Car died in parking lot after running, now won't start, will crank

[2k1Toaster]

We had a nice day today so I drove the DeLorean. Drove it to and from work and out to lunch. Then went out for a trip to the store. Car was running buttery smooth did high speed highway and surface street driving. Pulled into the store parking lot, engine still on and I go to turn the key to turn the car off and it just dies. Electrical still worked, radio still going, lights still on, but engine suddenly cut out. OK... Try to restart, no go.

I tried cranking a few times and the engine sounds like it wants to start but it just isn't. The starter is definitely working the engine. It didn't sound low on voltage but I haven't tried to jump it yet, will do tonight.

I read that the main beginner culprit is the rpm relay I guess to the fuel pump. So I unplugged it and jumpered the connection using some alligator clips and I could hear the fuel pump going. Tried to start, still no start. This was after many failed starts so it could be a low battery at this point too.

But what else and where should I look? It's sitting in a sketchy parking lot, dead.

[jmpdmc]

How about ballast resistor connections? Tighten them and/or inspect for a damaged wire.




Jeff Porter
01678

[Riley88]

Ballast resister then check the ignition coil connections over on the back right side of the engine compartment. I had an issue like yours awhile back that stranded me and it was literally just the ignition coil wire came loose

[JETS 81 DMC]

P.J. Grady Emergency Troubleshooting Guide
Excellent PDF file copy of Glovebox Service Manual!

Go to post #9 for the pdf copy in the link below.

http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?9950-P-J-Grady-Emergency-Troubleshooting-Guide

Maybe this will help you out. Good luck.

[2k1Toaster]

Ok thankyou will check both if I can find them. What's the best place to find an exploded view diagram of where these parts actually are? I've seen the ballast resistor but I don't know the engine compartment backwards and forwards unfortunately.

I was also reading about the Cold Start Valve (CSV) and ThermoTime Switch (TTS) potentially being issues. If the car was running, engine on, if the CSV was stuck and spraying extra fuel, could it flood while on? It was just idling in neutral with the parking brake on when it suddenly died.

[2k1Toaster]

I understand how a bad coil connection could cause an idle death, but it's my understanding that the ballast resistor is only important during start? So if the car was idling and it died, the resistor is less likely the culprit?

I found where the coil and resistor are so once the rain calms down I'll see what I can find. I'll also put the relay back in and make sure I can hear the pump or not.

[DMC-Ron]

Ballast/ignition resistor is in affect and important for both start and run. When cranking some of the resistance is shorted (removed) to give the coil a higher voltage. Once the key switch is returned to the run position, the full resistance is in the circuit as the engine runs. Open connections in the ballast/ignition resistor will not allow any voltage to the coil (no spark), while a bad connection can make the voltage to the coil too low for proper spark. As has been suggested, clean the connections and replace any corroded connectors. The resistor connections are a common cause of sudden engine stoppage.

Ron

[2k1Toaster]

I got the car towed to the house so I can work on it in leisure. When in the quiet garage I did notice that I did NOT hear the familiar whine of the fuel pump when the key was in ON but not START. Silence... I pulled the relay, shorted the 30 and 87 pins and heard the whine. However when trying to crank, still no running but lots of cranking.

I checked (visually) and wiggled and plugged/un-plugged/plugged the wires for the resistor and the coil. Also no start. I will have to measure with my DMM what is actually going on or if something is broken instead of just a bad connection. I did notice that when I was in the fuse area getting the wires for the fuel relay when I kind of jiggled the harness, the doors would try to lock. Seem to have narrowed it down to 2 wires (I think red and brown but I am colour blind) that connect to spade terminals that are then screwed into hex bolts. But I removed those 2 wires and I could still hear the locks trying to actuate. So I plugged them back in. I do know that the locks in the past would always lock, but most of the time not unlock. So I have never locked them since. Probably completely unrelated to this, but something new on my list to track down.

