question about systems repair

[Eddyboy]

This is kind of a sad story so get a coupla kleenex before proceeding... Short version is I have a business in SLC and I often drive there in my 1999 Corvette. About 8 weeks ago I decided to leave the car there and fly home over the weekend and park my car at my brothers house. I parked the car which had run normally for the last 80K miles and put the key on the key rack in my brothers house.... This is where it gets sad... My brother has a sixteen year old boy who is car crazy.... Turns out the Corvette was too much a temptation and the car went on a joyride. When I got back to SLC my brother told me he'd taken my car to one of the local Chevy dealers for repairs... When I got there the transmission (automatic) was literally a basket case and was replaced. My brother sheepishly, but honorably paid the $3500 for the repairs...

Now to my question: On my drive home I had a couple of warning lights appear on the display

Service Traction Control

Service ABS, and

Service Ride Control

Now the car continues to run OK, and I made it home the last coupla hundred miles without incident..

The traction control and ride control indeed do not work, and the brakes stop just fine, but have

kind of a "hinky" feel about them. The car has been basically parked since I got it home.

I want to know if this is possibly due to incomplete reassembly of the parts around the tranny, or is

more likely further damage needing repairs. I am assuming it is some kind of CPU problem since it

is multiple system failure that happened all at once.. I'd like advice on where to take the car for evaluation

and repair. I've had a couple of incidents with local Chevy dealers wanting me to approve things like $600

replacement batteries and the like.. I am afraid that the dealer will just slap in a new module even if the

problem is a loose wire.... ADVICE???

Ed Wilson Cave Creek

[goldenC4]

All 3 systems use common parts, so it's not really different systems. The traction control uses the ABS wheel sensors to determine wheel slip and I'm assuming so does the ride control. I'd check the easy stuff first - look around for disconnected wires, etc, etc.

[ICULUKN]

Pull your codes... Its possible that the traction control computer is out. The more likely scenerio is a harness not pushed in all the way...

G

[Bigfoot]

Definitely need codes.

Push and hold your "Options" button on the dash. While holding press and release "Fuel" button 4 times. Wait for it to go through the diagnostic and write down codes. We can help you more then.

But yes, loose harness etc can cause a lot of this. Was there any body/suspension damage that was not taken care of or that you did not look for?

[Jason L]

Well one option is that they didn't re-connect something correctly at the dealership

or the other thing

Its not a cheap repair we do 2-3 a month its the EBCM and the BPMV that go out its VERY common on C5's not basically the BPMV starts leaking brake fluid into the EBCM and it toast's it. I can take a look at it for you but I am pretty sure that it will be that issue.

Id post up the codes and let us know or if you are in this area of town we could always hook the Tech 2 up to it and see what it says

Jason

[Eddyboy]

Thanks so much for the friendly and speedy response to my questions! you can't

know how much I appreciate it.

There was no body damage that I can see...based on the look of the transmission parts I saw

the car bottomed out pretty hard..maybe a curb or speed bump..doesn't take much. My nephew isn't

talking, even though he's permanently lost his driving privileges until he pays off the damages.

Based on how the car handled and tracked down the highway on the return from SLC (approx 600mi)

I am assuming that there is not much frame or suspension damage...although an impact large enough

to shatter a transmission housing oughta be enough to compromise a suspension seal...

If you assume I know nothing about this stuff you won't be underestimating me... where/what is

the FUEL button?

Definitely need codes.

Push and hold your "Options" button on the dash. While holding press and release "Fuel" button 4 times. Wait for it to go through the diagnostic and write down codes. We can help you more then.

But yes, loose harness etc can cause a lot of this. Was there any body/suspension damage that was not taken care of or that you did not look for?

[Eddyboy]

OK...found the FUEL BUTTON...had aa bit of a scuffle getting the diagnostics to start..the warning codes seemed to take precedence..repeated RESET presses and advanced level cursing seemed to turn the tide..

Here's what I collected... (went by so fast I ended up recording them with a digital camera)

10 PCM NO CODES

40-bcm - no codes

58-SDM - B1001 H

60 IPC - No Codes

99 HVAC - No Codes

28 TCS 3 CODES

28-TCS - C1221 H

28-TCS - C1222 H

28-TCS - C1233 H

AO-LDCM - B2252 H

AO-LDCM - B2282H

AO-LDCM - U1064 H

AI-RDCM - B2253 H

AI-RDCM - B2283 H

AI-RDCM - B2285 H

AI-RDCM - U1064 H

A6-SCM - B0851 H

BO-RFA - U1096 H

BO-RFA - U1064 H

BO-RFA - U1016 H

NO MORE CODES

[Eddyboy]

Based on the list (see link below)

I'm guessing it's the harness or dead/killed sensors or loose wires...

Based on this list....

