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Thread: A45 AMG W176 Messed up modes after write

  1. #1
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    A45 AMG W176 Messed up modes after write

    I've written a calibration to the car and some of the driving modes now have messed up characteristics. Needless to say I've only changed temperature threshold for the fan to turn on and nothing else.
    Sport mode idles at 1100 rpm in gear whilst before this was probably around 900 rpm.
    Race mode idles at 750 rpm in gear and before it was at 1100 rpm. It also doesn't "burble" or whatever it is called on an upshift anymore.
    This is super strange to me and not sure how it can happen especially when I am not seeing anything that controls this in VCM editor.
    Any insights would be much appreciated as I am completely stuck.

  2. #2
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    Read my last two paragraphs: https://forum.hptuners.com/showthrea...l=1#post776160

    Not saying this is your particular issue, but I suspect it is and it most certainly would be in my car because I experience it all the time. So my go-to, per my post, would be making a new tune from the original read and try again.

    I don't suppose you made a copy of the ECU before tinkering? Somewhere on the forum I talk about using KESS to copy mine, before I applied the HP Patch. Super glad I did so I can put the ECU back to how it was prior to messing with it. I also used that copy to make a used junkyard ECU work in my car. Having a spare is super nice and a huge help in troubleshooting.
    You can also read about the HP Patch occasionally bricking some poor owners Mercedes ECU. At least two people recently went through an absolute nightmare, an expensive one too, that could've been avoided had a copy been made. I believe one was an A45.
    I don't know if the bricking is a roll of the dice that can happen to any MB ECU, or if some are more succeptable or maybe some are immune, so as far as I'm concerned it's a risk to everyone. I've patched mine maybe a dozen times and so far so good. I did have it lock up on me one time mid-load, but reloading the patch again worked fine.

    A KESS copy may also come in handy for other things, like passing smog. I don't believe I would have been able to do that without my KESS backup from >two years ago. In my state, and in my particular case, failing would've meant the car is a 4000lb paperweight. I know because I've been down that road many times.
    The KESS hardware costs ~$60. Not sure if yours can be copied, because MB and Bosch try to make it difficult on purpose. Eg; my ECU was not on the list of ECU's that can be copied, but it worked anyway.

    No blame on those people that got burned by the HP patch bricking, and they do get burned. I blame HP for, at bare minimum, not mentioning the issue. They need to state clearly that there is a risk and a backup copy should be made prior. That would scare off customers and hurt sales, so imo that's why you don't get any warning...
    HP could/should make said patch so it does not F up the ECU. They should also make an undo to remove the patch and/or make something to unbrick a bricked one.
    Using KESS to reload the ECU is an undo, which is why I've loaded the HP Patch so many times.
    '16 E550 Coupe RWD - C207.373 / M278.922 / MED17.7.3 / 722.909

  3. #3
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    So from what I gathered - it could have been the write causing this and if I apply the file I read, it might get fixed?

    As to if I've made a copy - no.
    I've not been asked to patch anything, it just worked reading and writing without anything special.
    And a side question - if I buy a used ECU, what is required in terms of coding for it to work on my card - just a XENTRY initialization?

  4. #4
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    I'm not sure if it's the write that does it, but if I had to guess I'd say it's the HP Editor itself is screwing up the tune once you make a change. If it were the write then I'd assume it would cause more damage, but I just don't know. So I would simply take the original file you copied, make the same change to it and see what happens.

    I had assumed all Mercedes needed the patch, but I'm not an expert on the subject. Or maybe it's a used car and the last guy used HP on it? For me, with an unpatched ECU, you try to read it and it says you need the patch. It then downloads it from the server and you have to load it, which takes like 8 minutes on mine. Then, after cycling the ignition, you can read/write the ECU. There is no way to uninstall the patch so I have to wipe the ECU to get rid of it.

    The KESS makes a complete copy of the ECU, just like a Ghost copy of a computer. Once you have that copy you can write that to the ECU, or a used one. Like Ghost, it becomes exactly like the moment you made the original copy. So I wrote to copy to the junkyard ECU, and as far as the car was concerned, it was the original ECU as if I had unplugged it two years ago and it was sitting on a shelf ever since. Car starts right up, the end.
    There is a serial # on the ECU that stays with it, but the car doesn't care. Just like if you Ghosted a hard drive to a new drive and installed on your PC, the serial # of the new drive is different but the computer doesn't care, probably doesn't even know, and runs exactly the same.

    Now, that's my ECU, which was easy. I've heard other ECU's may not be so easy, possibly even impossible. It seems the newer the ECU the better the odds it'll be difficult, but I'm not the one to ask since I only my ECU.
    There is a forum on MHH Auto that probably has the answers. It's like $25 to join to post, but you can read for free. Or you can ask here, maybe someone like outlaw_50 who does this stuff for a living.

    And no Xentry needed, just KESS and a laptop/ PC to run it. I'm actually doing that as I write this. I'm trying to get rid of a code that has been haunting me for ~8 months. Plus still learning, eg; what does using HP do smog test wise. Or any mods for that matter. I learned the hard way that it does, but exactly what change makes it fail said test and how can I get around it? Very difficult to find this online so I'm experimenting
    Last edited by chevota; 04-14-2024 at 05:20 PM.

  5. #5
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    When flashing a file some modules need to receive wake up message through CAN bus so better check it with Xentry and clear fault codes as it may be
    "Loss Communication" on the AMG Drive Unit Module. If I recall it correctly its abbreviation is (AMG_DRVU)
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  6. #6
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    Thanks, there are indeed fault codes like:
    0x7E8: P24D6 (Pending)
    0x7EB: U0100 - Lost Communication With ECM/PCM A (Pending, Current)
    0x7EB: U0111 - Lost Communication With Battery Energy Control Module A (Pending, Current)
    0x7EB: U0155 - Lost Communication With Instrument Panel Cluster (IPC) Control Module (Pending, Current)
    0x7EB: U0168 - Lost Communication With Vehicle Security Control Module (Pending, Current)
    and others, but when I clear them they still appear later. I think after some time they stop appearing after clearing them. It is weird but at the end my modes are still messed up.
    Is it tho at all possible that flashing it like this could be the cause of it?

  7. #7
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    I get comm errors too, but per Xentry they only happen once a week or so and only for a moment. Apparently, usually at startup.

    When I was at the dealer getting my airbags swapped, I asked about that and he said they all do it, even brand new cars before sold have them. I dunno, but ever since I've been checking mine they're always there. I read bad grounds are a likely and common cause, so I spent hours tearing my car apart to fix what I knew wasn't broken, and sure enough all my grounds are fine and zero change.

    Doesn't HP verify the write after? Would it even know if things went south?
    '16 E550 Coupe RWD - C207.373 / M278.922 / MED17.7.3 / 722.909