I also jiggled and plugged/un-plugged/plugged the 2 connectors that go to the ECU that is behind the drivers seat for good measure. Also no difference, no start.

[dmcnc]

Now that you have it home, what's your battery voltage on a multimeter?

[powerline84]

This has happened to me 3 times with kjet. 1st time was driving on the highway and the feed line off the accumulator popped. 2nd time I was driving on the highway and the car died. I though it was rpm relay but I have Dave's unit . I sent it to him and it tested ok . Then trying to diagnose it I discovered my frequency valve actually cracked and was pissing fuel all over. Could have been a car burning down kind of thing. 3rd issue I am having now is some hot start issues. I am installing a check valve on my aftermarket dmc pump because many have had issues. And replacing the o ring on my distributor. Next year I am going injected . Kjet is constantly requiring attention .

[David T]

You really have to narrow it down to either the fuel or electrical system. Either check for spark or squirt some Ether into the motor and see what happens. It may not be an electrical problem at all but if you keep pulling and bending the wires on the ballast resistor you WILL have a bad connection there. A wire could have come off the ignition coil, the coil could have failed, the impulse coil could be bad, it *could* be a lot of things.

[SBL]

Agree with David. Fuel, ignition, or "electrical" (which I put in a third category). The starter fluid spray is an excellent test. Temporary plug swap between WUR and ISM also helpful, just don't flood it. I have seen a hole in the fuel pickup line do this, although usually preceded with some erratic running.

For ignition, attach a plug wire to a spare pug, ground it, and look for spark, or push the wire through to see the metal connector and place it 1/4 inch from ground an look for spark, or, attach a timing light to a plug wire.

For electrical, I am referring to fuses, relays, and now that you have been cranking it a lot, battery capacity (would start putting it on a charger or jump it). The fact that you had no fuel pump action indicates that electrical is an issue that you will need to tackle at some point anyway. While you are jumping the fuel pump, also jump the frequency valve (same relay socket), which brings it closer to reality.

[2k1Toaster]

Now that you have it home, what's your battery voltage on a multimeter?

First thing I did when I brought it to the house was hook it up to my battery charger/starter. It can supply 120A continuous and 225A for start peaks as it has huge capacitors in the bottom. The thing has 2 wheels to move it around, not just a hobby charger. Hooked it up, charged it for a bit then put it to START mode which will give it up to 225A peak and 120A continuous and the car did the same thing. Crank but no turn over. I turned it back down to a maintenance mode and left it there which is how that SLA is treated normally. Voltage reads 15.2v-ish which is normal for that starter.


You really have to narrow it down to either the fuel or electrical system. Either check for spark or squirt some Ether into the motor and see what happens. It may not be an electrical problem at all but if you keep pulling and bending the wires on the ballast resistor you WILL have a bad connection there. A wire could have come off the ignition coil, the coil could have failed, the impulse coil could be bad, it *could* be a lot of things.

Yes indeed. I am first trying to do the easy things hoping it is something like a loose connection that can be repaired properly once found.


Agree with David. Fuel, ignition, or "electrical" (which I put in a third category). The starter fluid spray is an excellent test. Temporary plug swap between WUR and ISM also helpful, just don't flood it. I have seen a hole in the fuel pickup line do this, although usually preceded with some erratic running.

For ignition, attach a plug wire to a spare pug, ground it, and look for spark, or push the wire through to see the metal connector and place it 1/4 inch from ground an look for spark, or, attach a timing light to a plug wire.

For electrical, I am referring to fuses, relays, and now that you have been cranking it a lot, battery capacity (would start putting it on a charger or jump it). The fact that you had no fuel pump action indicates that electrical is an issue that you will need to tackle at some point anyway. While you are jumping the fuel pump, also jump the frequency valve (same relay socket), which brings it closer to reality.

No erratic running at all when it was running until it suddenly quit while stopped.

