Need help with a major problem - I had to jump start my 82 T/A , stupidly gave to the jump leads to my friend , who then proceeded to put them on the wrong way around !! So the -ve went to the positive and the +ve went to the negative terminal !!!!

Grey smoke then appeared from down near the starter motor ( which is working fine , as I later removed it to check it ) . I get absolutely no dash lights or ignition when I go to crank the engine over - nothing - no solenoid click , no warning lights , absolutely nothing ( even with a "proper" jumpstart ) . All that works is the horn , sidelights and courtesy lights.

Are there any fuses / fusible links under the dashboard that may be blown ? Where abouts are they , if so ? The main fuses , those underneath the cover are all fine . The wiring at the starter and alternator seen fine as well.

Could the ECM have been damaged by this ( I think it may have been ... ) ? Could this be the cause ? Even if so , should the engine not at least crank over ?

The battery itself seems fine , as it is currently taking a charge from the battery charger .......

hope someone can help.

thanks.

 

Thinking more about , could it perhaps be the alternator that's been damaged and causing this ?

 

On my '86 all the fusible links are down near the starter and connect to the starter positive directly. I would almost bet that you've fried one or two with the reverse polarity boost.

You may have to unravel some tape to truly inspect them properly but this is very likely where the problem is. I seem to remember that the ECM is reverse polarity protected.

There are no fusible links under the dash, they are in the engine compartment. Good luck.

 

I agree with rustydawg, your fusible links are most likely burnt. You should check them for continuity with a meter, a visual check doesn't cut it.

 

try pulling on the fusable links. if one is bad it should pull apart.
worked for me on my 85 Bird and a GM mech is who told me to check the fuseable links that way.

 

thanks for your help guys - I really was expecting the worst , so this is comes as a bit of a relief to say the least ! I'll check the fusible links over the weekend and let you know how I get on .

cheers !!

 

Checked over the wiring today , only found one broken link , gave the wires a firm tug and one of them broke away in my hand . It's one of the thin red cables coming from the starter motor +ve, heading into the wiring loom , possibly to the alternator . This red wire has a solid-looking white cylindrical piece of plastic molded around it .

I could see this one coming a mile off - where now can I get fusible link cable in the uk ? No one seems to have any at all, after phoning around a few battery and automotive electrical specialists - one of them referred me to RS Components .

I looked at the RS Components website and the nearest I can find to it is an actual automotive fuse holder containing a fuse , with fuse ratings varying from between 100 to 300 Amps - can I get away with using these ? It's called a " fuse link " as well , and it's in the automotive fuses and circuit breakers section ......

thanks again guys !

 

You will probably have to simply purchase a generic fusible link and make the connection points yourself.

Check the fusible link on the (Quote) " solid-looking white cylindrical piece of plastic molded around it" for a number which should correspond to the Ga (wire gauge) size and call back one of your local contacts for a generic fusible link with that same value. Any auto parts store should be able to help you out. F links are commonly used components that can be found on any car (Jags, Rovers etc...) As long as the new wire and fusible link gauge sizes match the original you will be fine. At the most you will have to crimp on a new ring connector and a new length of wire going up to the alternator.

Good luck!

 

Excellent Dans_Zed , I'll have a look at that tomorrow and see what numbers are on there ! According to the manuals ( the Chiltons and the proper 82 GM manual ), it's looks as if it's either going to be a 14 gauge or a 20 gauge , so fingers crossed .

thanks again for your help - I'll keep you all posted !

 

Ok , finally got around to checking and replacing the fusible links , it appears that only one of them had melted down at the starter motor - everything works now , the lights , the fuel pump, heater motor , the engine cranks over, everything except - no "check engine light " and the car won't start.

I did the current checks at the white ecm connector with the test light probe as shown in the 82 GM Firebird service manual on page 6E2-23 (for "no check engine light") - everything checks out ok (ie. the test light is always on in each of the steps) . The only thing I haven't checked is the actual bulb itself , but surely this wouldn't prevent it from starting, a blown bulb. The fuses are fine - I checked and double checked them.

So it looks as of the ecm is dead - does anyone have a good working spare ecm 1225550 lying around that they no longer want and can sell me ? If so , let me know ( I can pay by Paypal ) , or if there is anything else I can check , again let me know !

cheers

 

An ignition switch harness color code guide is avaliable here:

http://www.p71interceptor.com/thirdgen/alarminfo




a larger version of the above diagram is avaliable here:

http://www.p71interceptor.com/thirdg...owerdistro.jpg

 

Ok, i know you said you checked all the fuses, but there is a fuse by the battery that keeps memory for the ecm. This i only found out after mine had blown and i had the same would crank over but not start and no check engine light was on. I went crazy looking at fuses under my dash and missed the one that was in a connector by the battery. Hope this helps, ECMs are not cheap.

