Wondering If I Have Ever Had An ETM Problem

Carly245 · Post by **Carly245** » 30 May 2012, 15:05

Hi everybody!

For about two years now, my 1999 S70 will slow down and come to a complete stop while I'm driving. Sometimes it rumbles and shakes before it's about to do this, and sometimes it is very quiet. The same three indicator lights ALWAYS come on when my car does this: "generator not charging", "low engine oil pressure", and "transmission mode 'W' or gear positions 3 or L are engaged".

This happens in all types of weather (I live in Arizona so we don't really get extreme weather), and happens mostly during the first 5 minutes of driving, but has also happened 30 minutes after driving or right when I start the engine. I've had the PNP switch replaced a year ago, a XeMODeX ETM installed 7 months ago (not sure if the ETM had to be replaced in the first place), and a new battery and alternator about two years ago, prior to all of this happening, as well as corroded battery cables fixed about a year ago.

Usually this happened once every two months, but after the XeMODeX ETM was installed in October 2011, it happened 7 months later (a few weeks ago). I used to refer to it as "limp mode" but I'm not sure this is it as most of the time the car would completely come to a stop and pressing the gas pedal wouldn't move the car. Sometimes it would "limp" but sometimes it would just slowly come to a halt and not budge. To get out of this situation, I would put the car in park, shut the car off, turn it back on and the car would make it back home.

My questions are:
1) Has anyone had similar problems because of bad connections to the alternator, fuse box, or any other component of the charging system?
2) Can anyone relate this problem to "low engine oil pressure", as indicated by the warning light that always comes on?
3) And what else besides the ETM, can cause the upwards pointing arrow (transmission mode "w" engaged) to come on?

Many people have replied to my previous posts about the very same problem, and have suggested that it has to do with the charging system and I agree that it is most likely that, and I am going to take my car in to get everything checked out. (I would stop at Auto Zone so they could check my battery/alternator but my car is not drive-able because once it stalls after a few months it gets into this stalling frenzy, so I would have to tow my car to Auto Zone). BUT I am worried that the mechanics won't find anything wrong with the charging system (I worry a lot), so I'm trying to get as many different ideas as I can incase the situation gets more complicated.

Thank you all!

Carly

Post by **jimmy57** » 30 May 2012, 15:20

This could also be due to cabling between the battery and the electrical box underhood. Any place with resisitive connections or cables will create a voltage drop and some things shut down when the voltage to them.

Voltage drops testing needs to be done with all electrical loads on and engine running. Probes placed between: pos batt post and the stud where cable attaches in that electrical box, alternator cable stud and pos post, and pos post and the pos cable at starter.
Then neg post and engine block and neg post and chassis of the car. Any place the voltage reading exceeds 0.3 V indicates a place to be inspected and remedied.

The battery cables on that series car have had lots of issues with battery acid getting up into the place where the end terminals and the cables meet. They can be replaced or clean and soldered. I have repaired several by laying out aluminum foil as solder and heat shield and soldering the crimp area with rosin core electrical solder and a propane torch. If the cables are really bad this is not an option.

Carly245 · Post by **Carly245** » 30 May 2012, 15:56

Thanks for your quick response!

Almost a year ago, when I first took my car to the indi shop, they immediately noticed the battery cables were badly corroded so they fixed them, but I'm not sure if they had completely replaced them or just re-soldered the cables. Anyway, after they were fixed, my car seemed fine until two months later when it lost power again, then I made them put a new ETM in because no one knew what else to do, and everything ran fine for 7 months until a few weeks ago. But during those seven months, I would see a slight fluctuation on the tachometer when I was sitting at a stop light, and then it finally progressed into larger fluctuations, the car struggling to stay on and limping, and then it stalled completely the last time I drove it.

Post by **almostarctic** » 31 May 2012, 20:59

MAF? The shift light might indicate abs module.