Mr. Anderson

Hey all, I removed the BCM and a few other parts that need work. Probably a dumb question, but which PROM is which? I think the AWAC PROM is the EPROM. Also, is the AWAC PROM correct for the car and year? The BCM looks original to the car, and doesn't look like it was ever opened before tonight.

Would a defective BCM be a cause of this, or is it strictly an EEPROM error? Could I check out the PROMS and try to re-seat them to make sure the contact is good between the PROMS and the BCM?

Dang, KDirk beat me and my slow typing, lol.

Here's a write-up on Ronnie's site, the Reatta Owners Journal, that may help: http://www.reattaowner.com/roj/component/content/article/88-accessories/radio/268-1990-91-radio-displays-loc-solution

Hi everyone! Progress is being made on the 1991, but I have a question regarding the odometer. In this car, the odometer has always read ERROR in the odometer section, with all of the other IPC functions working properly. This is a newly replaced IPC as well. I have a code B556 which is current, so I know that the EEPROM in the BCM is bad. The car's last service, which was around 9 years ago, showed the car had about 54,000 miles on it. I was told that the original IPC went out after the battery died in 2005, and the original owner wouldn't drive it hardly at all. Anyway, enough of my rambling, I'll save that for another time where I can share the interesting history of this one reatta. Back on topic, I was wondering what could cause a code B556, and where I would have to send the EEPROM or BCM to fix this issue. I've done a few searches, but couldn't find a direct link to someone who could help, so any input is greatly appreciated!

Mc, I'm pretty sure I have a blown fog light relay, as the fog light switch lights up when pressed. I also checked the suspect relays in the interior relay center and they all checked good. I tested by swapping with a known good one (HI/LO BEAM relay). As for tail lights and brake lights, I was looking in the trunk and found that there was a harness that was unplugged next to the antenna that ran towards the tail light assembly. I plugged it back up and BAM, I had the full 14 bulbs working. I only had two of the three brake lights on each side because the replacement fuse that I put in the #2 slot had blown already, so I have a short somewhere, but have no idea where or how to begin on that one. The turn signals work on the car, but I have so many parking lights that have been burnt out that it is hard to tell, but after I hooked that rear harness back together the turn signal worked like normal. Oh, and as an extra act of caution, I've been disconnecting the battery on the car when it's just been sitting between times that I can work on it. I don't think it'll be a problem with everything hooked back up, but its better to be cautious than not when doing this electrical troubleshooting. Thanks to everyone for their input so far! I really appreciate it!

This evening, while working with the 91, I wanted to get to the bottom of why a lot of my accessories (mirrors, door locks, interior lights, etc.) didn't work. Before I decided on getting new or replacement parts, I wanted to make sure that it wasn't something unbelievably simple, like a blown fuse. Well, it wasn't a blown fuse. There was actually no fuse in the #2 Body (20 amp) slot at all. After rounding up a spare and putting it in, I had nearly everything that wasn't working before functioning properly. Just goes to show you, check the simple stuff before changing out expensive parts. P.S. I think I have a blown relay or two, because I have no fog lights or parking lights or brake lights along the tail light housing. The only working brake light is the third light behind the glass. Any hints as to what relays are bad? Thanks!

Thanks for the comments! Yes, this is a Maui Blue on Blue car. I will be spending more quality time with the car after my first week of college is done with. The main concerns are getting the EEPROM repaired or replaced and getting some good tires put on it. Oh, and I think that the parking lights and brake lights don't light up. Only the top (third) brake light will light. Bulbs? Fuse? Relay? I'm not entirely sure, but it'll be great to start working on this car anyway!

There's a pretty good story to this one.... It all started when I was riding with my girlfriend to go see her house for the first time, which is right down the road from where I live, and as we were passing this small used car/salvage lot on this back road, the rear end of this reatta caught my attention. So, naturally, we had to stop and take a look at the car. It's in decent condition, with the worst thing about it being the paint, but since it was a '91, I was ecstatic and wanted to learn more about it. It turns out that according to the database, this '91, which is VIN 900817, is the only '91 delivered to my hometown new! By now I was freaking out, and over the next few days, I would go over and talk to the old man who ran this small car lot. He told me that the car was sold new in Asheville, NC, and was a one owner car, only having been through a few different dealerships early on. He said that the car hasn't really been on the road in 9 years because of the dash going out on the owner in 2005. The dash was finally replaced this summer. The original owner ended up donating the car to charity, and it changed hands in a few more car lots before winding up about 5 minutes from my girlfriends house. Crazy right? What are the odds of that? So, after talking with him the whole summer and coming by and doing every kind of diagnostic scans I could think of, I finally, as of a few days ago, ended up buying the car! Me and my girlfriend are both really happy about it, and I am excited to begin working on the car. It has around 50,000 miles on it, but that is just an estimate because the EEPROM in the BCM has died. Like I said, the paint is toast on the hood and roof, and the headliner sags, among other issues, but the leather is nearly flawless! It is a really solid car, and the engine runs unbelievably smooth and quiet while the transmission shifts wonderfully. I love the car, and I will probably keep this one for a long time. Oh yeah, here are a few pics. Enjoy! Don't worry, I have the center caps for the rims, lol.

