I just officially joined NAM, after utilizing this forum to help me with many questions with my R53 over the last two years, I finally came to a question I couldn't find answered. A little background...
Two years ago I purchased an '02 R53 and was so happy with the way the car drove/handled, but I was unhappy with the interior/exterior (among many other little issues) not matching the performance. I just recently purchased an 06' R53 with a blown engine. This car has ~100k miles on it, and I knew just the car to swap the power train from. This past weekend I swapped the engine/trans from my 02' to the 06' after watching ModMini's engine removal video about a dozen times. I was aware of the minor differences between the two (vacuum lines, etc.), but nothing that wouldn't allow the swap to work. Or so I thought...

I got in to start the car after double checking everything was hooked up, the door chimed when I put the key in the ignition, turned the key... And nothing. All of the features that work without the key work (radio, locks, dome lights), but it's almost as if the key isn't triggering the ACC to turn on and obviously not triggering the car to turn over. I've researched the immobilizer, battery, and key issues, none of which seem to have the same symptoms. The battery is full charge, and I'm going to attempt to check the ignition switch and barrel to see if it appears dirty or broken, but other than that, I'm at a lose. I've read many threads on NAM mentioning similar symptoms, but those all have their dash (ACC) working, just no crank. Any other avenues to research would be greatly appreciated!

-Door chimes with key in ignition and when fob is next to barrel (Immobilizer chip good)
-All engine sensors are plugged in
​​-All fuses and relays are good
-Key remote battery works

Thank you all in advance

 

Did you scan for codes?

 

I've tried scanning for codes, the scanner receives power but does not connect.

I've also tried resetting the ECU, the odometer lights up when I press the reset button, but it doesn't go into "test" when I turn the key.

 

Possibly ignition switch? I have been having issues with mine, and they seem to be a pretty common/widespread failure point.

 

The no communication is concerning. I assume you are using the DME or ECU from the 06’?

 

My assumption is that since the car won't "turn on", plugging in the scanner is waiting for the key to wake up the computer to check for codes (I don't have a high end scanner). Also, yes everything is from the '06 except the engine/trans.

 

Connections at the DME good? They can be a pain to seat the 2 connectors at times. My other thought aside from that would be if the pin arrangement on the 02’ engine harness matches that of the 06’ harness.

 

I double checked the connections at the ECU and they are seated well. I checked the EWS plug, the fuse box connections, and the BCM connection, non of which have corrosion so I don't suspect those.

I did question if the pin layout of the '02 harness and '06 ECU match, but didn't look much into it since I was thinking the ACC (dash) should at least come on regardless of the ECU. I even unplugged the ECU to see if the ACC would come on, still no luck. I'll try my best to decipher the wiring diagrams in the Bentley manual of the '02 ECU and '06 ECU pinout and see if I see any differences.

 

I double checked the connections at the ECU and they are seated well. I checked the EWS plug, the fuse box connections, and the BCM connection, non of which have corrosion so I don't suspect those.

I did question if the pin layout of the '02 harness and '06 ECU match, but didn't look much into it since I was thinking the ACC (dash) should at least come on regardless of the ECU. I even unplugged the ECU to see if the ACC would come on, still no luck. I'll try my best to decipher the wiring diagrams in the Bentley manual of the '02 ECU and '06 ECU pinout and see if I see any differences.

 

Which ECU are you trying to start the car with? The '06 unit? If so, put the '02 ECU in and see if it will then start or at least turn over

Bryan

 

I'm using the '06 ECU, I did try to start it once with the '02 ECU and the same exact symptoms. Also, from what I've researched that would never work because of the VIN matching that happens when you turn the key. The VIN in the EWS, BC1, cluster, and ECU all have to match. I thought about attempting to swap all of those components from the '02 into the '06, but then the key barrel would also have to be swapped and I would lose a bunch of features the '06 has that the '02 does not.

 

Ok, I must have misread your post...yes, you must use the ECU, EWS, and the order items from the year of the vehicle. All are VIN specific.....

The EWS may be out of sync if you tried the '02 ECU....

