DTC - P068A - Any thoughts?

[5280tunage]

Hey All,

So here I am again, with my quarterly or monthly issue. A couple days ago, while driving I experienced the lovely P0430, which I've had a few times over the last couple years. Usually, I just plug in either my tuner or my code reader and read the codes, then clear them and keep going with no issues. Once I stopped at a store, I cleared the DTC's and everything seemed to go fine. Got home and everything seemed to go well.

The next morning, I went to do remote start and boom, no remote start. The remote would flash red 3 times. Tried all the standard methods, got in the car and double checked that the remote start system was enabled, and still no remote start. Then I noticed the check engine light again. Pulled codes via tuner and this time I got a new one. P068A (ECM/PCM Power Relay De-Energized Performance – Too Early). Cleared that, restarted car just fine, no check engine light. Tried to remote start again, two really faint clicks from the engine bay and no remote start. Checked, the code is back.

Any one experience something similar? At this point, I don't know what the heck to do. Right now I'm trying to unplug the battery for 20 minutes, as I read on a raptor forum for this code, but some folks are saying this could be a sign of a bad PCM. Which scares the heck out of me, we have a long trip in two where I've spent a ton of money on renting a camper, etc. Would be just my luck with this truck for it to cause me issues right before this trip. Everyone think it would be a good idea to at least restore my stock tune just in case this PCM is crapping out.

Oh, and my batter is less than 6 months old, no issues with auto/start/stop, or accessories so I don't think it's that.
Thoughts?

 

[5280tunage]

Quick update. So after reconnecting the battery, P068A seems to be gone. However, surprisingly, once I connected my obd2 scanner, P0430 still seemed to be in persistent memory. I used the scanner to erase the persistent code and restarted the vehicle. Remote start now seems to be working again.

I'm surprised that this time, the P0430 wasn't really deleted by the tuner. Would love some advice here, should I still go ahead and flash stock back at this point?

 

[duneslider]

P0430 is an exhaust gas issue. I had that on and off on my jeep and eventually broke down and replaced the o2 sensor and the code went away. I wonder if you have a bad sensor or connection due to the exhaust changes you have made. I doubt the "program" has caused this. In my case eventually the sensor totally failed and I couldn't clear the code, it became persistent.

I know you say the battery is "new" but have you actually tested the battery? I have one of the electronic battery testers and find it better than the load testers. Anyway, it is still possible the battery is bad, or you have a parasitic loss and something is draining the battery after sitting longer. I still think that would be the first thing I would look into, is battery and checking battery after it has sat overnight. Next would be checking for loose connections. I doubt the pcm/ecm is bad but I think there is a relay associated with those that could be acting up but I would open up the fuse box and give everything a little jiggle to make sure connections are all good. I think it would most likely be a questionable connection someplace. I sort of doubt the relay is bad though.

 

[LokiWolf]

I don't think it is the PCM. P068A can also be caused by a Relay/Fuse issue. It can also be caused by a ground/wiring issue. Like a short circuit or rubbed bare wire. I would check all connections, and visibly inspect the wiring at/around the PCM and going to it.

 

[5280tunage]

I'm curious if the issue is actually being caused by the bullydog tuner. Thinking about the process, I used it twice to try and clear the DTC's and immediately after each I found the P068A code, but that code didn't show up after using the innova scanner and deleted codes. I'm nervous to try it again, i don't actually want to screw anything up but its possible something in the tuner could be causing this code when it resets the bus after clearing codes. just a thought.

at this point, after the battery disconnect, everything has been working fine for about 24 hours. I am buying a relay just in case, I pulled the existing one to check it. Funny thing, my local ford parts counter couldn't determine what relay to sell for the PCM. the parts tools showed two possible relays, one 4-pin and one 5-pin. For those looking for the same thing, mine was a 4-pin. Also stupid annoying, my manual doesn't show what relay is for the PCM, I found a different diagram online. Annoying. It's also nuts to me that this relay is $25+ when I used to buy 100qty packs of Bosch relays for $70...

 

[LokiWolf]

Your theory is sound. Keep us updated as to how it goes!