Component Protection when swapping parts, info?

[davegsm82]

I have a simple quesiton about Component Protection.

My ACC Radar is bust, fails 90% of the time.
I have a replacement radar from a different car.
If I plug in the replacement Radar, then take it out and plug my ORIGINAL one back in, will CP lock me out? is it permanent when triggered? or is it only active when the new, unpaired part is fitted?

 

[ryansonfire]

Yes you need to code this and it will throw a fault of no basic settings and will not work until you perform an acc alignment.

 

[davegsm82]

Yes you need to code this and it will throw a fault of no basic settings and will not work until you perform an acc alignment.

I know it will need ADIS alignment once fitted, I'm just experimenting with used radar units at the minute (I'm an electronics engineer so investigating the canbus communications).

So will fitting a new radar automatically trigger a persistent component protection DTC and erase my old alignment data or would the old radar still work fine if I refitted it and clear the fault with vcds?

 

[ryansonfire]

a used one MIGHT not trow a "no basic settings" fault and you wouldnt have to code it, but i can promise you if you plug in a new unit it will not work until you code it and perform the basic setting (acc alignment) your orignial one too. it happens every time i replace one, on the lane change assist camera if you leave it unplugged with the key on it will throw a no basic settings. once the "no basic setting" fault is stored you woulnt be able to use it until the test plan is performed.

 

[IWMTom]

a used one MIGHT not trow a "no basic settings" fault and you wouldnt have to code it, but i can promise you if you plug in a new unit it will not work until you code it and perform the basic setting (acc alignment) your orignial one too. it happens every time i replace one, on the lane change assist camera if you leave it unplugged with the key on it will throw a no basic settings. once the "no basic setting" fault is stored you woulnt be able to use it until the test plan is performed.

This isn't what he's asking! Read!

I have a simple quesiton about Component Protection.

My ACC Radar is bust, fails 90% of the time.
I have a replacement radar from a different car.
If I plug in the replacement Radar, then take it out and plug my ORIGINAL one back in, will CP lock me out? is it permanent when triggered? or is it only active when the new, unpaired part is fitted?

No. Once you refit your old unit the CP constellation is restored and you'll have no CP faults.

The only time when your old radar wouldn't work is if you attached a replacement to the CP constellation which would wipe the old one.

 

[ryansonfire]

This isn't what he's asking! Read!


No. Once you refit your old unit the CP constellation is restored and you'll have no CP faults.

The only time when your old radar wouldn't work is if you attached a replacement to the CP constellation which would wipe the old one.

I thought you had the old dome radar?

i understand its not exactly what he asked, but i assumed he was just using the inccorect vocab. it shouldnt normally throw a component protection for the radar but a incorrect software fault. sometimes it does set a component protection, but mostly thats for the control modules. it would however throw a no basic settings fault and woulnt work until the the test plan is completed (unless you guys know a trick i dont). i'm just trying to warn them againt plugging in a new one unless they have odis scan tool.

 

[Corprin]

Hey.. pump the brakes guys, this guy is an electrical engineer he’ll figure it out!

 

[davegsm82]

Thanks for the replies guys, and sorry if I confused anyone with my terminology.

Maybe I should give some background on what I'm trying to achieve;

I have a domed radar (yep, you're right IWMTom) which is failing, it works some of the time but it's getting worse.

I also have a good, used, flat front radar which I'm Assured WILL NOT work with my car in any way shape or form (but some information on forums suggests otherwise).

I also have a CANBUS monitor interface, which I've been using to diagnose my failing radar and look at the traffic from the NEW radar without being plugged into the car. I'm an electronics engineer and I'm trying to work out WHY it won't work and what I can do to make it work.

Just for fun I've added a photo of the inside of my domed front radar, showing the corrosion carnage I found inside today. I've done some repair work to try and fix it and seal it up again but I'm not holding out a lot of hope. It's talking on the canbus again but seems a bit slow to start up occasionally, which is the main fault I was seeing. The corrosion was so thick that it speared through the rubber seal on the backing plate.

Again, apologies, I know this is a car forum but my speciality is electronics and this is something I need to get to the bottom of.

 

[IWMTom]

Thanks for the replies guys, and sorry if I confused anyone with my terminology.

