ECS/Tour-Sport mode.

[McCoy]

Originally Posted by JRC

Go to my website, click on the Repair Section,, Engine Area,, Strut Wiring Repair if you haven't done a continuity test on the front actuators (wire loom and cap assembly) Odds are you have a broken wire. The struts rarely go bad. You are probably stuck in Sport mode if it's hard riding.

stuck in sport mode but the car is really bouncy also I go over a bump I feel the bump and the bounces a hell of lot on dips and bigger bumps. it doesn't feel like it should do that.

I mean I expect it to be bumpy but my wife gets car sick everytime she rides in the car.

[JRC]

Well, sport mode is stiffer, Tour is less stiff, but there really shouldn't be a bounce in either mode. A bounce does indicate bad struts. If you press down on each corner of the car and let it come back up, it should return back up and stop. My 91 with original struts rides like a luxury car and feels nothing like a sports car unless I drive agressively and then it switches to sport mode. Then it's stiffer, but not bouncy or harsh. There are no other struts besides OEM that will work with the ECS. They are the only ones with electronic valve porting. To me, they give the best ride if that's what you are interested in. Usually guys only change out if they wish to lower their cars. To me, they are low enough and any less clearance you are looking at towing and possible driveway entry problems.

On the lights on your steering wheel it sounds like you might have a dirty clock wheel in the steering wheel. That's what transfers signals and voltage to the turning wheel where brass tabs ride on a brass flat surface.

[McCoy]

Thanks alot JRC. I just went outside and pushed one end of the car down and it moved up and down for about 7-8 seconds before stopping. I am going to invest in some OEM struts ASAP.

[JRC]

Try each corner and that will tell you which ones are bad. Man, that's hard to believe. Car must have seen some really rough roads to lose all the hydraulic fluid. Sounds like you are riding on just springs. You'll be amazed at the ride difference when they get replaced. These cars actually ride better than any sports car I have ever owned.
I do think in it's current condition you would get raves in the Hispanic neighborhoods though,,,, LOL

[RelentlessVR4]

My original cap and wires looked like the one picture in your repair section JRC. The caps I repalced mine with, do not look like that, and no wires are broken. The only light that flashes for me is the sport mode light, and it's completely intermittent, it sounds like occasionally the rear actuators are trying to work (they sound like servos). I don't think that's my problem. I'm thinking it's one of the other sensors throughout the car maybe? I don't know. The original owner had unplugged the ECS module, the one you diagram'd as being in the trunk on the passenger side. I plugged it back in, found out my ECS still wasn't working (and now had a Sport mode light flashing). I then inspected all the hats, and found the front two both contained broken wires. I replaced both, and the weird thing is, sometimes when I push the ECS button, the sport mode light will come on (from me pushing the button, not randomly) and then will stay on for maybe 5-10 seconds and blink off. Like I said, it's an intermittent connection somewhere, would be my guess. Any ideas?

-Bill

[Joel_CA]

My 92VR4 had problems with both the strut caps AND the ECS ECU capacitors. The Tour/Sport light on the dash of my car would sometimes flash at a steady frequency one minute, then flicker on and off randomly another minute. If you turn the key on while parked in a quiet area such as inside the garage, you can actually hear the ECS actuators going crazy as the Tour/Sport light flickered.
If a properly working ECS ECU detects electrical problem in the ECS struts (such as an open wire), it will flash the Tour/Sport mode at a steady frequency and set the struts in a default Sport mode. Keep in mind that some strut cap wires break inside the wire jacket so that the wire can still look okay from the outside, but be intermittently open & disconnected on the inside. This can produce an intermittant but steady flashing of the Tour/Sport light. It is best to do a continuity test while moving the wires back and forth to eliminate any intermittent problems in the wiring. With my car, fixing the open wires in the ESC strut caps fixed the steadily flashing Tour/Sport light, but the intermittant flickering of the lights didn't stop.
Upon opening my ECS ECU, i noticed that a few of the capacitors were leaking. They are the SAME BRAND AND VALUE Rubicons that are in the MFI ECU. I 1st replaced the 3 visibly leaking capacitors and recheck the ECS operation without luck- same intermittant flashing. I then replaced the remaining 2 capacitors (total of 5) and haven't had a problem with the ECS ever since.

Picture showing the 1st 3 capacitors replaced



Contrary to what the above link says, the ECS wiring breaks due to the constant back and forth bending of the wires as the steering is turned from left to right. The strut shaft rotates with the entire strut as it is steered in different directions. With the strut cap harness being held in a fixed position, over time, the tiny SOLID WIRES (what was Mitsu thinking?) in the ECS strut cap will break due to the constant back and forth flexing. They always break in the same area where most of the back and forth twisting takes place- right near the strut connector.


