Ball joint drama - Fried ECU??

[Virrdog]

So most are probably wondering how this is possible.

 

I started out doing my first balljoint job on the 1989 Wagon GL SPFI 4x4. Actually everything went great. Got the old ball joint out and the new one in. Then I just had to snug everything up and I was done. Call up a friend that manages a repair shop and ask him the general tightness needed for the castle nut and the pinch bolt. Bad idea - he says crank down on the pinch bolt since its hardened. Well.... I snapped it.

 

Phase II. Another friend comes over with a mig welder to weld a bolt to the broken piece left in the hub. We start welding away and then realize we should disconnect the battery first. That's where the new round of problems starts.

 

Now my car won't start. Everything lights up (except the check engine light??) when the key is turned on. When I go to start the car everything dies down like there is a short. I had my wife turn the key to ON and try to start the car with me looking under the hood. I don't see any sparks while trying to start the car, but can smell electrical stuff burning. I plugged in the green plugs to see if the ECU would run the diagnostic stuff and it does. I also checked all the fuses and the fusible links and they seem fine.

 

So the question of the day is what did I burn out / blow up? Anyone else mig welded on the car with the battery still hooked up? :-\

[86ruguy]

I have, and never had to disconnect the battery. But, that's not to say I didn't get lucky.

 

When you say "Everything dies down" do you mean.....the lights on the dash dim, or what?

 

It is possible that your starter failed due to age or something, not because of the welding.

 

Just my .02 worth

[s'ko]

I would be a more concerned about the welding done to the bolt.

 

If your welder friend is not really good or prepped the piece right your could have it break and then you are

 

re: welding w/battery connected. I did the same thing the other day and on my EJ BRAT started right up after that. I would say I do welding on the car 50% of the time w/the battery connected.

 

When you say run the diagnostic do you mean that at that point the check engine light comes on?

 

I would say check your battery, although the engine light not coming on is kinda weird.

 

BW

[john in KY]

My guess is you blew one or more diodes in the alternator. This can explain the dash lighting up but not the no-start problem.

 

Does the fuel pump still work? Another guess is if it doesn't then the ECU has been damaged.

 

Would first physically check all the fusible links for damage before going any further with this.

 

And I have welded on stuff without touching the battery or ECU and got away without any problems..

[Cougar]

Don't give up hope yet. It sounds to me that the ECU is doing its job though the CEL should have turned on with the key turned to ON. See if the lamp is burned out. If it isn't then the problem is most likely internal to the ECU but this won't keep the car from running.

 

I'm not sure what you mean by "things die down" when trying to start it. Some electrical items are shut off with the key in the Start position. To see if the fuel pump is working you should be able to hear it turn on briefly when the key is turned to ON. If you hear the pump run then try checking for spark at the plugs. If that is good then try spraying a small amount of starter fluid into the intake and see if that gets the engine running. If it just runs just for a brief time then check for a fuel problem.

[Virrdog]

Ok, posts in distress never come out right...

 

Clarifications: We welded a bolt onto the broken bolt piece to back it out. Very sweet trick. No drilling, no tapping, just a quick backing out of the broken piece. There is now a new longer hardened bolt with a nut on the end in the hub. The old bolt broke in such a way that it chewed up the threads on the way out.

 

Ok, fusible links were checked. Everything seems to run as normal when turning the key to the "on" position. Everything lights up (I think I was looking for "check engine" like my Legacy, the CEL was probably lighting up). When you turn the key to the start position, it acts like there is a giant short. EVERYTHING dims to the point of death until you release the key then everything goes back to normal. The starter is not turning, something is shorting - possibly the starter itself. I could smell the hot wiring smell when I had my wife try to start the car.

 

A couple of oddities: MIG tip was sparking on the metal before he hit the trigger, but that might have been his trigger acting up (there is still the ground path back to the machine even when this happens...). A/C compressor seemed really loud clicking on/off when the HVAC controls were on. But that might have been my car-won't-start sensitive ears.

 

I think right now my next step is to try jumping the starter solenoid (along with beating it with a hammer ). Then tossing a different battery in to make sure that's not fried.

[s'ko]

Thanks for the clarification about the ball joint.

 

Sounds like you are on the right track.

 

Good luck.

 

BW

[john in KY]

Really sounds like the starter. Bet it gets pretty hot when you attempt to crank the engine.

[Cougar]

I assume that the wire burning smell happens when you try go to the Start mode. This would most likely mean the starter motor is jammed somehow. To see if that is correct you could try putting a jumper lead directly between the battery and the starter motor contact. If the motor doesn't turn then you need to fix it.

 

If that is ok then check the ground leads for a bad connection. Also check the fusible links for a bad connection. Look for signs of burning.

[Gloyale]

Try bypassing the switch by jumpering the solenoid. If it starts, you have the classic ignition switch problem. Poor contact in the ignition switch won't let enough amparage pass through to activate the solenoid. Simple solution is to add a pushbutton for starting. A more elaborate solution is to install a relay that is signaled by the ignition switch then sending power to the starter. Search "ignition switch" and "pushbutton"

[daeron]

fivespeed??? try push starting it.

[Virrdog]

Got it all figured out.

 

I banged on the starter a little and tried again. Classic click*click*click sound from a way dead battery. The starter was somehow "stuck" before. That really freaked me out after welding on the car and all of a sudden nothing even turns... whew!

 

I think the battery is fried, I drove around for a while and there was still not one ounce of juice in it. I will clean the terminals and then try swapping out a different one.

 

Thanks for all the help!

[john in KY]

If not the battery then suspect popped diodes in the alternator. Once they go current can backflow from the battery giving you a dead battery.

[Virrdog]

If not the battery then suspect popped diodes in the alternator. Once they go current can backflow from the battery giving you a dead battery.

I'll keep that in mind, thanks.

[Virrdog]

Found my multimeter (lost in process of redoing a bedroom). Checked the battery and it was fine, 12.7V.

 

Cleaned the negative terminal and reinstalled. Car started up like a champ.

 

That was the WHOLE problem all along. Man I feel dumb. This is what happens when your wife moves the multimeter. You can't actually check stuff! Then you look like a retard on the USMB

[Cougar]

Glad you got your meter back. The moral of the story here is never let the wife handle the multimeter. This is off limits.

[s'ko]

Found my multimeter (lost in process of redoing a bedroom). Checked the battery and it was fine, 12.7V.

 

Cleaned the negative terminal and reinstalled. Car started up like a champ.

 

That was the WHOLE problem all along. Man I feel dumb. This is what happens when your wife moves the multimeter. You can't actually check stuff! Then you look like a retard on the USMB

 

nahh..... you would look like a retard on USMB if posted about how you went to the dealer to fix this problem.

 

Fixing your own ball joint puts you in the upper caste of subaru owners. Owning an old gen. You're royalty baby.

 

BW

[daeron]

Found my multimeter (lost in process of redoing a bedroom). Checked the battery and it was fine, 12.7V.

 

Cleaned the negative terminal and reinstalled. Car started up like a champ.

 

That was the WHOLE problem all along. Man I feel dumb. This is what happens when your wife moves the multimeter. You can't actually check stuff! Then you look like a retard on the USMB

 

King of Dumb here, dont feel bad. No man thinks well without their tool, right?