Engine management light 99. 2.5 td

[Ph0en1x]

Whilst trolling the internet looking for reasons why my engine management light was staying on I came across the following on an Ask a Ford Mechanic site, :-

"They are known issues with the exhaust gas recirculation valve sticking open causing this sort of fault, many different wring problems to engine sensors that are known to give this sort of fault, faults regarding the fuel pump metering valves causing this sort of fault which can not be fixed by changing any parts a later engine management unit software needs to be loaded by a dealer, faults regarding the engine cooling fan will cause this fault and many other known issues".

The EGR valve is clean, so hopefully that can be eliminated as the cause of the problem, I was interested in the comment about the cooling fan as mine has been damaged, it hit a protruding screw and I had to trim the end of the blades as they were ragged.

The EML comes on as normal when the engine is first started and goes out after a few seconds. It will remain off untill the engine has reached operating temp and the revs are allowed to reduce to idle (800RPM). We live in the country so this is usually about 14 Km to the first intersection, when I pull up the light comes on. If I keep the revs above 1000 (foot on throttle and other foot on brake,van has auto transmission) the light will not come on. It does not go into limp mode, it drives quite well, OK acceleration and 120 kmh reached quite easily, only problem seems to be the damn light comes on and occasionally the low coolant light will come on and after a few minutes go out again even though the coolant level is correct.

This is where the comment regarding the fan comes into play, If the damaged fan is not drawing enough air through the radiator at idle but sufficient when revving harder could this cause the light to come on as the engine is running a bit hotter at idle. Sorry if this drags on a bit, I was thinking of turning it into a mini series. All suggestions are welcome. Thank you.

[MinorMatt]

The EGR will not cause the vehicle to go in to limp home mode.

When was the cambelt last changed and was it installed with the correct diameter timing pins?

[Ph0en1x]

Hi Matt thanks for your interest, the cam belt was replaced about 8 weeks ago and was pinned correctly at the time, I had it checked professionally this week and it was OK, they also checked the fault codes which show up as an EGR fault. They checked the EGR and said it was working correctly.

[AndyG]

The comments from the so called "Ask a Ford mechanic" is clearly clutching at straws

Have you had someone interfere with all the many wiring to all your engine sensors
The "the fuel pump metering valves" are simply two pairs of actuators that can be changed with the pump in situ So that idea is out of the window too
The pump does not require any new ECU software to be loaded Why Because the ECU used on your van is a "load once only" and once loaded (normally from the factory) with the initial parameters of the vehicle, cannot be overwritten

He is correct in so far as saying that IF the EGR valve is stuck in the open position, it can cause the vehicle to go into limp home mode, but the way the system works on an EPIC Turbo is such that it's an extremely rare occurrence Hence MinorMatt's comment, of which I completely agree with



Also, when you had your fault codes read, it was highly likely that the appropriate ECU fault code reader was not used

The damaged fan will not cause this problem

As the fault only occurs after warm up, I suggest you look at your "idle demand" micro switch, which is part of the accelerator pedal

The reason I suggest you look at this, is because the management system ignores this switch during warm up, as it relies on a higher idle setting already pre-programmed into the ECU
Once warmed up (no longer cold) the switch "demands" the ECU to idle the engine
A "noisy" switch can cause the problem you're having (contact cleaner spray may solve the problem)
An initial check to see if it's physically working requires a good ear in a quiet environment You should be able to hear the switch click at the last part of the releasing of the pedal

[Ph0en1x]

Have you had someone interfere with all the many wiring to all your engine sensors

No body has touches any of the wiring.

Also, when you had your fault codes read, it was highly likely that the appropriate ECU fault code reader was not used

The code reader had a program for a 2.5 td Transit.

A "noisy" switch can cause the problem you're having (contact cleaner spray may solve the problem)
An initial check to see if it's physically working requires a good ear in a quiet environment You should be able to hear the switch click at the last part of the releasing of the pedal

There is a click when moving the accelerator pedal but it is when the pedal is close to the floor, not when close to release.I did notice an unconnected set of three wires near the accelerator which I assume are spare in the loom, Lavender/White, Lavender/Orange & lavender/Brown going into a connector.
Thank you for your assistance.

[AndyG]

Sounds like you've found that the switch is physically no longer working

The other end (maximum pedal travel) activates the other micro switch, which commands maximum acceleration, air con. off(if fitted) and kickdown if automatic This one sounds like it's working

[Ohakune]

Hi, I have a 1999 transit doing the same thing. Did you find the fault?