2003 300m Special, NO SPARK after engine swap. HELP!

[rysbrnr]

I have a 2003 300m Special Edition. 104k miles

-engine developed bad rod knock.
-I took the car to a guy to swap in a 1999 engine long block. I drove the car to his place and he swapped in the 1999 long block.
-The car won't start. No spark
-He took it to a local Dodge dealership, they said, Crank angle sensor. It was replaced. Still no spark, turns out one of the wires to the crank angle sensor was broke. They patched it up. Still no spark. Now they say the engine computer is bad. They order a new one and programm in my VIN etc and STILL NO SPARK!

Anyone have any ideas?

[rhandwor]

I would buy a wiring diagram. http://www.alldata.com/ They have good ones cost appx.$29.95 for a years service. The diagram shows all ground connections I would check these out.
Next I would unplug the computer and ohm the wires between the crank sensor and the computer. If these are OK I would look for a disconnected plug.
Basically the dealership is responsible they sold you an expensive computer you apparently didn't need. If they don't fix the problem a refund is in order.
Go to the better business bureau and file a complaint.

[hundahunta]

possibly wrong engine 99 is a sbec, 03 is usually NGC depends on model year................disconnect the cam sensor and crank the vehicle is may take long to start etc...long crank but it should........

[rysbrnr]

Thanks for the responses so far.

Hundahunta, what do you mean by "99 is a sbec, 03 is usually NGC depends on model year" ?

If all sensors and wiring from the 03 long block were transferred to the 99 long block shouldn't it still start... or at least get a spark? How many trigger inputs does the ECU need in order to pulse the injectors and ignition coils? I know some cars have just a cam or crank angle sensor.. and some need BOTH signals to run. I don't know much about this car as I just bought it recently for my daughter.

As far as I know, all this 300m needs is a crank or cam trigger, and a thumbs-up from the anti-theft system.... then it will start the engine via spark/injector squirt and compression. Am I correct? or is there something else it needs?

I really don't understand why this dealership can't figure out why it's not getting a spark... it's really not that complicated especially if they have the OEM diagnostics equipment. I'm old-school and could probably figure this out with a DMM, O-scope, and factory service manual... but since the car is already there I might as well let them figure it out with all their resources.

[tinmanwpk]

I have limited knowledge in this area, so please someone correct me if I am wrong. Regarding engine computers, does the 99 have a pcm and the 03 have a bcm? Could the stealership have ordered the wrong type of computer?

[hundahunta]

SBEC=Single Board Engine Controller, NGC=New Generation Controller...The sbec controllers uses 2 connectors on the pcm to control engine functions and usually has a tcm for the trans. The NGC has 4 connectors and contains the pcm and tcm functions..It's very interesting that most of the sensors, connectors, hoses, lines etcc are the same for both engines the main difference is the cam and crank sprockets, the ngc has more teeth on the sprocket. This is to make the engine more fuel efficient and control the emissions better. If you scope the 2 sensors there will be a correct looking signal, but the pcm needs to see that the sensors are firing at the right timing, if you have the wrong engine with the wrong sprockets the pcm will see cam and crank signals when it it not looking for it and may not see the signal when it needs too....This is all to say that it is the wrong engine...Have them check the part number on the engine and cross it to your vin....hopefully it's the right engine and it's just and matter of a sensor or wire...

[rysbrnr]

I checked with the guy who swapped my engine. He didn't transfer over the 2003 flexplate/flywheel onto the 1999 engine. It is in fact different as far as the timing notches go. He's going to swap over the flywheel and the left (drivers side) cam gear. A bit more research online said that I also needed to swap over the knock sensor, oil pressure sensor, and injectors. The 2002+ had a deleted EGR system also. He swapped over the upper portion of the intake manifold for that. Basically, the only thing left to do on this car is swap flywheel, left cam gear and a couple other sensors. I found pictures of the o-scope traces of the NGC vs. SPEC3 trigger pulses for the crank and cam... they are very different. Hopefully that dealership that he took my car to (without telling me first!) will not try to screw me over with there no-progressive troubleshooting and ordering of parts that didn't fix it. I'll keep you guys posted with results. Thanks to everyone for all your input.

[hundahunta]

good luck...

[tinmanwpk]

Let us know how it all works out...

[rhandwor]

Hopefully the engine swapper will cover the dealership bill for you.

[leifi]

Your 2003 have 24 holes in the flywheel for the crank sensor, but a 1999 has only 12. and the left hand sprocket on camshaft has another hole pattern for the cam sensor.. Change flywheel and cam sprocket to the original and use your original pcm. and fire that idiot who swap your engine without check that there was a different, I did that when I found out my mechanic did the same mistake...