SEL/Traction Control On/Off post a LIM gasket change

Hi,

This past weekend I finished a LIM gasket, T-stat, throttle body gasket, valve cover, PVC, new radiator hoses, new fuel injector o-ring --change (took me a week or so of an hour here and an hour there). I ran it 15 min, changed the oil, ran it 40 miles and changed the oil. I have run it 80 miles two days in a row, no performance issues to speak of or leaks I have seen (hopefully that stays the case). Anyway, this evening the SEL came on, and I've been noticing the past two days my traction control goes off/on. Here in Ohio its been cold and I have been spinning the tires down the long driveway covered with snow, and some ice on the highways. So....I'm trying to figure out why my SEL might have gone on.

Any ideas if something due to all the work I did could have caused this? I read a little of the posts talking about traction control and perhaps that slipping around could have caused it?

I understand I could go to Autozone and see if they could read if there is any code being thrown, but looking for other ideas first. How can I reset the code/SEL?

The thing I can think of that was "odd" from the work I did was, toward the rear of the engine attached to that metal frame on the SC is a round plastic "thingie" that seems to have a fuel line coming in, a vacume line connection running from it to another connector on the alternator bracket arm, and another tube just sticking off it (drain tube?). When I pulled that off, the round cover popped off and it looks like some type of diaphram. When I put the round cover back on I just used tie wraps to keep it in place. Sorry for the bad description of this.

Anyway, just looking for any ideas on the SEL and how to troubleshoot, and any comments about proper Traction control and what I should expect in the winter on snow.

Thanks,
Ben
'96 Riv SC- 146K miles

You need to provide pictures of the round "thingie " that your talking about if possible.
Nothing should have no hose coming off of it. There is no drain hose in the area that you speak of.
Do you have access to the vacuum hose diagram for your engine? I think that is key right now.

The fact that something came apart and you put it back together is not a good sign.

Hi Ben, welcome to the forums! I'm sure we can help you out with some of your problems, and the best way is to keep each one in a separate thread. I'm moving your post on the windshield sprayer to its own thread in the Exterior Forum: https://rivperformance.editboard.com/exterior-f12/windshield-sprayer-not-working-t6672.htm#98079

Oh, and I agree. Getting that code read at AutoZone is the first step I'd take in solving this problem. The TC light and SES light are probably two separate issues, just a coincidence.

Best,
AA

I'll wager that he'll find a rich or lean fuel code, probably rich.

I say this because the description sure sounds like a fuel pressure regulator, which after having the diaphragm opened up is no longer going to be regulating fuel pressure very well...

Eldo wrote:

I'll wager that he'll find a rich or lean fuel code, probably rich.

I say this because the description sure sounds like a fuel pressure regulator, which after having the diaphragm opened up is no longer going to be regulating fuel pressure very well...

I was thinking the same thing, but he said "towards the rear of the engine" and I don't know of any Riv that has the Fuel Pressure Regulator mounted on the rear of the engine. So I'm a bit confused as to what actually came apart.

Really? The diagram I looked at in the manual didn't show it on the engine, just the fuel system sitting in mid-air, but it looked like it was on the rear. It's pouring rain tonight, so I didn't go out and look in person...

Perhaps the canister purge solenoid? The vent line looks like a fuel line, and I guess the solenoid is cylindrical. Then we'd be back to a lean code...

What year is the car.???

Doesn't really matter, the 95 -99 have the FPR on the front of the engine.
The EVAP canister purge solenoid is not a "round thingie" either although it is mounted in the rear.
So I am confused. Need Pic's to determine what he's talking about.
The only other round thing with a vacuum line going to it is the Boost By-Pass Actuator, and that's on the front also.

Sorry for the bad description, I hope these pictures help.

http://picasaweb.google.com/beninohio/96BuickRiviera?feat=directlink

You can see the tie wraps around the "round thingie".

Thanks,
Ben

Well I still can't find it in the service manual descriptions or diagrams, electrical or vacuum, but according to
AllData it is the "EVAP Vacuum Switch"... It is in line with the EVAP/CCP valve, and I'm guessing that it is
only used for the OBDII testing of the EVAP system, and that is the code that is being thrown. It could also
be causing a vacuum leak & a lean code.

I found the AD diagram halfway down this page, thanks to "96Super": LINK

I don't want to sound like I'm parroting AA, but don't be afraid to use the search function at the top of the page.
Once I had your photos for reference, it only took me about 5 minutes to find it. Chances are usually very good
that someone else along the way has previously looked for something you're asking about.