Maybe I should give some background on what I'm trying to achieve;

I have a domed radar (yep, you're right IWMTom) which is failing, it works some of the time but it's getting worse.

I also have a good, used, flat front radar which I'm Assured WILL NOT work with my car in any way shape or form (but some information on forums suggests otherwise).

I also have a CANBUS monitor interface, which I've been using to diagnose my failing radar and look at the traffic from the NEW radar without being plugged into the car. I'm an electronics engineer and I'm trying to work out WHY it won't work and what I can do to make it work.

Just for fun I've added a photo of the inside of my domed front radar, showing the corrosion carnage I found inside today. I've done some repair work to try and fix it and seal it up again but I'm not holding out a lot of hope. It's talking on the canbus again but seems a bit slow to start up occasionally, which is the main fault I was seeing. The corrosion was so thick that it speared through the rubber seal on the backing plate.

Again, apologies, I know this is a car forum but my speciality is electronics and this is something I need to get to the bottom of.

Please don't apologise. Your terminology was perfectly fine and your question was quite a simple one!

Really not surprised it's that bad. These dome radars are known to suffer badly from water ingress.

 

[davegsm82]

Please don't apologise. Your terminology was perfectly fine and your question was quite a simple one!

Really not surprised it's that bad. These dome radars are known to suffer badly from water ingress.

Cheers IWMTom

So, I repaired and reassembled the radar, fitted it to the car and bingo, fully working again. For now (see pic).

Let's just assume for now that I've been really, really lucky and managed to bring it back from the dead without losing my calibration after completely disassembling it and removing it from the bracket.... Is it worth me writing up a how-to, or are normal people not going to spend hours repairing something that they can just have replaced by someone else?

I don't know, maybe it's just me but I like repairing stuff.

 

[davegsm82]

Forgot the picture, didn't I.



 

[golfdave]

Unplugging & refitting the unit is fine..its when you fit a new unit which will have a different serial ID number the OEM factory one that you require component protection removal as the ACC unit (radar) is on the CP protection list..

 

[ryansonfire]

Forgot the picture, didn't I.



i'm glad it works, but be aware that that camera is not calibrated correctly at this point and you should not trust it until you perform an acc alignment. it may be tracking the car to the left or right and apply the pre-sense based on an erroneous information. there isnt a whole lot of tolerence when it comes to those things and being off a few degrees will affect it significantly at greater distances.

 

[davegsm82]

i'm glad it works, but be aware that that camera is not calibrated correctly at this point and you should not trust it until you perform an acc alignment. it may be tracking the car to the left or right and apply the pre-sense based on an erroneous information. there isnt a whole lot of tolerence when it comes to those things and being off a few degrees will affect it significantly at greater distances.

At the moment I'm not sure I trust the radar to even work tomorrow morning, which is when it typically fails. I don't have lane assist, so the radar alignment is all that should be affected, and I've taken a few steps to make sure that it's absolutely 100% pointing in the same direction it was before I removed it;

1 - pointed a fixed laser at the mirror and made sure after replacement that it pointed at exactly the same spot on the wall, without moving any of the setup, including the car.

2 - drilled and tapped the steel mounting bracket with 3x stop bolts to ensure the orientation was maintained when I re-mounted it on the bracket after the repairs. The bolts were tightened up finger tight against the back plate then locked off with locking nuts.

3 - slotted the sides of the mounting tabs where the bracket mounts to the crossmember, to guarantee that the rotational (and thereby, horizontal and vertical) alignment is maintained on the 2x mounting bolts. I didn't photograph this part, but you can basically just slot a hacksaw blade in above the radar and cut a tiny groove, resting the blade against the crossmember mount.

I'm confident that it's gone back in exactly the same place, but all of that will be a moot point if I turn the key tomorrow and see "start stop error" and "acc front assist not available".

 

[IWMTom]

i'm glad it works, but be aware that that camera is not calibrated correctly at this point and you should not trust it until you perform an acc alignment. it may be tracking the car to the left or right and apply the pre-sense based on an erroneous information. there isnt a whole lot of tolerence when it comes to those things and being off a few degrees will affect it significantly at greater distances.

You should know that the system is capable of sensing misalignment and shutting down as a matter of safety automatically.........