96 zetec Bad pcm again?

Hi, I have a 96 contour zetec automatic that I had a broken flex plate on. In the process of diagnosing that, I lost spark and wound up replacing the flex plate, cam pos sensor, crank pos sensor the pcm, and several wiring connectors.No codes, but It took the salvage yard pcm to get it to run. It ran for about a month, now won't run again. No codes, the valve timing is good, fuel pressure good, i'm getting a signal from the crank pos sensor, but the spark timing appears to be about 90 degrees btdc while cranking. Could I have another bad pcm??

Please explain to me how you replaced the camshaft positioning censor on a 96, there isnt one....

Its not very likely that a pcm goes bad, especially two. If it is indeed going bad, youve got bigger issues thats causing it to fail.

Please explain to me how you replaced the camshaft positioning censor on a 96, there isnt one....

on a 96 2.0 dohc zetec it's located near the top back rear of the engine, rear of the intake manifold, least that's what I understood it was

Its not very likely that a pcm goes bad, especially two. If it is indeed going bad, youve got bigger issues thats causing it to fail.

that's what I think too. this thing ran to a mechanic's shop to be checked for running warm, supposedly they put their scanner on it, told her it had bad wiring,and it had to be towed home. at least they didn't charge for it???

on a 96 2.0 dohc zetec it's located near the top back rear of the engine, rear of the intake manifold, least that's what I understood it wasnot sure what you're talking about but there is no cam censor on pre98's.

not sure what you're talking about but there is no cam censor on pre98's.

Check out autozone repair guide, I bought it at autozone, it sits at the rear of the rear camshaft( toward the passenger compartment)and induces a signal from the rear cam and inputs it to the pcm. I don't know, but they called it a cam position sensor.

Check out autozone repair guide, I bought it at autozone, it sits at the rear of the rear camshaft( toward the passenger compartment)and induces a signal from the rear cam and inputs it to the pcm. I don't know, but they called it a cam position sensor.Autozone also tells you a zetec is a interference motor. I wouldn't trust autozone manuals for anything.

Autozone also tells you a zetec is a interference motor. I wouldn't trust autozone manuals for anything.
this is no big deal, but my 96 ford repair cd also shows a cam pos sensor, they call it a cms, it's wells part # su287 costs $17.49 at autozone. I did notice that they called it an interference motor, if it really is, I got really lucky.

this is no big deal, but my 96 ford repair cd also shows a cam pos sensor, they call it a cms, it's wells part # su287 costs $17.49 at autozone. I did notice that they called it an interference motor, if it really is, I got really lucky.It's non-interference.

not sure what you're talking about but there is no cam censor on pre98's.
Yeah, it's on the intake cam, driver's side end of the camshaft on my 95.

Lestro, did you end up with a fix, or is it still messed up?

Yeah, it's on the intake cam, driver's side end of the camshaft on my 95.

Lestro, did you end up with a fix, or is it still messed up?

Thanks for asking, the kid needed it in a hurry so she took it to the ford garage, to start with they want $1300 to replace the engine wiring harness before they did anything else. It's still there. I don't know yet what she's going to do with it.

Thanks for asking, the kid needed it in a hurry so she took it to the ford garage, to start with they want $1300 to replace the engine wiring harness before they did anything else. It's still there. I don't know yet what she's going to do with it.

The harness alone runs about 500 bucks for the part for my car, ZETEC w/ABS. My 95 needs some wiring work, but I might just rip it out and repair it. The insulation is cracking off the wires, and the sensor signals get lost in the resulting mess of bare wires. It's a common problem on the early models. They used the wrong type of insulation on the wiring and it won't hold up under the heat.

Do you know anyone who could do the work for ya if you got the harness?

I'm not fond of having the stealership do the work, but 1300 is probably about right for that job, with dealer labor charges and all. They're not jerking you around, but you might want to lean on them a bit and see if your car is covered under the wiring harness recall bulletin. Mine is just out of the time frame (100k miles or 10 years, whichever is first) but you should push them to see if you are covered still, since yours is a 96. Eh, make some noise about it.

