[Geoff1965]

After a failed to start incident where the battery was disconnected/reconnected the car started minus central locking, power windows, tail and dash lights.

After searching the forum I found I had joined the failed ETACS club.

Had an Auto Electrician confirmed that the ETACS has all inputs of power to it but no outputs. He was not prepared to disconnect the ETACS for fear it would stop the car from starting.

I have priced a new ETACS at $600 AU or $200 for used.

My question is, will disconnecting the ETACS (After battery disconnect) and replacing with another unit (new or used) prevent the car from starting? Is there a procedure to follow to ensure no other damage is done?

At the moment the car is driveable during the day. The centre console plastic is removed for easy access to replace the ETACS unit. I can also get the part numbers to confirm the next unit is compatible.

Any help is appreciated

Geoff1965

 

[DavesSpectra]

Have you disconnected the battery again after the problems?

The ETACS (or BCM... body control module) is a microcomputer and like any computer it can get "lost" and may need reset...

The process of removing and replacing the battery can cause some "false starts" and can confuse the micro-computers..You can temporarily "loose" functions because of "ports" not getting correctly reset..

You need to make sure the initial reconnection of the battery does not loose it's first connection while it's being connected...

Try removing the battery terminal (neg) and waiting aprox 1 minute and then reconnect it quickly not allowing it to spark more than once.

The micro first initializes it's input and output ports and if it's interrupted at this time they may not be properly set to function. That sounds like what may you have in your case.
We have had some bad ETACS in the 04~09 Spectras and just a few other models...They have been pretty durable in the KIA cars.
Dave

 

[Geoff1965]

Thanks Dave

I tried the battery disconnect with fast reconnect to minimise sparking.

No change, still not working.

Looks like it needs to be replaced, just don't know if this is as simple as unplug the old and plug in the new/used unit.

I took some photos of my unit to get the part numbers and have tried to attach them to this post.

Geoff

 

[Wry 'Cuda]

You could buy 5 Batteries for the price of the dead "computer". What sort of a battery computer is it that can't protect itself from disconnect/reconnect?

What would you give for a car with no ETACS or OBD? Honestly, the number of times that these systems cause trouble without any helpful analysis is amazing. Why not just engineer a car that WORKS, Full Stop? I've had cars that kept going for nearly 20 years without messages or user intervention except for fairly irregular maintenance.