ECM

Tiny
SKIP22
  • MEMBER
  • 2006 SATURN VUE
  • 3.5L
  • 6 CYL
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 115,000 MILES
Engine light, etc. On, some other lights flash, steering goes "in and out".
Wednesday, May 3rd, 2017 AT 3:32 PM

5 Replies

Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 33,916 POSTS
The check engine light means the engine computer detected a problem, set a diagnostic fault code, and turned the light on to tell you. The place to start is by having those codes read and recorded. They will indicate the circuit or system that needs further diagnosis. The people at many auto parts stores will read them for you for free.

"Some other lights" is not something that can be analyzed.

"Steering goes in and out"? The steering wheel moves up and down on the shaft? The power assist stops working? If so, at what engine speeds? Both ways or just when turning one way. What makes the symptom change?
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Wednesday, May 3rd, 2017 AT 9:30 PM
Tiny
SKIP22
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  • 3 POSTS
Power steering goes on and off. Radio goes on and off also.
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Thursday, May 4th, 2017 AT 5:42 AM
Tiny
CARADIODOC
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You need to take the time to elaborate on the symptoms. There's too many possibilities for me to sit and type out a bunch of answers on this miserable key board. What speeds does this occur at? What can you do to change or affect the loss of power assist? Are there any other clues or observations that might be related?
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Thursday, May 4th, 2017 AT 5:49 PM
Tiny
SKIP22
  • MEMBER
  • 3 POSTS
Sorry to be so vague, but the GM service doesn't even want to hear Saturn. Quoted me $1250 for a new ECM and $561 for a new alt. Both of which I can buy for a third of that, but the ECM can only be programmed by GM. The radio turns off in syn. With the power steering, but then comes back on. Huh? A diagnosis $173 came up with :PO622, P2299, PO132, Co896, and BOO92 which is "greek" to me, but also to GM. No help from them ! So any advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance. SKIP
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Friday, May 12th, 2017 AT 4:42 PM
Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
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P0132 - Oxygen sensor voltage high, bank 1 sensor 1
P0622 - Generator field circuit
P2299 - No listing
B0092 - Passenger presence system performance
C0896 - Device voltage range / performance

C0896 refers to low voltage feeding the Electronic Brake Control Computer. I'd ignore that until the charging system is working, and that is likely related to code P0622.

P0132 will turn on the Check Engine light since it relates to something that could adversely affect emissions.

B0092 refers to the passenger air bag system.

The place to start appears to be with a charging system test. You'll need to visit a mechanic with a professional load tester. Specifically, "full-load output current", "ripple voltage", and "charging voltage" are the items of interest. All of those relate to the generator and the voltage regulator built into it, but on your model, the Engine Computer gets involved and can modify control of the field circuit. My suspicion is most problems are going to occur within the generator itself and the Engine Computer is just detecting a problem and setting the fault code. There are entire pages of diagnostic steps to determine if the cause of the problem is in the generator, computer, or wiring.

You can also try to observe if a charging problem occurs at the same time as the power steering assist goes away. If it does, you likely have variable or speed-sensitive power steering, and that involves electronic controls. Anything with electronic controls can be adversely affected by a charging system problem.
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Saturday, May 13th, 2017 AT 10:24 PM

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