Hi all,
Im new to scoobynet but have read through forums and found many of u are very helpful with questions so i hope you can help me.

For a couple of weeks my 95 wrx has been driving a bit strange in the way that it judders when cold and idling, and i noticed there was a slight blowing from my exhaust under the drivers side.I had it booked in for a service and bought a short term exhaust fixing kit until i had the money for new one, but last night the dreaded check engine light came on whilst driving and the fan was constantly on even though it was cold temperature and this morning i couldnt start it. I checked the usual things like petrol cap, water and oil but still it nearly starts but it just acts like its run out of petrol. (have checked that by the way) I have it booked in to be looked at next week but racking my brains to find out what it could be. I have researched myself a bit and found it could be to do with the hole in exhaust to do with the level of o2 or catalytic converter but i really am not sure. Is it safe to reset the check engine light to get the car to the garage?

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE can i hear your advice and views of past experiences with this sort of thing as i really cant wait til next week to get a big repair bill!!
whats the worse it could be?

Thanks for your time reading this.

 

have u checked the fault codes if not theres a few topics on here about checking fault codes

 

were have u got car booked in,if it wont start could be a number of things but the fault code check will tell u whats wrong.

 

A good start would be to do a fault code check using the black connectors. All the info you require is here: http://www.jollygreenmonster.com/ecu.asp.htm

And here: http://www.scoobypedia.co.uk/index.p...eadingECUCodes

Post up your findings for further advice.

 

cheers bi3bat i no someone on here would no were to look

 

Thanks a lot for info. It seems very complicated doing it manually!!

 

fans on continually is usually as sign your temp coolant sensor is fubared the one on the crossover waterpipe underneath your inlet manifold.
regards marty.

 

On a lot of cars now the sensor is also hooked up to the ecu

 

It's a piece of p1ss mate. Connect 2 wires, turn on ignition and count the flashes.

Yes it is monitored and controlled by the ECU and is a probable suspect. But the OP needs to do, or have someone do the diagnostic prodedure.

 

like B13BAT said, connect the 2 black plugs under the dash near the key (they will be tooked up near the steering column) turn the ignition on, count a long blink as 10 and a short blink as 1, add them up so you have a number and look on jolly green monsters site for the chart to find out what the number represents, pretty easy really.

 

Thanks guys,
I connected the 2 green plugs and the 2 black plugs as directed on jolly green monster and the car started without the check engine light on. I left it running on idle for 10 mins and the CEL didnt come back on or flash to tell me the codes. I turned the car off and disconnected the green plugs and restarted car, the CEL came back on and stayed on whilst engine was running.
Any ideas?

 

Just connect the black plugs and turn the ignition on and count the flashes and tell us how many long flashes and how many shorts flashes you get and then we will work out what code it is.

 

I think according to the web the problems are
45 Pressure sensor / Pressure exchange solenoid valve
21 Engine coolant temperature sensor
24 Idle air control solenoid
and 33 Vehicle speed sensor 2

Sounds quite serious and expensive!
Are they common problems?

 

Now do a comlete ECU reset as per JGMs instructions. Some of the codes may be historical/stored. And then read the fault code again.

24 can cause 33

45 and 21 are self explanitory. But as i said above, do a full reset.

 

Have done a reset and 4 codes have come up again.
Are any of these problems making the car unsafe to drive??

 

Well put it this way, I wouldnt go flying about anywhere in it
You need to book your car in to a decent dealer and get it sorted, there are too many codes there to say what the issue is, a dealer will be able to find the issue and replace the part thats failing/failed.
Also what fuel are you running?

Tony

 

Well they certainly ain't improving anything.

Sort out the:
45 Pressure sensor / Pressure exchange solenoid valve
21 Engine coolant temperature sensor
24 Idle air control solenoid

And the speed sensor 'should' clear.

 

Just normal unleaded.

 

Are the sensors easy to find and clean?

 

One thing i have noticed is when i reset the ecu, i leave the car running for a few minutes the check engine light doesnt flash once to show its reset.
Is that because the problems still there?

 

You NEED 97+ ron in your car (minimum fuel for a JDM import prior to 1999, after its 100 ron minimum), probably not helping running 95 in there, dunno what sort of damage its doing/done already

Tony

 

****!
Luckily havnt had the car long so will use the super unleaded in future.

 

Tonyburns - with those error codes whats the worst that could be damaged?
Do you think it could be the sensors need cleaning or something worse?

 

It depends on how hard you have driven her, det on the pistons can put holes in them, cause damage to the big end bearings due to stress, it could be that the car is reacting to the unleaded fuel badly (as they have no decent knock correction, its probably why its hesitant and lumpy).
Get a bottle of octane booster in there, drive off boost, fill up with shell v power/tesco 99, reset the ecu again after filling up, ensure you have as much of that 95 out of the car as possible before doing so, also take it very easy!!!

Tony

 

Here you go. I would be looking to replace them. Rather than cleaning them.

 

I have had a new engine put in there last year from a 4 year old scooby thats done 20000 miles.
I never drive it stupid around but i will definately be putting the higher octane fuel in there. i didnt think it was that important, i thought it was just performance.

 

thankyou, dont suppose you know where the best place to get them from is? and how much?

 

JDM's are mapped for higher octane fuel, the MY93-98's are all 97 ron, the MY99 to today are all 100 ron.
Classics dont have the best knock correction (actually its pretty dire tbh on the JDM's), UK cars are better as they are mapped for lower octane fuel.

Tony