1993 s10 2.5L the aldl not responding and code reader says module not responding

the lamp means 2 things CEL (SES/MIL)
it means there is a serious problem.
it means get car service
if frisky? it means DIY scan the pCM and check all fuses.
SES lamp is what some makers of cars call the CEL
it means exactly the same thing.
lost the glove box free users guide it tells you all this.
not many 89 cars on the road now, most are dead
and repairs exceed its value (won't stop me but, most end here)

89 Chevy Cheyenne C1500 pickup truck,.
no engine told. generation 4 truck.
4 engines then, 4.3v6,5.0v8,5.7v8 , 6.2Ldiesel-v8

finding 1989 manuals is hard, only paper manuals then no PDF or others doing horrible scans later,
the problem is this cars ECU/ECM/PCM is chevy OBD1 system and there are flash codes (cel /ses ) blink codes for error huge.
if the CEL glows it means 99% of time a major error
like dead sensor , 100% dead,
4.3L has distributor and horrors of TB throttle body injection TBI. not MPI we have now.
5.0 same thing
5.7 -same
diesel ? ask. rare option. for sure running at all.

gasoline engine surge has many causes
i will list some only
spark bad.
fuel injectors messed up. 2 there are.
fuel pressure out of spec, FPR bad.
IAC DEAD OR JUST DIRTY.

NOW THE FLASH CODE OBD1 MAGIC
jUMP ALDL , PIN A TO B.

https://mechanicbase.com/trouble-code/obd1-codes/

Pin #16 ( in the connector where you hook up your code reader) battery voltage from fuse DIM / ALDL fuse DIM/ALDL Fuse
10 A
Dash Integration Module (DIM) and Data Link Connector (DLC)
location - under hood fuse box .
pins 4 & 5 are ground connections . What other thing's are you trying too hook up ? Does the vehicle start an run ?

The ses lite needs voltage and ground. Voltage goes hot when you turn the key on. The computer controls the ground circuit. I can't rule out, your instrument cluster may have a problem? The ground circuit could be shorted to ground before it reaches the computer. Or the computer has a problem? Just my opinion.

Is the \'Service Engine Soon\' light on? Only from what you described, it sounds like the engine\'s running in \'open loop\' (fast idle, cold) okay, then when it\'s supposed to go into \'closed loop\', you have a malfunction. Checking the trouble codes will pinpoint the problem; your truck is pre-\'95 so it\'s the older OBD-I and you could get the trouble codes by grounding the proper terminal in the ALDL, counting the blinks of the SES light and using it to determine what electronic control device is malfunctioning. If no SES light/trouble codes and since you ran out of gas (?), it might be time to replace the fuel filter and possibly check the fuel pressure and/or fuel pump.

It may be a vacuum leak that is causing the high idle and shifting problem. Check all the vacuum hoses for cracks or to see if any have come unplugged. Hope this helps.

sometimes is hard to get there and cost a lot of money.

with a test light test the ALDL plug for battery power the pin right next to it willl be ground. ( hook the test light to power and a ground will light the light) the check engine light should come on and if you crossthe upper two pins in the aldl the check engine light should flash out the codes. The code reader might not be working and may need to hook it to a different car and see if it reads a different car.

My 1st suggestion would be to get a scan done for the check engine light. I'm not talking about a simple 'code reader' but an actual scan tool so all of the different sensors and perimeters can be read. You will need to get one or find someone with a scan tool which can do OBD I vehicles.

If the engine isn't running correctly this could cause the transmission not wanting to shift. 2 vehicles that come to mind where I've seen this happen.

One was a Pontiac and it wouldn't shift into overdrive. Problem was the thermostat which was stuck open and it wouldn't allow the engine to get up to proper temperature which kept the transmission from shifting.

The other was a Ford Explorer that the lady thought for sure the transmission was bad. After a test drive and investigation it was found the catalytic converter was mostly plugged which wouldn't allow the engine to achieve the proper torque and RPMs to get the transmission to shift.

Now granted neither of these examples are an exact duplicate of the problems you are having. They are simply to illustrate that engine performance (or the lack of) CAN affect the way the transmission shifts.

Hope this helps.

Did you get the code that triggered the SEL? If you know that, it will be easier to diagnose your problem. You can do it without a tool on the old saturns. Just need a paperclip. :

Use a paper clip to jumper Terminal A and B of the ALDL *Assembly Line Diagnostic Link* which is above your left knee.
Terminal A is an interal ground and is the top right terminal in the connector. Terminal B is directly adjacent and to the left of Terminal A.

Turn the ignition to ON.

All codes are 2 digits between 11 and 99. Codes are displayed on the SES light by flashing the light with short and long pauses to distinguish digits of one code from digits of another. The short pause is used between digits of the same code, long pauses are between codes. Also, each code is flashed three times before going to the next code.

For example, the sequence of code 12 will be: flash, pause, flash-flash, long pause, then repeat 2 times. If Code 12 is not displayed, the self-diagnostic pogram i snot functioning properly.

If only Code 12 is displayed, no system malfunctions have been stored.

Any existing system fault codes are displayed in order from low to high, except for Code 11.

On vehicles with an automatic transaxle and on which exist stored transaxle codes, Code 11 will be displayed last, then the SHIFT TO D2 light will begin flashing transaxle codes of flags.

When all engine codes have been displayed, Code 12 will flash again.

Diagnostic Codes
11. Transaxle Codes present
12. Diagnostic System Check
13. Oxygen sensor, circuit open or not ready
14. CTS circuit, out of range high
15. CTS circuit, out of range low
17. PCM fault, pullup resistor
19. 6x signal fault, no 6x signal between reference pulses
21. TPS circuit, out of range high
22. TPS circuit, out of range low
23. ATS circuit, out range low
24. VSS circuit, no signal
25. ATS circuit, out or range high
26. Quad Driver output fault
32. EGR system fault
33. MAP sensor circuit, out of range high
34. MAP sensor circuit, out of range low
35. IAC valve, rpm out of range
41A EST circuit open
41B EST circuit shorted
42A Bypass circuit grounded
42B Bypass circuit open
42C Bypass circuit shorted
41. EST bypass, open or shorted
42. EST bypass, open or shorted
43. ECS (knock sensor) circuit open or shorted
44. Oxygen sensor indicates system lean
45. Oxygen sensor indicates system rich
46. Power steering pressure switch circuit, open
49. Idle rpm out of limit high (vacuum leak)
51. PCM memory error
55. A/D converter error in PCM
81. ABS message fault (1993 vehicles with TCS)
82 PCM internal communication fault


Diagnostic Flags
27. Quick quad driver output fault (1993 only)
48. Reference imput intermittent or noisy
52. Battery voltage out of range
53. ESC knock present
54. Five volt reference ground
58. Battery voltage unstable
61. 6x signal fault
63. Option check sum error
67. Handwheel sensor circuit fault
71. Cooling system temperature high
72. Coolinng system temeprature low
73. CTS sensor unstable
74. CTS/transaxle temperatuer sensor ratio error
76. ATS sensor unstable
83. Low coolant (1993 only)

glad you got it fixed