I'm out of ideas unless you want to contact RPM Motorsports and see if they can help you

Bryan

 

Thanks Bryan. I was concerned about attempting to crank the engine with the '02 ECU, but the fact that the symptoms didn't change at all before (with the '06 ECU) and again after (with the '06 ECU) I ruled that out... Or at least knocked it down the list. Reading about the EWS, it seemed as if the engine should still try to crank even with the mismatching VINs. Anything is possible with these Euros I suppose.

 

My '06 would crank with a bad EWS, but would not fire off....no spark, and no fuel injector pulse. Had to send it all off to RPM and they found the problem with the EWS unit

For your no ACC or no crank, make sure your clutch switch is good, and your starter is good....almost sounds like a bad ignition switch....although swapping engines should not cause that issue. Double check all your fuses, under the hood, under the dash, and at the battery if it's an "S" model....don't just "look" at the fuses either....grab a test light and test every one of them..pull them out and use an OHM meter to check them as well....

Bryan

 

Yeah who knows what issues will arise once I get past the no accessories mystery, I may have an EWS issue haha. I did check for power at the starter, my next step is to do exactly that, probe each fuse and then probe "hot spots" such as the alternator and work my way down each component best I can.

I appreciate all the replies so far. I'm hoping to find a smoking gun at the ignition switch or something!

 

It's been a while since I installed another engine in my R52.....but I just was wondering if there was another smaller gauge wire with terminal that went on the large starter terminal along with the main battery cable....if that is left off, missing, or broke...that might explain why nothing happens when you turn the key.....

Just another thought

Bryan

 

Did you ever try to turn the key on, or crank the engine over while the bad engine was still in the 2006? Most of the dash lights and idiot lights will come on even if there’s not an engine in the vehicle.. kinda sounds like the bsd cable was tripped in the 2006.

 

I wonder if you could communicate with the 02' ECU installed. I know you won't be able to start but it maybe worth a try.

 

I will definitely check that, I have a list of things to check this weekend.

The blown engine was out of the car when I bought it, but (unless my memory completely failed) the dash and windows did work when I bought it. I did unplug the ECU to try and replicate the engine not being in, but still the same result of nothing (except radio, locks, dome lights, and even the door lock rolls up the windows with the key still). BSD cable?

I plugged in the '02 ECU to try and get it to crank as if the immobilizer was kicked in, but still nothing happened. It's almost as if the car isn't even making it to the point of trying to communicate with the ECU, which is why I thought it would be an easier issue for me to track down.

I do have a list of things to check this weekend... Ignition switch and barrel, starter wiring, triple check the ground points, probe every fuse and then probe from the alternator back through the wiring diagram.

 

Don't worry about the alternator, it has nothing to do with starting the engine. All it does is charge the battery when engine is running.

Concentrate on the components that are related to engine starting, leave the alternator out of the equation

The ECU doesn't care what year the engine is, nothing on the engine will tell the ECU the engine year or not to crank over

You don't say what transmission, unless I missed it

Bryan

 

My point isn't to check if the alternator is working, that's just where the electrical circuit starts based on the wiring diagrams. The car is obviously getting power from the battery, so I want to see if the power is making it to the alternator and work my way back to pin point at what point it's getting lost. Not saying that's the best way, just my thought process haha.

And yeah I understand the engine had (or shouldn't have) and effect, someone else's comment was the engine wiring harnesses might be slightly different, but I think the problem is before that.

I'm using the '02 transmission (both are manual obviously).

 

Finally solved, and all is normal.

After pulling apart the ignition switch and it looking fine(no corrosion), I started probing the fuses. I noticed the instrument fuses weren't receiving power. I then turned to the engine bay fuse box, and found the FL02-FL05 weren't receiving power. I then pulled the fuse box and looked underneath, everything looked normal at first, but after moving stuff around a bit I noticed one of the plugs wasn't fully seated. The fuse box was never disconnected during the engine swap, and the dash worked when I bought the car, so I didn't suspect this at all. Thank you to everyone for the suggestions, I feel dumb that it was this simple of a fix and silly of an oversight. I'm also relieved that it didn't involve purchasing any parts/reprogramming anything.

Thank you all again!

 

No need to feel dumb that was some good diagnostic you did there ��