I wouldn’t install a bypass device myself, unless I was certain the problem was the immobilizer. A shop with the proper experience and equipment can easily determine if the problem is the immobilizer or not. One thing is certain, gasoline engines won’t start without a spark. I think you’d be wise to invest in a shop diagnosis, then you can fix the problem on your own if you want once you know what it is.
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usually OEM immobilizer would show red “key” light on dashboard when tripped
Mine don’t show nuttin. Just always had an issue with it when starting, sometimes not recognizing the chipped key. Drives me crazy.
if you narrow it down to defective ICM or ECM, you could ask professionals to test/repair it for quite a reasonable fee
I used these guys: http://www.ebay.com/usr/zkboys?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2754
for me it ended up that ECM was not at fault, but they ran test on ECM and confirmed that sensor circuits read signals correctly, refunded me half of what I paid since repair was not needed
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Thank you, Andrly. I’ll consider this just in case my mechanic scans an issue with the ECM.
REPAIR UPDATE:
brand new ICM installed.
RESULT: Cranks, No Start.
“brand new ECM” means you need to sync immobilizer settings between ECM and chip in your key
I can tell for Nissan: it can be done only with dealer programmer tool, not sure about Acura
my point about getting ECM repaired, not replaced, was to avoid $300 dealer charge to reprogram immobilizer
ICM (Ignition Control Module = Igniter) , not ECM.
Repair Update: Took car to mechanic at
Advanced Automotive
Miramar, FL
954-431-8121
- Recommended by CarTalk for honest mechanics in your area.
I called for their update, they said they’re still working on it. It’s been 3 1/2 days. It must really be messed up for them to be taking such a long time to repair it.
OK, REPAIR UPDATE REPORT:
The mechanic over at Advanced Automotive in Miramar FL tells me the car has:
- fuel,
- spark,
- air,
- Ignition Control Module (ICM) works,
- Crankshaft position sensor works,
- Ignition Coils work,
- Fuel injectors work,
- everything works.
RESULT: Cranks, NO start. It runs for 5 seconds, then quits.
CONCLUSION:
The car computer, ECM, is at fault. Will be concentrating repair efforts on that part.
Could very well be a faulty ECM. Someone here recently posted a problem they had experienced before where spilled orange juice got on the ECM circuit board, and the acid etched the circuit board traces and caused the fuel injectors to stay wide open all the time. However, if I had a modern fuel injected car that would crank, start, but only run for 5 seconds then stall out, the first place I’d start is the fuel pressure. Make sure they’ve installed a fuel pressure gauge on the fuel rail and monitored it when this happens. If the fuel pressure drops rapidly after starting, then the engine stalls 5 seconds later, less likely to be the ECM.
Yours is old enough that you probably don’t have to worry about paired parts, so just go to a junk yard and get one. Should be able to get out of there for less than $100, assuming you can find an RL in there.
REPAIR UPDATE: Took the beast to the dealer, they had 12 mechanics look over everything in the car, and THEY couldn’t find why it wouldn’t start. They suggested the ECM was faulty. So we took it out, and I took it to a repair shop in Ft Lauderdale, ECM to Go. Conclusion: there’s nothing wrong with the ECM, it works flawlessly. So after the dust settled, I decided due to the age of the car, that it just wasn’t worth pouring huge amounts of money into it, so I sold it to a junk yard, Junk Yard Dog.
End of story.
Thanks for the report of the final resolution OP. Yes, sometimes you just have to let a problem like this go and be done w/it. You got other things to do w/your time that are more important. Don’t be too surprised if you see your car rolling down the street again, driven by teenager.