STILL [Syty] Broke & Stumped!
DOlivares
seravilo at netzero.net
Fri Feb 3 08:50:43 CST 2006
BM Computer was good because they gave me a nice canned set of hex-tables to correspond to the changes I wanted to program FOR THE GN TURBO only. I'm trying to get the equivalent set-up for the SyTys now... from the same outfit if possible
If you knew how long it took me to wean myself off my suped-up Commodore-64 to a PC, you'd understand my reluctance to trash my existing hardware/software and learn something else....
D.O.
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----- Original Message -----
From: Jim Sloan
To: 'DOlivares'
Sent: Friday, February 03, 2006 8:41 AM
Subject: RE: STILL [Syty] Broke & Stumped!
I don't know about BM computer, but the Pocket Programmer should work for most sy-ty chips. Transtronics (http://xtronics.com/) had upgraded the programmer to handle more chips, and you may need to do that, if you want multichip capabilities. Carl, at Transtronics, could tell you if your model would work with the chips you want to use.
Datamaster is probably the most popular way to monitor the ALDL. Tunerpro is a free download, and can be used to monitor the aldl, and edit binaries. I also have Promgrammer and TunerCat for editing. Promgrammer is pretty cheap. TunerCat is more expensive.
Emulators, like the Ostrich and Romutator, are useful if you have a wild build and need to make lots of changes to get things running. I used one when I first started burning 50 lb chips, and 55 lb chips. There wasn't much to go on then, except stock bins. A chip programmer is sufficient for most people, and is cheaper.
Jim
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From: DOlivares [mailto:seravilo at netzero.net]
Sent: Friday, February 03, 2006 8:09 AM
To: Jim Sloan
Cc: syty at syty.org
Subject: Re: STILL [Syty] Broke & Stumped!
Importance: High
I've been pouring over his 'Site the past week and been thinking about the very same thing!
I never really got into reprogramming the SyTy stuff and all my experience was based on work with the GN/TTA Buick chips after I invested in all that BM Computer/Pocket-Programmer stuff years ago. However, now that I want to move into the SyTy world with this gear, THOSE CLOWNS WON'T RESPOND TO ANY OF MY E-QUESTIONS and may well be out of business... or just not give a damn!
I'm not sure which direction to take now and keep hearing about Tuner-Cats, Ostriches, Moates' wares-- and now you and your kind offer!
Whatever I end up with, I would like to be able to DO MYSELF and not have to rely on the mails-- and other strangers. I am also reluctant to part with all my familiar BM Computer junk and learn a new system UNLESS I could be assured it was a more CAPABLE or versatile than what I got. Any ideas in this regard?
D.O.
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----- Original Message -----
From: Jim Sloan
To: 'DOlivares'
Sent: Friday, February 03, 2006 7:55 AM
Subject: RE: STILL [Syty] Broke & Stumped!
Dennis,
I thought of something else. I can burn whatever binary you want onto a stock memcal, if you want to bypass the 10-1 hardware.
Craig Moates at http://www.moates.net/index.php?cPath=25_36 also sells GM adapters, if you want to go that route. I think Craig's adapters are a little more robust than the old 10-1 hardware.
Jim
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From: DOlivares [mailto:seravilo at netzero.net]
Sent: Thursday, February 02, 2006 10:01 AM
To: Jim Sloan
Cc: syty at syty.org
Subject: STILL [Syty] Broke & Stumped!
Importance: High
Jim,
When you say you keep around a "Spare ECM," do you mean the plug-ins or the whole ECM Box? Based on my latest tests, the FI Drivers-- and whatever controls them-- are being victimized by either a thermal or a timing (delay) problem. I understand how SEUs can screw up chips IN SPACE or other rad-hostile environments, but I kinda figured I was safe from all that junk in my car! I wonder who sent that cosmic ray my way...?
I took out the 10-n-1 Interface yesterday but things are really no better. The Injectors batch-pulse fine then weakly at unpredictable times and for durations up to 30 seconds until I reach full-warm-up after about 7 minutes, depending on ambient air-temp. Sunday, the thing actually started pooping out (choking and sputtering but throwing nothing more than a Code 44, which is practically useless information!) on the expressway at 70mph... long after I was well into warm, closed-loopery. This thing is getting REALLY BAD and, as admitted before, I don't really know what to do about it! I can't even take it to a garage or even the dealer! They know less than I do and will only pull all my goodies and restore me to overpriced NOS crap for well over a THOU$AND! Do you know where I can get a new ECM... CHEAP? Know anybody who reconditions old ECMs? Electrodyne or Spearco or somone like that had a "E6" plug-compatible ECM which was PC-programmable, but I forgot all the details... maybe this is the time to go the DFI route once and for all...? Unfortunately, neither my wallet or my temperament are willing to part with all that Delco firmware just yet.
In a few hours, I'm gonna gut the whole ECM out of my still-on-jackstands Typhoon and do more swap-in tests on the Old Horse #773. IF that solves my problem-- and I still have profound reservations-- I'll still need to do something in the way of rehabilitating my old MEMCAL or ECM-- not to mention the 10-n-1 upgrade I want to eventually put back.
Any thoughts?
D.O.
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----- Original Message -----
From: DOlivares
To: Jim Sloan ; syty at syty.org
Sent: Monday, January 02, 2006 12:06 PM
Subject: Re: [Syty] Broke & Stumped!
Thanks... so far, and happy New Year... et pax hominibus boni voluntatis!