I have since jumped both the frequency valve and the fuel pump off the RPM Relay socket and still no turn over. After an unsuccessful crank the faint smell of fuel at the rear engine is there.

But thismorning I did some diagnosis by the chart and I am stopped at checking the ignition ECU. I incorrectly assumed the black box behind the drivers seat was the ignition ECU. I had no idea there were 3 ECUs in there. My understanding is the big vertical one is the lambda ECU, the small black one is the idle ECU and then the ignition ECU is hidden below the idle ECU? I only came to realize this when the flow chart said to check Pin-15 of the ignition ECU and there was no pin-15 on the box I was looking at.

So what I did today:

(1) Battery is charging via the wall. Resting voltage is 14-15v.

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(2) Cleaned and tested ignition ballast resistor terminals. Measured 0.85R and 0.92R between each side which seems reasonably well matched for using the leads I was.

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(3) Tested the jump point for battery voltage just in case, measured the same 15.2v

(4) Tested Coil Terminal 15 to ground with ignition OFF and got 0v as expected.
(5) Put car in RUN and tested coil terminal 15 to ground and got 14.281v. Troubleshooting chart says for a reading of 12v there is a break in the primary coil winding or ECU module not conducting.

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(6) Turned car OFF again. Unplugged terminals from coil. Main plug and slave plugs look to be in poor condition. I cleaned off the coil terminals a bit and the connectors. Will most likely need to replace main coil wire.

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(7) Measured between coil terminal 1 and coil tower, got 8.706Kohm. Measured between terminal 1 and terminal 15 of coil and got 0.92R which seems to be in-spec with what to expect.

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(8) Measured 0v between terminal 1 and ground when the car is OFF. Measured 14.2v between coil terminal 1 and ground with the car in RUN. I believe the checklist says that means that the ECU Module is not conducting...

At this point before I tear apart the insides more to get to the ECU, just hoping someone can confirm this is logical and as of now points to the ECU being the no start culprit at least when the RPM relay is jumpered. I suppose it is also possible it has something to do with that relay as well or improbable but possible both failed simultaneously...

Thankyou all again for the help.

[Bitsyncmaster]

The stock ignition ECU will ground the coil so with the engine not running and key on you should be getting a low voltage (less than 1 volt) on the coil white/slate wire and the coil white/yellow wire will be about 6 volts.

If your tach does not move when cranking the engine that usually shows you the ECU has died.

Note: the GM ignition unit turns coil current of when the engine is not running so you would get full voltage on both terminal of the coil with that unit.

A dead ignition ECU will also cause the RPM relay to not work.

[2k1Toaster]

The stock ignition ECU will ground the coil so with the engine not running and key on you should be getting a low voltage (less than 1 volt) on the coil white/slate wire and the coil white/yellow wire will be about 6 volts.

If your tach does not move when cranking the engine that usually shows you the ECU has died.

Note: the GM ignition unit turns coil current of when the engine is not running so you would get full voltage on both terminal of the coil with that unit.

A dead ignition ECU will also cause the RPM relay to not work.

Well that sounds logical and explains the improbable double failure. Single source failure of the ECU. As far as I know, it's the original ECU. Obviously I am not the first owner and don't know if it is original or not.

Is the best replacement still NOS ECUs? Or is this replacement GM considered superior? Any more "modern" ECUs that exist that would be a good upgrade while in there? I think while I have it opened up I will replace the remaining relays in the back (already did all the fuses a couple years ago) and probably replace the coil and wire just because I don't like the way they look.

Is there any documentation on what the 3 ECUs actually do, must be relatively simple, and if there has been any work to make an open source or replacement microcontroller based equivalent?

I will look around to see if I can answer these questions myself as well, but I am sure the more knowledgeable than I gurus have this information on hand easily.

Bummer the ECU died. I guess it is verified that either the ECU is dead, or a wire between the ECU and various points in the car is not connected properly. I guess the next step is to find more ECU attached points and probe them to see signs of life. But the RPM relay failure is almost a give away of at least part of it being bad. Perhaps the connector fell off? I dunno yet...

