1992 Buick Century Ignition Module @ ECM

Tiny
STIMPY
  • MEMBER
  • 1992 BUICK CENTURY
  • 6 CYL
  • FWD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 190,000 MILES
Sometimes the engine fails to start, but when it does start, dies when I step on the gas. The shop told me the Ignition Module and ECM are both bad. If this is true, why does it start at all? Are these components something I can change? (I do a lot of repairs myself) What about junk yard parts?
Wednesday, January 6th, 2010 AT 4:05 PM

3 Replies

Tiny
ERNEST CLARK
  • MECHANIC
  • 1,730 POSTS
It's possible that both the ignition module and ECM are going bad, but it's unlikely they'd both go at the same time.

When an ignition module is faulty, it may not provide enough voltage or dwell time to the coil to keep the spark plugs firing effectively as r.P.M.'S build. And it could be an intermittent problem also.

Your E.C.M. Controls your fuel delivery. Though on your specific vehicle the ignition module does the work of firing your spark plugs, the E.C.M. Still uses that information (timing) to control the injectors.

If you don't trust that mechanics opinion, then you really should take to one who you will trust. Because they have thousands of dollars worth of test equipment that will tell them exactly what's wrong, why, and how to fix it.

If you'd like to tackle this job yourself, then remove the suspected problem parts, go to AutoZone or any major parts store, and ask them to test them for you. If they are equipped to do so, they'll usually do it for free.

What you don't want to do is remove/replace parts hoping to hit the jack pot. This hardly ever works, and gets pretty expensive.
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Wednesday, January 6th, 2010 AT 6:19 PM
Tiny
STIMPY
  • MEMBER
  • 3 POSTS
I removed the IM and had it tested at two different Auto Zone stores - both times passing. So I took the car to another shop that thinks it has a bad injector. They said that when one of the injectors sends bad information to the computer, the computer shuts all of them down. This does sound more plausible then what the first shop told me. So should a guy with moderate skills attempt an injector change on this car?
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Wednesday, January 13th, 2010 AT 5:34 PM
Tiny
MIDASTOUCH1953
  • MEMBER
  • 7 POSTS
Hey Stimpy. I'm Leo. Yes sir! I had a similiar problem with a Cavalier. I changed everything from the coil, ECM, fuel pump, etc. To no avail. It just so happened that another mechanic friend of mine had the same prob with his son's car. As I was told, each injector has it's own little, (for lack of a better word) mini-computer in it. If just one of those injectors has a bad one, it will send a command to the ECM and shut the engine down. Contrary to my, and 2 other seasoned mechanics beliefs, we USED to think that 1 bad injector would only cause a "miss". However, that being said, that's assuming that the "fuel side" of the injector is clogged i.E, thus causing the miss. So, yes indeed my friend, 1 faulty injector, (electrical side) would definitely cause your prob. We went to the local pick-n-pay, and got the entire rail, (about $50) with all 6 injectors and replaced them.
And what do you know, VoilĂ, success. And yes my friend, with even moderate skills you CAN do this job yourself. Hope this helps?
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Monday, January 10th, 2011 AT 3:29 PM

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