dont get mad but posted in the ecm section already and got no help, i know someone knows how to pull codes on a 84 without a scan tool.i was driving last night spirtedly and the cel came on. recently i removed the smog stuff and the a/c
the 12 pin thing isnt on my car. i have it but theres only like 5 actual pins

 

i went to vato zone and their code reader wont work?!!! and when i reset the ecm the light is still on? whats the deal here. how the hell am i supposed to scan this if even the scan tool doesnt work. i noticed it has 3 prongs, the 3rd is on the bottom and my connector has no wires on the bottom only 5 on the top

 

Go to the thirdgen.org home page. On the left margin is a link to an FAQ section. At the bottom of the page under Miscellaneous are the instructions on how to retrieve the codes, and what they mean. Some codes are used by different systems for different problems, so you may have to determine which one makes sense for your car. For instance, if Code 33 comes up, your car doesn't have a mass air flow sensor, so the problem would be with the MAP sensor.

The pin location is what is important, not whether there is a pin in all 12 locations.

Autozone apparently only scans OBDII vehicles these days. 1996 and later.

 

i already read that. it doesnt show me how with my connector

 

Yes it does. The illustration has them side-by-side, but all OBD I ALDL connectors are one on top of the other.
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If all else fails: http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductD...artNumber=3123

 

we used that on my car thcel never flashed!

 

my car doesnt have the pins they require to do the test so now what?
hey the car is for sale. tired of the 3rd gen lack of love, this forum did me in.i have done nothing but try to save this car. it was headed for the crusher. and im a mustang guy.no one wants to help, just talk smak, and complain. or some rich kids tell my broke butt what i need to buy, gee thanks.im done, u cant even tell me how to pull codes i want no part of this mess

 

First, not all 12 slots of the ALDL are used on every car. If yours has 5 pins, then that's all it needs. Short the two right-most pins on the top part of the connector, turn the ignition to on (not start), and see if the SES light flashes. The right-most pin is ground, the one next to it is the diagnostic terminal. (I determined this info by Googling "ALDL" until I found a link with the data. Your browser probably supports Google.)

As for being helpful, I know from past comments that you expect fast, personal, and flawless service from this free resource. I'll have to admit I don't get on the ECM board that often (like, never), so I didn't read what you said in that post (and, you didn't provide a link to it here). If you think that makes me lazy and less than helpful, well, I'm sorry. Regardless, I'm going to operate solely on the information you provide on this forum. For instance, you didn't say anything about having tried that basic scanner, so I had no way of knowing I shouldn't suggest that (without searching your other posts). If you think that means I'm (we're) not willing to help, well, again, I'm sorry, but that isn't the case. Personally, I read literally hundreds of posts a day on this Board, and, well, sometimes I just don't digest everything said in every single post in every single thread, so again, my apologies if I missed a detail here or there. After all, this Board isn't my job, it's my hobby.

For the record, I've spent about an hour on this thread now; rereading it, Googling, drafting a response, more Googling, rewriting my response, etc. All while I probably should have been in bed.

I don't know if you were referring to me or someone else who has tried to help, but if you think I'm a rich kid telling you to go out and buy stuff - well, shall we just say that if your profile info is accurate, the day you were born I had just re-upped in the Army and was about to ship out from Okinawa to begin training for my 2nd specialty in the service to our country. And currently, my single non-government income supports 5 people, 3 colleges, 3 birds, 2 dogs, 1 cat, 1 horse, and several fish - and a bank. It's not like I have endless dollars to buy whatever I like to support this addiction, so I don't expect others to do so.

By the way, you're welcome.

 

It's fixed now.

