Subaru Select Monitor Parameters for the EJ22

The SSM parameters are noted as being INFO, INPUT, or CONTROL type:
  • INFO parameters are for informational purposes
  • INPUT parameters are measured values detected by the various sensors connected to the ECU. The primary INPUT parameters are Engine Speed, Airflow Signal, and Load (a special case input parameter - calculated by the ECU). The other inputs can be used by the ECU to fine tune the control parameters, or in some cases cause the ECU to run in special modes.
  • CONTROL parameters are engine control values. These are found by the ECU via calculation or lookup tables in the ECU's ROM. The primary CONTROL parameters are fuel Injector pulse width and Ignition timing.
NOTES ON VALUES:
  • The typical value ranges given are for warm idle (except where noted) for a 1990-1994 EJ22, as specified by the 1992 Subaru Service Manual.
  • For parameter values under driving conditions, for EJ22 engines transplanted into Volkswagen Vanagon/Westfalias, see here.

Continuous Parameters

PARAMETER TYPE UNITS RANGE @ WARM IDLE EXPLANATION
ROM ID INFO - - the revision number of the ROM chip inside the ECU
  • the locations in the ECU's memory of the monitored values are different for each different ROM; go here to see why this matters
  • System voltage INFO V 13-14 the voltage as measured at the ECU
  • this can be different than the voltage measured at the battery, depending upon the state of the grounding straps, connections, and wires between the battery and the ECU
  • Vehicle speed INPUT kph - speed of the vehicle as measured by the VSS
  • this can be different than the speed shown on the speedometer, which uses a mechanical device to measure speed
  • this actually has little effect on the engine control parameters
  • Engine speed INPUT rev/min - RPM as measured by the cam and crank angle sensors
  • this is one of the primary values used as input parameters in the internal lookup tables kept in the ECU's ROM
  • this is measured differently from the RPM shown on the tachometer
  • Coolant temperature INPUT deg C 80-95 temperature of coolant in the heads
  • the temperature indicated by the gauge on the dashboard is measured from a completely different sensor
  • incomplete bleeding of the system can cause the two sensors to read wildly different - one from coolant and the other from trapped air
  • coolant temp is used by the ECU to decide when to override 'normal' operation in favor of a mode which works more effectively when the engine is cold
  • Ignition timing CONTROL deg BTDC 12-28 (non-turbo)
    9-21 (turbo)
    [*1]
    degrees BTDC that the spark is fired
  • this is one of the primary engine control parameters (outputs of the ECU)
    ([*1]: warm idle, gear in neutral)
  • Airflow signal INPUT V 0.8-1.2 amount of air entering the engine
  • specifically, the EJ22 uses a hot-wire MAF which measures the mass of the air entering the engine in a certain time
  • this varies with barometric pressure and temperature (changes in pressure and temperature cause more or less dense air, and thus a greater or lesser mass of air, to enter each piston stroke)
  • Load INPUT air mass/rev 15-20 (non-turbo)
    30-50 (turbo)
    how hard the engine is working - mass of air consumed per engine revolution
  • this is one of the primary values used as input parameters in the internal lookup tables kept in the ECU's ROM
  • this is a special type of input parameter; it is calculated by the ECU rather than read from a sensor
  • this is calculated from the MAF sensor (mass/time) and the RPM cam/crank sensor (rev/time):
    mass/time / rev/time = mass/rev
  • if load value is out of range, the MAF is usually at fault; can also potentially be the RPM sensors (cam/crank)
  • Throttle position signal INPUT V 4.7 closed
    1.6 open
    how far the throttle is open
  • this is measured as the voltage drop across a potentiometer (variable resistor) which changes resistance as the throttle body opens
  • this variable throttle signal is used in conjunction with a binary signal from a switch on the throttle body which opens/closes just at the very closed (throttle off) end of gas pedal travel (see "Idle switch")
  • the ECU uses this partially to determine how hard the driver is attempting to push the engine (regardless of the current load)
  • Zeroed throttle position ? ? ? ?
  • only on 90-91 manual and 91-94 turbo models
  • Injector pulse width CONTROL ms 3.0-3.7 (non-turbo)
    2.0-3.5 (turbo)
    time in msec that each fuel injector stays open
  • the amount of fuel injected into the cylinder
  • this is one of the primary engine control parameters (outputs of the ECU)
  • note that this is a very rough reading on 90-91 models; later ECUs had much finer granularity
  • IAC valve duty cycle CONTROL % duty cycle 25-40 (non-turbo)
    30-45 (turbo)
    [*2]
    how much air is allowed to bypass the throttle for idling purposes
  • the IAC valve is a solenoid valve that is continuously opened and closed at a variable rate to effectively vary the amount of air that is allowed through
  • the duty cycle is measured as a percent of the time that the solenoid is open
  • this is non-zero even when not idling; the amount of air the IAC allows into the engine becomes insignificant compared to the air consumed by the engine via the open throttle
    ([*2]: warm idle, A/C off, radiator fan off, battery>13V, sea level)
  • Oxygen sensor signal INPUT V 0-1 whether exhaust gasses indicate that the fuel/air mixture is currently burning lean or rich
  • lower values (towards 0) indicate a lean mixture, higher (towards 1) indicate rich
  • this has a very high sampling rate; as the fuel/air mixture is changed to keep this centered, this varies rapidly between near 0 to near 1
  • Fuel trim CONTROL % (?) -1.6 to 1.6 +/- incremental change added to the injector pulse width to compensate for the lean/rich condition shown by oxygen sensor
  • this is the incremental fuel added/subtracted to the main fuel/air mixture to keep the ratio correct
  • if OXS shows lean, the fuel trim correction is positive (+)
  • the fuel trim is changed rapidly to keep the OXS signal centered
  • Timing correction CONTROL deg -10 to 10 +/- the degrees of timing advance added to timing to correct for knock
  • this is changed to non-zero when pinging is detected by the knock sensor
  • this is used to temporarily advance (often only for several seconds) the timing further than where it would normally be set, to counteract pinging
  • Boost control duty cycle ? ? ? ?
  • turbo models only
  • Barometric pressure INPUT mm Hg - atmospheric pressure as measured from a sensor inside the ECU
     
