legacycentral bbs

Alright, just bought this 93 turbo for 700 bucks to use for a swap into my 97 legacy. Car barely idles and runs like hell. Literally zero power and if you start from a dead stop the will 1. Die if you don't keep tapping the throttle and 2. Once it gets started it doesn't pull at all and has to get tranny dropped to get moving. Once it gets into boost it will keep up with traffic but getting to that point is rough.

Pulled codes
11
22
35
49

Obviously the MAF sensor has a lot to do with this and its going to need a good cleaning first and hopefully not a replace but we will see. What else should I look at doing right away to get this sucker running right. To add, I replaced plugs and wires as the once on it literally broke in half when I pull them off to check them. I also have a head gasket leak on the drivers side in the plug and that will get fixed next once I get the motor out of here. Is the leak into the plug making things run bad as well? The knock sensor has also been hacked by the PO and there are ghetto wire fixes every in it. Does anyone know where I can go to get a new shielded wire for the knock sensor to just replace it the right way?

According to Josh, you fix the lowest numbers first, and clear the codes properly between fixes to see if others went away as well.

Yes, normally I would say fix the lower number first, however the improper MAF code should be an easy check to make sure you are using the aluminum bodied MAF sensor.

I would suggest resetting the ECU, and then checking the codes again to see what comes back.

If the crank sensor is bad, that very well may cause what you're describing. Regarding the knock sensor, the easiest and cheapest option is to get some shielded microphone wire from radioshack.

Legacy777 wrote:Yes, normally I would say fix the lower number first, however the improper MAF code should be an easy check to make sure you are using the aluminum bodied MAF sensor.

I would suggest resetting the ECU, and then checking the codes again to see what comes back.

If the crank sensor is bad, that very well may cause what you're describing. Regarding the knock sensor, the easiest and cheapest option is to get some shielded microphone wire from radioshack.

These codes were pulled immediately after an ECU reset. So that part has been covered. The PO changed the MAF to the plastic on so it looks like I'm going to have to bite the bullet on that one. I also ordered a new knock sensor today just to be on the safe side. I will try some microphone wire on the cable. Is the anything special I have to do to wire it or is the shielding just there to keep the interference out?

Thanks

You might get lucky if you hit up the salvage yards for the MAF, 90-91 n/a 5 speeds has the same MAF's as the turbos.

Yeah, I'd hit up the junkyards or post a WTB in the parts shed for an aluminum MAF.

I honestly would start with the MAF before doing anything else and see how it works.

Yes the shielding is there to keep the electrical interference out. You just need to make sure that the shielding does not touch the main wiring at the knock sensor connector. Back at the ECU the shielding needs to be connected to the appropriate pin, which essentually grounds it.

Weekend update. I got an aluminum MAF and got it cleaned. Car runs a little better now and idles slightly better. I defiantly have a bad knock sensor and crank sensor. The new knock sensor is on its way right now and I will be ordering the crank sensor later today. I still have to figure out rewiring those two and finding new connectors for them since all of that is gone in mine. I also put some sea foam through the intake just to try and clean out as much crap as I can. Come to find out my exhaust is leaking pretty much everywhere and I also had some smoke coming out of my wastegate as will. Sign of a bad turbo? I'm not too worried about it since its getting replaced anyway but it would be good know out of curiosity. I also replaced about 6 feet in different vacuum lines and that seemed to smooth things out even more. While I had all of that apart I did find a crack in my BPV. Whats a good replacment for that or am I better off to just leave it alone for now since Im going with a top mount once I get this motor pulled?

Thanks for the help so far

Are the old connectors for the knock & crank sensor not there or are they just really boogered up?

Was smoke coming out of the wastegate pivot shaft?

If you plan to drive the car I'd try and find a replacement BPV or use some epoxy to seal the crack as a temporary fix.

Legacy777 wrote:Are the old connectors for the knock & crank sensor not there or are they just really boogered up?

Was smoke coming out of the wastegate pivot shaft?

If you plan to drive the car I'd try and find a replacement BPV or use some epoxy to seal the crack as a temporary fix.

Not there at all. Looks like they got close to the turbo and melted so the PO just wired in some cheap connectors to "fix" it. And yeah, the smoke was coming out the pivot shaft. I don't plan on driving the car as is. I used epoxy to just hold the BPV together until I have the car running better but its not going to last.

EDIT: here is a pic of how the PO fixed the wires

Looks like quality work. Lol

rallyak wrote:Looks like quality work. Lol

Only the best. Really makes replacing stuff interesting. You should see the bang up job he did on the BPV

So to update, I put in the new knock sensor and found out that the wiring for that is also shielded and is also shot. I'm making a junkyard run this weekend to get as many of the bad wires replaced as I can in one trip. Will the N/A cam and crank sensors work in the turbo cars? And what other things should I grab while I am at the junkyard?

The current list is:
knock sensor harness
cam position harness and sensor
crank position harness and sensor
engine temp sensor
MAF sensor out of a 5 speed

Anything else I should grab while I am there?

Cam and crank sensors are the same. And the maf it's easy to spot, if it metal that's the one you want.

rallyak wrote:Cam and crank sensors are the same. And the maf it's easy to spot, if it metal that's the one you want.

Perfect. Thank you.

Wow! Yeah that was a piss poor wiring fix.