FORScan forum

Greetings,

I have a 2006 Ford Explorer 4.0L that is having ignition coil issues. I am almost sure its the PCM that may be damaged. Will the PATS initialization function in Forscan allow a donor PCM start the car?

In addition, if the PCM were to be bad and I have it repaired will it start up even though another PCM, in this case the donor has had the keys initialized to work with this donor PCM? This is assuming the PATS initialization function will allow a donor PCM to start the vehicle


When this issue started, the car started to stall and rhe CEL would flash on and off. I read the code and it was P0300 and referenced codes P0303/P0304

A new Motorcraft coil was installed and when taken for a test drive immediately threw a P0352 and runs horribly with no power and at very low rpms starts stalling.

Appreciate any input as i am stuck with these doubts and my goal is to have a spare PCM to test the car and confirm 100% its the PCM or not.

Regards,

Mark

Did you reinstall the old coil pack and see if the first set of codes return? 'Cause you went from cylinder 3&4 misfire issue to coil circuit fault. Something bugs me about that. I don't know off hand if cyl 3&4 on a 4.0 are companion cylinders (share one coil).


Compression is good? No funky noises from the timing chain areas?

Based on my experience with an 07 4.0 mustang:

You should be able to program PATS to the other PCM. You will have a VIN mismatch for sure, and I don't know what that does to starting the car. Why not just fix the VIN and use the spare PCM if you have a bad PCM. PCM failure is somewhat rare.

If you end up sending the PCM out for repair, as long as they don't flash/erase it, you should be able to reinstall it and it should remember the keys.

That's all I got

Xx

Juice wrote: Fri Dec 11, 2020 9:38 pm Did you reinstall the old coil pack and see if the first set of codes return? 'Cause you went from cylinder 3&4 misfire issue to coil circuit fault. Something bugs me about that. I don't know off hand if cyl 3&4 on a 4.0 are companion cylinders (share one coil).


Compression is good? No funky noises from the timing chain areas?

Based on my experience with an 07 4.0 mustang:

You should be able to program PATS to the other PCM. You will have a VIN mismatch for sure, and I don't know what that does to starting the car. Why not just fix the VIN and use the spare PCM if you have a bad PCM. PCM failure is somewhat rare.

If you end up sending the PCM out for repair, as long as they don't flash/erase it, you should be able to reinstall it and it should remember the keys.

That's all I got

Hi Juice,

Will Forscan allow me to update the VIN on the donor PCM? If Forscan can do this, i will go with a donor and done

Engine sounded normal while driving and no unusual noises were present.

I found 3 of the 4 wires from the ignition coil connector bare with no plastic covering. So i taped up properly the wiring, installed the Motorcraft coil and took it for a ride. Not more than 3 minutes passed of a perfectly running vehicle and the musfires and sluggishness returned. Did not throw any codes

I got back home, replaced the motorcraft coil with the chinese replacement, started it up and had a nasty misfire and shut off by itself. I checked codes as the CEL was on and got a P0352/P1000. Engine cranks but will not start.

Has the PCM died?

Mark

Go to google or youtube and search for ford ignition coil drivers pcm . You'll see plenty of hits that describe coil and pcm failure.
If the gaps on the spark plugs open up too wide, the coils can fail.
If a coil fails, it can cause the coil driver chip inside the pcm to fail. It could be stuck on all the time.
If you replace the coil, and the driver chip is stuck on, the new coil can also heat up and fail.
You can find Ford TSBs with pictures of coils that are baked and disfigured from being stuck on.
According to the TSBs, the only way to fix this permanently is to replace the failed pcm, coils, and plugs all at once.

I don't know the particulars of programming PATS and VIN for your vehicle.
There are services on ebay that will repair/replace your pcm so your VIN will be correct and your keys will still work.

dcheddar wrote: Sat Dec 12, 2020 3:20 am Go to google or youtube and search for ford ignition coil drivers pcm . You'll see plenty of hits that describe coil and pcm failure.
If the gaps on the spark plugs open up too wide, the coils can fail.
If a coil fails, it can cause the coil driver chip inside the pcm to fail. It could be stuck on all the time.
If you replace the coil, and the driver chip is stuck on, the new coil can also heat up and fail.
You can find Ford TSBs with pictures of coils that are baked and disfigured from being stuck on.
According to the TSBs, the only way to fix this permanently is to replace the failed pcm, coils, and plugs all at once.

I don't know the particulars of programming PATS and VIN for your vehicle.
There are services on ebay that will repair/replace your pcm so your VIN will be correct and your keys will still work.

Yes i have read this is a very common issue with these vehicles.

At this time, the vehicle will no longer start and there is no communication ftom the PCM to any of the modules in the car

If i go with a donor PCM, i only have 1 key that starts the car. Do i need a second key that starts the car to initialize PATS onto the donor PCM or can i use a new, blank genuine Ford keyto use as the second key?

The Ford PATS Job Aid says a 2006 Explorer needs a minimum of 2 keys, so I think you will need to get a blank key cut like your existing key and have it ready to initialize if you swap PCMs and initialize PATS.

https://www.motorcraftservice.com/pdf/pats_job_aid.pdf

That still doesn't answer your question if Forscan can initialize PATS on your Explorer. I hope someone who has done it will chime in.

dcheddar wrote: Sun Dec 13, 2020 5:11 am The Ford PATS Job Aid says a 2006 Explorer needs a minimum of 2 keys, so I think you will need to get a blank key cut like your existing key and have it ready to initialize if you swap PCMs and initialize PATS.

https://www.motorcraftservice.com/pdf/pats_job_aid.pdf

That still doesn't answer your question if Forscan can initialize PATS on your Explorer. I hope someone who has done it will chime in.

Thank you for the response. My wife actually found the 2nd key so we are good there. I am now looking for a used replacement PCM and get some insight/confirmation if Forscan can initialize PATS on my 2006 Explorer

Regards

Mark

When buying a used pcm from a place like ebay, look for an exact match of the part number and "catchcode", which is the four-digit code that identifies which program is inside the pcm. For example, the part number might be something like 6L2A-12A650-AZA and the catchcode might be TUT0.
If you buy an exact match for your part number and catchcode, the program will be correct for your Explorer.
You will only have to worry about learning your existing keys to PATS and programming the VIN.
Those sites on ebay that will program your VIN and even transfer the PATS key info from your old pcm start to look like a pretty good deal.

See this link for a pcm database: http://www.obdtester.com/ford-ecu-updat ... l_2v/2006/

dcheddar wrote: Sun Dec 13, 2020 4:36 pm When buying a used pcm from a place like ebay, look for an exact match of the part number and "catchcode", which is the four-digit code that identifies which program is inside the pcm. For example, the part number might be something like 6L2A-12A650-AZA and the catchcode might be TUT0.
If you buy an exact match for your part number and catchcode, the program will be correct for your Explorer.
You will only have to worry about learning your existing keys to PATS and programming the VIN.
Those sites on ebay that will program your VIN and even transfer the PATS key info from your old pcm start to look like a pretty good deal.

See this link for a pcm database: http://www.obdtester.com/ford-ecu-updat ... l_2v/2006/

So would VIN correction be handled through IDS by using manual configuration? What i mean by manual configuration is to run IDS without the key inserted on the ignition and having IDS do repeated tries to read the PCM until it allows you to enter vehicle specific details? So once that is done, use Forscan PATS initialization to get the keys to start up the vehicle?

I have had experience flashing and coding/programming my BMW but Ford is a new endeavor. Just trying to ensure i get all proper steps done to a successful completion of this project to be able to sell it

Appreciate all input received so far

Regards,

Mark