Need wiring guru Spartan MM

[CP598]

Originally Posted by Persistent

Dielectric grease does not conduct electricity. It is safe around electronics. It excludes water and air and other corrosives that may be around. It incidentally lubricates sliding electrical contacts.

All good things. See equipment manufacturer's instructions for best results.

I second this statement. Dielectric grease is non-conductive. I wouldn't suggest filling the connector cavity with grease, but simply apply some on the rubber seal to help keep out the elements. We use dielectric grease on weather pack connectors on the machines we build at work. If you fill the cavity of the connector with grease, when you push the connectors together the grease will not compress and you risk pushing pins out of the connector. I've seen that happen multiple times.

[groveln]

Boy I wish I could get to the ECM on my '04 Cummins 400 ISL / Spartan MM...it's sitting just at about the middle of the frame rail & just below my eye level of the top of the frame. I'm chasing a similar issue & a CEL that disengaged my Cruise Control & a Scangauge-D fault code says ID 151 which is this...ATC Control Status Identifies the current state of the ATC (automatic traction control) control functions, signals, lamp and switch. Spartan can't seem to confirm or deny my coach has ATC..yes it has ABS & he said find the Bussman fuse box & pull the ABS fuses..I did..but it Didn't fix the issue so I want to get to my ECM & pull the connectors out & clean them..just can't get to it at this point. Had forum member oldnavycdr tell me he dropped his exhaust to get to his ECM..can't believe Spartan wouldn't leave easy access to this piece of important electronics! I'm glad you found your problem because it gives me encouragement that if I can get to the ECM & clean it up the "chase" come end & I agree with arcaguy if nothing else for this old a good inspection of it couldn't hurt.

[Josh H]

Originally Posted by groveln

Boy I wish I could get to the ECM on my '04 Cummins 400 ISL / Spartan MM...it's sitting just at about the middle of the frame rail & just below my eye level of the top of the frame. I'm chasing a similar issue & a CEL that disengaged my Cruise Control & a Scangauge-D fault code says ID 151 which is this...ATC Control Status Identifies the current state of the ATC (automatic traction control) control functions, signals, lamp and switch. Spartan can't seem to confirm or deny my coach has ATC..yes it has ABS & he said find the Bussman fuse box & pull the ABS fuses..I did..but it Didn't fix the issue so I want to get to my ECM & pull the connectors out & clean them..just can't get to it at this point. Had forum member oldnavycdr tell me he dropped his exhaust to get to his ECM..can't believe Spartan wouldn't leave easy access to this piece of important electronics! I'm glad you found your problem because it gives me encouragement that if I can get to the ECM & clean it up the "chase" come end & I agree with arcaguy if nothing else for this old a good inspection of it couldn't hurt.

Removing the exhaust would have given me another angle to access it, however there were two frame rails to work around. I tried working through the engine access in the bedroom but what worked best for me was laying on top of engine. I hate to say it, but start at one end of the coach and inspect everything! Luckily my buddy can run a test light and volt meter. Checking continuity and ohms kept us moving. My next step was to start checking transmission sensors. It seems everyone's problem is just a little different. I will PM you.

[capt fast]

i use an artist paint brush to coat the pins on connectors with dielectric grease containing silicone. that also helps stop connector pins fretting on things vibrating or connected at the engine, i use the Dow or the Permatex products, whatever fits the requirements of the component manufactured.
I would shy away from some of the 'electrical contact cleaning sprays' that are on the market, the CRC MAF sensor cleaner is fairly benign and the best I have used. I have had some 'contact cleaners' that de-polymerize the connector plastics so badly that it turned into dust.
test lite probes are a handy devices to T/S electrical DC wiring circuits. I have one with 200ma lamp in it and one with a 5A lamp in it. something I found was when the small load worked well, but the large load did not as if only one small strand of the wire was carrying the current or the ground was a bit corroded or loose.
if you probe a wire with testlite pin, don't forget to seal that hole in the insulation jacket with some sealant.
by the way, I found many wire nuts the previous owner used in my bus. don't shy away from replacing them with proper sealed connectors. I spent many hours getting my cruise control working correctly because of the aftermarket crap that was hidden away. it's a process when dealing with a twenty four year old coach, but it's fun. I'm picky about the electrical but I attribute it to all the aircraft and electric trucks I have repaired over the years.

[Kevinett]

Can you post a photo of the computer mounted on the engine? All of my dash lights are out, and several of the gauges are not working. The speedo needle max's out at 40 MPH. I wonder if this is the issue I have? TIA!!



[/QUOTE]While on cummins care website I seen a computer mounted to the engine on the passenger side. I pulled both plugs to find quite a bit of corrosion. I cleaned the connections, fired it up, and every guage worked. I took it for a 15 mile test drive and no issues. Not only that, but now my reverse lights work again, and my steps retracting completely. Amazing what you can accomplish with a great community here to help out. Thanks to everyone that had reached out with advice.[/QUOTE]

[Jim_HiTek]

Reading this thread and the questions and answers about Dielectric grease, I should point out that the grease is non-conductive and is intended to be placed where it's a barrier to moisture. It isn't supposed to go onto the contacts themselves but around the seals of the connectors. Or inside a large connector around any hole where moisture might creep inside.

Sorry to have mislead anyone with my 'slather' comment. It's something I just 'know' from being in the electronics biz for so long that I don't always remember to be specific about such things on forums.

For this current question above, I checked my blog and I couldn't find a picture of the ECM connector but on my Cummins, it was on the passenger side, around halfway between the bottom of the oil pan and top of the engine and half way between the front and the rear. I could see it from the top of the engine. Difficult to access, but not impossible if you are spry. Yours may be in a different place of course. If you can see a large bundle of wires near the engine, follow that and it'll likely go to the ECM. BTW, the ECM can be mounted into a pocked molded into the engine, or it can be bolted directly to the outside of the engine. Depends on manufacturers design.

[Josh H]

These are photos from Google. Just to show you what it looks like. Passenger side of engine pretty much on the center of the block. The gray engine photo has an additional part that is black, it wasn't on mine. The 2 plugs you are looking for each have center bolts securing the plugs into the ecm and are in the top of that red circle, then a smaller plug slightly to the left.

[Billlnapoli]

Originally Posted by josh h

can someone help me read a wiring schematic from spartan?

I have a 2004 newmar mountain aire 4301 on a spartan mountain master chassis. All my dash guages have quit working except fuel and trans temp. At one point they came back to life for a few miles then one by one dropped to zero. Hunter at spartan told me to check a circuit named"light bar". Is this the speedo? I have done months of never ending research to find a fix for this issue. Also, is there any known schematic that shows physical locations of ecu's ecm's or any other pertinent parts? Any help would be much appreciated!

thank you
bill napoli