[You know who you are.]
Unfortunately, I have tried all those diagnostic trees-- even a couple of bushes for good measure! This episode has been going on for nearly a month. As I said, I'm running out of hardware to swap-out. The only things I haven't diddled with is the EST Module in the Distributor and of course the ECM/chip.
The reason I haven't fooled with those things is that the misbehavior complained of is SO PREDICTABLE and only afflicts COLD-START-UP conditions, except when it's really cold outside in which case I will get precisely ONE chug-a-lug spasm about 5 minutes into the run-up to full operating temperature... just after everything had been going just fine. That's the worst of it... as far as I can tell without a scantool... seat-of-the-pants power and smoothness is better than ever, otherwise. This is no "intermittent." This is pure predictability! And my experience with bad chips and modules is that they either fail outright or exhibit sporadic, random upsets... before failing outright. That's not what's occurring. Even so, I might drop in my spare EST (Holley Annihilator) just for laughs....
Keep thinking... what else could it be??? What's the connection to cold/cool ambient temperature?
D.O.
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----- Original Message -----
From: Jim Sloan
To: 'DOlivares' ; syty at syty.org
Sent: Monday, January 02, 2006 8:11 AM
Subject: RE: [Syty] Broke & Stumped!
Happy New Year Dennis!
I've had hardware problems with several of the 10-1 adapters. You could swap back to the stock memcal (and map sensor) to rule that out, if your build isn't too radical.
I usually keep at least one spare ecm for a substitution test, and have seen quite a few fail in weird ways. Let me know if you need one.
Sometimes it helps to go back to the basics, and follow the diagnostics in the service manual http://syty.org/old/d&e-code44.html .
Just a few ideas, if you haven't already tried them.
Jim
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From: syty-bounces at syty.org [mailto:syty-bounces at syty.org] On Behalf Of DOlivares
Sent: Sunday, January 01, 2006 7:36 PM
To: syty at syty.org
Subject: [Syty] Broke & Stumped!
Importance: High
Who watches The Watcher?
Who advises The Guru?
Who assists The Good Samaritan?
I think we're about to find out pretty soon-- at least until I can get my Lapdog running again (and one of the diagnostic programs to troubleshoot my li'l pony):
Meanwhile, I NEED HELP! With my laptop in pieces all over the bench, I can't run DIACOM or DATALINK to give me clues about the usual suspects:
Clean-livin' doesn't always pay off if my holidaze so far are any indication. I spent Christmas Eve on a carlift taking apart my right-front axle-- again!-- after being assured by our local "Gear-Guru" (who fully rebuilt that differential less than 6 months before I started hearing that same CLUNKING on left turns again) that all I needed was a new cir-clip (GM #14041989) to keep the axle from popping-out of the side-gear in the differential. HAH! More bad advice and I ended up taking a cab home.... More about that Horror Show in a later mailing.
Meanwhile, we got our first technical freeze down here in what was becoming tropical San Antone on Nov. 17th and our first hard-freeze, appropriately, on Dec. 7th, and somewhere in between those times ol' Syclone #773 began throwing fits during start-up and for the first 5 or 6 minutes until the water jacket hits and stays at 180° or so. I'm stumped for the first time in a decade or more! Here's what happens:
Since the new Walbro fuel-pump went in a few months ago, cranking times are way down... engine catches pretty quick, but now it won't stay lit and "choke" with the new IAC, which went in along with a new TPS and remote-adjustable FPR about a month before the new Walbro. Now, I have to feather the pedal once the ignition gets going and hold the throttle open a bit while the IAC hunts for about a dozen cycles making the tach swing about 1200 rpm back and forth until we hit the "sweet spot" and the engine takes off smoothly and the IAC-hunting stops, at least for a while. Now, it's safe to put her in gear and drive away as long as I keep a little positive bias in the pedal for the next few minutes every time I have to slow down to an idle or coast speed.
THIS PROBLEM IS WICKEDLY WORSE ON COLD DAYS, where ambient air is in the 40s or below, which thankfully is rare. (Ain't this global-warming great!) However, on a couple of occasions when I did have to drive in the 30s-- and even after reaching full-warm-up temperature-- the engine starts cutting out seriously as the SES light comes on! Now, we're talking some MAJOR pumping of the pedal to keep things lit and if I can get on a clear piece of road and cruise a spell at 35 mph or better the problem goes away completely, until I shutdown and the engine gets cold again. I barely even recognize that SES light... hardly ever see it. Driving on warmer days never sees a recurrence of that mid-period cutting-out, and idle is smooth as is the rest of drivability. Warm start-ups see a few moments of that IAC-hunting, but the rpm-sweeps are only on the order of 500rpm and the whole anomaly goes away in about 30 seconds. I've NEVER encountered anything like this in my many years of wrenching! Now, it's time for some wretching!! All that ever gets logged in the way of a trouble-code is 44... not too helpful!
Naturally, I replaced the O2 sensor-- no improvement at all! Everything described above instinctually told me this was a weird thermal transient in the injector-drive circuits or else the MAT, CTS or MAP I replaced (for the hell of it) 3 years ago needed to be switched again. So I did... one at a time to see if I could fault-locate the culprit that way. No dice! I'm running out of hardware to replace! I've even tried setting that 10-to-1 Chip to different settings, but the same nasty behavior persists-- the engine's as well as my own!
WHO CAN TELL ME WHAT MY PROBLEM(S) IS? Be nice, now....
Dennis O.
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