Dan Martinic

Well, if my results next week prove true, I will have learned my lesson here.

I make every effort to use OE parts.. but in this case, I figured since the actual 944/951 fit OE sensors are north of $200 EACH up here, I had two alternatives: OE Bosch with longer leads or FAE correct fit--both similar cost ($60 US each or about $75 CAN). I thought since I didn't find evidence to the contrary (I had yet to read Perry's adventure), FAE must be decent; it's a magnetic sensor--simple, no moving parts; better to have correct fit; I might as well get the FAEs.

Soon, I will know if this really is a colossal error or not. FYI I had one well-known supplier insist that any difference between the two brands is "Hogwash"

KVDR

I just bought a set of FAE ones as well, and will install this month. I'll update if there's any issues.

Dan Martinic

Please do! Before you install them, perform the following: put your multimeter on continuity and check if you get a beep probing the metal bottom half and each of the pins (ie. test each pin separately).

Apparently, there should NOT be any continuity between any of the pins and the outside metal part. The Bosch appear not to have continuity. One of my FAE ones does (not both), and by the end of next week, I should know if this is causing my no-start issue.

The test (which this FAE fails on the first pin):

KVDR

I tested one FAE sensor - no continuity on all three pins to the sensor housing.

The other FAE has flashes of continuity on two of the pins. Not sure what this means.

odonnell

To close the loop on this since I started this thread 4 years ago, I never resolved the issue. Resoldered the DME, all new OEM quality sensors, verified all the signals, etc. I installed a Megasquirt into the car in 2015 and built a new harness for it. No more DME or DME relay, no more reference sensors or stock ignition/injector parts. I've been enjoying flawless reliability for 3 years now.

Dan Martinic

You should really check out this thread, the story of Perry's almost year-long journey into solving his no-start. He finally fixed it by replacing his new FAEs with Bosch. His idea is that since both of his FAEs showed this continuity and the Bosch do not, once connected to the DME, the DME grounds the signal resulting in no-start:

https://rennlist.com/forums/924-931-...lutch-job.html

You can start at post #207, page 14.

I, too, have a no-start, and one of my FAEs exhibits the same issue. When my Bosch arrive this week, I'll know if that's it.

Do report what happens when you install the FAEs, especially the one with continuity!

Dan Martinic

Very interesting indeed......!

elgy

I have been running FAE sensors for four years now with no problems.

Dan Martinic

I would imagine, regarding this continuity with the metal outer shield, since some of us are getting inconsistent sensors, it's possible that you got a pair that don't have the issue?

neunfünfeins

Seems probable.
While inferior design and materials is always a contributing factor, a lot of the real problem with crappy knock-off components comes down to poor-to-nonexistent quality control.
It's a crap shoot.

KVDR

If it's a 50% failure rate for new FAE sensors, it's still cost effective to buy a couple extra to maybe have two good ones in total.

Or I guess, just return the bad ones.

I suspect one of my installed Bosch sensors is failing, so I will try both of the new FAE ones and see if there's a difference.

Dan Martinic

Tonight, I received and installed the Bosch sensors. Neither Bosch sensor shows any continuity issue. When cranking, the LED on my coil now lights.

For a full comparison, see tonight's posts on my thread "DME Destroyed?"

Tomorrow, I will further investigate why the noid light isn't lighting (at fuel injector) then see if the car starts. But, regarding the FAE sensors, this is already a big revelation.

EDIT: car has started. FAE continuity issue confirmed. See Post #212 in thread "DME Destroyed?".

tempest411

Where is that thread located? I didn't see it on this sub-forum.

Dan Martinic

catamount

This thread brings up a secondary conversation about sensors. Go original or go with the BMW ones with the longer leads and are cheaper? Personally, I found having the longer leads made the job just a bit easier when it came time to reconnect everything.