archie17847

Hey guys,
In the sea of great information this site has, I am adrift seeking the Island of SBEC elimination!! mine has a nasty habit of working 90% of the time,and then quitting at the worst possible time (like when I'm 110 miles from home towing my jeep. I have to drive home in 3rd gear with no speedo no OD no charging of the batt. no ac, no cruise. All becuase it or some one other thing acts up.( I'm leaning towards an intermitten charging/regulating problem that allows voltage to drop below what the SBEC can function at) then I get home let it sit over night and all is well again. its failure is extreemly random, it could be months before it acts up again witch makes diagnosis difficult.and the truck unreliable! has anyone gone thru the SBEC elimination process? I know a lot of systems will have to be adressed. I am skilled in electrical repair so I will do this regardless. I am also a firm believer in asking for advice before jumping into a project. Since I have met some exceptionaly talented people from this site at fall brawl and spring fling this past year I'm sure some one has somthing to say.
Pre thanks for any help that comes my way.
Archie17847

rocktoy

Archie,
I am assuming SBEC you mean the computer. I had a similar problem and it turned out to be my crank position sensor. I would give that a try before junking the computer.
John

flashgordon

I would 2nt that!
look and see if the surp belt has been rubbing on it or an oil leak, has socked the connector.
I now that it will affect the alt. and cruise, not sure about the rest

Flash.

wannadiesel

I third the crank sensor and its wiring.

If you really want to eliminate it, get an old style Dodge voltage regulator, follow the instructions in the sticky on running the OD with a pressure switch, rewire the A/C relay so the PCM is out of the loop, and wire a momentary switch for the grids. You will need a VSS off a manual trans if the truck is 2wd. You will also need an aftermarket cruise control if you want to have cruise.

archie17847

I 've allready replaced the crank sensor and physicaly inspected the wires all the way back to the SBEC. along with 6 other wiring test and repairs I found in the stickys.the single board engine controller isnt a computer.it's a transfer station. it is however one the few bad ideas that I am sure a mopar engineer is embarassed to admit he was apart of. having so many systems dependent on the flimsyness of a 4"x8" piece of fiber and solder I feel was plain DUMB!
Dave please tell me more of this manual vss and how it bypasses the sbec, is there a sticky for it I missed. thanks again fellas for chiming in . \
I think we should begin the building of death to sbec sticky. the parts to maintain this bad idea are getting harder to get and more expensive each year.
Archie

wannadiesel

The 2wd auto VSS needs a voltage feed from the PCM. The 4x4/2wd stick VSS is self energizing.

Most trucks have no PCM issues. I don't like hacking up the wiring unless there's a really good reason for it.

archie17847

I know the pcm in my truck is good I have two new ones one in the the truck and one on the shelf. my only problem with them is the uncertainty that if one system fails it has the tendancey to cause other critical systems to fail. I need this truck to be dependable .I never own a mopar that wasnt !! I know guys with rusted out junkers that dont have this problem so I have to seperate the systems for thier own good and my piece of mind . I promise I wont "hack" dave It will all be right!

archie17847

hey guys any one know how to order a manual trans vehicle speed sensor? year make part #. All the auto part stores around here say they only list one sensor for both auto and manual. dave says the manual vss is self energizing .
any one know how to tell the difference by looking at it? and what do you have to do to get it hooked up so the speedo will work. my truck is failing every day now after driving only 5 miles. I have got to get this fixed fast any help will be greatly apprieciated.
thanks, Archie

unixcowboy

Not sure what year Dodge started putting electric speedos in the trucks, but the sensor from an early to mid 80's 727 should work...Then you'll need a mech speed gauge, mech cruise control, 2 cables - trans to cruise, cruise to speedo.

The VSS is just a tach generator, turn it and you get pulses....Some need external exciter voltage, but I believe dave is right the VSS is self exciting.
I hate to suggest this - but - pull the VSS, check the gear teeth on the drive geat - they're nylon....And -- shudder,shudder -- check the worm drive in the trans.....Shouldn't be worn, but

wannadiesel

I just looked at Rock Auto and Parts America, both those units are wrong, they are 3 wire VSS's. Looks like time to visit the dealer. Should be 5252 438.

archie17847

Hey guys,
as far as wires go mine has always been a 2 wire one . my 92 aready has an electric speedo the problem is the signal from the vss has to go thru the sbec and when it messes up the spedo fails.Gears in tail stock are fine,VSS is new, wires show nno resistance/ my original desire is to by pass the SBEC and go directly to the speedo.