 

I WASNT REFERING TO YOU. U HAVE BEEN AWESOME TO ME. I MEAN MORE LIKE IM JUST FRUSTERATED AND IF YOU READ MY BODYWORK THREAD U WILL UNDERSTAND WHY I WILL NEVER GO GM AGAIN. FOR ME I HAVE TO LIKE THE GENERAL PEOPLE WHO LIKE CERTAIN CARS TO A DEGREE. FOR THIS REASON I DONT WANT A BMW, HOW EVER A M3 IS A PRETTY SWEET RIDE. I JUST DONT WANT TO BE LUMP INTO THAT CATAGORY OF PEOPLE THAT OWN THEM.IN REAL LIFE THERES NOT THAT 3 GEN BOND LIKE WITH US FOXBODY MUSTANG GUYS. AND MOST OF THE GUYS I HAVE MET DRIVING 3RD GENS SEEMED LIKE THEY WERE DRUG ADDICTS OLDER UNFRIENDLY RED NBECK TYPES. AND HERE ON THIS SITE I GOT ALOT OF BASHING OVER SAVING THIS CAR AND HOW I WAS GOING ABOUT IT. I NEVER PLANNED ON KEEPING THIS CAR FROM THE START, BUT I LIKED IT SO MUCH I WAS GOING TO. BUT IM GETTING RID OF IT BECAUSE I DONT WANT TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH THIS, AND EVERYONE THINKS U HAVE TO BE FORD OR GM. THE IGNORANCE IS AMAZING. ANYWAYS YOU CAN CLOSE THIS AND THANKS FOR THE INFO. I HAVE A GUY MAYBE COMING TO LOOK AT THE CAR TODAY, ILL PASS THE INFO ALONG TO HIM OR MAYBE CHECK IT MYSELF

 

JUST SO U KNOW THAT DIDNT WORK EITHER

 

Then you probably have a problem with the ALDL circuit, or possibly the ECM itself.

 

does the ecm control tranny shifts? what cars have my ecm? i think its bad. my radio keeps reseting its self too

 

The ECM doesn't have anything to do with transmission shifting. It does lock up the torque converter clutch under cruise conditions, that's it.

If your radio keeps resetting, that smells of electrical power interruption. Could be something simple like a loose battery cable, could be more complicated.

I'm not completely sure what models had your specific computer or what ones would work with it, but basically '82-'87 carb V8's should be in the ballpark. No EFI or V6 computer would work.

 

how hard is it to do away with the ecm and go to a differant distributor?

 

very easy... pull out the the old one drop the new mech adv in... then you just need to replace your carb...

 

so the carb is no good with out the ecm?
i picked up a ecm outa a 84 caprice classic. looked like a 305 or a 350. this ecm should work right?
also i took a mudule under the steering column what that one for? it was in a black box that opens up pretty easily, i had a date on it from 1994

 

the carb MAY work i dont remember... that ecm should work as long as the caprice had the same carb as you do

 

57 kid cheers , no name good luck with mustangs . i think , no name , your first post on this forum tells alot about your person . about the codes , i dont think [ does not sound to me like you know what you'r talking about ] that you are not doing proper reading of codes . everyone here will tell you of their own problems and solutions . no one is trying to be an a$$ hole [ are you ????? ] anyway sift the info. you get here and use what you want . no flame just telling it like it is . from an old ret. mil. M/sgt. .

 

funny how u just did flame. i dont need luck with ford,i think its funny how u tell me im basically stupid, but that youre just here to be nice and help ???gee lemme see if i diconnect the battery for over and hour and cel comes on as soon as i turn the key it means its messed up and not reseting. if u read, we used a code reader and it didnt work because something is messed up. get a life im not here for your entertainment
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thanks, yeah im sure it did. i was kinda wondering about a old school set up with no ecm, just wires to oil, temp gauges and ignition to spark coil, vac advance dizzy w/points

 

No points! Points are no good!

'75-up HEI w/vacuum/mechanical advance is a one-piece set-up. Power wire, tach wire (if you have one), vacuum hose, and you're ready to roll.

With non-CC carb, of course. And, your transmission torque converter clutch will no longer lock automatically.

 

th ecm could be messing with my lock up actually. well i need to try my new caprice classic ecm

 

The moral of the story is operating without torque converter lock-up is not good for the transmission, unless you always drive less than 40 MPH.

 

for sure!!! cant have that!!! do the older trannies or diff ones lock up with like vacum?

 

i believe the TH400 doesnt have any provisions for a lockup TC but gas mileage will suffer a bit