Computer Glitch?

[djambalawa]

Well on the way home yesterday from work and I notice the aircon isn't running... I look at the dash and it says "drivers door open" so I open and close it whilst travelling and then the aircon etc comes back on. Drive on for another 100 metres or so and then the aircon goes off again.

So I pull over and turn it off thinking that maybe its a computer glitch or something and maybe restarting will fix it - except it doesn't start!

So I'm stuck on the side of the road. After trying many times to start it and getting errors on the dash about either the emergency park brake or the HDC system unavailable I ring roadside assistance and they send someone out to get me.

My wife gets there 15 minutes later before the roadside assistance gets there and I go to try and start it to show her what is wrong and it just starts like there was never any problem!

Any ideas on what it might have been? Should I take it into Darwin Mitsubishi (the local LR mob) to check it? Was it because I waited longer to try and restart it the last time that the computer reset or something?

Went for a few drives last night and to work this morning and no probs at all...

[Scouse]

D3s never do this so it must have just been a bad dream ;).


Take it to the dealer, get them to check the faults logged & maybe check the transfer case ECU behind the battery. They are prone to getting moisture in the connection & causing problems like you've described.

[djambalawa]

Just happened again when I was driving out the carpark for lunch.. so I went straight to the dealer... least they saw it in action...

Left it with them.. hopefully they sort it soon... :(

[djambalawa]

They got it back to me in time for knock off time... they reckon it was the immobiliser.... needed a software update... hopefully they're right...

They uploaded heaps of updates though.. showed me a list of 3 pages :eek: - they reckon they updated all the system so hopefully thats a good thing...

[djambalawa]

Took it for a drive today on a gravel.. and I think the problem remains - its just a little bit different now maybe due to the software updates?

Basically driving along and the aircon will go off.. and then on again. It seemed often to correspond when I hit a bump. Also the door locks would make a noise, and the external temperature display on the dash would go blank...

So it sounds like a lose connection somewhere? When I got back on the bitumen everything stayed fine...

I'm assuming that I'm just getting systems cutting in and out with a lose connection but not getting system errors now because software updates have made it more robust and not to chuck a wobbly if whatever component it is is turned off and on?

I did tell them to check the transfer case ECU as suggested below but they reckon it wasn't that... not sure how well they checked it though... i got the impression that they decided it wasn't as there was nothing logged in the computer for it...

[300+]

Dunno what the problem is, but there is a mini reset performed when you turn the engine off then back on.

Apparently there is a major reset performed if you leave it off for several minutes so that the handbrake light goes off (this remains on with the keys out for a while).

Hence when you waited for your wife the fault cleared as a full start up check was performed.

Cheers, Steve

[mike 90 RR]

Dunno what the problem is, but there is a mini reset performed when you turn the engine off then back on.

Apparently there is a major reset performed if you leave it off for several minutes so that the handbrake light goes off (this remains on with the keys out for a while).

Hence when you waited for your wife the fault cleared as a full start up check was performed.

Cheers, Steve

.... Top tip there, Steve :BigThumb:

[djambalawa]

Darwin Mitsubishi have had it for a few days and they reckon its a "instrument cluster" whatever that is - they are ordering a new one today so it might be a few more days :(

Hopefully that solves it...

[PhilipA]

In a 38A there are microswitches in the door locks to tell the computer whether the door is closed. It was /is a reasonably common fault that the switch would fail and the suspension not rise. I had it happen to me when I drove a friend's 38A.
I would be pretty confident that the D3 will also have a microswitch and this may be faulty.
Regards Philip A

[Bushwanderer]

The "instrument cluster" contains your speedo, tacho etc. It's not a common fault, but not unheard of. I suspect that it is more the hidden stuff behind the instruments that is at fault.

Best Wishes,
Peter

[RichardK]

Perhaps a loose earth?? I had that in my first D3, once tracked down and fixed, all OK

[djambalawa]

Well they fitted it and I picked it up late wednesday and all good it seems. :D Going camping this weekend so will be a good test.

[ivery819]

Re; Instrument cluster fault.

The instrument cluster acts as the switch and junction between the various high and low speed CAN bus equipment. Some of the clusters have developed faulty diode packs and have needed replacing.
The fault doesn't necessarily show up on stored data fault logs unless the cluster itself is interrogated.

[djambalawa]

Well I thought it was fixed but the problem re-emerged when I was at the Point Stuart Wilderness Lodge. I notice the problem starting again as I was coming back to it after a days fishing on a slightly corrugated dirt track. Then the following morning (yesterday) it wouldn't start with the same problems - hazard lights, EPB/HDC errors etc...

Tried for hours and called roadside assistance... long way from Darwin - and when the truck got there the damn thing started! Well it went crazy all the way home still - with the problem cutting in and out - but seems ok if the engine is already running - you just lose aircon and get the hazard lights on etc...

The truck followed me back to Darwin Mitsubishi and I've left it with them again :(

So far they've done software updates that didn't help and then did a instrument cluster replacement... seemed to go away for a couple of weeks but now its back - not sure if its because I went off the bitumen or not.. maybe related to shaking or dust - although the road wasn't overly rough.

Sucks because our second car (a little suzuki vitara) doesn't fit all the family in and LR don't give you a second car whilst they have yours...

[CaverD3]

You may need to make a trip to Alice.;)

[djambalawa]

Just found this thread when searching for something else and thought that I should update it for completion's sake... :)

Not long after this i got my nephew (and auto leccy) to install a traxide dual battery kit and he noticed there was a lose earth somewhere in the engine bay - he tightened it up and voila all these problems were fixed! :)

Ended up being a great car for me the D3.

[Rich84]

I read through this thread and immediately thought either loose earth or loose battery terminal.




I've had similar HDC/cascade faults from the same thing - especially apparent on rough roads. Fixed and it never happened again.