OK...found the FUEL BUTTON...had aa bit of a scuffle getting the diagnostics to start..the warning codes seemed to take precedence..repeated RESET presses and advanced level cursing seemed to turn the tide..

Here's what I collected... (went by so fast I ended up recording them with a digital camera)

10 PCM NO CODES

40-bcm - no codes

58-SDM - B1001 H

60 IPC - No Codes

99 HVAC - No Codes

28 TCS 3 CODES

28-TCS - C1221 H

28-TCS - C1222 H

28-TCS - C1233 H

AO-LDCM - B2252 H

AO-LDCM - B2282H

AO-LDCM - U1064 H

AI-RDCM - B2253 H

AI-RDCM - B2283 H

AI-RDCM - B2285 H

AI-RDCM - U1064 H

A6-SCM - B0851 H

BO-RFA - U1096 H

BO-RFA - U1064 H

BO-RFA - U1016 H

NO MORE CODES

[jagoff]

wow dude, sounds like he ruined your car. if he bottomed out hard enough to kill the trannie, i would look at frame/ structural damage to the car itself. sometimes you cant see it with the naked eye. wow. i dont know how you havent killed that kid yet. phew

[Eddyboy]

I would surely have killed him over a C6... But for a 100K plus girlie man daily driver

C5 I just hurt him a bit every time I see him.. I'll have the running gear and frame etc.

inspected before I drive it much again I've only put 40 miles on it since I got it back

to CareFree.... It tracked very nicely on the freeway when I drove it back from Salt Lake..

no crabbing or pulling left or right... I'm not sure, but I suspect that the transmission is

a kind of structural member adding rigidity to the frame box...just guessing of course.

wow dude, sounds like he ruined your car. if he bottomed out hard enough to kill the trannie, i would look at frame/ structural damage to the car itself. sometimes you cant see it with the naked eye. wow. i dont know how you havent killed that kid yet. phew

[Eddyboy]

I'm also just thinking that the Chevy dealer in SLC surely would have put it on the computer to verify

repairs. The computer would have gone off like a Christmas tree. And, the dealer would never

miss a chance to charge for more repairs. ..sounding more like a loose harness...

[Bigfoot]

10 PCM NO CODES

40-bcm - no codes

58-SDM - B1001 H This reads the air bag ID. You can probably clear this out and be good.

60 IPC - No Codes

99 HVAC - No Codes

28 TCS 3 CODES

28-TCS - C1221 H Left front wheel speed sensor input signal 0

28-TCS - C1222 H Right front wheel speed sensor input signal 0

28-TCS - C1233 H Right front wheel speed sensor circuit open or shorted

AO-LDCM - B2252 H Key cylinder switch fault - DCM left

AO-LDCM - B2282H Battery #1 DCM-Left fault

AO-LDCM - U1064 H Loss of communication with BCM

AI-RDCM - B2253 H Key cylinder switch fault - DCM right

AI-RDCM - B2283 H Battery #1 Fault - DCM -Right

AI-RDCM - B2285 H Battery #2 Fault - DCM - Right

AI-RDCM - U1064 H Loss of communication with BCM

A6-SCM - B0851 H Battery 1 Out of Range

BO-RFA - U1096 H Loss of communication with IPC

BO-RFA - U1064 H Loss of communication with BCM

BO-RFA - U1016 H Loss of communication with PCM

Ok, there is what they all stand for.

Now they are all in history "H" which means you may be able to just clear them all out and be good. Try it and see. When you have them up just push and hold the reset button until they go away.

All the RFA codes are basically bogus. Those can be cleared for sure. They re-occur on ocassion with no efect on the car.

Based on what I see there are a couple things you can look at.

1. Change your battery. These cars are very sensitive to voltages out of range. That can possiblly clear it all up.

2. Check all your harnesses. All of these really point to something like that if it's not a battery.

I really don't think you have any busted parts by this list.

[Eddyboy]

Wow!... I just revisited the list..Quite a relief

I found a mistake in my transcription

28-TCS C1233 H C

I didn't copy that appended "C"

I'm going outside to try to clear the memory..

[Eddyboy]

I was able to clear all the error codes but the

28 TCS-1233 H C.

It would clear on reset, and immediately come

back.. The dashboard display and warning messages continue

to be there too.

What's the next step?

Ed

[Bigfoot]

That is C1233 H C is RF Wheel Speed Circuit Open or Shorted

Conditions for Setting the DTC

The DTC can be set any time the ignition is in the ON position, and the EBTCM senses an open, a short to ground, or a short to battery.

Action Taken When the DTC Sets

ABC/TCS/Active Handling are disabled

-Indicators that turn on:

-- ABS indicator

-- Car Icon (TCS indicator)

Messages displayed on the DIC

-Service ABS

-Service Traction System

-Service Active HNDLG

Diagnostic Aids

-It is very important that a thorough inspction of the wiring and connectors be performed. Failure to carefully inspect wiring and connectros may result in misdiagnosis, causing part replacement with reappearance of the malfunction.

