Northern Auto Tech - ECU and Blue & Me Repairs

General problem with power to radio and flashing clock

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General problem with power to radio and flashing clock

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jim mac

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i wanted to fit a power socket to the Panda i got for my daughter so she could charge up her phone / ipod etc. it doesnt have a socket fitted

it has power leads fitted in situ under the handbrake cover but they have no power at all going to them so i assume they are not connected up - the loom is generic.

i decided to cut into radio power lead as it was easiest to access. as soon as i did it lost all power, radio would not work, and when ignition turned on the speedo flutters then settles and the clock and odometer flash but wont reset.

if i run power straight to the radio from battery the radio works but clock still flashes

checked all fuses but none blown ????
 
Perhaps I misunderstand but did you cut these cables hot?


Im not being much help here but IMO and im not normally one to worry too much about anything. Wiring your fag lighter off of the stereo is sloppy. You could have gone straight off the battery with an appropriate fuse and wiring simple enough. If you didn't disconnect the battery when you were doing this because to save extra time and thinking it goes off with ignition then x2 sloppy.
 
Yes Dave, you are right, you are not being helpful at all
 
jim mac said:
if i run power straight to the radio from battery the radio works but clock still flashes

checked all fuses but none blown ????
Click to expand...

I'd suggest the first thing to do is to disconnect the battery for at least a half hour.

The next thing to do is to put all the wiring back to standard.

Then reconnect the battery, keeping your fingers crossed that the relevent electronic modules will reset themselves.

If that doesn't fix the problem, I'd say it's time to run diagnostics (preferably MES) on the car.
 
disconnected the battery half hour put wiring back as was and reconnect - same problem.

ran a live to the radio from battery, everything functioned normally, including the radio, clock and odometer.

took the live off - back to flashing clock and odo and no radio.

re-checked all fuses, all ok.

so - what is it about the red/black wire that powers the radio that is now dead ? i cant see anything in the Haynes manual about the wiring for the radio so am a bit stuffed
 
jim mac said:
so am a bit stuffed
Click to expand...

Sorry to hear it hasn't fixed the problem. So:

jrkitching said:
If that doesn't fix the problem, I'd say it's time to run diagnostics (preferably MES) on the car.
Click to expand...

Possibly, just possibly, it needs a proxi alignment; generally a cure for at least the flashing mileage issue.

You can run a proxi alignment with MES (€50 + cables).

If that doesn't work, and your previous efforts have caused a glitch in one of the electronic modules, MES should be able to find it.
 
Last edited:
jim mac said:
i decided to cut into radio power lead as it was easiest to access. as soon as i did it lost all power, radio would not work, and when ignition turned on the speedo flutters then settles and the clock and odometer flash but wont reset.

if i run power straight to the radio from battery the radio works but clock still flashes

checked all fuses but none blown ????
Click to expand...

Are you sure you cut into the permanent live power lead and not one of the CAN-BUS leads? The standard stereo has a can-bus connector too? Just wondering if that is why the odo is flashing? As for fuses, check the underbonnet fusebox as well as the one inside the car. My car handbook shows fuses, but the fusebox has a totally different arrangement so I have no idea what does what!!!
 
Pandaactiveman said:
Are you sure you cut into the permanent live power lead and not one of the CAN-BUS leads? The standard stereo has a can-bus connector too? Just wondering if that is why the odo is flashing? As for fuses, check the underbonnet fusebox as well as the one inside the car. My car handbook shows fuses, but the fusebox has a totally different arrangement so I have no idea what does what!!!
Click to expand...


Checked every fuse in the car - all ok, it was a red/black wire, thicker gauge than rest, showing permanent live when tested. I cut into it and got the problems I highlighted.


if I run a live straight from battery to this cut (connected) wire the clock etc works normally and radio works but wont switch off - remains live. if I remove the battery connection it all goes back to no radio - flashing clock etc


what is the Canbus connector ? what does that do ? I can strip a gearbox but electrics are obviously not my forte
 
Canbus is a softwareprotocol for cars. It will tell your radio to switch on when you switch on the ignition and to shut down after 20 minutes. And do a whole lot of other things in your car.
One reason you can't hack into the wiring of a modern car or change the resistance of the bulbs by using LED.
Those are things the Software and Bodycomputer (aka the fusebox) doesn't expect.

gr J
 
Last edited:
jim mac said:
what is the Canbus connector ? what does that do ?
Click to expand...

The can bus system is a data network that the cars various ECUs use to communicate with parts of the car. So far as the radio is concerned, on my car at least, (fitted with a blaupunkt CD player, normal DIN size) the radio is not ignition controlled. To turn it on you press the button, it will stay on until you turn it off manually or until 20 mins after the ignition is turned off. When you turn it on the volume is automatically reduced to 20 if it was higher than that before. These functions are controlled via the CANbus system. On my car the canbus system is a blue connector.

The permanent live is not permanent as such as the ecu detects the radio is on and then supplies the power for a 20 minute period unless the ignition is also on.

I am thinking that you providing a 12V connection to the wire means the canbus cannot switch the radio off as even if it cuts the 12V power you have provided a separate 12V power.

Now, how the digital signals travel around the network i do not know, but I would bet the clock and odometer are also controlled by digital signals and it seems like you have interrupted the circuit they use.

If you restore the car to standard wiring I assume it works OK?

If so, what happens if you splice in your new wire to the permanent feed to tap of it, but leave the wire still connected as before?

Life was much easier before ECUs and body control modules and so on!!!

Good luck
 
Pandaactiveman said:
The can bus system is a data network that the cars various ECUs use to communicate with parts of the car. So far as the radio is concerned, on my car at least, (fitted with a blaupunkt CD player, normal DIN size) the radio is not ignition controlled. To turn it on you press the button, it will stay on until you turn it off manually or until 20 mins after the ignition is turned off. When you turn it on the volume is automatically reduced to 20 if it was higher than that before. These functions are controlled via the CANbus system. On my car the canbus system is a blue connector.

The permanent live is not permanent as such as the ecu detects the radio is on and then supplies the power for a 20 minute period unless the ignition is also on.

I am thinking that you providing a 12V connection to the wire means the canbus cannot switch the radio off as even if it cuts the 12V power you have provided a separate 12V power.

Now, how the digital signals travel around the network i do not know, but I would bet the clock and odometer are also controlled by digital signals and it seems like you have interrupted the circuit they use.

If you restore the car to standard wiring I assume it works OK?

If so, what happens if you splice in your new wire to the permanent feed to tap of it, but leave the wire still connected as before?

Life was much easier before ECUs and body control modules and so on!!!

Good luck
Click to expand...

if I restore to standard the radio does not work and the clock and Odo flash.


If I connect a hot wire to the connection I cut, the clock and Odo are fine but the radio wont switch off ???


if I disconnect it the radio stops and the clock and Odo flash ????
 
jim mac said:
if I restore to standard the radio does not work and the clock and Odo flash.


If I connect a hot wire to the connection I cut, the clock and Odo are fine but the radio wont switch off ???


if I disconnect it the radio stops and the clock and Odo flash ????
Click to expand...

Is there still 12V on the original supply line when restored to standard? It may be that you will need to get the body control module reset. Try restoring it to standard and leaving the battery disconnected overnight in case that will reset it for you. I believe the numbers flashing indicates a power fault so I would recheck the fuses. I think there is one under the bonnet for the radio. Other than that, I have no idea, sorry :(
 
i reconnected everything as before. then ran a live wire from battery to the wire i cut and to the socket.

all now functioning as it should, clock fine, Odo fine and power to socket.
 
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