# Digifant II FAQ and Help write up



## pewpewlasers (Jun 12, 2009)

I wrote this because ive seen alot of problems with people digi cars so i hope this can shed some light on ppls problems, i typed this pretty quick so if i forgot something dont hesitate to chime in
My Digifant car does Weird stuffs

1. Engine
1a. Starting
1b. Idle
1c. Cooling system
1d. Maintenence

1a.
Starting Troubleshooting
- Car Cranks slowly or fails to start
- Before you make the call that your starter is bad check the following
a. Alot of Problems with digi cars is grounding issues, alot of the wiring they used was not insulated properly or ran to really dumb and inconvienent places.
First check your Main engine ground, Its goes from your Negative Terminal, to the Battery Tray, then to the bell housing on your transmission.
















Factory this wire is exposed and ive seen it turn green and still work, but even so it should be replaced if it is green and cruddy, youll notice many things Improve by doing this i promise.
If you do need to replace this you can get a Negative battery strap kit at Wal mart for abotu 7 dollars, should cover your needs, or make one with some 3 gauge wire/new battery terminal/ 2 copper O connector rings.

b. The Obvious to most
- Ignition Control Unit is bad
Check for spark by unplugging a plug wire and holding close to some metal while a friend cranks your car, or get a test light, be careful while doing this, if no spark Test your ICU by
Use a volt meter on connections 2(-) and 4(+) with the key on, it should have batter voltage. If no voltage test for Continuty on Terminal 4 to Terminal 15 on the Coil, and the Ground from Terminal 2 to the main ground strap on the Valve cover ( more on this later)

- Check that the 13 MM nut on your starter that your Battery Cable is not, rusty and is tight, if its looks a bit in question simply take the nut off and sand it down clean if possible, if not get a new 13 mm nut and apply.
- The connect at Terminal 50 from the Ignition Coil, should be a single spade connecter right next to the 13mm nut, make sure its on tight and free or corrosion inside the connector, make sure it is properly attached to the coil at terminal 50 as well
- Check the Relay in a CE2 box it should be in spot 14 with a 30 amp fuse above it ( unless its a jetta), if you own a Golf make sure that the DRIVER SEAT BELT IS ATTACHED THEY HAVE A LOCK OUT AND WILL NOT CRANK WITHOUT IT

c. It is possible your ignition switch is going bad, theyre fairly inexpensive and can be kind of a pain to change, often times ive seen them just not properly tightened in the mounting point in the car, or the were stripped out, This is located in the car, under the steering wheel cover, behind where you put your key to start it, Some tell tale signs that your Switch is acting up after having changed your ground is youll notice .
A. Your stereo may shut off while driving
B. Your musical relay when you open your door works intermitently
If this is the case you may need a new ignition switch
P/N- 6N0905956- about 30 bucks new

- My Car starts, but runs horrible when Cold, or will not Idle till warm

- Faulty Coolant Temp Sensor ( blue 2 pin plug on coolant next in front of Head)
P/N- 025 906 041 A
make sure when replacing this you dig in the to remove the old o ring often times they dont come out with the old sensor
Runs around 5 bucks or so, make sure u get the right one
- Grounds
Before replacing anything there are 2 ground on a ground plate on the right hand side of the Valve cover, one is a battery strap and one is a smaller wire, one is the main ecu ground one is the ISV ground to the ECU, which comes down to the hall sender etc.
I usually always remove this ground plate, and sand down a good spot on the metal runners on the valve cover and ground them directly to there, just to be sure. However Check the smaller wire for corrosion, slowly cut back in the harness if its Green, keep going until this wire no longer appears green, then either clean it with some Vinager and wire brush or cut it and replace it, make sure to re wrap this wire well with electrical tape.
- BUT THAT SMALL WIRE IS GREEN ALL THE WAY INTO THE ECU?!! WTF. There is a high possiblity if it has gotten that far that your ecu is fried and needs replaced, ive seen many digi cars that will still run with a half- beat ECU








- So i changed those grounds and fixed them and it still doesnt work?!
In order for the Coolant temp sensor to work properly 2 things must be working, The ISV, and your O2 sensor
- ISV P/N - 037906457C
- O2 SENSOR (	3 wire) - 030906265
The ISV should have a light electrical buzz if working.
- I REPLACED ALL THIS CRAP AND MY CAR STILL IDLES POORLY OR WONT RUN WITH THE COOLANT TEMP PLUGGED IN
Alright this can get a little involved, first if YOU HAVE EVER UNPLUGGED THE COOLANT TEMP SENSOR WHILE THE CAR IS RUNNING YOU MUST CLEAR THE ERROR CODE
unplugging the CTS( coolant temp sensor) while the car is running sets a fault code in the ecu and must be cleared before it will work properly.
To clear it i usually disconnect both battery terminals and connect a jumper wire to them for about 10 minutes.
After doing that keep the coolant temp unplugged, start the car, wait untill it has gone through 1 full warm up cycle ( Fan should kick on at least once)
NOTE- IN MOST CASES THIS ISNT 100% NEEDED BUT IVE HAD TO DO IT
YOU WILL NEED A TIMING GUN AND 13MM WRENCH
Setting the timing on a Digifant engine is slightly different than other systems. Where most cars have the timing set with the engine at idle, Digifant timing is accomplished with the engine turning between 2000 and 2500 rpm,
Set Your timing gun 6+/- degrees before TDC, Rev the engine to 3000RPM's about 3-4 times, this is to clear the hot start idle speed in the ECU. Aim the timing light down the Hole in the bell housing, where the green plug is in your tranny, youll need to remove that first, aim the timing gun here while a friend holds the car at about 2200 RPM, if the light shows 6 degrees off from the TDC mark your in good shape if not, let the car return to idle, Loosen the 13 MM nut on the distributor and adjust it left or right, tighten and check again.








- Once this is set, turn the idle bypass screw on the Throttle body until the idle is about 950 rpms, make sure u rev the engine after each adjustment.
Shut the engine off plug the coolant temp sensor back in and start the car back up, you should have an idle of about 850 or 900
done-

I have a whole deal with the rad fan not working ill post that a little later tired of typing
Hope this helps some ppl :/


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