****** coding......

[Phil Angel]

What happened to being able to fix a car with a set of spanners, sockets and a few screw drivers?..
These days everything has to be coded to the car...... wtf...?...

Change a bulb from halogen to led.....got to be coded!,,,,,,
Want to fit different wing mirrors......they will have to be coded......
Need to replace your battery........needs coding to the car.....

Why does everything need to be coded to work properly.....gets me right wound up!,,,,

 

[Buxton2901]

So the sealers can change them for you and charge you 000's

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk

 

[Phil Angel]

Tell me about it..... i had a bmw 330 which needed a battery last winter....got one from halfords, but they told me they couldnt code it to the car, so i called in to the local bmw dealer to get it coded.....they wont code a 3rd party battery to the car.....you have to buy one of their batteries and have it coded.... that will be £234 please sir!!

 

[DieselJake]

I like this thread, it's adding to my reasons of not getting my wallet out to buy a new car

 

[Phil Angel]

Seems you need to be a computer genius rather than a mechanic if you want to fix or modify your car these days.

 

[boffin486]

I never heard of having to code a battery to a car before???? That is just stupid in my opinion. I've changed batteries in plenty of cars over the years without any problems so, it seems, I have to agree with DieselJake on this one - another reason not to buy a new car.......

 

[Phil Angel]

I never heard of having to code a battery to a car before???? That is just stupid in my opinion. I've changed batteries in plenty of cars over the years without any problems so, it seems, I have to agree with DieselJake on this one - another reason not to buy a new car.......

Apparently new cars have inteligent alternators which adjusts the charging voltagr to the age and type of battery fitted to the car

 

[boffin486]

Unnecessary complicated madness in my opinion......

 

[Phil Angel]

Unnecessary complicated madness in my opinion......

Totally agree with you......i drive a car not a ****** computer

 

[B5NUT]

Thankfully ECU's are here to stay for Audi's, however if your not happy with them then there is a solution! https://www.dacia.co.uk/

 

[Phil Angel]

Lol...dont fancy a dacia.....i understand the reason for an ecu in a car in regards looking after the engine management and diagnosis system......but do you really need to tell the ecu if you change a bulb or update your electric mirrors for example....?

 

[B5NUT]

Yes, otherwise you would have **** load of extra wiring, relays & switches to add (depending on what you are option what to add), it also makes fault finding much easier as you can isolate the fault to a module rather than the hole wiring loom.

 

[CHEZ]

Yeah the coding of a battery scenario is an issue.
Once your car 'realises' the battery is dud, you can't just swap it out, you need to swap the battery, then 'teach' the car that it is a new battery.
I haven't had to do this yet, my battery is 10 year old, so it will have to be done some time or later, but I understand its not a case of replace it and off I go.
It's just a sign of the times these days I am afraid.
Cars are just getting more complex to the cars of old

 

[B5NUT]

Also here is a good example, this is a wiring harness for a aftermarket BT system on the A6 C6

Here is the harness to fit the Audi BT system

I would not even bother trying to fit the first, that is just the harness and you would need to add the control somewhere in the car so you could interact with the aftermarket BT system, the only benefit in no coding is required

The second however is so easy to fit but there is a small amount of coding, and there are only 5 wires (+,-, diag, Mic+ & Mic -) and 2 fibre optic wires, then it's just coding and you use the car's controls & builtin software to interact with the BT system.

 

[B5NUT]

Yeah the coding of a battery scenario is an issue.
Once your car 'realises' the battery is dud, you can't just swap it out, you need to swap the battery, then 'teach' the car that it is a new battery.

But that is so easy, you just change one digit on the serial number and that's it. It's not a difficult job to do. It's harder to program the timer on my oven..

 

[Phil Angel]

Thanks for the example you give here....and i get what you are saying with regards adding new systems, but surely just swapping a battery for a like for like replacement should be a simple mechanical process like it used to be

 

[CHEZ]

But that is so easy, you just change one digit on the serial number and that's it. It's not a difficult job to do. It's harder to program the timer on my oven..

Nice one
I didn't know that, because I haven't done it yet lol..
But I know who to ask when the time comes!
Wink wink

 

[B5NUT]

Thanks for the example you give here....and i get what you are saying with regards adding new systems, but surely just swapping a battery for a like for like replacement should be a simple mechanical process like it used to be

To be 100% honest you don't need to "code" a battery replacement, the battery coding has been around since the D3 started back in 2004, and I know dozens of people that just changed the battery and not bothered performing any coding, however since engine technology has increased including the stop/start system, the battery monitors have had to become more complex, as you don't want stop/start kicking in when the battery is low or getting knackered, so that is why it's better to tell the ECU you have a fresh battery otherwise stop/start and other functions many fail to work correctly

 

[Phil Angel]

I consider myself well and truly educated..... lol

 

[Paulbean]

Or just disable stop/start

 

[CHEZ]

Or just disable stop/start

Yep, definitely do that.
I hate it, terrible invention

 

[desertstorm]

The idea of coding the battery is that the car knows the capacity of the battery and it's chemistry. Newer cars can have a lead acid battery an EFB or AGM battery. With all the electrical loads present in a modern car the battery needs to be managed to get the best out of it.
The battery state and load is monitored and if the battery capacity is low the car will start load shedding to reduce the load.
If you replace the battery with a similar size / capacity there isn't an issue as the car will see that the battery condition has changed and will eventually restore any systems that it had disabled.
If you code the new battery, just change 1 digit in the serial number, then the car will immediately unlock any restrictions it has on power consuming items.
As stated above plenty of people have just dropped in a new battery and not coded it and had no issues. Best to fit something like a Varta silver battery, These are a lot of the time exactly the same battery as supplied to Audi. Pretty good prices at Tayna.co.uk.

One of the things that I do object to is the difficulty of changing rear brake pads if you have an electric parking brake and no VCDS. Fortunately I have a lead but never thought I would be using a laptop to change brake pads.

 

[B5NUT]

I've seen a lot of people connect a 12v battery across the terminals to revers the motor, however it's far safer to do it with VCDS.