I was 18 when I bought my first reatta, and I bought the one I have now just a few months ago. I'm only 20 now.

Thank you! Yes, this one does have the grey interior. It is in surprisingly good condition for 280,000 miles.

I usually deal in all things Reatta, so this is a new one for me. My girlfriend's family had this Regal that they hadn't driven in a while, and was just sitting in their driveway wasting away. I thought it was a neat little car, but never really paid it any mind. Then one day while I was over at my girlfriend's house, her father sat me down and started talking to me about the car. He bought it new, and drove it as the family car up until his oldest daughter got married (last year). Well, long story short, he offered to give me the car, and being an avid (or crazy) Buick person, I said yes. :D:D:D I got it loaded on the trailer and brought home a few days later. It runs, but it doesn't run well, and it is clearly tired at 280,000 miles. Being that high of mileage, it obviously has it's issues, like battery drainage, fluid leakage, and strange noises coming from under the hood, among others. However, it is a surprisingly good driver, and almost everything works, even the power antenna! I haven't decided on whether I will keep it or sell it, but I think that I will enjoy working on it while I have the time.

I went and got some of the stuff just to try it out, and I have to say that it does indeed make a big improvement in the way these bumpers look. I tried some on the wheels, but it got too dark to see them good, so I will try again in the morning. Here are some pictures of my results.

Beautiful!! Congratulations!!

Not to hijack this thread, but I have the same exact problem in this 1991 coupe I'm working on. The IPC was shot when I got to it, and after I replaced it, the odometer reads ERROR. Everything else works on the IPC. I checked the codes on it and got E026c (QDM Fault), B552h (Battery Disconnect), and B556c (BCM EEPROM Error).

I still can't figure this one out... the security light stays on solid when the doors are open. The door jamb switches test fine, the splices are all repaired, but the door handle switches always stay on "HI" during the BCM tests. What should I test next?

I did mine in a 1990 Nissan 300ZX when I was 17. I would've taken the LeSabre but the speedometer would not act right, (and never would until I replaced it).

Reminds me of a few reattas that I was literally one day away from getting ahold of. I found a '89 black coupe with low miles that came with a parts car for next to nothing, and sold the week before I went down for it. I also found a rare '91 convertible with low miles that was fairly low priced that sold the day before I was scheduled to go down and buy it. Still looking around for a '91, but the '90 that I have now is very wonderful!

Ok, so as far as I know, I got to all of the splices under the passenger seat. All of them were badly corroded, and I replaced them all with new splices and cleaned and stripped the wires when necessary. I'm starting to wonder if I should go under the drivers seat to make sure everything is good... Ronnie, I checked the door jam switches and everything after finishing the repairs, and everything works perfectly except that the door handle test always reads 'HI'. The security light also remains on after I open any door. (I'm pretty sure that the light is supposed to flash when not armed, and remain on for a few seconds before going off when the system is armed.) The system still doesn't arm or anything. Any ideas about that one?

Finally got under the seats and found a mess of corrosion in the wires. I fixed as many splices as I could before it got too dark on me.I checked my work and found that I now have courtesy lights (yay!), but still nothing on the anti-theft. The security light still acts like it did before. Any thoughts on what I could've overlooked?

Today I switched the calipers, and just like that, I have working brakes! Still kicking myself for not setting them right to begin with, but at least all of the new equipment works good! Thanks for everyone's input and help!

rogold: I think the bleeders on the new calipers are on the bottom. I thought they only went that way, but I could have made the mistake of switching them. Ronnie: Here are the answers to your questions: 1. Yes, the light comes on when the key is put to ON. 2. Yes, I can hear the brake pump run. 3. The red light goes out after about 7 (seven) seconds. 4. I have not bled the rears yet, but it is on the to-do list. Barney: Here are some answers for your questions: 1. When the key is put to ON, the pump is running. 2. When the pump turns off, it takes three pumps of the pedal to turn the pump back on. Also, the car does want to pull to the right when the brakes are applied, but I didn't know if that was because of the calipers not gripping the rotors evenly (new rotor on passenger side). I will be replacing the driver-side rotor soon so that there is even wear on both sides. If you are talking about the flex hoses near the calipers, one of those hoses is fairly new. I believe the drivers-side one is newer.

Not that I know of. They were both bone-dry when I worked on them this afternoon, and that was after they had been on for a few days. As far as I know, the fluid level is remaining the same, because it remains at the full line when I check it.

Possibly, but the only reason that I didn't put a new rotor on the other side was because the driver side rotor looked so clean (the passenger one was scorched due to a failed caliper). The other new rotor is sitting on the shelf in the garage just in case though.

I never let the reservoir get below half during the bleeding process, but I was afraid that some air might have gotten in the brakes. I don't know right off the top of my head about the red light, but I'll check here in a bit. Thanks for the link, Mc! Edit: Just checked the red light, and it look seven seconds for the red light to go out.