2008 1.8TDCI MK2 Focus NON start, PCM problems..

[GP123]

Hi all,

have a problem with my MK2 focus it is 2008 1.8TDCI. was driving along one day when the engine mal light came on and chimes with it and car went into reduced acceleration. When i turned onto my lane however the car kicked back into life again and it was normal. However when i got home the car would not start again and was getting flashing imob light, engine mal, trans mal and power steering failure. 

Now i remember seeing this about on youtube years ago and all symptoms were pointing towards IC failure. So took this out and sent it off to ECU connection.co.uk who were really fast at getting it back and had the fingers crossed it was fixed.. but NO JOY! 

so disapointed. 

So anyway once i got the clocks back in connected up FORSCAN on the computer and it wont connect to PCM, ABS or EPS. Just says errors and Can bus comm errors. 

The car still wont start and has been parked up a week now. i had got the arch liner off and had a look at were the PCM sits. I noticed when i had the top and side bolts undone for the black plastic ecu box that the plastic bracket in the middle had bust off! and was lying in the front bumper near the undertray. So had a look inside the box and theres cobwebs and dirt etc. 

So got the connectors off the ecu and no signs of corrosion anyway. I have heard before that this loom goes into a Y shape where theres wires that can snap off here..?? Also there seems to be part of the loom and is factory cable tied at gearbox area which has also bust and you can feel the indent of it from through the years on the insulation of the loom also.

I have a multimeter so what do yous suggest is done next? May it be the ECU has got water damaged or how can i check etc. All fuses i checked seemed ok so far and relays clicking etc. 

Thanks for any help people!

[mjt]

15 hours ago, GP123 said:

Just says errors and Can bus comm errors

That still looks like the instrument cluster problem to me. How "fast" were they in getting it back to you?

[GP123]

they get it back to everyone they say within 2 working days. They do have good feedback with ones saying how it worked great etc. 

 

Although FORSCAN not being able to connect to PCM? would the IC do this?

When i put a multimeter to the diagnostic socket on pins 6 and 14 with the ignition OFF. It reads 120 ohms. I thought i read this should be 60 ohms. Does this suggest ecu/ wiring problem then?

Thanks. 

[isetta]

There are many connectors between obd socket and ecu.   What you should do is measure ohms with ic connected and then disconnect the ic and measure again.  If it is infinite ohms with ic disconnected, you know there’s a connection problem between obd socket and ecu.   Areas I had problems with are the big plug/ socket at the engine bay fuse box.  And a connector to the left of front seat passengers left foot under  plastic trim. On my brothers 2009 mk2.5 I ended rewiring the canbus circuit from the ic to ecu which also took in abs / esp / electric power steering along the way.  Hope yours does not need such drastic action.   I was determined not to let it beat me.   My efforts fixed it (except esp light stayed on as I forgot to include esp swerve sensor )

[isetta]

Ps, there was another connector behind glovebox , I think to the left when looking in the hole when glovebox removed.   Car was mk2.5. 1.8tdci late 2008 manufacture

[unofix]

Sounds like the classic case of water in the Body Control Module (BCM).

The car is of an age when water ingress in to the connectors of the BCM is a common problem.

[GP123]

Im still sort of leaning towards the PCM itself at the minute. As i say the black plastic protection box that it sits in the big braket thats on the middle had broken off and was lying in the bumper area just.

If i pour water on the bonnet, the water runs down under the P/S headlight and straight for where the PCM is screwed up in the 3 fixed positions. But its been sitting with a hole in the middle of it. 

[isetta]

Not too sure if you want to try to reuse the box.  The way I got it open was to hammer a sharp screwdriver around the edge of each shear bolt to make a hole in the lid that each bolt head would pass through.  To reuse it I put lid back on with sealant all round it and put some cable ties round it.  Mine was not  broken on the back like yours.  Let us know what you find inside.   Not sure if you will find corroded connector or damage from the stress of it moving about and pulling on the wires. 

[GP123]

everything looked OK the connectors inside and pins etc all looked clean. sprayed contact cleaner and so on. still no luck. Water may well have crept inside the ecu though and thats where i dont want to go further as i dont want to mess something up. 

[isetta]

Did you do what I said about testing the ohms on the obd socket with the instrument cluster connected and disconnected to see the difference in ohms 

[GP123]

ok so with IC unplugged my multimeter just says "1" with IC plugged in it says  120ohms.. 

