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Dealing with Outdated Automotive Software?
Jan Hendrik Montag asks: "My car mechanics had problems to fix a problem in electronic motor management with my 14 yr old Audi. That was not too surprising. But as my mechanic consulted a Volkswagen/Audi-company, they received the answer, that my car is too old and they don't have the appropriate devices and software to read my cars' mind. I just wonder, what will happen in 20 or 30 years to then-vintage-cars from today? Shouldn't there be a necessity to declare old car-software and diagnostic devices open-source just to make sure a collector then can repair his/her car just as it is possible to repair an old car from the 60's? Or will those cars be doomed in case of failure? What would be a solution?"
There's no great secret to controlling an engine, so I don't see the point. If we want to think about this in computer terms, the engine controller is comparable to a text editor. Everyone knows what they do, there's a standard file format, no surprises. You don't like one, or the person maintaining it gives up, you use another one.
For some time now, you have been able to buy generic engine controllers which just need calibrating to work with your car's engine (I know, I work for a company who makes them). These aftermarket ones used to be pretty dumb - time, emissions legislation and cheaper microcontrollers have made a big difference to this now though. In fact, it's not inconceivable that an aftermarket one would give better performance/economy/emissions than the old one, by having more accurate calculation, better modelling of engine behaviour, etc.
Maybe there's someone who's desperate to use only original equipment, who will insist on using an engine controller with a dodgy old 8-bit micro when the cheapest Ford is coming off the production line with a 32-bit micro. I don't see the point in it myself. The engine controller doesn't change the character of the car (if calibrated to give a similar response to the old one), so replacing it shouldn't be an issue.
Grab.
Despite how well you think modern cars are built, and some of them are built very well, they simply aren't intended to last 20-30 years. If anything, they will force them out of the market by doing exactly what they did to you - stop supporting and making parts for them.
:( (If I find some I'll let you know!)
As as a person who drives a car from the 60's ('64 Rambler Classic, specifically!), I can honestly say there is no way even an advanced home mechanic can fix their modern car as easily as that car... not the least reason being that most modern cars greet you with a rats nest of plastic and wires when you open the hood.
With older cars, you open the hood to find an engine of all things! Hell, there's enough room to climb in there and sit next to it while you work!
Anywho, I've heard stories of people sucessfully plugging their generic laptops into their car's computer and getting some useful data out of it. Unfortunately I don't have any sources
And yes, I agree that releasing software for outdated cars would be a Good Thing(tm), as it would make it that much easier for the average Joe to tinker should he be so inclined. Tinkering is seldom a bad thing!
=Smidge=
#1: Your mechanic is full of shit. I believe current VAG dealer diagnostic tools analyze your year, and if the current ones don't, it's not like dealers just throw away older diagnotic tools.
r t DIY Fuel injection controller. There are a shipload of Audi's running this, and the mailing list is quite friendly
#2: http://www.ross-tech.com/vag-com/
Buy the diag tool yourself. Tell mechanic to get bent.
#3: 1989 Audi? Might not have OBD-I, and the engine controllers back then didn't have a bunch of diagnostics. Sounds like you may have a lazy mechanic who doesn't want to take the time to actually diagnose your problem instead of plugging in a connector and charging you $90.
#4: http://www.bgsoflex.com/megasquirt.html
Megasqui
"As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly." A. Carlson
Here's one from a quick google for 'audi code scanner'. It covers back to 1988.
Jesus was all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. -John Lennon
How likely is it that a 15 year old Audi gets great mileage and has low emissions? very likely if they have followed the maintenance schedules. most people don't and that's why their cars go to hell prematurely. My 13 yr old Mitsubishi passes the emissions tests by a wide margin.
I've owned several audis, including an '86 80 sport, a 1990 5cyl 100, and a 1995 S6. This guys website is full of useful stuff. He markets a kit for the palm pilot that should answer your needs Remember, far more energy is used, and more CO2 is produced in building a car than it will produce in its lifetime, so keeping old cars running is good for the environent!
VAG-COM works with the older Audis going back to about 1989 or so. You need a special Y adapter to adapt the ODB-II style plug; if you have the plugs, they're two or three multicolored, 2-pin connectors, usually in the driver's side footwell or in the fusebox. 1991 was the first year in which fault codes could be stored in memory, so if your model is before that, you'll need to leave the engine running or crank it to 'generate' a code.
If your Audi is pre-1990 or so(you said 14 years yes?), run the car until the check light comes on or you see the problem; remove a spare fuse, plug the fuse into the top of the fuel pump relay for about 5 seconds and remove; the check engine light(engine block w/lightning bolt) will come on and blink a code of 4 digits, with a short pause between the digits; this will report all the codes and then repeat. Look up the codes at www.sjmautotechnik.com. Really really old Audis will either bounce the tachometer, or point it to different numbers in sequence to indicate the code.
If the problem is a no-start, you should attempt to crank the engine for 15 seconds, LEAVE the ignition ON, and then do the code retrieval.
You can also trigger an output test, which activates all the various eleectronic valves(there are many) in sequence.
If you still need more help, sign on to the 'quattro' list at www.audifans.com- but do so in a few days, the site admin had a death in the family right after we had some data loss, and things are pretty messed up unfortunately; you can't post, and archives are missing. We'll be running within a week. Google has a fair bit of our 10+ years of archives in its cache, however.
Please help metamoderate.
Hey, if you are up to it, you can build your own fuel and ignition management system. I am going to do this myself with my 65 barracuda. Here is link http://www.bgsoflex.com/megasquirt.html Let me know what you think!