Thankyou again

[Bitsyncmaster]

Pull the ECU, it is a grey plastic cover over a metal mounting plate. Just remove the idle ECU and you can remove the two screws holding the ignition ECU out. I think you can then get the ignition ECU out (I can on my car but the bracket is loose).

I don't think they are high priced at DMCH. There is no plug an play alternative as far as I know. The GM unit is a module that you can wire up inside a stripped OE box.

I do keep a stock spare and an extra GM modified spare in my car mostly to help other owners stranded on the road.

[2k1Toaster]

Pull the ECU, it is a grey plastic cover over a metal mounting plate. Just remove the idle ECU and you can remove the two screws holding the ignition ECU out. I think you can then get the ignition ECU out (I can on my car but the bracket is loose).

I don't think they are high priced at DMCH. There is no plug an play alternative as far as I know. The GM unit is a module that you can wire up inside a stripped OE box.

I do keep a stock spare and an extra GM modified spare in my car mostly to help other owners stranded on the road.

I will take a look at it.

I just found the trusty giant schematic of the DeLorean.

Looks like the Ignition ECU is a black box that takes the:

WS wire from the coil and tachometer and RPM relay
G wire which looks like a fused W wire which looks like the IGN wire, hot +12v when the car is on only
2 mystery wires on pin-15 and pin-16 that go to the distributor... I am guessing a hall sensor AC signal that corresponds to the dwell angle?
Grounds


I am guessing it drives the WS wire and then uses the 2 mystery wires from the distributor as feedback? When it has power, only when ignition on, it drives that WS wire low by pulling it down at some duty cycle which in turn makes a spark which makes the engine go controlled boom. Since there is no pedal input or feedback on the throttle position, it's purpose seems limited to extracting the RPMs that the engine is currently running at which is controlled completely independently by only the throttle valve itself, and then calculating the best time to make a spark so that everything is in alignment.

To me this sounds like a zero cross detector on the hall input lines that drives a big 'ol transistor to ground. Is it truly that simple?

I am sorry but I come from the world of working on next-next generation vehicles. Everything is by wire and thousands of sensors. The last BMS system I worked on isn't due to be put into production until 2028 on some big name vehicles. I am just not used to everything being so non-dependent.

[WHO1DMC]

The ignition ecu is gray and mounted underneath that.

Dave B.

[Jonathan]

Most of what you described early on had me saying ballast resistor/ignition coil connection problem. Your mention of wiggling the RPM relay when trying to jumper the fuel pump to had your door locks trying to lock makes me think it could be your inertia switch.

The inertia switch is supposed to shut off the fuel pump if you're in an accident (and upside down or worse). The other thing it is supposed to do is unlock your doors for you.

Those two things combined make me suspect a problem with the inertia switch.

...the times I have had ignition coil connection issues or ones on the ballast resistor give me grief, I have been able to crank the engine, but not get it to start... AND there's never any fuel that you can smell. Each time a wiring issue has come up, it has meant the fuel pump isn't pumping. Perhaps a small piece of troubleshooting advice for anyone with a no-start issue. If you can get it to crank and can't already smell fuel, lean towards the issue being electrical first, then check other stuff.

[2k1Toaster]

The ignition ecu is gray and mounted underneath that.

Dave B.

Sorry I meant "black box" in the geeky sense. "Black Box" is an unknown block. It has inputs and outputs and magic happens inside.

[2k1Toaster]

...
The inertia switch is supposed to shut off the fuel pump if you're in an accident (and upside down or worse). The other thing it is supposed to do is unlock your doors for you.

Those two things combined make me suspect a problem with the inertia switch.


Interesting. No idea such a thing existed in this vehicle. I will look into where it is and see if I can test it. Best way to learn about these or any cars is to try and fix a broken one!

