I put a referbished ecm in it yesterday. An ecm Is the same thing as a pcm right? I drove it a bit. It didn't die at all until this evening. The traction control light turned on, and then it died. Isn't that a symptom of a bad pcm/ecm?

 

People often use the terms interchangeably, but technically a PCM and ECM are slightly different from each other. A PCM (powertrain control module) controls the engine and transmission, whereas an ECM (engine control module) only controls the engine. The 2005 Equinox uses an ECM and separate TCM (transmission control module).

I doubt the ECM was bad to begin with. They rarely fail in the Equinox. The ABS or traction control being disabled is often (but not always) a telltale sign of a power failure. Unfortunately, the way most modern vehicles are configured, this often occurs long before you see a battery light or low voltage warning. You may not even get a low voltage warning because this is controlled by the BCM (Body Control Module). Computers act funny when they don't receive enough power to function properly. I always thought it was funny that engineers overlook this. On older cars, there was no computer involved with the low voltage/battery light and it worked just fine.

I would have your battery and alternator tested if you haven't already done so. Also check the integrity of all main power and ground cables & connections. The 2005-2006 Equinox still used a side terminal battery, so make sure the terminals are clean and tight. It wouldn't hurt to have the computer scanned for codes, but you'll need a more advanced scantool to see codes related to ABS/traction control.

 

Ruley73, thank you for trying to help me. I bought it from a guy that said his code reader wasnt showing any codes. I put the computer in. I seemed like it drove better. Didn't die as much. That guy also put a brand new battery in. I stopped by the parts store and had him scan it. It had a bunch of codes. Egr, emessions, something about traction control, a bunch. I should have wrote them all down. Instead I had him clear them all, since I put that computer in, and see which ones came back on. Then I just went to go somewhere, and it just died on me twice. When it dies and I try to start it, it'll either start and die right away, or it won't start. It takes me a few tries for it to keep running. And the check engine light didn't even turn on. Thank you for trying to help me.

 

And codes about loss of power too I believe. I wish I wouldve wrote them down.

 

Get the codes and post them here.

 

Ok. It just died again twice when I tried to go somewhere. Still no check engine light. Just the no traction control light came on one of the times when it died. All of a sudden after I clear the codes it starts dying like crazy. It won't read any codes unless the check engine light comes on right?