Jump to content
SAU Community

Recommended Posts

I left an interior light on in my R33 which unfortunately drained my month old battery completely. I've jump started it a hundred times before on my old battery as it died every few days, but this time I was careless and hooked up the wrong cables on the jump pack (black-red, red-black instead of black-black, red-red).

I recognised this error after my jump pack started beeping at me, so I swapped the cables around, jump started it, and took it for a drive.

When I turned it off, the car just kept running. All electronics and the turbo timer was shut off but the engine continued to run. Since then, I've had to use my fuel pump kill switch to turn my car off.

I checked all my fuses (bonnet, cabin, boot) and none appear to be blown. Something else I've noticed is that my central locking using my remote still works, but the immobiliser "beep" doesn't sound anymore when I lock and unlock my car.

I disconnected the battery for an hour yesterday but it didn't seem to help, so I pulled the battery out completely and have put it on a charger to pump it right up.
Do you guys have any ideas my engine might not be switching off when I turn the rest of the car off?
Unfortunately Google and search hasn't helped much this time around.

No 1 ditch the turbo timer.

Been meaning to do that since I bought the car but haven't got around to it. It's always been set to 0 seconds so the car switches itself off straight away anyway.

ECU issue is my guess. When you disconnected the battery did you hit the brakes and/or turn the headlights on? Just to absolutely drain the system.

Potentially an ECU issue, but the engine still runs like usual when it's on?

I didn't hit the brakes or anything. It was completely drained when I got to it as it was just the little reading light on.

When you disconnected the battery I meant - was it completely drained when you disconnected.

Anyway the spark from connecting jumper leads can be damaging to ECU's. You may have to source another one if its standard, if its aftermarket [apexi, haltech,link etc] then they may be able to repair it, not sure.

When you disconnected the battery I meant - was it completely drained when you disconnected.

Anyway the spark from connecting jumper leads can be damaging to ECU's. You may have to source another one if its standard, if its aftermarket [apexi, haltech,link etc] then they may be able to repair it, not sure.

In that case, I didn't pump the brakes or turn on any lights. I have pulled the battery out of the car completely since then to put it on a charger though, so it should be well and truly dead by now.

Because I used a jump pack there was no spark. I connected the leads then turned the pack to "on", then turned it off after it started beeping because the leads were crossed.

I have a PFC and will get my mechanic to check it out if I can't find the cause myself.

Why do guesswork?

Remove the turbo timer first and then see how she goes.

If it's any decent brand it will have a patch harness that simply plugs/unplugs into the stock harness, 5 seconds work.

After that I'd check the ECCS and IGN relays. (both beside the ECU)

But get rid of the timer before you start worrying about a fried ECU.

  • Like 1

Why do guesswork?

Remove the turbo timer first and then see how she goes.

If it's any decent brand it will have a patch harness that simply plugs/unplugs into the stock harness, 5 seconds work.

After that I'd check the ECCS and IGN relays. (both beside the ECU)

But get rid of the timer before you start worrying about a fried ECU.

Great, thanks for this. It's a branded turbo timer (Apexi from memory) so I'll try the above tonight.

Why do guesswork?

Remove the turbo timer first and then see how she goes.

If it's any decent brand it will have a patch harness that simply plugs/unplugs into the stock harness, 5 seconds work.

After that I'd check the ECCS and IGN relays. (both beside the ECU)

But get rid of the timer before you start worrying about a fried ECU.

Yeah exactly, it will almost certainly be directly unplugable, just follow the large wires and plug from the back of the ignition key. All it would take is something minor in that not being protected by a fuse to melt to open and cause this.

If not, I'd check (ie swap) the ECCS relay before worrying too much about the ECU having an issue, it might also have failed to always on

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I'd been meaning to pull out the turbo timer for a long time and this was a better time than ever to do it. Was piss easy (not sure why I didn't try earlier), and now everything is rosy again.

Car turns right off and the immobiliser is back online.

