Fellow Z'ers

Whated to give/get some info on a stressful situation this week. Last weekend I was cruising along leisurely, when suddenly my CEL started to flash and the car began to idle really rough. Kinda thought I blew something.

I was just a few minutes away from my dealership so I actually pulled in, left the car there and caught a ride with a friend.

Short story...got the car back tonight - the dealership said I blew one ignition coil, the ECU was blown, and the fuses for my emanage were blown. They fixed everything up.....luckily under warranty. I am lucky as heck that my service manager loves the mods on my Z.

I wanted to get thoughts on what might have happened. I mean what blew first - the ECU?? The Coils?? Could the Emanage have been the cause?? I am running the ignition harness. It was a really hot day - could that have caused it????

Have pulled a CEL once - random misfire - simply reset it and that was it; Have had the setup on the car for 6500km/4500 miles running about 5 months.

Thoughts??

 

Are you using the diodes? I assume that you are. That's cool of your dealer to hook you up.

 

All e-manage connections are soldered and shrink wrapped? Possibly a couple wires contacted and shorted out the system. For it to blow out the ecu it had to be pretty substantial and direct into the unit. I would re-check all connections and wiring for the Greddy components and go from there.

 

I am not using the diodes - not sure what you mean by that monkey. All connections were soldereed and shrink-wrapped.

Although I am running it with the Vortech I assume the Greddy TT guys out there are all running the Emanage - do they use diodes?? Does the Greddy TT kit come with the ignition harness i.e. timing retard capability???

Thanks again - don't want a repeat.

 

The Greddy setup does not include the ignition harness. The eManage circuitry keeps the coils hot even when there is no ignition signal through it. It has been known to blow coils unless there are diodes installed in the output wires. These diodes create a voltage drop to reduce the current to the coils to a safe level. They are essential for safe operation of the timing harness. Look in my previos threads about the wiring, there is a diagram with the info.

 

Anyone using the e-manage is recommended to use diodes. There are a few posts regarding this. PM sharif for more concise info. The Greddy TT does not come with ignition control but is available as an add-on. Again...sharif@forged internals can help you out with the parts you need.

 

Also, the official word from Greddy is that the timing harness will not work on the Z.

 

The diodes can be bought at any local electronics store like Radio Shack.

 

And Greddys official word is you don't need timing control with the z under boost either. Tell that to the guys who blew up the first time out after install.

 

As far as Greddy's official word...who cares this is all at your own risk anyways....anything who thinks otherwise modding their car is fooling themselves.

I am no mechanic so forgive me if this sounds stupid...instead of "softening the signal using the diodes, is there a way to get some super-strong aftermarket ignition coils that would be in spec for our Z to allow using the full signal??

 

I have never seen any aftermarket coils for the vq. Mainly because the stock coils are very powerful.

 

There really is no need for this. Our factory ignition system is just about as good as it gets. Unless you plan to rev your car to 10,000 RPM, there isnt much to improve on.

The coils are a $6 solution that has worked flawlessly on countless ignition harnesses on the VQ. The spark isnt weakened...just the signal to the coil. The spark is still firing at 100%....just like normal.

The reason your coil blew is lack of diodes. Not sure why your ECU died...that should not happen. Maybe your dealer was padding the warranty work??

 

Luanda:

The Z coils have an ignition transistor inside, so you can't just swap coils.

The ECU feeds a two volt "dwell pulse" to the transistor, to charge the coil for the next spark. The pulse lasts for about three milliseconds.

At spark time, the ECU turns off the pulse, bringing the voltage on the coil trigger wire back to ground (zero volts).

The ignition drivers in the emanage have a problem. For some reason, the ouput pulse never gets below 0.5v, which is enough voltage to keep the coils partially on.

There are threads on other forums about the problem as well. One group says they have problems when they use the AC or their headlights.

Hmmm. This is beginning to sound like a ground problem.

http://forums.evolutionm.net/showthread.php?t=79392

 

John

Hi I'm from Garden Grove too.

In one thread you were writing to Sharif..

You mentioned a MosFet Transistor would be a Proper Remedy.

Could a MosFet Curcuit board be constructed with 6 and/or 8 channels.
( Darn - still thinking about the 4.5 liter M-Series )

I'm sure Sharif would add it to his product line.

Cheers Amy -

 

John @ J&S "The Z coils have an ignition transistor inside, so you can't just swap coils." . I have been going through the same problem the last 2 weeks. I have had the e-manage with the ignition harness & the diodes for a year now and I had same problem once it got hot out. I lost a coil and replaced it myself. I bought some out of a wrecked Z. My 3rd one just failed a few minutes ago. It is cylinder # 4 every time. There was never a problem until the first hot day. Can I not just install a new coil in any cylinder or is there something else I need to do? Rich

 

So richrq, you're saying that you blow coils even with the diodes???

I took my Z out yesterday - way cooler day out; Ran the A/C for over an hour straight...no problems - I also think the problem arises when it's hot out.

My tuner didn't see a need for the diodes....thought the problem was solved with a firmware upgrade.

I wish the diodes was the fix - figuring out how to address the heat problem would be harder. I am already running a Koyo Rad and a Mocal oil cooler; I would think the heat problem has more to do with the engine bay's ambient temperature.

I am wondering if a thermostat with a lower cut-on for the RAD fans would help??? Where could I find such a part???

 

Unfortunately yes. I live in florida and it is getting pretty hot out lately. I opened it up a little in 2nd gear and then I got the CEL light ( random misfire) and then a day later I lost coil #4. I put a new coil on and drove it easy for a week and then got on it yesterday and a little later lost #4 again. Replaced the coil again and was driving around today got on it a couple of times again, soon after I lost the coil again. I think with no heavy load that it might be fine to drive around on but when I am in full load something is happening. I am going to put the 4th coil on and will try to baby it and see what happens. Rich

 

richrsg,
Maybe the diode on the #4 line shorted out. Just a thought. Do you have access to the diodes to check them with an ohmmeter?

 

Even so, I do not leave the key in the on position with the car not running. Do the diodes help with normal driving or just when the key is on and car not running? I do not have or know how to use an ohm meter. I attached all the wires to the main wiring harness while it was out of the car (motor being built). I do not know if I can reach them from inside the car or does someone know if it would be easier to pull it through the engine bay?

 

Also I have seen people talking about Firmware, which I think is a download for the e-manage. Does anyone know what this is? How to get it and how to install it? Rich