1999 4.6 thor not turning over .

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boycie

boycie

Active Member
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538
Location
Silver end Braintree ESSEX
Hi Folks
I need your help again ,got in from work this evening went out to move my P38 it opened with the fob no problem put the key in the ignition turned it on no problem , turned it to the start position nothing not the click click of a flat battery ,but the check engine light is on .I have put the battery on charge and its reading 12.6 volts now I can hear a click coming from the engine
fuse box ,I did a search on here does it sound like I need a syncmate .Also would you know what number relay operates the starter? .I will check for 12 volts at the spade connector on the starter in the morning ,its the check engine light that has thrown me .
 
Right Folks ignore the above ,just went out to the car for another look put the key in and gave the gear lever a push it moved forward slightly and I mean slightly and the car now start's it was not right into park .What a plonker ,the trouble is I read about all the problems and what can go wrong with these car;s as soon as I have a problem I seem to loose all common sense and start thinking its the BECM .ACU or the like.
 
Glad it was a simple fix for you!

You might find though that the Gear selector cable needs adjusting, they can stretch and slip which makes it hard to select Park or 1st. I had this when I first got mine, It just wouldnt quite go into 1st. A quick adjust of the cable sorted the problem!
 
boycie said:
Hi Folks
I need your help again ,got in from work this evening went out to move my P38 it opened with the fob no problem put the key in the ignition turned it on no problem , turned it to the start position nothing not the click click of a flat battery ,but the check engine light is on .I have put the battery on charge and its reading 12.6 volts now I can hear a click coming from the engine
fuse box ,I did a search on here does it sound like I need a syncmate .Also would you know what number relay operates the starter? .I will check for 12 volts at the spade connector on the starter in the morning ,its the check engine light that has thrown me .
Click to expand...


Glad it was a simple fix! Just for your ref. mate - click you heard would have been from the solenoid on the starter (inertia type). That would have ruled out the BECM etc. as the immobiliser was off and allowing amps to the SM. Only other thing to check is earth return (common with the ALT) and the starter at fault, however would have noticed it with poor starting leading up in the last few weeks prior!
 
Thanks Falk I do have a problem with the battery going flat after a few days ,I will change the battery for 100 amp one at sometime but the existing one is almost new .At the moment I make sure I run the car for a while every couple of days .
 
No worries, sounds like you might have an open circuit somewhere! Can be a bugger to chase. The only perm lives i know of are the Starting circuit, Alarm + Imob and lights. Some of the Ecu's will have a feed too. Would def. recommend a bigger battery, and see how you get on -

Would also recommend a trickle solar charger - heres the one i use:

BRAND NEW 1.5W 12V Solar Trickle Car Battery Charger PS-A015 | eBay

I keep it plugged in all the time when not driving, just make sure you disconnect before starting!

Ive soldered straight onto the main wires (where the battery terminals are) and run out the extension from there, harnessed it to the fuse box with cable ties. Much easier than using croc clips all the time! Then i just leave the charger on my window. Does the job nicely!
 
You may be getting the becm wakeing up due to rf interferance i will post a link to my cheap work round when i get back to main computer.
 
Falk said:
Glad it was a simple fix! Just for your ref. mate - click you heard would have been from the solenoid on the starter (inertia type). That would have ruled out the BECM etc. as the immobiliser was off and allowing amps to the SM. Only other thing to check is earth return (common with the ALT) and the starter at fault, however would have noticed it with poor starting leading up in the last few weeks prior!
Click to expand...
The click most certainly was not the solenoid on the starter, that is inhibited when the gear lever is not in P or N. It did not turn over.
 
Falk said:
No worries, sounds like you might have an open circuit somewhere! Can be a bugger to chase. The only perm lives i know of are the Starting circuit, Alarm + Imob and lights. Some of the Ecu's will have a feed too. Would def. recommend a bigger battery, and see how you get on -

Would also recommend a trickle solar charger - heres the one i use:

BRAND NEW 1.5W 12V Solar Trickle Car Battery Charger PS-A015 | eBay

I keep it plugged in all the time when not driving, just make sure you disconnect before starting!

Ive soldered straight onto the main wires (where the battery terminals are) and run out the extension from there, harnessed it to the fuse box with cable ties. Much easier than using croc clips all the time! Then i just leave the charger on my window. Does the job nicely!
Click to expand...
A 1.5 watt solar charger is going to produce 0.125 amps maximum in full sun, in reality it's going to produce about 30ma on average, just enough if you are lucky to balance the draw of the BECM when it's asleep.
 
Here`s the link ,ahttp://www.landyzone.co.uk/lz/f10/rf-reciever-work-round-258096.html
A lot of wireless stuff seams to keep wakeing the becm up and will drain a battery in days this will stop any signals get to the becm, or the other option is a £200 upgraded receiver from jlr.
 
Datatek said:
A 1.5 watt solar charger is going to produce 0.125 amps maximum in full sun, in reality it's going to produce about 30ma on average, just enough if you are lucky to balance the draw of the BECM when it's asleep.
Click to expand...

Well it works for me, been left for a few weeks and still starts first time, battery at correct v. So i guess I'm lucky.
 
Falk said:
Well it works for me, been left for a few weeks and still starts first time, battery at correct v. So i guess I'm lucky.
Click to expand...
As I said, just enough to balance the draw if you are lucky. I can leave mine for 3 weeks, maybe more with no charger.
On my laid up vehicles I use 20 watt panels with charge controllers, in winter, they can produce as little as 100ma.
 
Also as an aside - on the Thor models, they will still crank even if the sync code between the BECM and engine ECU is incorrect. The Check Engine Light on the Thor ones will also always show. It's only the GEMS modles that won't show the CEL or crank if the code is wrong, as they talk back to the BECM to confirm the code, if it is correct, then the BECM allows the cranking.

The Bosch controlled P38's (which also includes the Diesel from my experience - at least the later ones) don't respond to the BECM and as such the BECM will allow cranking even if the code is wrong.

So if on a Thor model it doesn't crank at all, then chances are (as in this case) it's something other than the BECM/Engine ECU sync. If it DOES crank, then without getting the codes read there is no way of knowing if it is in sync or not.

Marty
 
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