Witherspoon Wages War With Worlds Wildest Wire

[Larry Witherspoon]

Hello Old School Troopers, Old Car Geezers, and Innocent Newbies, one and all

I hope this story provides the reader with a humorous diversion, if not insight and education, I clocked reading time at around 14 minutes

When we last spoke to our intrepid preservationist Larry Witherspoon, he was in despair over a little wire that threatened to ruin his bank account

Before we examine the latest developments and his present status, let's recap the events which have taken him so close to ruin

A few months ago his 1992 Turbo Legacy Wagon check engine (CE) light, lit

At first it was very intermittent, and busy times being what they are, it received little attention

But like the rude kids your grammar school teacher said would go away if ignored, it persisted, and worsened

Finally Spoon was unable to ignore the distracting warning, and contorted under the dash to connect the half hidden plug which would reveal the fault code

Seems like the problem was in the knock sensor, which in a way was good, because the car wasn't being driven in a manner which would cause knocking to be a problem

But I was on the ropes, I don't like CE warnings, and the gasoline additive I had recently bought which is supposed to dramatically increase mileage would have to wait for test because the knock sensor fault might cause a programmed change in the engine efficiency, and I wanted to test with no unknown variables

So after a few more weeks of procrastination, and an empty weekend, a knock sensor installation was attempted

Getting to the knock sensor isn't too bad, it is a little doughnut shaped device right on top of the engine block held in place with a single bolt, but access is somewhat obscured by several vacuum hoses

After not too great a battle, the hoses were removed or displaced, and the old sensor was removed, and yes it was cracked

Now the removal of the old sensor gave me reason to reflect on the possibility for disaster upon installation of the new sensor

If it slipped off to the side, it might lodge in a cavity of such proportion, that recovery might become extremely difficult without removal of nearly all the plumbing on top of the engine

So a decision was made to connect the knock sensor to it's attendant wire from the Engine Control Unit (ECU or engine computer) as a measure of assurance against such loss

I cannot emphasize, in retrospect, how fateful that ill-informed decision was to be

If you ever duplicate this problem, use some other wire than the wire from the ECU to provide extra security for the knock sensor installation

After more than a decade and a half, the knock sensor wire which routes to the ECU had become fragile in the extreme

I promised myself I would observe a high level of caution while installing the knock sensor, but the difficulty in positioning the sensor for bolting caused enough agitation that it was not long before my promise, and the wire, were both broken

Of course the wire from the ECU broke off right flush with the female connector that the wire from the offensive sensor plugs into....there was nothing left to splice !

I was down but not out.


Raphi, my nearby independent Subaru mechanic had no immediate solution but did alert me to the possibility of a replacement wire available at one of the local reclamation yards

He was correct, a trip to Ecology Auto Wrecking / Pick-Ur-Part resulted in my scoring the last 12 inches of the wire with the necessary connector still attached

As it turns out, the trip also provided the evidence I needed to verify my original installation was as intended from the factory...you see, the wire from the ECU is like a tiny coax cable, and the outer wire terminates short of any connection

This did not seem correct when I noticed it on my car, but that's the way it was on both junkyard cars I saw, and makes sense of what looks funny in the service manual schematic

So cool, I was real careful to keep the inner and outer wires separated when I spliced and soldered the junkyard wire to my factory installed wire

I had already installed the knock sensor so the repair was complete without spending too much more time.

Now I was finally going to be able to try the gasoline additive

So I fired up the engine for my first test drive, and the CE light was on

I was down again...I needed the bell to save me

I went to the dealer for a complete engine code diagnosis and was advised my knock sensor wire repair was in vain

The little coax carries such a small voltage, it is extremely sensitive to any non-conforming condition other than the factory installation, and a twisted splice or solder joint repair had been found to be so often unsuccessful, that the dealer would not attempt it if the wire were damaged.

The wire routes from the ECU along with many others as part of a chassis harness, so it is not available as a separate subassembly

No PROBLEM, it's only money right? I could buy the harness and elect to install the whole thing or just cut out the wire for a single replacement installation right ?

Wrong, the harness was not available at any dealers nationwide, and was no longer supported by the factory as a special order

Even if a special order from the factory had been available it would have been priced at over $900 (no mistake nine hundred), and installation would have approached that as well

I got the bell and the doc came over to my corner to check me out

I had just about snatched defeat from the jaws of victory

This is where we left our hero hanging at the end of last months episode, and where we pick up now in our conclusion

Many suggestions were offered for which I am thankful. One such suggestion which was repeated several times from others with a similar problem was the outer (shield) wire was not all that important and could be eliminated, but I had broken and repaired BOTH the outer wire and the inner (signal) wire, so I was really wanting to make everything right.