J

[JRC]

Relentless:
Yes, there are servos in the struts. What they do is move into position orifices of two different sizes. A larger bore orifice for tour mode and a smaller orifice for sport mode. These orifices are where the hydraulic fluid passes through to absorb the shock. Naturally more fluid through would create a softer ride and less fluid passing would be a harsher ride. Joel pointed out the capacitors that he replaced. I am not saying this can't be the problem, just more often than not it is not the problem. He also pointed out what my website said about the fact that sometimes the continuity reading can be intermittent, so continuity has to be taken while moving the wires around to detect possible intermittent shorts.

Joel:
One thing you mentioned is not true. The wires have no movement from turning the front wheels. (Well two,, the wires are stranded, not solid) The strut is permanently fixed inboard of the pivot point of the front wheel and absorbs shock through the A frames of the front suspension. The three bolts that hold the actuator also hold the strut to the body of the car. It you take them out while the car is jacked up, the front A-frame/wheel will drop down along with the 3 studs.
The main reason the front actuators (and I don't know why Mitsu calls them that) (wire looms is better) wires break is from working on the car in the engine bay. It's normal to lean your arm on the caps for support and the wires are directly under the cap and the cap is rubber so it will flex in and apply pressure on the wires till eventually they break. That is why I developed my fix with the PVC cap under the actuator covers for protection. If you notice Mitsubishi has ingenoiusly placed a notice in the rubber on the cap.
"Do not place on hands or parts"
Definition for the Japanese to American translation:
"Don't lean on this cap or place parts on this cap because there are vulnerable wires directly under the cap that can get damaged."
90% of the time, the wires break right next to the plug that goes in the top of the strut and 90% of the time is the direct cause of Tour Sport mode flashing.
Not the rears, because they are protected and not really in a work area. Just the fronts. They aren't cheap either.
Capacitors are a possiblity to look at if that is not the case, but the wires should be a first check. Caps will happen more on the older cars from simply age.

[Joel_CA]

The strut is permanently fixed inboard of the pivot point of the front wheel and absorbs shock through the A frames of the front suspension. The three bolts that hold the actuator also hold the strut to the body of the car. It you take them out while the car is jacked up, the front A-frame/wheel will drop down along with the 3 studs.

I understand what you are trying to say but this IS the given reason why the ESC struts caps fail. Try removing the 3 bolts, removing the ECS strut cover caps (the actuators are actually within the strut assembly)- start the engine, and turn the wheel left and right- you will see that the connector does flex back and forth providing a twisting action just past the connector. If you remember when replacing your front struts or installing lowering springs, the strut shaft is keyed to the upper spring mount. The entire strut rotates on the upper spring mount pivot bearing as you turn the wheel from left to right. As the entire strut rotates when you turn the steering wheel, so does the shock shaft- which in turn, rotates the ECS connector on top of it. If you constantly work a wire back and forth like that, over time it will break. This was explained in great detail at the Mitsu training facility as the reason causing the failure. Mitsu offered a techtalk article showing where to look if the Tour/Flash light is flashing on the 3KGT- but never offered a TSB. The techtalk article also offered a part number of the ECS strut cap- not sure it it was an improved part or not. If i remember correctly, the ECS caps that i repaired had very thin guage solid wires. This being an early model- it could be that the part number listed in the TT article was an improved part(?) Regardless of original or updated parts, even replaced strut caps will fail with enough time. I've replace a set under warranty and replaced the same set when the vehicle was out of warranty a few years later- and this was a car that only saw only dealership service mostly by me.

J

[McCoy]

I have learned alot from this thanks guys.

[JRC]

Joel:
I'll have to check that out further myself. It takes two people to actually peform that test so obviously I have never done it, so I am not doubting you. Since you say Mitsu had a TB on it and you have worked on these cars from what I see professionally I can't dispute that. I don't however believe every TB Mitsu puts out and do know that leaning on the atuators does cause wire breakage more than anything else.
The one thing you mentioned I do have to question about the bolts. They can not be removed because that is what holds the upper part of the strut to the car body along with the actuator. You can remove the bolts to remove the actuator, but they must be replaced to do any sort of test on movement. It also does not make sense to me logically because the strut is not mounted to the rotating assembly but rather the A-frame and the A frame does not rotate. The wheel rotates off the end of the A-frame.
My 91 had stranded wires on the actuator and every one people sent me to repair also had stranded wires. It also wouldn't make sense to place solid wires in a location that Mitsu claims does rotate. Mitsu also does call the wire assembly an Actuator. I guess their reasoning is it does supply the wires to "actuate" the strut. This is evidenced in the parts directory and the packaging itself calling it an "Actuator" The only thing in the strut itself is the servo motor. I have no idea when I will perform this test, so for now I will just agree to disagree till I find out for myself later.
Thanks for your input though. I had no idea Mitsu had a TB on it. I had this problem and solved it and posted results back in 98 when I first got the car and nothing up till now has disputed it as to the cause, so I will remember to check it to see if what you say is true. I do know once I installed the PVC caps to protect the wires from me leaning on it, I have never had the problem again, so if it is caused by a rotating action, it hasn't repeated itself in my case and you would think it would. If that is the major cause the protective caps would have no effect as rotation would still be occuring.