97 Explorer EB edition 4L SOHC and diagnostic tools

[TAdams]

Hello,

I've been looking into troubleshooting some issues and instead of replacing parts and hoping for the best I wanted to get a scanner to aid me in troubleshooting. I purchased the Actron CP9580A after reading over some of the reviews. This last Thurs. I received it and promptly went out and hooked it up and found something odd for the live data, problem areas read as follows:

O2 sensors all read (V) 0.000
FTRM## all % -100.0

I have contacted Actron and the initial response was (paraphrasing) "...these are common vehicles that have been around a long time we are unaware of any issues..." I have replied to the email with more details and hoped to hear back Fri. but no luck. I have read on this and other forums of people having similar issues.

Example: http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=357088

Assuming this is a problem with how the data is relayed it seems other manufacturers have taken the time to "make workarounds" from what I gather during researching - although many of them are high end tools (not for the diy mechanic).

Has anyone ran into this and found a scanner/code tool that will work with the troublesome vehicles? I would appreciate any suggestions

Best regards,
Tom

 

[drdoom]

Tom are you familiar with FORScan open source software?

 

[2000StreetRod]

Power Flash

I use an SCT X3 Power Flash to read PIDs via the OBD-II bus. You can often purchase a used one on eBay for around $150. As I recall, even if it is locked to a vehicle it will still read codes. You just can't program the PCM with it.

 

[TAdams]

Tom are you familiar with FORScan open source software?

drdoom,

Thank you for your reply, and no I was not. I purchased the BAFX Products - Bluetooth OBD2 scan tool (ELM327 v.1.5) from Amazon. I signed up on the ForScan forums and located a beta for Android and have used it. While I get much more detailed information overall, I still get the same results for the trims and O2 sensor readings.

I use an SCT X3 Power Flash to read PIDs via the OBD-II bus. You can often purchase a used one on eBay for around $150. As I recall, even if it is locked to a vehicle it will still read codes. You just can't program the PCM with it.

2000StreetRod,

Thank you as well, I have saved the search and will keep my eye out for them on Ebay. Spendy little tools brand new!

On a side note I was able to capture some of the trim data in a freeze frame, which was great! Still, having it in live data would be much preferred.

I appreciate the input very much, thank you. I have also tried Torque pro, and a few other similar apps from Google Play all provide something useful but all missing the data I seek.

Best regards,
Tom

 

[koda2000]

2000StreetRod -Question:

If the vehicle has not entered CLOSED LOOP MODE, will the O2's read zero?

 

[2000StreetRod]

open vs closed loop

Apparently the PCM monitors the O2 sensor outputs when in open loop. I don't remember if the PCM outputs the O2 sensor voltages when in open loop but they would not be accurate immediately after engine start or at WOT. The O2 sensor heaters greatly shorten the time to make the sensor output reliable. My PCM enters closed loop about 20 or 30 seconds after a cold start but fuel trims are available (but inaccurate) almost immediately after engine start.

The plot below shows the rpm, STFTs, and open loop flag for a cold start of one of my first self tunes probably with no learned values stored in the PCM.
As you can see STFTs were being computed and available on the bus one half second after engine start. The PCM switched from open to closed loop at 16.7 secs (only 12 seconds after engine warm start).