Vida help

[paddy74]

OK, I see, here are some specialists, that have these crystal whatever, to see what is happening in that car. Good to know...

Once again: YOU DON'T KNOW, as long as you don't do a proper job in diagnosing the fault. You will have to get in the car, measure what is happening and CHECK before you buy components.

As you said, VIDA doesn't give you any codes that relate to the problem. So your solution is changing all parts that could be slightly involved? Good luck with that! You, and the OP doesn't have any idea what or why things are not working, but you constantly resist to do, what every good mechanic would do in that situation: FIND THE FAULT! And that involves measuring, checking and __maybe__ in the end changing the CCM. But it could very well be a cable or a fuse or whatever.

What you are doing is trying without knowing, because of not wanting to do a proper diagnostic job upfront. Good luck with that, it is not my money that goes down the drain.

[Moose Test]

Alright, I'll bite.

Exactly WHAT would you 'measure' next and which specification(s) would you compare that measurement against? No-one here is claiming they know the exact problem, only that progress is being made via elimination. I acknowledge it's not the most cost effective route but what is done is done, the OP had already bought the parts before posting.

You talk in nothing but generic terms - "find the fault". Go on then, tell us exactly how to proceed. Give us the benefit of your knowledge and experience, rather than just criticise from the side lines. The OP stands to gain from a fix, as does his wallet and my ego can take it.

Tell us all HOW to "do a proper diagnostic job" here.

[cheshired5]

Combined, there are easily 50 CCM Parameters, Activations, Programmed Values and Advanced functions which could be tried in order to establish CCM functionality and I'm pretty certain that I've read of zero in this thread.

If you get 50 readings, successful activations and Advanced function successes, there's no CCM fault.

If you get zero or close to zero success, sure change the CCM but changing the CCM without any mention of the above tests or observations whilst having the equipment to do it, well that's just daft.
If you're not going use the functionality of Vida, there's no point in spending money on it.
How many of Vida's built-in 150 Help pages have been read for example?

Going through every single function would take less than 30 minutes (you'll get a good idea after 2 minutes) versus buying, waiting for then removing and replacing a CCM based on a guess which will take many times longer.

I hope that's diagnostic-y enough for some.

[hodge911]

Originally Posted by cheshired5

Combined, there are easily 50 CCM Parameters, Activations, Programmed Values and Advanced functions which could be tried in order to establish CCM functionality and I'm pretty certain that I've read of zero in this thread.

If you get 50 readings, successful activations and Advanced function successes, there's no CCM fault.

If you get zero or close to zero success, sure change the CCM but changing the CCM without any mention of the above tests or observations whilst having the equipment to do it, well that's just daft.
If you're not going use the functionality of Vida, there's no point in spending money on it.
How many of Vida's built-in 150 Help pages have been read for example?

Going through every single function would take less than 30 minutes (you'll get a good idea after 2 minutes) versus buying, waiting for then removing and replacing a CCM based on a guess which will take many times longer.

I hope that's diagnostic-y enough for some.

i agree with everything you say dave thats why i bought a vida set up off here ... go to my OP and youll see i asked for some help in learning how to use the vida as its a new system to me and its the very 1st time ive seen one let alone used one

SO as in my OP if anyone local wants to give lessons i dont mind giving some beer tokens

[cheshired5]

Originally Posted by cheshired5

How many of Vida's built-in 150 Help pages have been read for example?

Plus there's YouTube, Google etc..... and this very forum where I and others have run through Vida procedures many times.
You don't have to wait for someone to come and show you.

[Tannaton]

Originally Posted by Moose Test

VIDA and the car's diagnostic systems are good but they aren't all seeing. He's done all he can in that respect.

As a general point - there are three types of faults you get with these cars. Actaully any car, lorry, bus, submarine, ship, airplane etc.

Simple Fault : This is a persistent hard failure of a single component, easy to diagnose, easy to remedy by replacing the faulty component - good example would be rear parking sensors not working, plug VIDA in, replace sensor number 3. Done. Apprentices and semi skilled fitters can do this at the dealer.