-An intermitent malfunction can be caused by poor connections, broken insulation, or a wire that is broken inside the insulation.

Other than inspecting wiring there is nothing else you can do to test this out. All of the checks require equipment, meters and wiring diagrams to check. More than likely it is a bad wiring or a bad wheel speed sensor. If none of those are the culprit then it is the EBTCM (Electronic Brake Traction Control Module). I would not think that is the problem though. I would expect more codes that do not clear. Unfortunately, if it is a wheel speed sensor you'll need to replace the whole right front hub assembly as the sensor is an integral part of the hub. It's an easy job, but a relatively expensive piece...albeit not as expensive as an EBTCM.

Take your right front wheel off and look for a wire/small harness going to the back of the hub, that should be it. Check it and follow it backwards into the engine area. It's possible the joy ride through something up there and damaged the wires or the mechanics disconnected it to get you back in to soak you for some more cash.

Let us know.

[jagoff]

I was able to clear all the error codes but the

28 TCS-1233 H C.

It would clear on reset, and immediately come

back.. The dashboard display and warning messages continue

to be there too.

What's the next step?

Ed

my dad's vette really started going all hay wire when he needed a new battery...

id say check out every harness and plug you can find.

or bring it to the dealer and drop it off...

[Bigfoot]

my dad's vette really started going all hay wire when he needed a new battery...

id say check out every harness and plug you can find.

or bring it to the dealer and drop it off...

Don't take her to a STEALERSHIP!!! If you are not confident to look at it yourself invite us over and we'll take a look first. This is not a hard job if it's just a wheel speed sensor.

[jagoff]

I'm also just thinking that the Chevy dealer in SLC surely would have put it on the computer to verify

repairs. The computer would have gone off like a Christmas tree. And, the dealer would never

miss a chance to charge for more repairs. ..sounding more like a loose harness...

I would surely have killed him over a C6... But for a 100K plus girlie man daily driver

C5 I just hurt him a bit every time I see him.. I'll have the running gear and frame etc.

inspected before I drive it much again I've only put 40 miles on it since I got it back

to CareFree.... It tracked very nicely on the freeway when I drove it back from Salt Lake..

no crabbing or pulling left or right... I'm not sure, but I suspect that the transmission is

a kind of structural member adding rigidity to the frame box...just guessing of course.

you bring up a good point.

the transmission is more connected to the suspension, and moves if you put a jack under it ... : o

im not sure it adds rigitity ot the frame, but defenitely the suspension.

[Eddyboy]

Sorry to have dropped off the thread... I think I'll have to take this to someone with more

mechanical skills than myself. I've done a bit, but that was back before they

started putting computers in our cars... Remember Points and Plugs? sounds

so quaint and ancient now. Any place you can recommend in the far north_east

valley?

[1EVLC7]

PM sent

[Eddyboy]

Update:

Had other things to do, so car sat for a few weeks while I traveled. Found myself

without transportation, so I decided to take it... It started, barely, and seemed to

run OK while I went to an office in Scottsdale. Came back from my errand of 2 minutes

and the car was profoundly dead, even though I had monitored the alternator

levels pretty well over the 25 mile run.... Sigh..

So remembering the recent history of the car and shattered condition of the transmission that

had to be replaced (as opposed to repaired). I did the smart thing that mechanics with skills

such as I have do, and called a tow truck... Due to some unfortunate disputes about

$440 batteries and un-needed replacement parts with the Chevy dealer in No Scottsdale,

I had it taken to their neighbor, Legends Cadillac....

Here's where it might start getting interesting.

What they found was a badly cracked battery that was leaking at the bottom so a

cursory inspection wouldn't show a problem... I shudder to contemplate how

much loading force and impact it'd take to crack a brand new premium Autolite

battery...

It has been leaking and corroding all the goodies on the RF part of the car. . ..

I fear this'll cost more than a battery replacement and a warning to keep my keys

in my pocket... I'll report final damages when I know 'em.

They're tracing the RF speed sensor wire at the moment... I'm pretty sure it is not

the ride control computer. I'm starting to have a new respect for the robustness

of the Corvette...This'ns been a part of the space program and looks like she'll

be OK after all.

Ed, Cave Creek

[P51tj]

Hope that the acid didn't get to too much stuff under there, some mighty important goodies under that battery! fingers crossed for ya!

[Bigfoot]

Problem here is that every major wire harness in the car runs underneat that battery, right down to the PCM (power control module).

This could be bad depending how much corrosion there might be.

If you have her at home, I'd pull that battery out, use a good base (even a good degreaser will help) and clean the whole area out. Look for damaged wires etc.

Then report back.

[ChadC]

the advise given here is spot on.

I would add that im shocked how the teenager is not talking on how he did that damage.

..damm Im glad I dont have kids.