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Electrical Problems with the SPOUT


bronco2blue

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94 explorer 4.0

I was getting a SPOUT circuit open code along with rough idle and hesitation under load. I did some searching and found out that the SPOUT can be disabled by pulling the spout shorting bar, but I found two identical ones. After searching around some more I concluded that the SPOUT bar was behind the passenger headlight, and the other one near the firewall was called the octane bar.

I tried disconnecting both shorting bars at different times but still had the same hesitation and stalling issues. I was fed and up took it to a shop so they could just fix the problem. They called back and said it would be $1000 dollar job to trace the wires and I said no thanks. To make the truck drivable they claimed to have added a ground to the spout circuit and they removed the spout shorting bar, but when I looked under the hood, it was the octane bar that was removed, not the spout bar, and I didn't see where they grounded anything. By grounding the circuit, did that just mean they simply removed the shorting bar? Why is it that when I removed the shorting bars my problem persisted, but they were able to make it go away? I'm guessing the ground they added had something to do with it, but I can't figure out where that is so I can go over their band air job and fix the real issue. Whatever they did, it fixed the stalling and rough idle.

I'm just trying to wrap my head around what they did and what should be done to fix the original problem. The truck runs pretty good, but I don't think the PCM is detecting the timing. Is it possible to add a ground to a shorted out spout circuit to make the truck run without hesitating? I also must add that I plugged in the connector that the shop removed and there were no changes in the way my engine ran. The shop was able to make the stalling and hesitation go away, but I still think the truck is down on power based on what the shop did to bypass the short.

If I sound like I don't know what I'm talking about it's because I don't. I just know my truck isn't performing to its full potential. Any advice is appreciated.
 


RonD

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Your symptoms are certainly similar to disconnected SPOUT signal from computer to ignition system but........

'94 4.0l won't have a distributor, so won't have a SPOUT at all, that was for TFI system.
SPOUT=spark out, and it was the signal from computer to TFI module to aid in spark advance and retard.
And it did have a "shorting bar" in the form of a plastic insert that needed to be removed when you wanted to set base distributor timing.

1994 4.0l will have an EDIS-6 module on the Rad support and it uses SAW(spark angle) from computer to aid in spark timing advance and retard, and there was no "shorting bar" needed since there is no "base spark timing" to adjust if there is no distributor.
You would need to adjust CKP(crank position) sensor for that.

Code 213 will mean SAW or SPOUT signal is not there, so splitting hairs but best to know what you got

You may have had a bad ground on EDIS or between EDIS and computer, Grounds are important in electronic signals because if there is more than one device involved they all need the same "reference point"/starting point for the signal to be valid.

Good look here at EDIS-6 wiring: http://forums.hybridz.org/topic/56438-corrected-wiring-diagrams-for-edis-6-ignition-module/
 
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bronco2blue

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I also replaced the EDIS module and the CKP before taking it to the shop but the truck still ran poorly after replacing them. Is it safe to say the shop didn't fix the real problem? Could the wires be damaged somewhere still or did they fix the problem altogether by adding a ground?
 

RonD

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If truck isn't hesitating when you step on the gas then SAW signal is making it to the EDIS so spark is advancing.
And if the code doesn't come back then I would say problem is solved.

Yes could be the wiring harness has chafed somewhere and that ground was effected, or at a connector there is some corrosion.
Might not be a bad idea to give it all a look over when you have the time, chafed wiring and corrosion doesn't tend to get better over time..............it gets worse :)
There is no magic solution to find bad wire/connection, which is why the shop said $1,000, it could take 1/2 hour to ..................?? to find the problem.

Electrical and Vacuum Troubleshooting Manual(EVTM) for your year and vehicle will show where the wires run, not just what they are hooked to like an electrical diagram.
 

bronco2blue

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I feel like the truck no longer has the same get up and go quickness that it used to when on the gas. I still think something is a little off since the shop recommended leaving the square electrical connector near the firewall off the truck. But then again, after leaving the shop I put it back on and the performance was the same as when it was off.

I'm getting an occasional CEL so I will run through the codes and start inspecting the wire harness. Thanks for that info
 

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