Ok I'll start off by saying that I have a 2000L with 60K on it. I have never modded the truck myself but it looks like my truck was modded before I bought it(1 year ago). Well lately my truck seemed sluggish at low gears and in 3rd around 3400RPMs my transmission felt like it was slipping. Well recently I tried to hook my AF guage and I cut the wire going to the O2 sensor to splice it in. Right after I did that the truck threw a code. Well seeing that the truck has been running rough and now I have this code. I decided to take it to the dealer to see if they could fix it. Well after two days of trying they finally decided that it is my computer and will need to be replaced. They told me that it should solve all my problems ie truck running rough and trans slipping. Does this sound right or should I throw up the BS flag?

Dave

PS sorry for the long post.

 

Oh forgot to mention that the dealers are saying that my truck is throwing too many codes and they can't narrow it down. This is why they think its my PCM.

 

I doubt it is your CPU. I would do the basic stuff first, like check your tranny fluid, change the fuel filter, maybe flush the tranny and change the filter. Also maybe you should change your plugs while u are at it. If u do it yourself it will only take a few hours and be under $100 so I think that may be worth it instead of playing "guess what is behing this door with Ford"

 

And....

Change that Fuel Filter !!!

 

Well I've changed the fuel filter so it shouldn't be that. I haven't changed the trnny fuild but I know it got serviced when I bought it which was a few months ago. I have new plugs ready to go in also but have not gotten around to doing it.

 

um... I'd start by replacing that oxygen sensor or cut wire.

many people have reported having transmission problems caused by damaged hego wires. do a search.

then if it's still not fixed, ask them if they are guaranteeing that replacing the PCM will fix your truck.

if they say, yes, then maybe you should get it in writing, but they would be responsible for further repairs should the PCM not fix the truck, or would at least have to refund the money you've spent on diag and labor if it doesn't fix the problem.

if they are telling you that you need a PCM, but they can't guarantee that it'll fix your truck, then ask them why you are paying diagnosis charges if they are just going to take guesses at what is wrong. anybody could guess at what's wrong, nobody wants to pay for incorrect guesses though.

good luck.

later,
chris

 

They told me that ford will cover all cost if it is my PCM. I won't even have to pay the deductable.They did not specfically say they it will fix all my problems although I will try to ask them that.

Well the thing with the cut O2 sensor is that I install a brand new after I had cut the old one. I drove that around till I brought it to the dealer and my SES light was still on.

 

doh, stupid me forgot, PCM is emissions warranty!

covered for 8yrs/80,000 miles!

so what's the problem? tell, 'em to fix it already. if that doesn't solve the problem, then go from there.

later,
chris

BTW, they can't guess at it as if it's covered by warranty, and then when that doesn't fix it ask YOU to pay for the PCM. that's just wrong. if the pcm doesn't fix it, then their diagnosis was incorrect, you shouldn't be responsible in that event. however it is your truck, so they aren't really responsible for it either, their trucks run fine

so you may have to make a decision.

good luck.

 

Hey thanks Chris. I guess thats what I'll do. They should be able to just change the PCM. Hopefully my settings will return to normal and my truck will run a little better. If not I guess its back to the drawing board.

 

Ok OK Ok. boy am I confused. So I talked to the dealer again today about what is wrong with my truck. NOW they say there is nothing wrong with my truck and they are going to clear my codes and send me rolling. WTF? They are codes there for certain reasons right? I mean they should just show up for no reason. It seems to me like my problem is not getting fixed but just half *** done. Please help!

 

Drive it, see if it acts funny and throws any more codes, and if it does, find another dealer.

 

Superfords,

Thank you for your efforts in helping guys out with *real* advise.



Davesvt00,

If it's not going to cost you anything? Does it matter? Don't forget that service managers sometimes get mis communication and in turn tell the end customer the wrong thing.
I too would be curious though... Maybe they'll let you speak directly to the tech who fixed it?

Rich

 

Thanks guys for all your help. I will just roll with what I have. If something screws up then its on them I guess. I want to get the codes that it was throwing and see what they are. I guess I just got a little nervous because it seemed like such a drastic change from what I was hearing yesterday.

Also if the O2 sensor was throwing all the codes and I changed that out it should be good. The codes won't just clear themself (so I was told) ford has to clear them. Well thanks again fellas