First off, sorry for posting and running. I've been out of town the last two weekends and I've started a new job that takes up a lot more of my time. It does pay more so that's always a plus but I haven't had much time at all in the last couple weeks to think about this.

So let me answer a few questions. First and foremost, this truck does not have a GPR, it has a GPCM as all Excursions do. My GPCM has been a little suspect for a while because it had set codes in the past because the PCM was unable to access the diagnostics circuit on the GPCM. Since the glow plugs always seemed to work fine, I pretty much ignored it because a new GPCM is a few hundred bucks.

When I checked all the fuses, I pulled each one and looked at it. I didn't replace any, but none looked burned or blown at all. Where are the fusible links located? I didn't think those were used any longer.

With the adapter, it's a little confusing to me that neither one works in either vehicle. I would almost bet that neither one of them ever worked on the Toyota and I didn't know it because I never tried it, and neither work on my truck because the PCM was damaged in the storm. It seems to be the most likely explanation. The LED light comes on with both adapters so I know they're getting power, they just won't show up in a wifi or bluetooth search. I'm pretty tech savvy and I'm sure I'm doing that part right.

As far as troubleshooting this goes, the fact that the glow plugs no longer come on eliminates a lot of the possible culprits because a bad IDM or CPS wouldn't cause that behavior. I don't have a spare IDM accessible, either. I would probably have to get one from ebay or a local yard. I agree that the first problem to sort out is getting the codes pulled though so I don't want to spend a bunch of money on parts just yet.

Thank you for the link to the PCM rebuild guy, Sous. That's certainly good information to have, should it come to that.

So I think my next step is to see if I can borrow a scanner or see if I can get either adapter seen on a third vehicle.

 

 

Ok, as *almost all* Excursion do. Thanks for the correction.

 

Can I use a Windows app with either one of those OBD-II adapters Sous linked above?

 

Does your "THEFT" light go out after turning the key on? Thinking that maybe the PATS went wonky.

Assuming you have a tuner on it, disconnect it and see if there's any change.

 

 

Another update. I pulled both batteries and had them tested. Both were able to produce over 700 CCA each so they appear to be healthy. I thoroughly cleaned the battery terminals and cable ends so everything should be making a good connection. The starter sounds healthy but the engine just won't start. I replaced every fuse that the owner's manual said was related to the PCM. There were 6 fuses in total. Now the glow plugs come on like normal so that's progress at least. When I turn the key to on the theft light blinks rapidly for about 2 minutes. It continued until after the glow plugs finally timed out and shut off and then switched to a 1-6 blinking pattern. I've heard that the theft light doesn't produce recognizable codes but I'm just not convinced of that yet. Just because Ford didn't tell us about it doesn't mean that their programmers didn't use meaningful blinking codes.

I still can't get either OBD-II adapter to work. I haven't bought either one of the better adapters from amazon because of the price and the fact that I just don't know if they're the problem or not.

Still no start though. What next? Pull the PCM and then the IDM and look for what? Burn marks? Or just buy the better OBD adapter?

 

 

Since we have no codes to work with (information vacuums are difficult to diagnose in), and we KNOW that PATS can by design cause a no-start state, I would first work on that.

My workshop manual differs from yours due to some electrical system changes in 2002, I don't know if the troubleshooting flowchart differs drastically but I'll give a look.

 

 

 

That is what I would be doing if I were in your situation.

 

There is a way to test the communication between PATS and the PCM, but it requires more diagnostic equipment and information than you have at your disposal. Communications failure between the PCM and PATS is likely to be a PCM issue, but not certainly. So sending it out will indeed eliminate it as a cause, or identify it as the cause (or victim of another issue).

I like to do my own troubleshooting, I marvel (sometimes with gutteral, single-syllable words) at automotive engineering and enjoy what I learn in the process. But I have more time in my day than money, and my 7.3 isn't a daily driver, so there's little downside for me to spend the time "learning".

 

 

From anutha forum

• This was the first problem I ever had with my truck. When that sensor went bad the truck died dead. It wouldn't do anything. I had towed home and went to bed. I got up the next day and it worked just fine. The second time it happened, same symptoms, I had it towed to the dealer. It took them a few days, had to call Ford and finally found it was that little bugger. $100 later I had a new sensor and was on my way. THEN, the third time it happened I got out, unplugged it, and drove back to the dealer. Luckily I asked them if I could unplug it with no ill effect. They said yes. The new sensor went bad within a few months and they still had the nerve to charge me another $100. Since then, I haven't had any problems. But it's a wierd sensor, when it went bad, it shorted out the computer and they couldn't read any codes at all, and my AIC went nuts when I turned on the key. Kinda scary.