Hi all.- :wave:

I have some problems fixing my dear Punto.- It was starting small, but grew big in a very short amount of time..

I thought an indicator problem would be a quick fix, but it seems to be pretty difficult to go around.

The problem started with fast blinking indicators ( twice the normal speed ). Then the exterior indicators stopped flashing, but instrument in dashboard indicated ok.

I disassembled the fuse box/body computer, showing lots of oxidation on the circuit board, leading to the conclusion, that something was fried.

I bought a donor computer from a similar Punto- 1.2, and hoped a swap would fix the indicator problem. But after thinking a little, i found that the body computer is NOT something you just swap, since the code for the ignition key is stored inside.

Problem is, that my kkl OBD cable is not talking with the body computer. Only Engine, airbag and ABS system.

Does anyone know what cable/adapter i need to get access to body functions with Multiecuscan? is it possible with the Bluetooth/wifi adapters from ebay?:


I have the original code card for the car, that seems to be essential to re-code the key.

In advance- thank you :worship:

hi
your original body computer having problems i covered many years ago on here after it started with one indicater side
i put it down to water ingres

the easiest solution for you is to get the engine ecu and the key that goes with your new body computer

it must also be noted that the body commuter must be compatible with your car ie 1.2 8 valve 1.2 16 valve etc
the next thing is the body computer must as least have the same spec as yours ie if your car is manual make sure replacement is manual if yours has electric front windows replacement must have etc etc
also it must be from same type of car ie if you have punto with badge on bonnet then parts must be from same model,if you have car with grille in bonnet then again parts must be from same model type
next thing is your speedo will likely flash once these parts fitted so it will need a proxy align which basically means speedo can talk to body computer
use mes for this
ask if you need more help

Thank you for the reply S nd b

I hoped i would be able to program the computer.. Changeing All the locks is also very time consuming.

I am considering takling the car to a mechanic, and Hope they are able to reprogram Keys and computer. ??

You seem to understand what is required. Any mechanic will need either the Fiat diagnostic program, or MES, or another similar program. If they do not have it, they will not be able to do the job.
You may well be more competent than they are.

Don't miss the point about water ingress mentioned above. This is common when the chamber below the windscreen fills with rainwater due to its drains being blocked. It overflows into the car, often onto the body computer. So fix this, or the same issue will happen again.

I once had fast blinking indicators on one side and in my case it was fixed by cleaning up the earth connection of the rear light cluster on that side. Could very well be the body computer in your case, but might be worth checking the rear light cluster.

asteen said:

Thank you for the reply S nd b

I hoped i would be able to program the computer.. Changeing All the locks is also very time consuming.

I am considering takling the car to a mechanic, and Hope they are able to reprogram Keys and computer. ??

Click to expand...

if mechanic competent then all he needs to do is swap the eeprom chip from your board to new board

portland_bill said:

You seem to understand what is required. Any mechanic will need either the Fiat diagnostic program, or MES, or another similar program. If they do not have it, they will not be able to do the job.
You may well be more competent than they are.

Don't miss the point about water ingress mentioned above. This is common when the chamber below the windscreen fills with rainwater due to its drains being blocked. It overflows into the car, often onto the body computer. So fix this, or the same issue will happen again.

Click to expand...

Thank you for the tip!

You are correct. I was speaking with a mechanic today, Who has been working with Fiat cars for 30 years. He told me, that a second hand body computer, is not able to be re-programmed. Only a New computer would work! I dont believe him..

I still wonder about what interface connection to use.. The usb to KKL will only communicate with ABS, engine and airbag units. I have now ordered a usb to ELM327 interface.,hoping it Will be able to communicate with the body-computer. I still dont know if i need the crossed dataline adapters, but I will find out.

Thanks again ?

PuntoEnthusiast said:

I once had fast blinking indicators on one side and in my case it was fixed by cleaning up the earth connection of the rear light cluster on that side. Could very well be the body computer in your case, but might be worth checking the rear light cluster.

Click to expand...

Thank you for the tip. I will go and check the grounding for rear lights. ?

s and b said:

if mechanic competent then all he needs to do is swap the eeprom chip from your board to new board

Click to expand...

Yes.. Probably. But unfortunately i dont know Any competent mechanic right now.. ?

asteen said:

He told me, that a second hand body computer, is not able to be re-programmed. Only a New computer would work! I dont believe him..

Click to expand...

Search this forum for virginised ECU. There have been posts about having a used ECU virginised, which wipes the previous vehicle's data, effectively putting it back in a raw state as a new one would be. Quite possibly using one from another car without virginising it might not work.

The answer is in here somewhere. Hopefully contact details of the company that can clear it for you.

portland_bill said:

Search this forum for virginised ECU. There have been posts about having a used ECU virginised, which wipes the previous vehicle's data, effectively putting it back in a raw state as a new one would be. Quite possibly using one from another car without virginising it might not work.

The answer is in here somewhere. Hopefully contact details of the company that can clear it for you.