[Bitsyncmaster]

To me this sounds like a zero cross detector on the hall input lines that drives a big 'ol transistor to ground. Is it truly that simple?

That is pretty much what the OEM unit does. It does not have much in the way of dwell optimization. The distributor coil just generates an AC voltage with the zero crossing coinciding to the correct point to fire the plug. That AC voltage is pretty low (about 1 or 2 volts PP) at idle speed but at high RPM can get close to 100 volts PP.

The GM unit is much better with dwell adjustment and also has current limiting.

[Jonathan]

Interesting. No idea such a thing existed in this vehicle. I will look into where it is and see if I can test it. Best way to learn about these or any cars is to try and fix a broken one!

More info on it here, from the recall surrounding it: https://www.dmcnews.com/bulletins/SC-06-7.82.html

This is the part itself: https://store.delorean.com/p-7047-inertia-switch.aspx

It is located under the driver's footwell. If it hasn't been moved, it is together with the Lambda/service counter. If it was moved per the recall, it will be over on the side, about where your hood release lever is (just back a bit behind it).

The little plunger on it follows gravity. So when you're driving along and all is good, the plunger is down to keep the fuel pump running. If you're upside down, now that plunger will pop up and your fuel pump will be shut off.

You can try the plunger and see if cycling it up and down a couple times helps or look closer at the electrical connection as that might be the other area where something's wrong. Or it's internal to the switch and then you're getting a new one. The replacements had a splotch of white paint on them to say they're new.

I don't know why the pictures aren't showing in that tech bulletin link. They used to but now they don't for some reason.

[David T]

You are 'bouncing" around disconnecting this, and moving that. You may actually stumble on the cause or you may add more things to fix. Verify spark or fuel. Rare for the ECU to die. Usually it is a bad connection somewhere. Do you have spark coming out of the coil? Best place to test it because you could have a problem in the distributor killing the spark. Is it an OEM coil or an aftermarket one? The aftermarket ones don't seem to last, the OEM ones can keep going strong even after all these years. The other common thing to fail is the impulse coil but they don't usually fail like this. Typical failure is the car runs fine for about 20 minutes and then dies and won't restart till it cools off. Other possibilities include bad connections on the ballast resistor, the coil and the bulkhead.

[2k1Toaster]

You are 'bouncing" around disconnecting this, and moving that. You may actually stumble on the cause or you may add more things to fix. Verify spark or fuel. Rare for the ECU to die. Usually it is a bad connection somewhere. Do you have spark coming out of the coil? Best place to test it because you could have a problem in the distributor killing the spark. Is it an OEM coil or an aftermarket one? The aftermarket ones don't seem to last, the OEM ones can keep going strong even after all these years. The other common thing to fail is the impulse coil but they don't usually fail like this. Typical failure is the car runs fine for about 20 minutes and then dies and won't restart till it cools off. Other possibilities include bad connections on the ballast resistor, the coil and the bulkhead.

As mentioned previously the intent was to stumble upon the fix which was most likely to be a bad/loose connector and jiggle it enough to limp the car home 10 minutes.

That failed so now that it is at home I can properly diagnose and not just in the in the parking lot.

[DMC-81]

We had a nice day today so I drove the DeLorean. Drove it to and from work and out to lunch. Then went out for a trip to the store. Car was running buttery smooth did high speed highway and surface street driving. Pulled into the store parking lot, engine still on and I go to turn the key to turn the car off and it just dies. Electrical still worked, radio still going, lights still on, but engine suddenly cut out. OK... Try to restart, no go.

I tried cranking a few times and the engine sounds like it wants to start but it just isn't. The starter is definitely working the engine. It didn't sound low on voltage but I haven't tried to jump it yet, will do tonight.

I read that the main beginner culprit is the rpm relay I guess to the fuel pump. So I unplugged it and jumpered the connection using some alligator clips and I could hear the fuel pump going. Tried to start, still no start. This was after many failed starts so it could be a low battery at this point too.

