Hey folks. so what entails the ultimate "no start" issue. lol

Well my situation is probably one of the most awkward no starts in existence that i have stumbled upon. Its gonna be a long synopsis, but i hope i can finally get to the bottom of this.

So heres the jist of it.
My car is low mileage.. under 20k mi.
I had the odd little issue with the alarm module back in 2018, which was fixed with a new alarm module (common battery leakage issue).
End of 2019, literally a week before storing the car for winter, i had this random no start issue (turn key dash comes to life as normal but no crank, no starter energization.). i realized it was likely a old battery (original since i owned the car; 8 years at that point). and surprised it even lasted that long, keeping it on a mantianiner really extends it life.
Anyways, parked the car for the winter with it on a battery maintainer in a climate controlled garage until end of 2021.
End of 2021, with the original battery, car wouldnt crank for the few first times (no starter engagement, but battery was not weak or low charge). then after a few minutes of fussing around, car started, but was in limp mode, and had to use the interlock tool to allow shifting into drive/rev.
Did a RCM re solder, did not solve any issues but there were visible solder cracks (gotta love the 2000's ROHS garbage).
Swapped in a new battery and issue seemed to have gone away. Likely a module needed a restart by disconnecting and re-connecting battery. All was good, or so i thought.

end of 2021, decided to store car again, but with battery disconnected/removed because i ended up keeping it on a maintainer away from the car with all my other batteries that get charged during our downtime winter.

Fast fwd to today.

Uncover car, and get it ready for atleast a few months of summer enjoyment. Drop new charged battery in. Key in, everything seems normal, but back comes the same no start when key turned (no starter engagement). Dash and everything else comes to life as normal.
A bad skreem moduel supposedly allows 3 starts, but then stalls. I am getting absolutely no response at all.
Even without the car starting, the transmission shift interlock is still not dis-engaging which is odd even when turned to key position 3 (acc), and brake pedal depressed.
Pulled out pulse module (starter and inter-cooler pump relay), checked for solder cracks, none to be seen, re soldered all connections to be sure). Same no start issue.
Heres the kicker....
With Key in 3 (ACC), and manually pressing starter relay on pulse module, engine starts and runs!
But car is clearly in limp mode with the dash lit up like a christmas tree.

Things to note, when running, brake lights are not operational (turn signals and driving lights are all working), and transmission is in limp mode, engine runs fine. The park/neutral ~3000-3500 rpm rev limiter doesnt seem to be enabled which is also interesting.

In the next few days ill be getting my witech micropod DRB 3 emulator going and seeing if i can try and diagnose any issues that route.

My possible suspicions.. (still looking over wiring diagram to reverse engineer, cant find the shift interlock solenoid anywhere to use as a starting point)
- defective module on canbus line causing erratic noise?
-power feed issues to BCM?
-bad solder joints other then on RCM or pulse module.

Any others have any ideals for more in depth higher level troubbleshooting. Always a fun ride with this car.

 

Small update.
After having to "manually" start/stop the car a few times, i now finally have a check engine light thrown. Pull codes, generic P0600 serial communication link code.
Got DRB3 up and running, it also is having issues connecting to any of the modules.

Pulled the BCM and checked for any cracked solder joints. All looks fine with that module.

Now to ponder some more lol

Oddly this thread experiences almost the same symptoms
https://www.crossfireforum.org/forum...0600-code.html

But. i have trippled checked the RCM, and soldered all joints and also tested all the relays for continuity. all seems to be in order......

 

Have you checked ground connections and the RCM?

 

Open the Relay Control Module.
Reinstall.
Turn the key to the ON position.

Two of the middle relays should be closed. Are they??

 

New update.. I decided to spend some more time on the RCM.

On the bench it went and i thought i should check relay "activation".. low and behold one of the relays is completely dead.

As per pizzaguys photo: https://www.crossfireforum.org/forum...hat-n-rcm.html



Traction Control relay #2 is defective on my RCM.. there is no signs of burnt coils or such. On the dmm, it reads 5+Mohms.. so yeah its bad.
TC#2 and EC#3 both get activated from the same circuit. so both should activate when powered.

Now to hunt down a replacement. i would think digikey sells similar pinout orentation relays?

 

Update agiain.

Issue fixed! knock on wood.
I temporarily swapped the horn relay with the TC relay, and car starts and runs as expected.

How a relay could have intermittent coil operation is suspect. usually a failure is consistent.

Anyways, on the hunt for replacement relays. Any info would be appreciated.

 

Sorry didnt see your post untill now! lol

Who would of funk a defective relay after such low mileage, and it being an intermittent issue (typically a failed coil on a relay is not hit or miss).. But weirder things have happened.

which is why my initial run of bench testing all turned out good...

Ive been out of following the xfire scene for the past few years, so slowly catching up on the common issues, and more "in depth" issues

The relay itself didnt have any burnt or broken windings on the outside, so very odd to see an internal failure of the coil.

 

There is a thread with solenoids part number in it. By the way the photo is what I put in that thread.
See the PDF in post #1 below.
CLICK

 

Also, DJTIGHE rebuilds them for about 60.00.

 

Bingo! thanks for that, ill go on the hunt and see if i can locate those relays.


On a side note. did about 300mi these past few days without a hiccup.. Nice to have a reliable car again lol