iym

Hey there...

For about the last 2 weeks or so, every time I start the truck, all the
gages (gauges) peg all the way to their max (RPM, Spedo Gas, oil,
everything!) and stay there for about 2-3 seconds then drop back to normal.
Anybody seen anything like this before? The only thing I noticed recently
is that the truck seems to crank a little slower, like the battery is going.
Could a dying battery have that kind of effect on the instruments?

Scott

lawrence

Definitely could be a dying battery. When doing work that requires a battery
disconnect you will see exactly what you see when you reconnect the battery and
start the vehicle for the first time. Since the computer has lost power and it
becomes "stupid" it will do its "relearning" then. What happens if you shut off
the truck, count to ten, and restart the truck? If everything is ok when you try
that then it could mean the battery is surely at fault since it hasn't lost
enough power to affect things in a very short period of time. If you still get
the same problem though then definitely get the battery checked. A friend had a
very similar problem and his fault was his ground cable off the battery so check
that closely too. My friend's ground cable had corroded through so it wasn't
attached to anything. It would barely brush against the block though so he was
able to start the truck now and then and then his alternator would be providing
enough juice to keep him going but because when he shut off the truck the cable
wasn't always touching then the computer would go "stupid" and do what you see
on yours.

Cheers,
Lawrence

iym

Thanks,

I'll try the count to 10 thing when I get home, but I'm starting to be sure
it's the battery- It's just weird that the computer would get stupid since
other memory items such as the time on the radio don't get lost. The
starting isn't "that" slow, but I can hear a difference from what I'm used
to. I probably need to change the battery anyway as it's the original and
is past the normal life span. Damn factory battery! Only 7 years out of
it??

Thanks,

Scott


cable

see

iym

Update: Installed a new battery last night - Problems fixed!!

Now, is it my imagination or by installing a new battery you get extra
power/more performance out of the Truck?? The old battery wasn't dead - It
had plenty to turn the truck over, but I noticed it sounded a little slower
(and the problem with the dash). The battery still had a strong green light
(but I never have trusted those indicators anyway). I'm mentioning this
because as it wasn't completely shot, so the alternator wasn't doing all the
work, so it should have had enough juice to run in the system without a
hic-up. But when I put the new battery in, it felt like the performance
increased by around 25%....Maybe I just don't know enough about the modern
electrical systems in today's heavily dependant computerized vehicles...The
old days were a little more straight forward....Oh well, anyway - damn thing
is fixed. Thanks Lawrence for the second opinion....

pkurtz2

The reason your truck feels like it has 25% more power is because it doesnt
have to relearn its power curve every time you start it. With a good batter
providing all the power the PCM needs to hold all the settings in memory,
then the truck can just pick up right where it was before. With a bad
battery you might have to drive up to 20miles for the truck to relearn the
power curve it was operating on. Things that affect this are things like:
air filter (new?), oil condition (new?), spark plug condition (new?). The
computer has factory set limits, but VERY few cars operate on those
parameters more than 20 miles off the dealer lot.. LOL

matt macchiarolo

The ECM learned settings got wiped every night and your performance probably
suffered as it started from scratch and relearned.

lawrence

Definitely could be a dying battery. When doing work that requires a battery
disconnect you will see exactly what you see when you reconnect the battery and
start the vehicle for the first time. Since the computer has lost power and it
becomes "stupid" it will do its "relearning" then. What happens if you shut off
the truck, count to ten, and restart the truck? If everything is ok when you try
that then it could mean the battery is surely at fault since it hasn't lost
enough power to affect things in a very short period of time. If you still get
the same problem though then definitely get the battery checked. A friend had a
very similar problem and his fault was his ground cable off the battery so check
that closely too. My friend's ground cable had corroded through so it wasn't
attached to anything. It would barely brush against the block though so he was
able to start the truck now and then and then his alternator would be providing
enough juice to keep him going but because when he shut off the truck the cable
wasn't always touching then the computer would go "stupid" and do what you see
on yours.

Cheers,
Lawrence

iym

Thanks,

I'll try the count to 10 thing when I get home, but I'm starting to be sure
it's the battery- It's just weird that the computer would get stupid since
other memory items such as the time on the radio don't get lost. The
starting isn't "that" slow, but I can hear a difference from what I'm used
to. I probably need to change the battery anyway as it's the original and
is past the normal life span. Damn factory battery! Only 7 years out of
it??

Thanks,

Scott


cable

see

iym

Update: Installed a new battery last night - Problems fixed!!

Now, is it my imagination or by installing a new battery you get extra
power/more performance out of the Truck?? The old battery wasn't dead - It
had plenty to turn the truck over, but I noticed it sounded a little slower
(and the problem with the dash). The battery still had a strong green light
(but I never have trusted those indicators anyway). I'm mentioning this
because as it wasn't completely shot, so the alternator wasn't doing all the
work, so it should have had enough juice to run in the system without a
hic-up. But when I put the new battery in, it felt like the performance
increased by around 25%....Maybe I just don't know enough about the modern
electrical systems in today's heavily dependant computerized vehicles...The
old days were a little more straight forward....Oh well, anyway - damn thing
is fixed. Thanks Lawrence for the second opinion....

pkurtz2

The reason your truck feels like it has 25% more power is because it doesnt
have to relearn its power curve every time you start it. With a good batter
providing all the power the PCM needs to hold all the settings in memory,
then the truck can just pick up right where it was before. With a bad
battery you might have to drive up to 20miles for the truck to relearn the
power curve it was operating on. Things that affect this are things like:
air filter (new?), oil condition (new?), spark plug condition (new?). The
computer has factory set limits, but VERY few cars operate on those
parameters more than 20 miles off the dealer lot.. LOL