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I've been posting here for a few months about my various issues w/ EECIV, hard starting, intermittent truck dying on the road. I finally have it fixed; summary:
Situation: No codes. Very difficult to start truck, PIP (SPOUT disconnected) square wave jittering in time and resultant base timing shifting 10 /+/- 5 degrees via timing light. FYI there was significant debug effort between each of the steps below and I had verified all sensors, good ignition switch, relays, and fuel pressure. My debug steps below may not have been ideal but i was also battling extreme anger issues..sigh.
Step 1: Bought cheapest RA TFI they had. Still erratic PIP and timing. Hard starting.Took original distributor apart, determined end play was too much and shaft was loose inside housing which messed with the mag pickup function, hence jittering timing. Step 2: Bought new Rock Auto distributor w/ TFI: Result: Erratic timing gone, still hard start but also now.. severe miss while running, almost like engine dies for a msec and then comes back online. So severe i never road tested truck. Did some reading that most of the non-OEM TFI's were junk so...... Step 3: Bought new RA (OEM?) Ford Motorcraft TFI module. Result: Starting problem went away, no more misses.... but new symptom of engine randomly dying on the road. Requiring key cycle to restart. WTF. Step 4: Started to get pissed about everything Rock Auto. Bought junkyard 88 Bronco distributor w/ TFI but made the mistake of replacing it with the RA Motorcraft TFI that i had previously purchased (surely this TFI was rock solid; it said "Motorcraft" on it)
Truck STILL randomly dies on the road (sometimes when idling). I wired 2 DMM's to relay power, TFI power, and a pico scope to the PIP; taped 'em all to my windshield.
When driving EEC Relay output voltage stayed rock solid at 13V. PIP run voltage would occasionally dip to 7V and then back to 13V. PIP signal would initially look solid with expected square wave output, but would intermittently frazzle into a sequence of spikes. About the time that i saw these whacky measurements, the truck would die. Disconnected SPOUT, no difference, PIP signal would still intermittently degrade.
Step 5: Going w/ assumption that RA Motorcraft TFI was losing it's mind...
I reinstalled the orig junkyard TFI onto the junkyard Bronco Distributor....and...Voila...Problem gone, PIP solid , no voltage dips. Truck has been running solid and I can relax a bit and not have to drive it around with a collection of tools/DMM's. Based on what i experienced that damn RA Motorcraft TFI was actually intermittently pulling down my EEC control voltage.
Hopefully my experience helps folks' debug efforts. My conclusion at this point is that 75% of aftermarket TFI modules are junk.
I may search for a grey remote TFI setup as added insurance against heat related TFI failures.
Those that buy cheap should expect the same problem. What is the fascination with Rock Auto?
As a shop owner, OEM is the only option. Does that mean you will have no problems? No, but you will have far fewer. I take pride with my repairs and the last thing I need is to make a repair cheaper by using cheap parts. My clients do not expect that and neither should you.
Those that buy cheap should expect the same problem. What is the fascination with Rock Auto?
As a shop owner, OEM is the only option. Does that mean you will have no problems? No, but you will have far fewer. I take pride with my repairs and the last thing I need is to make a repair cheaper by using cheap parts. My clients do not expect that and neither should you.
A Motorcraft brand part was purchased so how is that not OEM? For example, you do not need to go to the dealer to buy a Motorcraft oil filter.
2yrs ago, I went through, 3 motorcraft ICM's ($97 ), before O'Reilly's got me a good one, Rock Auto had same motorcraft ICM($53) thats why, its been fine for 2yrs,so I bought a spare, but now, O'Reilly's motorcraft ICM cost you ($130), Rock Auto ($61), not that you buy cheap, you buy cheaper, but quality (vacuums) now that covid hit.
The first 2 steps were a complete waste of time and money.
As I also mentioned, buying OEM does not mean you will have no problems.......
I would rather go to a place that I can lean on the counter and talk to a person. I know this is an old fashion way of doing things, but talking to someone that lives in the area that is going to benefit with your money that you give them is better than giving it to someone that does not care. Wait till you have a warranty issue or when problems occur [oh wait, that just happened].
it seems that the only good thing about Rock Auto is that it's cheap. Everything else I read says they pedal junk and have no service after the sale. Do I think Rock Auto sells counterfeit parts? No, not intentionally.
You can't just click and expect everything to be perfectly priced, works perfect & lasts forever.
If there's only one place to buy a part, that's where you're going to buy it if you need it.
OP, I found in some of my distributor experiments the best result with the least play was a China distributor housing with OE shaft, gear, roll pins & new Motorcraft PIP.
Exactly. I plan to wait about a week to get the parts.
Originally Posted by 1Butcher
The first 2 steps were a complete waste of time and money….
I would rather go to a place that I can lean on the counter and talk to a person. I know this is an old fashion way of doing things, but talking to someone that lives in the area that is going to benefit with your money that you give them is better than giving it to someone that does not care. Wait till you have a warranty issue or when problems occur [oh wait, that just happened].
I look up the parts before going to Advance or Napa. I don’t trust the people behind the counter to get me the right part. I have had to warranty return parts from RockAuto. Pretty easy to do and they refund the money a day or two after receiving the old part.
I look up the parts before going to Advance or Napa. I don’t trust the people behind the counter to get me the right part. I have had to warranty return parts from RockAuto. Pretty easy to do and they refund the money a day or two after receiving the old part.
I do not trust anyone either but when I have a client start telling me what to do, I stop them mid sentence. I let them know that it is rude to tell a professional what to do. As a client, you tell me what you are concerned about and then I tell you what the problem is. If it does not align to what you think it is, let's talk about it.
I encourage people to question how I got the answer for their problem. I also let them know, there is no charge if the problem is not fixed. I stand by my diagnosis and repair. I do not think I have lost too many clients this way. If I have, it was probably the best for both of us. I expect my clients to think I am an idiot and it is up to me to prove to them I am not. Usually the second visit, they just hand me the keys, and tell me what the problem is. I totally understand what their expectations/budget is.
So, before I go to the counter [I make a phone call] I pretty much know what I want and the right part number. I let them give me their answer. If it aligns perfectly, then I did not tell them what to do [trust me, nobody likes that at all] so no feelings are hurt. If they give me a different answer, I inquire about their findings. If I consistently get a different answer [and they are wrong] I find a different supplier.
As a seasoned German car mechanic, I know what works and what does not. I know that I can take parts from a different model and use it on what I am doing. When this is the case, I will give them the number of what I want. I have a great working relationship with the companies that support my business. I believe I do because I work with them and let them do their job. You can't get this buying parts from the internet. When things go south, it gets really ugly. When you are trying to take care of your clients [or yourself] you deserve better than what the internet has to offer. Of course, if saving money is your prime reason, then fine, but don't complain that you get bad service, parts, wrong parts, etc.
You can't just click and expect everything to be perfectly priced, works perfect & lasts forever.
If there's only one place to buy a part, that's where you're going to buy it if you need it.
OP, I found in some of my distributor experiments the best result with the least play was a China distributor housing with OE shaft, gear, roll pins & new Motorcraft PIP.
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