Cougar

I think you may be correct about the amplifier idea, especially if it is seperate. I would suspect a bad power connection to it.

I suggest you replace the PCV valve again with a OEM one. Check the air filter to see if it is getting oil on it. If so the PCV valve is the problem most likely.

You should start a new thread for this problem I think. My first check would be to see if spark is getting to the plugs. If that is ok then I would check the timing belts for a problem.

Thanks for the update Doug. That is a pretty common problem.

The error code P0446 is a code showing an electrical problem with the circuit to that valve. You stated you saw 14 volts getting to the coil of the solenoid and if I understand correctly you saw 26 ohms for the coil resistance which should be correct I think. If these things are correct then there must be a bad connection to the coil somehow.

The battery has discharged for some reason and as others have stated already it is most likely due to a bad alternator but it may be due to other problems. You can either have the alternator checked out in the vehicle or out of it. I recommend you first charge the battery back up using a battery charger so you don't put a lot of stress on the alternator charging the battery back up. Also have the battery checked to see if that is ok. It may be a good idea to replace both the alternator and the battery if they are not in the best of shape. Doing that may save you from another electrical break down.

I assume that coolant isn't getting into the engine oil. I suspect you have a leak in the tranmission fluid coolant coil. You may need to replace the radiator if that is the case.

I think your pump is tied to ground directly and if so then the pump should run if it is good and you have 12 volts getting to it. Check the voltage across the leads of the pump directly. If you still have 12 volts there and the pump isn't running then it is bad. If the ground of the pump is controlled by the ECU then you may be getting confused with the power running to the pump. An open ground lead will have voltage on both sides of the pump leads when the common meter lead is connected to ground.

The drop down in voltage from 12 volts to 9 means there is a connection problem there. It would also appear there is another bad connection between where you measured the 9 volts and 0 volts, unless you measured the ground lead somehow. That would be 0 volts.

Info shows that power to the pump comes from SBF-2 in the panel under the hood and runs to the fuel pump relay. I suggest you check for power there first. At the relay, power comes from the fuse on a yellow wire and ties to a blk/red wire that goes to the pump. You should have 12 volts on both wires when the pump is supposed to be on if the relay is working ok. If that is good then there is either a bad wire connection between there and the pump wire (wire color turns to blue/yellow at the pump end), the pump is bad, or the ground wire to the pump isn't making good connection. There are at least a couple more connections to the pump after the relay so the trouble may be in one of those.

You can find all kinds of information on testing relays by doing a web search. Since the lows beams are working and the HI-beam indicator is turning on this means the relay and fuses for the lights are working like they should be and are common to both lighting modes so the trouble is not with them. After looking at some info it shows that the RED lead for the Hi-beams runs through the SMJ connector on the firewall. This is the main connector for the wiring. Pin A3 ties to the lights to make the ground connection for them through the switch. Since the HI-beam indicator is turning on this tells me that the ground is working at that point but it appears there may be a bad connection to the lights on pin A3 of the SMJ connector. By disconnecting it and then reconnecting it the trouble may clear. That pin should have no voltage on it when the HI-beams are switched ON.

VOM= Volt-Ohm-Milliammeter. Just for the record.

Since you saw 14.5 volts when the alternator was working it means the internal regulator is good. It sounds like you may have a problem with the battery warning light circuit though. You say the warning light doesn't turn on at all. The light should turn on when you turn the ignition from OFF to ON without the engine running. If the light doesn't turn on then you need to find out why. The first suspect would be the lamp or bad socket connection for it. With the wire connector removed from the back side of the alternator there should be 12 volts on the wht/red wire when the ignition is ON. This is what excites the alternator field. If the lamp is not on (when connected properly) and there isn't any voltage on the wire (even when removed from the alternator) then there is an open connection between the bulb and the wire connection to the alternator. This may explain why you have to rev the engine so high to get the alternator to work. It may be self exciting somehow. Once it gets the field going it is ok.

Check the passenger footwell area.

I assume the wire color for the bottom of the 'T' was white/red and the charge warning light was ON when you read zero volts on the lead. This would mean the alternator is grounding the field circuit inside and turning on the warning light like it should be when the alternator isn't working. Now if the warning light wasn't ON then this could mean a problem with the external wiring.

There may be a problem with the crank sensor signals but the coil would be the biggest suspect I would think. You could try swapping the coils and see if that changes things.

The coils are made of special wire and have resistance which changes the voltage to the motor and thus the speed change. They can also handle a lot of heat but do break down after time. Whenever the blower doesn't work on some speeds other than high the resistors are the first suspect for the trouble.

It sounds like there may be a problem inside the alternator. Check to see if there is 12 volts on the leads to the rear connector. If you have close to battery voltage on the two leads while the engine is running at idle and the output voltage is below 12.2 volts then it appears the alternator is bad.

The inhibit switch is on top of the transmission I believe. Before messing with that I highly recommend you clean the battery cable connections, even if they look ok. Doing that will most likely clear the trouble.

Try cleaning the battery connections using a battery post cleaning brush. The problem could also be with the inhibit switch, that controls power to the starter solenoid.

To check the wiring to the sensor just measure the resistance between the ends of the wire. The other end should tie to the ECU. There should be very little resistance between the ends. Also measure the resistace to ground to make sure the wire isn't grounded somehow.

Is the code really for a bad sensor or is it a bad circuit to it?

There is a voltage regulator in the circuit I believe and the trouble may be with that.

The problem you are having isn't due to a shorting condition. It is about the opposite of a short, almost (the true opposite of a short is a open connection). There is a bad connection in the power buss somewhere causing the problem. The current isn't going to ground as it would be in a shorted condition, it is being restricted due to excessive resistance in series the power supply line. The resistance will cause a voltage drop across it when current flows through it and the more load you add to the line the more voltage gets dropped across the bad connection and less power gets to the loads.

The info I am looking at shows a trinary switch tieing to the relay and it has four leads to it so it may be the thing you are looking for. The wire colors are blk/yel, red/wht or blk/wht, blu/red, blu/wht.