Lots of trouble codes, car runs fine

[Minnie79]

Hi. The car has been running fine after I completed that engine swap last summer. Occasional engine light, which was always MAF. Cleaned it and it stayed off for awhile. Also developed oil leak at cam sensor o-rings. Said just keep oil topped off till we get above freezing, then I’ll get some new ones. Just slowly getting out of winter here in northern Michigan.

So anyway she just got her son’s Jeep checked because things weren’t working, and decided to pull the codes in hers while she was there. Turned up a crapload of them. I haven’t looked into it too deeply, but it seems like it should run badly if at all. Says it still runs and drives just great.

Here’s what we got.



Does this look familiar to anyone here? Like possibly a common issue?

 

[Handy Andy]

If it's a Jeep - remember the operators tend to (ab)use them to get out into parts of the Earth that aren't made for any vehicle to be on. So with the "Restraint" system codes being the bigger more numerous results - the occupants of said vehicle are certainly suffering from bouncing around and the long-term effects from the Restrain system either engaging or lack of engaging (READ slack or not used at all in specific cases) the on-board sensors are also in for the ride and certainly are leaving behind lasting memories residing in the Vehicles long-term memory as "Its-Your-Fault-Codes".

If this thing was used, someone reclaimed it from the scrap heap because you usually see these codes on vehicles (of any type) that have had been totaled because of a small accident - something stuck the vehicle in the right spot with enough force to set off a flurry of Air-Bags - rendering the vehicle more expensive to repair than it's worth (think High-mileage and the results thereof) - and they do not easily clear - it takes some special programmed tools to remove the codes buried in the SRS system.

Being (if) it's in a Jeep - they are notorious for having issues keeping vibrational damages and their dynamic physical aspects down when they start developing cracks in paint - inviting corrosion or loosen the wiring connections - because of vibrations - making what used to be clean signals - now a jittery mess it has to sort out.

But if these codes were from Her vehicle, The Above Still Applies - someone had done work in and around the SRS airbag system - either by the seats or in kickpanels where these Air-Bag bombs are located - and screwed up the wiring. They use gold-plating or even Gold-leaf contacts to reduce voltage drops because of how Gold in a purer form - conducts electricity to ignite these oxidizer bombs. The SRS system is a series wired loop of bombs set up in ring with power flowing thru them all the time to work as a means to check and verify system health and integrity at all times. Once one of the loops is broken the ring tries to re-verify the original signal levels and if it doesn't it will set a Check Engine Light, SRS light and or both that can be expensive to repair if the reseller didn't fix it right the first time and clear the codes only to have them pop back up again later one the next owner.

 

[Minnie79]

Thanks. Yes the codes are from her car. Car info is in pic 2.

I did have the driver side kick panel connector disconnected when diagnosing the nonworking HVAC blower. Described that last year, turned out to be a bad wire somewhere up by the underhood computers. I also had the computers disconnected when doing the engine swap. And again when diagnosing the nonfunctional low beams last year (was a corroded relay pin). I used silicone grease when putting the connectors back together.

Maybe it’s another wire in that harness to the computers and battery junction box gone bad? I remember you saying that was a problem area.

And BTW I have a Jeep too as a winter beater. Didn’t mean to confuse anything. I had just asked what prompted her to get the Fiesta looked at if it was running great.

 

[Handy Andy]

By What I've seen in your post, the SRS system may be the reason for this wiring issue - or what seems to be like it.

Why? The SRS can send data to the ECM about the status of the sensors wired to it. So if you have wiring that is loose up there, it can explain that result of all those codes are (Possibly) from the SRS system being wired up and because of the harnesses and damage in there - not be able to talk and receive input from various systems. When it fails completely - in an accident the Airbags may not deploy and even at times the vehicle may stall for no reason because of the SRS has PCM control lines to tell the system to shut off the Fuel Pump if it thinks an accident has occurred. All - transparent to actual events, just because of flaky results from sensor inputs made it think this.

The SRS is located by the Emergency Brake Handle - just below it and right by the Media ports for your USB and Audio jack.

If coffee or drinks spilled down into the area by the Brake handle - this can set off a chain of events including the corrosion of wiring and their connectors - so if you are finding loose wiring - this is not a good sign.

But if the vehicle is still running and you can tolerate the oftentimes quirkyness it may perform. The SRS condition will not sort itself out but will constantly annoy until it's repaired - you may also find the SRS system (If these codes are a persecuor of more trouble ahead later down the road...) will disable the vehicle and it will have to be towed to a dealer in order to have the resources needed to finally fix the system and get it back on the road.