I needed to find that doggone wire, if at all possible, complete from sensor connector to ECU terminal

It was looking pretty dim.

One of my handlers even tried to throw in the towel but Josh Colombo caught it in mid flight

Josh had a complete unbroken wire with connectors and terminals on both ends

I was back on my feet and ready to hunt down the ECU

I confirmed the ECU location for my year make and model with my fave factory certified dealer mechanic Steve Powell who lives about 50 miles away

Steve was going to be pretty busy over the coming weekends which torpedoed my excuse to visit his horse ranch and have breakfast at our fave place at the local community airport

I decided to make the final assault on my own over Father's Day weekend

Access to the ECU, under the dash and over the steering column, is so tight, I took out the front seat

I have a spare ECU which I used to study the orientation of the installed ECU along with the factory service manual to identify the plug containing the knock sensor wire terminals

After pulling several wire connections apart under the dash, the ECU could be unbolted and brought into a position which would allow me to pull out the connector with the sensor wire

I had a second wind and was starting to smell victory again

I was feeling so good, I decided to take advantage of the high sun position so I could easily see the knock sensor terminal, and without removing any over engine plumbing, after farting around for a while, managed to remove the old connector with the help of the straight part of a cut off coat hanger, and plug in the new connector

I was on a roll. A two hour process went fairly smoothly and only consumed a half hour

I took a break to cheer with the crowd between rounds

Josh and I had talked about possible routes for the wire, and like all great warriors, luck was smiling on me

A route revealed itself to me as visible daylight seen from under the dash. It was the speedometer cable grommet which had pulled loose, and like the star over Bethlehem guided me to the perfect spot to rout my wire

I was ready now to finish off my project and my enemy with only a couple of small pins to remove and replace on the ECU plug, then I would be ready to test my mileage

I would have made the queen of Siamese contortionist performers proud the way I attacked that plug, from my position with my back on the floor looking up under the dash and left foot on the rear seat and right foot out the passenger rear door

But the blanker blanking contacts wouldn't come out !

I had my jewelers screwdriver, and a special contact removal tool from my electrician buddy, Tom Kinyon next door, and I must have tried for an hour picking and poking to back out those contacts, but no luck

Shit

I must need another special tool. I went to Autozone but they didn't have anything. However the old guy behind the counter recommend Signal Electronics about 15 minutes drive away. I got there about 15 minutes after they had closed

Shit

The next day, with renewed energy, I found the exact tool I needed at Signal Electronics, it even had the wire terminal size indicated on the package, and that size terminal in the package next to it, exactly matched the terminals I was fighting with

I took the little telescoping poking tool that cost $14 to finish off my job, gas mileage test here I come

The fit into my plug was way too tight, it wasn't working, and by now my back was taking a beating

I needed a plug just like mine to practice on in a comfortable position so I would know what the hell I was doing, and how to operate in such a manner that I could back out the wire, without damaging the plug

Nothing to do but return to the Pick-Ur-Part yards

Now understand, the 92 Subaru Legacy was a fairly popular car in many areas of the country, but in Southern California, they were about as common as snowplows in Sumatra

Three junkyards and about as many hours later, and I had found a car with my plug

I had taken my wire snips but forgot to take a screwdriver which was needed to pull apart the dash panels so I could get to the ECU

Then by the most miraculous of miracles, a gentleman interested in the radiator fan motor working under the hood, appreciated my rudimentary Spanish language skills and graciously lent me his Phillips

I had my plug in two minutes, and though beat up pretty bad by the searching and the walking and the heat, offered what help I could in extracting the radiator fans, but it is a relatively simple job and so with many thanks, I started back home

Then I decided what the heck, and detoured by way of Signal Electronics where I thought perhaps there might be valuable experience available in the personnel working there

It was a decision that changed the course of my war

The young man behind the counter readily admitted the $14 extraction tool I had bought was useless, but his curiosity was aroused enough that he went to work on the plug with the tool my buddy next door had lent

The wires held fast

Then he took to examining the plug itself and noticed something I cannot say I would have ever seen

He noticed a couple of microscopic tabs on the sides of the plug housing, and with me holding the plug in such a manner to permit access, managed to pry the sides open slightly and SHAZZAAAM, a portion of the plug top flapped open exposing the captive wire receptacles.