Nice! Thanks for the assistance. I only thought about the EVAP Vacuum Switch (otherwise known as round thingie) when writing the post, didn't occur to me to search on it.

Advanced Auto tonight said they couldn't replace this part, so I'm going to try NAPA in the morning. I will try to get the ERROR code as well to be sure they are related.

Last night the car seemed to run fine, temp high of about 190, other than the Trac light and SEL light -things seem okay. Any thoughts on driving it this way while getting parts? I have a 40mile drive to work, so would put about 80-100miles/day on it.

Thanks again for the help, I'll post what the codes say and such. BTW, I've used several "how to posts" and such for doing the LIM work, belt replace, etc... This site has been extremely helpful. I bought this Riv because I wanted something different, and liked the way it rode. Although I've been spending some time and $$ on it lately, I'm enjoying it.

Ben

Almost every one of us bought the car and then had to spend a bunch of money to get it right. I know I did and it had less than 80K miles on it.
The previous owner just did basic maintenance and regular oil changes, but by the time I got it it needed Brakes, suspension rebuilt and more, then a transmission rebuild all before 100K.
Then i started spending money and stock piling all the parts for some mild performance modifications. So if your not spending on necessary maintenance items then your spending money on unnecessary modification and performance parts. It can get addicting.
I feel it has been well worth the effort and money.

Back to your question of driving it with MIL lights on. If it is running good I would drive it back and forth to work until I could figure out what the codes are for. Then fix those items and clear the codes and the lights.

Good Luck and don't give up.!!!!!!

Advanced Auto reader says it is a "lean code", which I guess may follow with the EVAP Vacuum switch having a problem. I ended up having to purchase the part from Dealer for $23, will try to get it replaced this weekend. OF COURSE....the SEL has been on for two days, and when driving out of the dealer parking lot it went off and has been off all day.

What I'm still not 100% sure about is if the EVAP Vacuum Switch elbow is suppsoed to hook to something. its not shown in the alldata sheet from the other link. I would be interested if someone could feel around on theres and see if it is hooked to something. The elbow comes out under the electrical connector and sticks toward the dask about 2 inches. Thanks.

That third line is likely just a vent to atmosphere so it can get a vacuum reading... The other two ports are in the same vacuum circuit.

Regarding SEL/traction control, my experience is you have a bad wire to a front speed sensor. Its starts out intermittent and then the wire will just fail. I had this happen on my car. The wire corrodes at the point where it flexes when you steer your car. the damage to the wire is not visable until you cut and strip it. the copper will have turned black. You might be able to use both ends and solder a new wire in between.i reccomend you do this or try to find a new cable,if its not this, its your speed sensor. sensor is only available as a hub.

Thanks for the info. Since the snow/ice has been gone, the traction control hasn't been flipping back and forth...so it may have just been due to slick roads. I just put the new EVAP vacume switch in last night, so will run the car tomorrow and see how the SEL does. It has been going on/off, not really staying one way or the other. I figure a few days of driving if it stays off is a sign it was this component.

The computer should store that code/s so even if the light goes out, you can get it pulled by AZ or a different place.

Welcome BTW!!!

DEMonte1997 wrote:

The computer should store that code/s so even if the light goes out, you can get it pulled by AZ or a different place...

So true... Different codes have a different number of ignition cycles required to clear themselves after the problem is fixed. It appears that an open MAF sensor, (such as occurs when you go through hell trying to find the right security-Torx bit to clean it, and then forget to reconnect the wiring) is going to take at least 40 cycles, 'cuz it's still in there after using the car at least 10 times.

I'm waiting to see it go from Current Codes to Codes Since Last Clear...

After driving with the new vacuum switch the light has gone and remained out. So far, so good.

At AZ, when the light was on all the guy would tell me was the code was a "oxygen lean code". He didn't give me an exact # or anything. At this point if it remains off, and car runs fine...I'm thinking I'm done. Or, do you think some type of clear code follow up would be needed?

Thanks.

beninohio wrote:

After driving with the new vacuum switch the light has gone and remained out. So far, so good.
At AZ, when the light was on all the guy would tell me was the code was a "oxygen lean code". He didn't give me an exact # or anything. At this point if it remains off, and car runs fine...I'm thinking I'm done. Or, do you think some type of clear code follow up would be needed?
Thanks.

If the light stays out I wouldn't worry about clearing the computer. If that's what your thinking needs to be done.
It's not absolutely necessary. If the computer has a stored code in memory it will erase on it's own after a certain number of start, stop and run cycles without any faults.