Here's the link to the recall:

http://www.contour.org/FAQ/recall/99M03/

Part numbers and labor times, plus diagrams are all on that page. The worst thing they can do is say no. If you are still covered, lean on them HARD. Otherwise, is the car worth it to you? They're not bad cars, Ford just screwed up on these models. People who get the wiring done are happy with it.

You should cruise over to the Contour forum and read up on these cars and the fixes.

www.contour.org (http://www.contour.org)

The harness alone runs about 500 bucks for the part for my car, ZETEC w/ABS. My 95 needs some wiring work, but I might just rip it out and repair it. The insulation is cracking off the wires, and the sensor signals get lost in the resulting mess of bare wires. It's a common problem on the early models. They used the wrong type of insulation on the wiring and it won't hold up under the heat.

Do you know anyone who could do the work for ya if you got the harness?

I'm not fond of having the stealership do the work, but 1300 is probably about right for that job, with dealer labor charges and all. They're not jerking you around, but you might want to lean on them a bit and see if your car is covered under the wiring harness recall bulletin. Mine is just out of the time frame (100k miles or 10 years, whichever is first) but you should push them to see if you are covered still, since yours is a 96. Eh, make some noise about it.

Here's the link to the recall:

http://www.contour.org/FAQ/recall/99M03/

Part numbers and labor times, plus diagrams are all on that page. The worst thing they can do is say no. If you are still covered, lean on them HARD. Otherwise, is the car worth it to you? They're not bad cars, Ford just screwed up on these models. People who get the wiring done are happy with it.

You should cruise over to the Contour forum and read up on these cars and the fixes.

www.contour.org (http://www.contour.org)

Thanks for the info, I do a lot of reading over at the other site also, I had checked most of the wiring end to end with a vom and replaced some connectors that had got too hot, but, no offense to some readers, but did you ever try to tell a 20 year old girl anything? sometimes you have to give in and let them do as they please.

The harness alone runs about 500 bucks for the part for my car, ZETEC w/ABS.A guy on contour.org got it for 140$ at teamfordparts.com

http://www.contour.org/ceg-vb/showthread.php?t=304

That's for the one w/o ABS. I've already talked to Bill J about it.

He was kind enough to run the numbers for me. Mine has ABS. That kit costs over 500.

I need to see if I can get a dealer to break the kit into separate harnesses for me. I don't need to rewire the whole friggin car. I'd just need the engine control harness.

Thanks for the info, I do a lot of reading over at the other site also, I had checked most of the wiring end to end with a vom and replaced some connectors that had got too hot, but, no offense to some readers, but did you ever try to tell a 20 year old girl anything? sometimes you have to give in and let them do as they please.
I have a 21 year old and an 18 year old.

They learned a long time ago that it's easier to listen to me than it is to walk everywhere. Once they're out of college, they're on their own.

That's for the one w/o ABS. I've already talked to Bill J about it.

He was kind enough to run the numbers for me. Mine has ABS. That kit costs over 500.

I need to see if I can get a dealer to break the kit into separate harnesses for me. I don't need to rewire the whole friggin car. I'd just need the engine control harness.Oh wow..

I can't beleive theres a 360$ increase just for stupid ABS!

I cross my fingers the harness doesn't go in either of mine. The wires look perfect still and I don't have any problems. Oh well.. If it happens it happens.

Oh wow..

I can't beleive theres a 360$ increase just for stupid ABS!

I cross my fingers the harness doesn't go in either of mine. The wires look perfect still and I don't have any problems. Oh well.. If it happens it happens.
Man, tell me about it. I had to take a few deep breaths after he sent me that PM about it.

I'm still going to go to the local dealer here and see if I can find out just exactly what the difference is. I'm hoping the engine control harness is the same for both, and maybe it's just an extra harness for the ABS stuff. I haven't torn into it yet, but I have a pretty good hunch that it's the wires for cam sensor and coil pack that are messed up. I can see some bare wire showing right where the wires go into the plug on the ECT, too.

The TSB says there are 3 harnesses in the ABS kit and only 2 harnesses for the non ABS.