greenvention Posted March 12 Share Posted March 12 1991 Loyale - I've had it for 5 years and keep having to fix electrical issues. First it was bad headlight relay, which thanks to forums like this I was able to find. Then the aftermarket radio was shorting out because someone just cut wires without taping up the ends or anything and I think they were contacting the housing. Well It was running great for a while, but recently I've been coming back to a dead battery again. A break light burned out, but at the socket instead of the bulb. I disconnected the group of 3 lights for that light for now, but I still get a draw on fuse 5. I think I'm getting a draw on fuse 4 too, but not sure because one meter says yes, another one says no, but both say yes on fuse 5. When I pull out fuse 5, like the actual moment of sliding, the passenger door belt surges, like the motor fires and the shoulder strap moves a little. Only when I'm pulling the fuse out. Anyway I need to fix it because this morning I headed out on the freeway, felt some tugging, then lost power, then couldn't start. I got towed home. I fiddled with one of the parking lights that is also out (and also the bulb itself seems to be fine?), and thought I'd try starting it again and it started right up. Actually that was after I took the radio out to see if it was shorting again. Good news! Except the parasitic draw was still there and I really need to do this road trip which means I really need to find the short or bad circuit or replace the ECU is it got fried in the process. I'm still thinking it's a bad connection somewhere throwing everything else off, but my brain is not as sharp as it used to be. So I tried conversing with grok 3 for a long time and it's very logical but not great like a mechanic who knows things. Is there a way I can tell if the ECU is bad? Would it act intermitantly like this if it was? I used to get a CEL and after various tuneups I found a sensor, i forget which one, but one that could effectively be replaced with a resistor, which I did, and have not had a CEL since then. That was last year or so. It ran great for months before this resurgance of electrical issue. Still no CEL - which I'm guessing DOESN'T rule out that it still COULD be a bad ECU. If anyone has any clues, I'd love to hear them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moosens Posted March 12 Share Posted March 12 Some folks have baked their ECUs just enough to get the solder to loosen up and reset. Also check every ground for good metal contact. And if the general field that a ground lands on is a rusty area that’s not considered a good ground. Folks add ground wires. Usually see the braided type, nice and thick. That would be a starting point. Good luck. Post back. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenvention Posted March 15 Author Share Posted March 15 After several hours of unplugging all the plugs i could find, i finally unplugged this one and the parasitic draw dropped to zero Any idea what it is? Next step would be to test the pins, but I have to know what they're supposed to be before I can make any meaning out of it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scoobydube Posted April 12 Share Posted April 12 (edited) Tell us what is at the other end of the wiring and we well tell you what is bad. I have six relay switches under my 86 turbo dash. Since they were getting real hot and putting of nauseating fumes, I relocated them to ammo cans placed behind the front seats. Two relay switches keep my engine running. Two relay switches keep the head lights and digital dash running. One relay switch keeps the fan running and one relay switch probably goes to the rear window defroster, which I removed the fuses for. The original relay switches are mostly bad by now. Do not buy new relay switches from Subaru, because you can buy the same ones off of Ebay for 1/4 the cost that the Subaru dealer is going to hose you for. When your engine suddenly stops running, the cause is usually either relays switches, the black fusible link, the left side timing belt broken, a bad coil, the condenser next to the coil, or a bad distributor. Carry spares where possible. You have to take your distributor apart periodically and make sure that the swing weights and all other moveable parts are swinging and rolling freely and have light weight lithium grease. I have never had an ECU go out in 530,000 plus miles. Edited April 12 by scoobydube Better recollection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenvention Posted April 12 Author Share Posted April 12 It turns out it was the seatbelt controller unit, not the ECU, which on my 19 loyal wagon is in the back, behind the drivers side cargo panel. I never would have found it if it were not for a faint clicking sound when i was messing with the wiring pictured above. I removed it (and replaced the fuel pump with an 87 F-150 pump) and it seems to be running fine now, except the seat belts are mildly annoyingly static, which honestly i don't mind, but i do imagine selling the car one day and would like to have the belts working as intended. Which brings me to the question of where can i find a replacement seatbelt controller that actually fits? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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