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


  • Latest Posts

    • Major thread necro but how bad of a job is it to DIY? Looking at it online it looks like if you reuse your ring and pinion as long as those are in good condition it should be fine to just pull the axles/front cover and replace the diff that way? Or should I be replacing everything and doing preload measurements/gear mesh testing like the factory service manual mentions for the rear diff?
    • in my list I had the R33 GTR as the best Skyline. Infact I had all GTR's (33>34=32), the NSX, the GTO, the 300ZX, the 180SX, the S15 better than the FD RX7. I had the MR2 and the A80 as 'just' better. I also think the DC5R Integra looks better but this is an 01 onwards car. I also think the FC>FD. It's almost like aesthetics are individual! The elements @GTSBoy likes about the FD and dislikes about the 180 are inverse in my eyes. I hate the rear end of the FD and it's weird tail lights that are bulbous and remind me of early hyundai excels. They are not striking, nor iconic, nor retro cool. The GTO has supercar proportions. I maintain these look much better in person (like the NSX) especially with nice wheels and suspension which is mandatory for all cars pretty much. Some (or all) of these you have to see in person to appreciate. You can't write a car off until you see one in the flesh IMO. Like most people we probably just like/dislike cars which represent certain eras of design or design styles in general. I also think the 60's Jag E type looks HORRIBLE, literally disgusting, and the 2000GT is nothing to write home about. FWIW I don't think the Dodge Viper Gen1's have aged very well either. You can probably see where I rate bubbly coupes like the FD. I know we're straying now but the C4 and C5 absolutely murder the Viper in the looks department as time goes on, for my eyes. Wouldn't surprise me if people who love the FD, also love the MX5, Dodge Viper, Jag E Type, etc etc.
    • I used to hate R31s, and any of the other Nissans that led up to it, and any of the Toyotas with similar styling, because of the boxiness. They were, and remain, childish, simplistic, and generally awful. I appreciate R31s a lot more now, but only the JDM 2 door. The ADM 4 door (and any other 4 door, even if they are unique compared to our local one) can eat a bowl of dicks. The Aussie R31 is also forever tarnished by their association with stereotypical bong clutching Aussie R31 owners of the 90s and early 2000s. I think the Nissans of the 70s (other than 120Y/180B/200B) are far superior looking to the 80s cars. The 240K era Skylines are boss. The same is broadly true of Toyotas. Hondas don't ever register in my thinking, from any era. Mitsus are all horrid shitboxen in any era, and so also don't register. Subarus are always awful, ditto. Daihatsus and Suzukis also don't generally register. They are all invisible. I think the SW20 MR2 looks fiddly. The 3000GT/GTO is like that but way worse. Too many silly plastic barnacles and fiddly gimmicks ruined what could have been a really nice base shape. Kinda-sorta looks like a big heavy ST165 Celica coupe (and I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing). I think the 180SX is dreadfully bland. It's not bad looking. But it has no excitement to it at all. It's just a liftback coupe thing with no interest in its lines, and bad graphical elements (ie wide expanses of taillight plastic on the rear garnish). The S13 Silvia is a little better - getting closer to R32 shapes. But still....bland. S14? Nope. Don't love it. S15...a little better. Probably a lot better, actually. Benefits from not being like a shrunk in the wash R34 (where the S13 was a shrunk in the wash R32 and the S14 looked like a Pulsar or something else from the stable on Nissan mid 90s horrors). The Z32 was hot as f**k when it came out but hasn't aged as well as the A80. Keep in mind that I think the R33 is the most disgusting looking thing - and out of all the previous cars mentioned is objectively closest to my precious R32. It's just....real bad, almost everywhere you look. And that is down to the majority of what was designed in the 90s being shit. All Nissans from that era look like shit. Most other brands ditto. In that context, the FD absolutely stands out as being by far the best looking car, for reasons already discussed. Going behind the aesthetics, the suspension alone makes it better than almost any other car.  
    • If they just called it the "Mazda Tiffany", it would have been spot on.
    • Yup but for me its the HR ! Cut my teeth on the old holden 6s in the day ! And here's me thinking in the day it was also the 300ZX and the Mitsubishi GT3000 ! All, as well had good lines, but always seemed to need finishing off, style wise.
×
×
  • Create New...