ECU problems or not?

[sealover1]

Hi Guys my car broke down and I replaced the ECU relay and all was well but then it broke down again  and the RAC come out and said there's nothing wrong with the relay or the fuse box, it was either the ECU or the wiring coming from the ECU.

I took the ECU out and had that checked and getting it back today hopefully but they say its working fine and nothing wrong with it.

do you think it could be the connector to the ECU? maybe just a case of spraying in some connection cleaner?

 

has anyone else had this problem?

 

this is starting to do my head in now i'm disabled and stuck in a small village and got no transport to go help my mother

 

any ideas please?

 

Skoda Octavia Scout MK2 2007  2.0 TDI Estate Engine BMM 103kw 140hp

Edited 27 July, 2020 by sealover1

[Breezy_Pete]

Check/replace the fuse if you haven't already, relay coil fuse is number 10 in the e-box, should be 5-amp rated. Look for corrosion or looseness of contacts, as well as fuse itself.

If that is OK, check continuity between ECU pin 49, and pin 6 of the 40-way connector to the e-box, that's the wire which the ECU grounds to energise the coil.

[sealover1]

ok Wino will pass this on to my guy whos doing the work as I dont have a clue about this part of the car

[sealover1]

well I rang the place fixing the ECU and they say there is nothing wrong with the ECU,  maybe it is the connector that plugs into the ECU then, bought some Electrical Contact Cleaner Cleaning Spray is it safe to spray that inside the conector? 

Edited 28 July, 2020 by sealover1

[Breezy_Pete]

Should be fine,  but don't overdo it; and don't bother even trying if everything in there looks clean and shiny. They're usually pretty well waterproofed.

[Guest]

I have seen some pins come loose on an ECU connector and get pushed back inside the plug/socket.

 

It's just at an age where electrical gremlins rear their heads due to vibration/corrosion.

 

Just scan for an indication of which system is faulting and check the relevant wiring and connectors.

[J.R.]

I learned how robust ECU's are when I rebuilt a written off fire damaged 1995 Ford Galaxy.

 

The remains of the ECU looked like they had been dragged from the ashes of a bonfire, deep fat fried & then barbecued for good measure, the casing was blackened beyond recognition but intact, where the connector should have been was just a fused mass of knotted copper wire wire strands & no insulation that I had to cut through with bolt croppers to release it.

 

I used to show people it as a joke & say I was going to re-use it, it's just minor smoke damage.

 

One day I started trimming away the copper wire to expose the fused mass of plastic, I cut carefully with a hacksaw and levered away small molten sections at a time to reveal the ECU connector housing was intact underneath, it took a lot of patience but I removed all the debris, cleaned the connectors and managed to connect it to the new loom.

 

After a lot of working through relay plates & jumper cables etc (I did not know what was missing from my vehicle or what its correct spec should have been) I finally managed to get the engine cranking and a couple of times it sounded like it wanted to kick into life, could I have imagined it? I removed and cleaned the idle bypass airflow mechanism and the engine started & ran.

 

I later had a friend in a Ford dealership download the latest software and pair it with the new instrument binnacle and apart from the fault codes generated during the fire (a loom short circuit) it was in perfect operating condition.

 

 

[sealover1]

I wish I knew more about them J.R, The fooker doing the job has buggered off till sunday now and left me to worry about it all as it cost me £40 just to tell me there is nothing wrong with it so I still dont know what the problem is, I good with spanners but the lecky bits i,m lost really unless it stands out like it looks rusty.

 

I only get my disability payments and so I do try to do stuff myself, i'd be lost without the help you guys give me

 

Thank god I have a motorbike to ride as I live in a small village 

[sealover1]

Hi guys well my mobile mechanic has given up on my car and it still wont start so i,m stuck in a small village with no transport 😞

 

I had the ECU checked and it still wont start but when I just rang them they did say though it had been tested it could be an intermittent problem that never showed up when they tested it and they could make me one up for £200 and copy my software over as mine is chipped to 190bhp (so last owner said)

 

if you buy one on say ebay does it need to be programmed to your car or are they plug & play? just ebay is a lot cheaper 

 

I have no ideal if he checked the wires or fuses that you said about Wino I just text him to ask, I do have a muti meter myself is it something I could check are the pins numbered? and where would the other end of the ECU pin 49, and pin 6 of the 40-way connector to the e-box be I take it you mean engine fuse box.

 

Thanks for all your help guys am really stuck right now so hope you can guide me through this.. Al

Edited 6 August, 2020 by sealover1

[Breezy_Pete]

Those points are either end of the same wire. Yes, the engine bay fusebox. Connectors nearly always have pin numbers marked on one half or the other of each plug/socket, if not both.

PM me if you get stuck, or post photos of whatever connectors you find.

[Breezy_Pete]

Thinking about it, it's probably easier to unplug the relay from its socket, then test from (unplugged) ECU loom connector pin 49, to each of the contacts in the relay socket. It should have continuity to one of them.

 

There's a fella down your way (ish) with a mk2 Fabia, who used a local auto-electrician last year, and had good success, let me try to find the thread.

 

Hmm, maybe not that close, but could be worth getting in touch: https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/435889-fan-runs-on/?do=findComment&comment=5319349

 

Edited 6 August, 2020 by Wino

[Guest]

Going by the vehicle's age it's ready for all sorts of electrical issues.

