideas? Coolant levels all appear to be fine, car drives normally around town travelling to work and back only seems to go wrong on a long journey (60+ miles in one trip).

Called the local Fiat dealer, and they want to charge £65 to check it out!!

Any suggestions would be really appreciated.

Thanks,

Matt.

 

[Tom]

Did the temp drop before or after the light came on?

Going to Fiat for a Diag is usually the easiest option as it could be one of many things. You'd spend more than that in time and parts trying to fix it yourself without actually knowing what the problem is.

 

[Matt Sheppard]

Hi Tom,

Not sure if the temp dropped before or after to be honest.

I'll book it in to be checked out, I think it'll have to wait until after Christmas though

Thanks,

Matt.

 

[Tom]

Does it run rough when the light is on?

 

[Matt Sheppard]

No, the car runs exactly the same when the light is on, bar the fact that the temp is lower than normal and the light is on......

Most strange eh!

Matt.

 

[Anonymous]

"Also the water temperature seems strange at the moment, normally it stays fixed at about half way between Cold and Hot (normally slap bang in the middle of gauge) its all over the place at the moment..."

I had the same problem about 2 months ago. The Fiat dealer told me that it was a faulty earth. A common broblem in Bravo, Brava and Marea, as he said. He tightened the earth connections and after that no problem.

Check it, just in case.

 

[Tom]

Which earth connection as there are hundreds.

 

[Anonymous]

The earth connection of the dashboard.

 

[Matt Sheppard]

Would a dodgy earth connection cause the fault to disappear after a couple of short trips? Surely it wouldn't just come on during long trips?

I will check though, anyone know where the earth connection for the dashboard is or should I refer to Haynes?

Matt

 

[Tom]

I'd doubt it. A dodgey instrument earth would affect the fuel guage too.

 

[Anonymous]

It happened to me once, same as yours during the long journey. It was dirt at the connector of the fan relay & connector to the fan. After cleaning those connectors, problem solved. Sound unlogical but problem solved!

 

[Matt Sheppard]

I'll give it a go.

Thanks,

Matt.