BY Frank Massey In this month’s article, I have chosen a very diverse collection of challenges presented to me, with a mixture of diagnostic problems and mechanical engineering issues. I am going to focus on the engineering issues later as I think they expose typical shortcomings seen in many garages, specifically with experience and engineering assets. My first story should shame us all with regards to garage ethics. I was asked to check an engine MIL light on a hybrid Honda. The extracted code suggested a bank 1 sensor 2 heater circuit error. I opted to raise the vehicle and examine and remove the offending sensor. Once raised it was clear the catalyst had been replaced with a straight length of pipe, removing the post cat sensor and tucking the open socket into a chassis lightning hole. Please refer to Fig.1. When checking the vehicle records, I noted the catalyst had been removed and discarded with the sensor during a previous MOT test. As hybrid vehicles do not require an emissions test, a MOT pass certificate was able to be issued. I am not clear what implications the MIL lamp status would present during the test. The notes also indicated the customer could not afford the cost of a replacement catalyst. Here is my take on this; We are not here to offer a financial lifeboat to vehicle owners. We are here to offer a professional, durable, and efficient repair service, at a cost. We should however also offer accurate technical advice as to cost value ratio. Avenue of rectification BMWs - I love them! Well, not really. A 320d that came into us failed its MOT for a nearside brake light failure. Initial examination exposed water ingress in the light cluster socket. Please refer to Fig.2. A replacement housing and socket with new pins duly arrived and was fitted. All lights except the brake light worked. Serial interrogation showed the maximum number of ignition cycles, which is 50 in case you were wondering, had been exceeded. Therefore, the voltage supply to the stop lamp is permanently interrupted. Please refer to Fig.3, showing BMW serial data. Initial research suggested a new footwell module was required. However, further research uncovered that it was possible to access the lines of code and reset the ignition cycle count registry. This demonstration was not using an OEM service tool. As I was on holiday I am not sure what further steps were taken to explore this avenue of rectification. I do know we did replace the module and perform a repair. There are so many fuse and relay panels on BMWs, so why not have one for lights? Answer me that, Munich. 24 AFTERMARKET JULY/AUGUST 2023 TECHNICAL www.aftermarketonline.net A MONTH IN THE LIFE OF A VEHICLE TECHNICIAN Garages cannot always be strong in every aspect, and Frank’s recent diagnostic and engineering challenges highlighted this Simple things Next, a Land Rover Discovery - I love these as well! This one came as a non-run vehicle. “Why?” I hear you say. Well, apparently, a low SCR additive warning had surpassed the final warning status. Serial data appeared to indicate the additive tank was overfilled. The filler is under the bonnet, with the tank located at the nearside rear, adjacent to the wheel arch. Once the hard-shell cover is removed, a drain gland allows easy draining. Not so fast, three simple things to do. First, smell it; It should be odourless, with a SG of 32.5%. Next, check the quantity. Finally discard it and refill with new urea. As I recall, the capacity is 14.5 litres. Using our serial tool reset, all the adaptive values enabled the engine to run. However, several adaptive values could not be accessed due to the following DTCs: P2BAE-00 NOX EXCEEDED P2BAF-00 NOX DRIVER INDUCEMENT ACTIVE U029E-87 LOST COMMS NOX SENSOR 2 U0001-86 HIGH SPEED CAN COMMS BUS ERROR. Part five Fig. 1 Fig. 2 Fig. 3
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