 

I've seen otherwise good cars fail to start due to solder failure on the electronics, usually in the instrument cluster.  Youtube has lots of nightmare stories.

 

As suggested it's probably best to contact an auto electrician for advice.

 

* Hitting the dashboard hard above the instrument cluster has been known to temporarily fix the bad solder join, it may at least help you locate the problem.

Edited 6 August, 2020 by MicMac

[sealover1]

47 minutes ago, Wino said:

Thinking about it, it's probably easier to unplug the relay from its socket, then test from (unplugged) ECU loom connector pin 49, to each of the contacts in the relay socket. It should have continuity to one of them.

 

There's a fella down your way (ish) with a mk2 Fabia, who used a local auto-electrician last year, and had good success, let me try to find the thread.

 

Hmm, maybe not that close, but could be worth getting in touch: https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/435889-fan-runs-on/?do=findComment&comment=5319349

 

 

Here's some photos just been out there as the ass left the engine bay open to the rain and all the pins and fuse box had water in them had an hair drying on them all for ages

.

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[J.R.]

I dont think you can fit an ECU from another car without immobiliser problems, I bought a remapped one from an Ebay seller but he had done a hack to disable the immobiliser to make it plug n play.

 

The immobiliser is another possibility for your problems, its located in the instrument binnacle and communicates with the ECU, dry joints have caused starting problems.

 

I really think now is the time that you should get someone with VCDS to scan your vehicle which if it doesn't indicate exactly what the problem is will point you in the right direction.

[sealover1]

I had a mobile mechanic and the RAC guy scanned it J.R, mobile mechanic dont know what it is ECU been checked and so has the engine fuse box

[sealover1]

23 minutes ago, J.R. said:

I dont think you can fit an ECU from another car without immobiliser problems, I bought a remapped one from an Ebay seller but he had done a hack to disable the immobiliser to make it plug n play.

 

The immobiliser is another possibility for your problems, its located in the instrument binnacle and communicates with the ECU, dry joints have caused starting problems.

 

I really think now is the time that you should get someone with VCDS to scan your vehicle which if it doesn't indicate exactly what the problem is will point you in the right direction.

 

where is the  instrument binnacle J.R 

[sealover1]

just an update: checked ECU pin 49 continuity,  of the 40-way connector to the replay (370) in the e-box and its ok

[J.R.]

Instrument binnacle is the speedo/revcounter/MFD unit.

 

A scan with a basic OBDII code reader (not sure what the RAC use) is not going to be of any help to you, you need either dealer level diagnostics with someone competent using it (forget it!) or an independant specialist using VCDS or similar.

 

Often they will use a Snap On or other hand held one first to avoid breaking out a laptop & dongle but if it doesn't take them deep enough they will use VCDS or similar.

[sealover1]

RAC guy did use a laptop,dont know what it was though.

 

I might need to try and find a ECU rubber seal not sure of the correct name for it but when the mechanic opened the ECU to look at it he never put it back he did say he still got it but not sure I believe him, anyone know where I can buy one?

Edited 6 August, 2020 by sealover1

[sealover1]

Hiya guys well I ran out of ideals to try so I managed to find a good engine management center not to far away but not till the 17th aug, I'm still trying to source the rubber seal that goes in the outer part of the ECU does anyone where I can buy 1 please as my old mechanic says he has it but am having problems getting him to bring it back and I dont know where he lives.  

 

All this worry is playing havoc with my fibromyalgia hate it when my cars off the road, being disabled and living in a small village I relay on it a lot what it must be like to be rich and just bung it in a main agents garage A guys lol

Edited 7 August, 2020 by sealover1

[varaderoguy]

Okay - so apprechiate that cost is a factor in getting this fixed.  I agree with the sentiment that you need to get a VCDS system or ODBEleven to scan your car.  With that data, we can see the faults and help diagnostics.

Check out the Briskoda list of folk who maybe able to help (for beer money):

In terms of the rubber seal, we will need to know the connector part number, then this part number can be cross-referenced with lists of parts associated with your ECU.  The seal will tend to only be pennies.  Electrically, you might just use some electrical insulation tape on the outside of the connector and protect it in a plastic sandwich bag to protect the connector which will keep things good until you can get the correct seal reinstalled.

[sealover1]

my nearest member is PetrolDave but he is 65 miles away I have sent him a message but not sure if he will have the time to come this far will wait and see, I have the battery on charge right now but will check the part number on the ECU its a fairly new battery I bought 6 months ago so hoping thats ok but I do have a smart charger and battery tester.

 

thanks for all the help guys I really do appreciate it... Al

[sealover1]

Petrol Dave is away for a while and he is the only one in devon so stuck there

[sealover1]

Well guys I bit the bullet and bought a HEX-V2  its only 3 vin for £225 but when garages charge £50 a pot around here to scan your car I'm hoping it should pay for itself over time. 

I'm a computer engineer well I used to be before I was made disabled so I like playing with tech and enjoy learning new things.

soon as I get it I will head to the ross-Tech forums and find out how to learn to use it, any advice or good video TuTs you may know of please let me know.

Edited 9 August, 2020 by sealover1

[sealover1]

Well it's here guys my lovely mother treated me to a HEX-V2 3 Vin so I could learn more about reading codes and fault finding, I best get to the ross-Tech forums and learn how to use the thing now

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