[isetta]

Multimeters work in different ways to show infinity.   I assume the 1 is the same if you have both probes not connected to anything.  On mine it would a measurement of 1 ohm to the right of display but if the 1 is on the left it means infinity.   So it sounds like you have faulty connection somewhere between the ecu and the obd socket.   Which is what I was suggesting might be the case in my first post.  All the problems I had with this are on posts on this forum and there’s other posts here and there with a lot of stuff from tdci-Peter who also has 1.8tdci.   But the search function on this forum never seems to work in a helpful way in my experience. 

[isetta]

Here’s my long thread , there are two pages of it

 

[barrymx5]

Hi there, I’d love to offer advice but I’m having a no start problem myself. Your investigations far surpass mine as I’ve only had my instrument cluster refurbished. Apparently it’s fairly common for dry joint issues over time on the connection plug. I have an 05 1.8 Focus Mk2 diesel which won’t so much as crank. The instrument panel displays a flashing immobiliser light, and break light and engine system fault on the display lcd. I’m at a loss what to consider next and would greatly appreciate the benefit of your experience.

[isetta]

I’m not able to give any additional advice than what is in my 2019 post that I gave a link to .  Except, but this might not help, if you turn indicators on, do the flashing telltale lamps in the instrument cluster illuminate and does handbrake light go on and off with handbrake lever being moved? If so this suggests the ms canbus is communicating between the gem/bcm and the instrument cluster.

[GP123]

Hi again,

update from this morning, found my fuse tester light again and tested the fuses in engine bay fusebox with interesting results. There was a 15amp fuse that showed a fuel/heater plug symbol blown so replaced that and its working again and getting power to it.

However... 7 fuses along the bottom that go in a L shape getting no power to them. Took all fuses out and all look fine unbroken. Replaced with new ones still same no red light showing on fuse tester pen! 

Please see picture attached. 

The fuses with their symbols shown on fusebox lid are as follows:

F22 CHPAS 10A

F25 10A

F28 HEATER PLUG LIGHT 10A

F33 ENG MAN LIGHT 10A

F34 ING 10A

F35 ENG MAN LIGHT 10A

F36 ENG MAN 10A 

What is going on anyway? i see a loom going into this bottom area of the fusebox? does it sound like broken wires going into the bottom half of the fusebox or corrosion?

Thanks for any help.

[barrymx5]

I’m delighted to post that I’ve solved my no start problem. Other than send the cluster off for an overhaul, I’ve removed my starter motor to check its function and cleaned all contacts plus I’ve removed the ecu from under my wheel arch and cleaned the contacts. With everything back in place I was down to three faults which I was able to clear and start the engine first turn. I’m only mentioning this to offer alternatives should all else fail. Good luck!

[isetta]

Would I be right in saying it is inconclusive on exactly where the problem was? That big plug in the engine bay fuse box sometimes plays up. I’m thinking that perhaps that was causing the problem and when doing the fuses you disturbed the plug and a dodgy connection became good?  Do you feel you know what fixed it in case it does same again?  

[barrymx5]

Not sure if this question was aimed at me, so forgive me if I’m out of turn. If I’m being honest I’m not sure what solved my issue or even if it’s permanent. I do know that the plug-in connections on the instrument panel appeared slightly dry (fractured) under close scrutiny. Having had this serviced it might well have been the solution but on fitting it appeared to have made no difference. I can’t remember if I cancelled all the fault codes at this time. A mechanic mate of mine reckoned there was evidence of a slight coolant leak onto the starter motor so it made sense to take it off, test it and clean all the contacts and in doing so eliminate it. My mechanic mate reckons it was cleaning the ecu contacts that most probably did the trick but I can’t be certain. I’m leaning towards the cancelling of the fault codes after the work had been done. The problems that GP123 is having seem very similar to those of mine, so I can only suggest going down the same route as me initially and then look at all other options that you guys have kindly suggested.

[isetta]

Yes sorry, got confused over who’s who on this thread. Every answer from everyone is welcome as it all goes together to help people solve problems in the future when people search the forum

 

[GP123]

Hi, with having another go with the fuse light tester again last night i have found that turning the ignition lights on activates all these fuses im on about. So im guessing theres a relay that brings these into life when needed. However still not sorted. No start. So going to be booking car into an auto electrican who can do can bus signals etc and pin  point a broken wire possibly..

[Asodada]

Hi gp123 you managed to sort out the issue with yout Ford if so what did you find was wrong with the car?? 

thanks in advance 

[unofix]

27 minutes ago, Asodada said:

Hi gp123 you managed to sort out the issue

You could be in for a long wait