11 replies to this topic

[Garrett S.]

I have a 1999 S70 T5 with 100k miles I replaced the timing belt/water pump at 99k. After my car started having my current problem (described below) I replaced the PCV thinking that they was some connection and it needed to be replaced anyways.

So about a month and a half ago I was driving around when all of a sudden my car felt very heavy and my CEL and the winter/wet right was flashing so I pulled over and restarted the car and the CEL stayed on, but the Winter/Wet light was gone and I drove the last few miles home smoothly with regular performance.

Later on the light/error repeatedly came back which was bugging the hell out of me so I did some research and read some where that the Neutral Safety Switch (PNP Switch) might be the issue so I replaced that and the problem came right back after about 25miles of driving.

At this point I had had enough so I took it to the local dealer and explained the problem and they ran some diagnostics and said that the ABS module was the culprit and had something to do with not letting the engine and the transmission to communicate and wanted to charge me $900 for a new one....so I picked up my car and ordered a repaired one online from bba-reman.com for $100. After I installed it the car appeared to run great, but after about 80 miles the old problem resurfaced.

I had found at one point that disconnecting the battery temporarily cleared the Limp mode problem so I could get around if I needed to, but after awhile that solution no longer worked and it doesn't want to leave that mode. I need to drive this thing to work and school and have been able to snag rides from friends/family when I can, but people are getting tired of me asking for favors and I am getting tired of not being able to drive my car.

Any help/advice you guys can give me will be incredibly helpful! I love my car, but it had begun to be unreliable and I am running out of money after dumping so much into it for maintenance.

[Dan A]

ABS module was my first thought but I see you replaced already. Are you sure the two wiring harnesses connected to the ABS module are completely seated?

[Garrett S.]

Dan A, on 03 January 2012 - 09:19 PM, said:

ABS module was my first thought but I see you replaced already. Are you sure the two wiring harnesses connected to the ABS module are completely seated?

Yep just went out and double checked and it is properly seated.

[JRL]

ETM is probably shot
(Electronic Throttle Body)

[Burn-E]

JRL, on 04 January 2012 - 01:27 PM, said:

ETM is probably shot
(Electronic Throttle Body)

^^ THIS. Though it could also be the MAF - the two are interrelated as George explains here.

Here's the best resource available on diagnosing and solving your problem.

It's going to cost you $500 to replace the ETM with a xemodex unit but you'll never have the problem again after you do.

You'll be tempted to go to the dealer to have them replace / clean / repair it for you. It's your money but realize that they'll only replace the ETM with an OEM module that has the same design flaw that caused the original one to fail.

[Garrett S.]

Thanks guys I really appriciate the help I will look into these things and update you guys later.

[Dan A]

You need to get your codes pulled from a dealer or someone with a DICE tool. They can also do a sweep test on the ETM. Don't start replacing $500 parts until this is done.

[Garrett S.]

Ok so I tried to read my codes a few times, but everytime I attempted the codes had cleared themselves....I finally got ahold of a couple codes.

P0758 Shift solenoid B electrical
-If this is an electrical problem would there be an electrical chart out there that I can look at to troubleshoot?

P1618 Fault in lead between 50-52 and motronic 4.3 (MIL requested)
-I have no idea what this means.

Where do I go from here?

[Dan A]

P1618 is generic and just stating that the tcm is reporting a problem to the ecm.  P0758 suggests that you may need to replace a shift solenoid in the transmission or possibly there are bigger issues.At least that's how I would read that.

[Garrett S.]

Ok so the problem seems to have been resolved. Thank God...

So I looked into the shift solenoid and it then I was checking stuff out on my engine to see if anything was unplugged or really dirty etc. and decided to check my transmission fluid, which I paid to have flushed last year, and it looked like chocolate milk so I went ahead and drained it and put new stuff in and at first after driving it went right back into limp home mode so I parked it and didn't look at it until the next day. When I started it up to defrost it the CEL was there as usual so I just let it sit and warm up. After about 5 minutes the car randomly reved up to ~1600 RPMs and the transmission light flashed and then went away, I put the car in drive and it drove normal, the way it should. The following morning (today) I went out to warm up my car before work and there was no CEL and the car feels better than ever....

I, at first, never thought to check the transmission fluid because I had taken care of it last year (or thought I had) and it seems that either the fluid was really dark before they flushed it or they never flushed it and charged me for it.

So the moral of the story is don't trust Jiffy Lube to do work on your car just DIY.

Thanks guys for your help in this matter, it was very weird and I feel like an idiot.

[Dan A]

Dirty transmission fluid could indeed cause that code. You may want to do an early 2nd flush even. Hopefully nothing permanent was done.

[Keaton85]

Your going to need to change it 3-4 times!!

The jiffy lube probably just did it once.

And for anyone else looking on when they search for this type of thing: first check ATF no matter what, do not pass go, check ATF, period.