Any Mechanics in Pittsburgh?

[Pooky]

Hey Captain, I did not do anything with the throttle when I checked compression. I ran it for about ten minutes then pulled the plugs and coil wire. I turned over the engine four or five times starting taking readings at cylinder 6 forward. If the throttle being open is important I can redo it. I hope it is! Also, after going out and looking at my engine I realized that I DID NOT change my thermotime. I changed the temp sensor and the thermal transmitter. Funny thing is I remember boiling the water and deciding the sensor was good yet I changed it anyway. I'll check this out further tomorrow. Ill check out the EFI bible as well as I have never seen it before. Craig 

[Pooky]

You guys have me questioning my connectors being on the wrong sensors! Here's a picture.

[Pooky]

Hey Captain, I just went through the EFI Bible you sent me the link for. OMG! How did I not stumble across it at some point. I'm going to print it out and keep a copy with my other manuals. Unfortunately, I may not have time for a couple days to look into these suggestions but I'll let you guys know when I do. Craig

[Captain Obvious]

Some notes about the temperature sensor and the thermotime switch.

There are two trouble spots with the connectors. First trouble spot that the electrical connectors up at the thermostat housing are the same style and it is possible to get them mixed up. Other than the color, I'm not sure if there's a quick visual way to tell if they're correct. (If original stock) One of them is brown, and the other is gray. You can see the colors in the pic you posted, but I don't remember which is which.

The second trouble spot is caused by the fact that they used two short pigtail harnesses to those two devices that end in bullet connections right near the #1 fuel injector. So since they're bullet connections, they could be swapped there too. One of those is supposed to be wrapped by a piece of tape (red I think) as an identifier, but many times, that has fallen off over the years.

So I'm not saying yours are swapped, but the point is, that even if you have the connector on the right sensor, they could still be swapped elsewhere. You'll know for sure if you check the resistance tests in the FI bible.

Last note is about the thermotime... The only time it should do anything at all is while the engine is cranking trying to start. It should be completely non-existent at all other times. So it should have no effect while you're driving around. If you want to, you can completely unplug it to see what happens. Might take a little longer to start your car when the engine is cold, but other than that, you should notice absolutely no effect.

[Pooky]

Ok guys, I printed out the EFI bible and checked all the pins. I did have trouble getting a reading from the air temp sensor(pins 6 and 27) and the water temp sensor(13 and Ground). I finally borrowed a good fluke ohm meter and got some good numbers. The air temp sensor registered 2.624 at garage temp of around 65 degrees. I'm assuming where the ( . ) is doesn't matter. The water temp sensor registered 2.471 at the sensor but only 83.0 to 87.0 at pin 13 and ground. The values at the sensor aren't carrying to the 35 pin connector. Ill follow the wire next time I work on the car to look for an issue.

     I do have a question. I took off the air cleaner and boot to check the flap in the air flow meter. It moved freely. However, later when I started the car it ran like crap without the air cleaner back on. I was putting my hand over the AFM and monitored how the engine reacted. It may be common sense to you guys but obviously the air cleaner "resistance" plays a part in performance. The PO of my car put a K&N filter on it. Is it possible that it is allowing too much air to enter the engine which in turn throws the mix out of whack, making it run lean? BTW, all the other pin ohm testing check out ok. Craig

[Captain Obvious]

Just to make sure you're numbering the pins on the 35 pin connector, here's a pic looking into the harness.

You can use this to double check your results:

[Pooky]

Hello Fellas,  I just got around to working on my car again. Rechecked a lot of grounds and connectors with no success. No vacuum leaks that I could find with a smoke test or starting fluid. Switched out the AFM with an older one and the control unit but the car ran the same. I did find something, though. My voltage seems to keep going down.  It didn't draw my attention at first because I've been running all these test with the key on. So this is what I found. My alternator doesn't seem to be putting out a charge. When running, no leads off the alternator read anything but house power. Nothing higher than the battery itself. I took the alternator to advance auto and it checked out OK.  I DID do the ZX upgrade to a 60 amp unit years ago, however, this alternator has less than 100 miles on it.  The new wiring is correct. I jumped the correct colors and got rid of the external regulator. Why is it not putting out more power? Am I missing something? I think this voltage issue could have been the missing link all along. Thanks in advance, Craig

[Captain Obvious]

One of the most common areas for issues with the fuel injection system is the electrical connectors going to the injectors and the sensors up in the thermostat housing. The original ones are likely corroded, cracked, and unreliable. And even if they are in good shape, the way the retainer clip works makes them a PITA.

Here's a pic of a common style of connector people use to replace the original Bosch connectors. The retainer clip works different. With these, you just squeeze the retainer wire and it releases from whatever it's connected to. Much more convenient than the original design.

Looks like this: