Stumper

Kind of a strange one here. 3 months ago I bought a battery at Wal-Mart for my '98 CL 3.0 and they installed it. Yesterday I returned from 3 weeks out of town to find a stone cold dead battery. Got a jump from a neighbor this AM and headed for the Wal-Mart. They spent about an hour charging the battery (said something about running a diagnostic but I'm pretty sure all they were doing was timing how fast the thing recharged from an external charger). They said it was charging too slowly and agreed to replace it. Most of this was around the lunch hour and 2 or 3 different guys worked on it at one time or another. They didn't maintain the circuit while switching batteries so I lost the radio (I have the code) and I assume some or all of the ECM data was lost. All fine so far...a bit inconvenient but nothing that shouldn't be routinely recoverable. But after the swap was done the car started much harder than usual and the 'check engine' light was on.

A mechanic ran a basic engine diagnostic and found the starter, alternator, etc. were all fine. Then he plugged in the OBDII and got a code of P1607 which I confirmed with my Acura Dlr. indicates EGM/PGM Internal Circuit Failure. The electronic brain, in other words. He says he reset the code to turn off the light but he's just a college kid and I'm not at all sure he wasn't out of his depth here. Anyhow light was back on/still on with the next start. Time to head for the Dealership.

After consultations among several mechanics and service writers there was no consensus of how or why this situation might have occurred and whether it could conceivably be something which might self-correct as the ECM database is rebuilt (best case) or whether I'm looking at a $700 bill to replace the ECM module. Next step is a Dlr "check engine" light diagnostic as soon as I can schedule it.

Depending on circumstances I may be able to collect on a claim from Wal-Mart but I know they're not going to be anxious to part with $700 over a $70 battery so for now I'd appreciate any relevant advice or information you guys might be able to offer and especially as to how a 'bungled' battery swap might have been responsible for burning out some ECM circuitry. Thanks.

Reply to
Sandy
Loading thread data ...

Can't say why the ECU got toasted. You can get another on ebay for under $100. Have the dealer or another shop install it for you if you are not handy.

dan

Reply to
dan

Reply to
Sandy

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.