The flap provided a secondary captive device, in addition to the conventional tabs at the metallic terminal, and with the flap open, probing with my loaned tool released the wire !

The young man behind the counter cursed the plug designer as an asshole for coming up with an unnecessary clip that needed three hands to operate, and I did not argue

I did, with some manipulation however, figure out how to use three fingers on one hand in such a way that I could demonstrate it possible to complete the operation with two hands, but I could not duplicate my success every time, as the fit was very tight and the parts very small

But I knew what I needed to know in order to finish off the enemy, and so I headed for home. I would be increasing my mileage pretty soon.

Once again contorted under the dash, I welcomed the pain the way a true warrior uses it to sharpen himself for victory in battle, and to frighten his enemy into submission when it is realized that defeat cannot be avoided

My jewelers screwdriver and special tool provided the prying forces necessary to open the flap microtabs without need for my free hand

A few probes in the right place after gaining proficiency practicing on the junkyard plug and I was victorious

I had the new wires inserted where both the sensor and the shield separate and enter the plug for the ECU, I had the plug inserted back in the ECU, the trash pulled apart under the dash all put back together, my seat back in the car, and the battery connected within probably a couple of hours

I was ready to rumble. The moment of truth was at hand. I turned the key and the engine fired immediately.

NO CHECK ENGINE LIGHT !

I was Muhammad Ali in that classic photo as he stood over and glared down at what had been considered an undefeatable Joe Frazier looking up at him from the mat

I was floating like a butterfly. I was the KING. I was the HULK...I HAD WON !!!

Thank you Josh, thank you Steve, thank you Tom, thank you Raphi, thank you Subaru dealer mechanic, thank you kind gentleman at the junkyard, thank you old man at Autozone, thank you young man at Signal Electronics, thank you all who offered advice and encouragement

Oh and the gas additive ?

The next day, my speedo went crazy for about a half hour, then stopped working completely, and the check engine light came on

Kind of hard to keep track of mileage when the speedo's broke !

But that's another story for another time

For now, good by, and good luck

Larry The Warrior Witherspoon
Torrance (Los Angeles)
92 Turbo Legacy Wagon

[Arctic Assassian]

I freakin love your stories larry! They remind me of when I first installed a td04. Such a daunting task to the ignorant, but after completion, just a big, dramatic joke.
What code did the sucker throw?

[Larry Witherspoon]

The original fault code was a 22 - Abnormal voltage produced in knock sensor monitor circuit

Now I've got a 24 and a 33

Air control valve inoperative (Abnormal signal produced in monitor circuit)

and

Abnormal voltage input entered from vehicle speed sensor

Which I hope will clear when I get the speedo fixed

Looks like I lost the circlip that holds the cable housing in the trans receptacle

Too much that as soon as I get one code fixed two more kick off

I think the speed sensor should be related to the broken speedo but the air control valve is kind of worrying me. I haven't even looked into that but I am getting some stalls at idle that is supposed to be related

[Legacy777]

Get your speedo working, clear the codes, and check again.

A non-working speedo causes so many issues with the ECU.

[SILINC3R]

hey let me know when your book comes out

[cj91legss]

Dude, That was awsome.

[Soul Shinobi]

I promised myself I would observe a high level of caution while ...

That's how trouble always starts with me. Always.

... Such a daunting task to the ignorant, but after completion, just a big, dramatic joke.

Sounds like my entire experience with cars; I can be so thoroughly ignorant.

[glennda5id]

Good work!

[magicmike]

The same extact thing happened to me. The wire broke right at the factory plug. I'm a little confused about your story though. The shield is not intend to be connected to the knock sensor. A shield on a cable had to be connected to ground only on one end. I cant say for sure because I did not hunt it down on the ecu end but its most certainly grounded on that end. This being said, all I did was take apart the factory plug which can be easily done with a small pick tool and solder the broken wire back on to the pin and stick it back together. took about 15 minutes and slapped the new knock sensor (old one was cracked and grounded out when wet) and started her up and no code and havent seen one since. hope this info helps someone else!

[Legacy777]

He's talking about the insulation I believe.

[ericem]

Wow, that was awesome thank you! Best piece of material I have ever read in my whole life probably.

[smh0101]

So I just found this while searching for something totally inrelated...

And I usually wouldnt post in a year old thread... however... this story... was ridiculous... and more members who havent read it MUST!

That... Was... Freaking... Awesome...

[Legacy777]

Larry always has some good stories