Complex Fault : This is an intermittent or partial failure of a single component (or wiring) which leads to inconsistent behavior or erroneous readings from a sensor which appears to be working. Easy to remedy, once it has been correctly diagnosed. Recent examples I've worked on include a XC70 with a worn rear wheel bearing that produced no noise and had no play in a "wheel up" test but on RH bends the hub movement was sufficient to cause erroneous readings on the ABS sensor. The dealer diagnosed a failed tone ring necessitating a whole new driveshaft assembly. It needed a new wheel bearing.

System Fault : These are rare (1 in 100), but do happen, this is where two un-related Complex Faults or one Complex and one unrelated Simple fault combine to create a situation where without hindsight no logical explanation can be found and all usually remedies based on the symptoms do not fix the fault. Recent examples I worked on was an XC90 D5 with a bad connection on the temp sensor and a physically damaged gearbox output speed temperature sensor. The symptom was occasional DTC's on a "implausible speed ratio" and no torque converter lockup, dealer diagnosed new gearbox was needed, £4k. Permanent fix with sand paper and 99p Super glue. In this territory, unless you were born with the correct mindset and have thousands of hours experience - it can be a very frustrating endless journey. It's the rare faults like these where dealers can be expensive and hopeless because no flow chart exists. You can only get to the bottom of them by understand the system as whole, and diagnose through the behavior of each sensor etc. and how that affects actuations and other systems.

My (general, not specific to the OP or this thread) point is VIDA is brilliant, one of the best systems around, but sometimes it can lead to a false sense of security and it comes down to acquiring knowledge and working through the symptoms and readings in minutia detail. You can't just say "Find the Fault" because sometimes it's way not that simple. High levels of redundancy and self diagnosis are brilliant ways of making the cars more reliable and de-skilling the people who look after them but they also cause situations like 3 Mile Island and Apollo 13.

[reggit]

OP, can you post what faults Vida is reporting (all of them) and what age vehicle do you have?

[Moose Test]

Originally Posted by cheshired5

If you get 50 readings, successful activations and Advanced function successes, there's no CCM fault.

At the precise moment in which you looked.

Remember, the OP reports this as an intermittent fault. (For the record, I think your advice is still good and the OP should considering doing it anyway).

Another good point that you make is reference to VIDA, which is why I've included the section of the circuit diagram pertinent to blower motor operation in a previous post. It clearly shows the systems which interact to provide this function and how they are related. I think the main points to take from that are, there are very few players and most of them have already been replaced with new components.

With reference to the circuit diagram, you can see that the motor is operated via a solid state current regulator (in the old days this would have been two or more resistors but that's not actually what this version is), with the amount of power being delivered to the motor via F1 being controlled by a pair of signal lines from the CCM to this fan control unit. "Major" digital control is indicated in VIDA diagrams by either the LIN or CAN icons. That's missing in this case, so we know that either analogue control (voltage or current level control) or another type of digital bus (e.g. I2C) are used.

Which brings me to my point. Anyone who has worked with board level diagnostics and repair knows that there is potential for a component level fault to disrupt that functionality, whilst leaving the major digital "network" functions of the CCM intact, including its other functions (mixing motor position etc. etc.). VIDA and DICE cannot and do not trace faults to that level of detail.

So whilst I agree with you, that running the CCM test activations in VIDA is a good idea (especially given the OP already has it), as Tannaton has already added, once you know how these systems are composed you can begin to understand how problems slip through the net of regular high level diagnostics.

If it were me, and the CCM activations all show as good, I'd be inclined to crack open (metaphorically) the case and make a physical examination of the CCM pcb for signs of damage, corrosion or "release of blue smoke".

[Moose Test]

Originally Posted by reggit

OP, can you post what faults Vida is reporting (all of them)

This would also be helpful, for the avoidance of any doubt. There is a CCM code for the blower fan control module but I'm pretty sure that would have been the first thing the OP would have reported here if it were present, not the AQS sensor.

[hodge911]

Thanks to everyone who has been kind enough to post and try to.help
BUT AS MY LUCK GOES things have took a big turn for the worse...... I've had to get recovered by the RAC a hour ago
The auxiliary drive belt has shredded and somehow got into the timing belt cover and jumped the timing belt
GOD I HATE CARS !!!
So.now I have to make my mind up to fix or scrap it ?
Its a 2004/5 d5 auto
I've spent a bit on of late new steering rack last year new top engine mount & S/H rear shocks 4 weeks ago ...