But what else and where should I look? It's sitting in a sketchy parking lot, dead.
You've got great suggestions so far. Trying to think of other ideas... From you comment, I wonder if something happened to your ignition switch? Paging Ron.... Is this a possible problem with the switch where the car turns over but the power to the fuel pump or ignition is disconnected? Or maybe going to turn it off was coincidental .

Also, serious question... How much fuel is in your tank? (I have had a no start condition with less than a 1/4 tank, especially when the car was on a grade.)

One more question: do you have a battery cutoff switch? If so, are the connections tight?

[DMC5180]

Okay, let me tell you my actual experience with a poor connection on the Ignition ECU.

This happened a few years ago. I was headed out of town when suddenly the just shut off. I costed to a side road and started doing the diagnostics. Fuel pump confirmed.(had a jumper with my). I did the wiggle checks on the Resistor wire. The engine would crank fine, but wouldn’t even try to fire.
Finally, I went and put my hand on the Ignition ECU connector just moving it a little. I reached over and turned the key to start and it fired right up like nothing happened. With the engine running I reached back just touched the connector a little and the engine died. Ultimately, I pulled the connector off and examined it. Nothing really obvious noted. So, I reinstalled and removed it a few times to scratch fresh contacts on the terminals. Plugged it back in, it fired right up and has never been a problem since.

So if you, haven’t done anything with the ECU connector, give that a shot. A failed Ignition ECU is an extremely rare event , but not impossible. DMCH has an abundant supply of them very reasonably priced because there is virtually Zero demand for them.

[2k1Toaster]

You've got great suggestions so far. Trying to think of other ideas... From you comment, I wonder if something happened to your ignition switch? Paging Ron.... Is this a possible problem with the switch where the car turns over but the power to the fuel pump or ignition is disconnected? Or maybe going to turn it off was coincidental .

Also, serious question... How much fuel is in your tank? (I have had a no start condition with less than a 1/4 tank, especially when the car was on a grade.)

One more question: do you have a battery cutoff switch? If so, are the connections tight?

I hadn't touched the ignition/key yet. It was all mind control. Hand was hovering around it. So hopefully not that!

I checked the inertia switch, black plunger is still down. It has the white paint on it and is located approximately by the hood release.

I did put in 2+ gallons when I got it home just in case, no difference.

Thinking about it the ecu and the shelf in general probably do get moved when I drive. I have a (bad) habit of leaning against the back of the seat to get in and out and now that I think about it I probably leaned backwards to push forwards to grab the key and that's when it died. So bad ecu connector sounds plausible too. Anyways I am in there so I'm doing cleaning. But for the life of me I can't figure out how to remove the lambda ecu connector. The big black one with the blue/purple wire coming out of it. I tried pulling but it feels like it's going to break... Is there a secret?

[2k1Toaster]

But for the life of me I can't figure out how to remove the lambda ecu connector. The big black one with the blue/purple wire coming out of it. I tried pulling but it feels like it's going to break... Is there a secret?

To answer my own question I was able to find a picture of used modules for sale that show it without a connector. I saw the metal latch and was able to swing the latch and move the connector out. That's a seriously strange automotive connector in a car where nothing else I've found is mounted that way....

[2k1Toaster]

Okay, let me tell you my actual experience with a poor connection on the Ignition ECU.

This happened a few years ago. I was headed out of town when suddenly the just shut off. I costed to a side road and started doing the diagnostics. Fuel pump confirmed.(had a jumper with my). I did the wiggle checks on the Resistor wire. The engine would crank fine, but wouldn’t even try to fire.
Finally, I went and put my hand on the Ignition ECU connector just moving it a little. I reached over and turned the key to start and it fired right up like nothing happened. With the engine running I reached back just touched the connector a little and the engine died. Ultimately, I pulled the connector off and examined it. Nothing really obvious noted. So, I reinstalled and removed it a few times to scratch fresh contacts on the terminals. Plugged it back in, it fired right up and has never been a problem since.