Click to expand...

hi bill
think of the body computer as the main frame
then think of the ecu as say the printer
if mainframe ie body computer changed then it cannot talk to printer without help
the body computer has a chip on it an eeprom chip that allows the ignition key to talk to it,if these are compatible then the body computer will allow you to talk to the printer ie the ecu thus print or in this case of a car to start
if ecu is changed then if it id set to factory new ie virginised then body computer can talk accept it is a member of family and thus the car will start

so you see body computer and ecu are 2 different things?

s and b said:

hi bill
think of the body computer as the main frame
then think of the ecu as say the printer
if mainframe ie body computer changed then it cannot talk to printer without help
the body computer has a chip on it an eeprom chip that allows the ignition key to talk to it,if these are compatible then the body computer will allow you to talk to the printer ie the ecu thus print or in this case of a car to start
if ecu is changed then if it id set to factory new ie virginised then body computer can talk accept it is a member of family and thus the car will start

so you see body computer and ecu are 2 different things?

Click to expand...

I had to read that several times, and it is still nonsense.

ECU = Electronic Control Unit.
Body Computer is an ECU dedicated to the body electrical items. ECU much quicker to type than body computer.
I was not referring to the engine control unit, which you seem to have assumed.
This thread has only been about the body computer, as was my post. If it is virginised, it can be used. There is history of this on these forums.

portland_bill said:

I had to read that several times, and it is still nonsense.

ECU = Electronic Control Unit.
Body Computer is an ECU dedicated to the body electrical items. ECU much quicker to type than body computer.
I was not referring to the engine control unit, which you seem to have assumed.
This thread has only been about the body computer, as was my post. If it is virginised, it can be used. There is history of this on these forums.

Click to expand...

hi
hi i tried to be polite to you
you will not find ever ever a link to fiat punto virginised body computers on here

s and b said:

hi
hi i tried to be polite to you

Click to expand...

Your post was all negative. Do you have anything positive to say, to help the OP?

s and b said:

you will not find ever ever a link to fiat punto virginised body computers on here

Click to expand...

No I wont. Because I am not looking for it.
If you are saying that the body computer cannot be virginised, what do you suggest instead? Or is at all negative?

Any computer in the car can be called a ECU. (Electronic control unit) that's why i use the word body computer.. Same as in muliecuscan software.

Today i was measuring some wires and found that positive connection in indicator socket is short to grund. IDK if this is normal, but I think this must be the reason why the indicators dont work.

Does anyone know where i should start trobleshooting this? It could go all the way back to the Body computer, and be a short to grund in there. (that's also why all the fuses are okay!)

I guess you are never bored when owning a Fiat punto.. ? (but I still love it)

asteen said.

The problem started with fast blinking indicators ( twice the normal speed ). Then the exterior indicators stopped flashing, but instrument in dashboard indicated ok.

I disassembled the fuse box/body computer, showing lots of oxidation on the circuit board, leading to the conclusion, that something was fried.

Click to expand...

look here

this is the chip that needs swapping outt
maybe a local tv repairman or someone who chips up x boxes can do this for you,it just needs the right tools and a little patience so you dont overheat the chip as you remove it,i failed when i try but then its not something i had tried before

Check the other side as a comparison.
Normally we'd start at the source and work towards the lamp, checking each connection to see where the 'loss' had occurred. Can also start at the lamp and trace the wiring back and find the fault.
Could be a chafed wire. Although the indicator wiring does not go into the tailgate, a short anywhere may connect to others and throw up strange things. Chafed wires across the tailgate hinge are common on many models. Check all the lights, individually, and also all on at once, see what that shows.

portland_bill said:

Check the other side as a comparison.
Normally we'd start at the source and work towards the lamp, checking each connection to see where the 'loss' had occurred. Can also start at the lamp and trace the wiring back and find the fault.
Could be a chafed wire. Although the indicator wiring does not go into the tailgate, a short anywhere may connect to others and throw up strange things. Chafed wires across the tailgate hinge are common on many models. Check all the lights, individually, and also all on at once, see what that shows.

Click to expand...

im out
i dont help here to see my work undermined by clueless idiots
moderators please ban me

Im happy with all the help i can get solving the problem- thank you!

I found a short to ground in the headlight indicator bulb socket, so now im on to tracing all the wirering. The replacement ecu will probably be damaged, if i connect it now.:dead:

S and B..

Your contribution is helpful - thank you! I might swap the EPROM if it's impossible to re-program the Body computer,.

I think Portland Bill might be referring to my efforts to virginise a second hand engine control unit( *ECU) whereas the unit you have is the *BCU (body control unit). I was able to clone my particular unusual ECU which was sufficient for my purposes. I Was only able to do the cloning because other people had built the software tools that suited my particular ECU

Unless you have some *very* expensive purpose made car programming tools the only way to get another fiat BCU to talk to the ECU is either:

1. Get a new or second hand physically identical virginised ECU. The virginised ECU is plug and play and automatically transfers required software from the BCU

2, unsolder the eprom chip from the existing recognised BCU and install it in the physically identical replacement BCU. An electronic hobbist could do this for you if no shops are available but you are unlikely to find a mechanic who would do this work.

You will need to grasp that no matter what your professional skills are you are not going to be able to 'reprogram your new BCU to match your current ECU' short of the project taking over your life where you will be responsible for all the information you discover. There is totally zero information available on the internet to help you connect a fiat BCU to an existing ECU.


A virginised ECU is about 100 pounds.


*Even if the term electronic control unit is technically correct as far as I can see the thing called the ECU on car forums is connnected to the engine sensors and the thing called the BCU is not directly connected to the engine.