 

2v modular , thanks for the diagram and the colour guide - I'll have a look at the ignition switch and the associated wiring incase I've missed something there ( which is very possible )

1986tpiiroc , thanks for bringing that up. This may or may not be the same thing, but on the +ve battery terminal , there's a thin orange fusible link ( approx 5" in length ) that runs straight off there and plugs into an orange/white wire that continues on to the ecm. Usually I unplug that as an anti-theft measure as it allows the engine to crank over without allowing it to start. Unfortunately that fusible link is fine , it never got damaged . Current also appears to be reaching the ecm via this wire, so all seems ok there.

On your car, does the fuse in the connector run straight from the +ve terminal on your car battery , or is it located elsewhere near the battery ? I'll double check in this area again anyways incase I,ve missed something.

Thanks again guys !!!

 

Youmay have cooked the module in the distributor, take it to an auto parts store and have them test it before condemming the ecm.
I don't have my factory manual in front of me right now, but I don't believe the ecm is diode protected. so it may be possible for the ecm to be damaged.

The wire that you are dis-connecting is the battery feed to the ecm, and every time you unplug it, the ecm looses its memory.
I would find a better way to deter theft, because the ecm "learns" while the car is going down the road, and all of the learned parameters are lost when the battery power wire is dis-connected.

Good luck.

 

thanks for that jeffs82z28 , I'll be doing more checks on the car when I'm off work in a few days and will post what I find

rustydawg and danno - just noticed your messages , which will clear things up once and for all I'm 99% sure ! I've sent a reply , sorry for not replying alot sooner !

Reckon I'll know the score once and for all in a few days when I carry out these checks and I'll post the good/bad news - thanks once again everyone for your help - without it, I'd still be wondering what on earth to do !

:hail:

 

what engine is in it? you said it's an 82, and didn't say anything about it being nonstock, so I'm going to assume it is.

Unless you have the crossfire engine, it will run without an ecm. To put it another way, if it's carbureted, it will run without an ecm. However, if it does, it will run like crap. Carb will be stuck at full rich, with no ecm to command the mix solenoid, and you will have only the distributor's base timing, no advance whatsoever.

if you have a carbureted engine, and it still won't start, i guess the good news is your ecm *may* not be burned up. bad news is, the car still don't run.

post engine specifics next time you come back

good luck


EDIT: I did a search on the ECM number you said you'd need. I guess you do have a crossfire. I may have a crossfire ECM that I would give you for the price of shipping.

I'm not sure if I have it or not. I have an 83 Z28 that I bought for parts a few years back. It was originally crossfire, but the guy put a carb on it. I think the ecm is still in it, but I'm not sure. If you find out you need one, let me know, and I'll go look

 

Did my final checks and it looks as if the ecm is definitely dead. Tried to start the car without the ecm , nothing , just turns over as I thought it would with no check engine light. Connected up the ecm and tried it - exact same result , nothing. Bridged A & B terminal on the aldl , switched on the ignition and nothing whatsoever.

GUess I need a new ecm asap ! Rustydawg and black89ws6 , if you are able to get the ecm I need then I'll buy them no probs - just let me know what/how much you need !!

Yup , it's a crossfire which is well and truly ceasefired at the moment - I've learned the hard way never to just hand a pal a pair of jumpleads and say "red to positive, black to negative" and assume he'll know what you mean and put them on properly .....

Can't thank all you guys enough for your help and advice !

 

I went out to the shed today and dug the ecm out of that car. I found it, and it looks to be ok...but

it's PN 1226026...not the number you said you had in your car. I think I remember reading about 3 different ecm's being used in the crossfires, but as far as compatibility, I don't know anything.

Also, I need to stress, I've never seen this ecm running. The car had the ceasfire system yanked, and a carb installed by a previous owner. This ecm may be ok, but it could possibly be toast.

It's yours for the cost of shipping, plus say $5 for handling/packin materials.

my email's in my profile (i think). if not, PM me again.

good luck

Anybody out there know if this ecm will work for him?

 

Believe it or not , purely by coincidence , I stumbled across a website earlier today saying that that part number (1226026) plugs straight into the wiring loom of 1225550 - I've pm'd you, as your email address isn't there !

thanks for bailing me out ! :hail:

 

Great news - received the ecm from Black89ws6 , plugged it in (straight swap , no changes to the connectors necessary) and it worked perfectly ! Check engine light came on , then she fired up straight away - so I'm absolutely delighted , perfect result !

Thanks again Black89ws6 :hail: and to everyone who helped : rustydawg, Dans_Zed, Dragons91RS,2vmodular,1986tpiiroc,jeffs82z28 and Danno !

cheers guys !