So if you, haven’t done anything with the ECU connector, give that a shot. A failed Ignition ECU is an extremely rare event , but not impossible. DMCH has an abundant supply of them very reasonably priced because there is virtually Zero demand for them.

That was one of my thoughts when I was stranded however I confused the Idle ECU with the Ignition ECU. But even after I got it home, I played around with the connectors some, and still no start and I am not measuring the proper half-voltage at the coil. I have ordered a new ECU. Worst case, it sits on a shelf.

[2k1Toaster]

So one of the things I ordered was new relays. I figured now was a good time to replace the Fuel/Tach RPM Relay as it's a high failure part and I don't want to be guessing. I just ordered the "replace-em-all" kit from the store. As soon as I looked back there thinking about how to do it, I remembered that about 8-9 years ago while driving there was lots of smoke and small smolders of pre-fire back there. At the time I was just driving down the interstate with the HVAC vent on and all of a sudden I see smoke out of the corner of my eye, and smoke is billowing out from the rear shelf under the carpet. So I immediately pull off the highway, remove the carpet and the wood board and the wood was HOT. I let it all cool down, started it up, and it ran. So I drove it to my house and that following weekend went about rebuilding all the fuses. Basically the fuse box completely melted. It looked mostly original with some extra jumpers in place which I can only figure were there because they had previously overloaded/smoked and the PO made a quick fix to use a spare slot or an inline fuse.

I'm not overly proud of the way I fixed all the fuses, but being a full time broke university student I am glad I soldered, heatshrinked, and put the fuses in labeled covered compartments. It's probably time to find an alternate solution, but oh well.

Then I started on my task of replacing the relays. The first one is to replace the far left relay with 2 inline fuses. To my surprise I already had 2 inline fuses. To my horror they were soldered into the relay plug adapter and had loose wire strands just fraying off. The slightest movement shorted them. Not sure how helpful the fuse really was, as looking at the base it really just looked completely shorted together.

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So I re-spliced in the old one with solder and heatshrink to the wires it goes to on the underside and then heatshrinked off the coil contact wires so I could remove the plastic part.

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I replaced the 7 standard fuses, cleaned the terminals on the white, red, and green ones. Replaced the RPM relay. Then I got to the circuit breakers. To my surprise I had a 40A circuit breaker and a 25A circuit breaker already. I was under the impression the car comes with a 35A and a 25A. Both were heavily corroded. To replace the 40A one (#19) I needed to find out which one was the BAT connection. I connected the battery again and measured, neither were at battery voltage. One had abotu 7Kohms to the battery, the other was mega-ohms. There should be no way for the cooling fans to work with this breaker inoperable. But I know the fans turn on all the time as I can definitely hear them. I am thinking this might be a PO change and it is wired some other way... Not sure though. That's as far as I got tonight.

[2k1Toaster]

After measuring on the correct ECU pin, I had battery voltage, but not what I'd expect. I had almost a 2v drop at the ECU. Measuring the resistance between the fuse and the ECU it tested OK. Measuring the resistance across the fuse tested OK, but really it was too high. Fuse #1 (10A) seems to have partially failed. It wasn't an open, but it also wasn't acting like a good short and was dropping some good heat across it and apparently enough to make the ignition ECU not work. I replaced the fuse with a new one, and she fired right up. I am still going to continue replacing fuses and relays, but it kind of sucks that a 10A fuse can leave you stranded and it failed in a way that basic checks seem to make check out.

More parts incoming, should update more later.

Thankyou all again for the help!

[DMC5180]

Glad you got it figured out. If I were you, I would seriously consider correcting the fuse box situation back there. The next owner will thank you. A Reproduction fusebox assembly is reasonably priced with modern terminals. That and New fuses will fix a lot of problem areas.