    Boost/vacuum ? ? ? ?
  • turbo models only
  • PARAMETER TYPE UNITS RANGE @ WARM IDLE EXPLANATION

    Binary Parameters

    PARAMETER TYPE EXPLANATION
    Ignition switch INFO ON if ignition key switch is on
    A/T mode ? ON if ECU thinks it is running an engine with an automatic transmission attached
  • some engine sensors vary between MT and AT models
  • Test mode INFO ON when the EJ22s green 'test mode' connectors are connected
  • in this mode, the ECU flashes the 'check engine' light to indicate any fault codes that are currently being monitored
  • Read memory mode INFO ON when the EJ22s black fault code connectors are connected
  • in this mode, the ECU flashes the 'check engine' light to indicate any fault codes that are stored in memory
  • Neutral switch INPUT ON if transmission is in neutral
  • in most transplanted EJ22s, the original switch is missing and can be mocked up to avoid the neutral switch trouble code
  • ECU needs to detect an occasional transition from OFF to ON to avoid throwing the associated trouble code
  • Park switch INPUT ON if automatic transmission is in park
  • in most transplanted EJ22s, the original switch is missing and can be mocked up to avoid the park switch trouble code
  • ECU needs to detect an occasional transition from OFF to ON to avoid throwing the associated trouble code
  • California mode ? ON if ECU delivered in a california emissions equipped auto
    Idle switch INPUT ON if throttle is at completely closed end of travel
  • note this binary (ON/OFF) input is different than the continuously variable throttle position signal
  • indicates to the ECU that the gas pedal is fully released, indicating full deceleration or idle (rather than merely 'slowing down')
  • Air conditioning switch INFO ON when air conditioning system is switched on (but not necessarily active)
    Air conditioning relay active INPUT ON when the air conditioning compressor clutch is currently engaged
  • the ECU adjusts for the increased load on the engine from the A/C
  • Radiator fan relay active ? ON when the radiator fan is active (on high speed?)
    Fuel pump relay active ? ON when the fuel pump is activated
    Canister purge valve active ? ON when the canister purge valve is activated
    Pinging detected INPUT ON when the knock sensor detects pinging in the engine
  • this detection is done by a piezoelectric sensor attached to the engine block, which detects the higher frequencies of vibrations sent out when the engine knocks
  • the ECU changes the Timing Correction in response to ping detection
  • may stay ON for a short duration after pinging stops
  • Pressure exchange ? ?
  • turbo models only
  • PARAMETER TYPE EXPLANATION
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