FDPP #2

[yagger]

Is there a way to bench test the pedal, and check the wiring without removing the ECM?

If you have a special bench you can check pedal on it.
For be sure about wiring you have to remove ECM.

[gnalan]

Here's how the contacts in the pedal look.

[gnalan]

With better lighting.

[gnalan]

With the pedal at its normal position.

With the pedal at its full travel, or at least as far as I can push it.

[gnalan]

There's a lot of adjustment in the sensor itself where it screws onto the pedal. How do I adjust it when I put it back together so that it's in the correct position? I can't get any resistance readings from the 6 pin connections to get the two sliders equal, and at factory spec.

[gnalan]

I readjusted the sensor as far as I could to the spot that hasn't been worn down. Hopefully that'll help things with the poor throttle response.

I saw a thread on here about ECM relearning, I think. Is that something I should try before replacing any more parts, and if so how exactly do I do the reset/relearn procedure?

Is there something I need to do now that the accelerator sensor has been repositioned on the pedal so the ECM and ETM both get the proper readings?

[gnalan]

With the new sensor adjustment I did, the car idles around 1200rpm when I first start it up. Usually stays above 1000rpm even at normal operating temperature. No surging/searching for a stable idle. I drove it 60 miles today, mostly between 45mph and 55mph but I did hit 70mph with no problems. Had a tire going bad that I ended up getting replaced today too. When I got home it was idling at around 750rpm, and was stable.

I had the other 3 tires balanced, since I couldn't get the lugs broke loose to swap the strut yet. It took the guy an hour with an impact wrench to get all 5 lugs broke free and the wheel removed. I don't know who torqued them last but they were way too tight. Tomorrow I'm planning to swap out the strut, now that I can get the wheel off easily. Hopefully that'll be the last thing I need to do.

I'll do another test drive after the strut is replaced and post how things go. If all goes well the car should be back to a reliable daily driver, and then I can finally mark this thread as solved.

Thank you all for helping me along the way. I honestly couldn't have done it on my own. Hopefully I can pass along some of what I've learned from working on the car to others to help them, although I still have a lot to learn myself. These cars can be quite complicated, and a real PITA, but having a car I actually feel safe in is well worth it.

[bmdubya1198]

Glad to hear it's running well now! Hopefully this was the biggest hurdle, and you'll just need to do small stuff from this point to get it all straightened out.
750 RPM is right where it should be, my brother's '03 idles right around there.

[cn90]

If that fixed your problem, it is a good idea to search for a spare gas pedal with low mileage so you can use it later.
Also, get a used PEM from junk yard too. At this age, your PEM can go any time.

[gnalan]

What is a PEM?

Before I cleaned the pedal sensor it was at 7.8% untouched, and when I put it back together, and moved it to a part of the carbon strips that weren't worn, it's reading 10.4% now. No more sluggishness, or dead spots in the throttle, and acceleration feels smooth. I didn't know they were adjustable until I took mine apart to clean it.

I ran a few drive cycles after disconnecting the battery, and draining the residual power by pressing the brake pedal a dozen times. I'm hoping that fixed it, but I won't know for sure until I start driving it everyday again. I can't believe the difference it made. It pulls nice and strong from a stop now, which it hasn't done as long as I've owned it. I haven't checked to see if the cruise control works since I did the adjustment and drive cycles, but it did work before I did anything to the pedal sensor.