FiatECUScan FiatECUScan FiatECUScan
 

HELP & DOCUMENTATION

FiatECUScan now comes with PDF User Guide (which is included in the installer)! You can also download the PDF document from here:

Download FiatECUScan User Guide (English)


Scroll down if you want to see the old "How To Use" web page.


Tested interfaces

We have tested FiatECUScan on different vehicles with the following interfaces:


This is the CANtieCAR interface which is included in FiatECUScan MULTIPLEXED package. It works both in Bluetooth and USB modes, and supports all cars and modules without need of additional adapters (except for the 3-pin adapter for old vehicles).


This is an ELM 327 interface which is sold by ELECTRONIC-FUCHS. The manufacturer has made modifications to the circuit to make it compatible with Fiat, Alfa and Lancia.
See the Supported Vehicles List for information about which modules are supported by the ELM327 interfaces.


This is an ELM 327 interface which is sold by GENDAN. It is a genuine ELM327 interface and it is compatible with Fiat, Alfa and Lancia.
See the Supported Vehicles List for information about which modules are supported by the ELM327 interfaces.


These are other ELM 327 interfaces. These interfaces may suffer the CAN Termination problem which is covered in the following topic on the forum: FAULTY ELM 327 INTERFACES DE-MYSTIFIED (READ HERE).
See the Supported Vehicles List for information about which modules are supported by the ELM327 interfaces.


These are the OBDKey interfaces. These interfaces support both ELM327 and KL/VAGCOM modes. So, they can connect to a wider range of control modules.
See the Supported Vehicles List for information about which modules are supported by the OBDkey interfaces.


These are the OBDLink and ELMScan5 interfaces. These interfaces support ELM327 mode.
See the Supported Vehicles List for information about which modules are supported by the ELM327 interfaces.


This is a basic KL/VAGCOM interface.
See the Supported Vehicles List for information about which modules are supported by the KL/VAGCOM interfaces.
























HOW TO USE

What you need

- A computer with Windows XP/Vista/7 OS
- K-line interface (a cheap VagCom KKL works great)
or ELM 327 v1.3 interface
- Drivers for the interface
- FiatECUScan

Getting started with VagCom interface




First, you need to install the serial port driver for the interface.
Then you have to change the default configuration of the installed serial port to make it work properly. Go to Windows' Device Manager and Double-click on USB Serial Port (or right-click and select Properties).


Go to Port Settings and click Advanced


On the next screen select the lowest possible value for "Latency Timer" (this is for FTDI usb serial port)


If you have a built-in serial port or PL2303 usb serial port you will need to lower the buffers to minimum as shown on the next screenshot. Note that for PL2303 USB serial port you will need to modify some registry settings in order to make it support 10400 bps.

Now you have to set the Interface Type to K-Line/VAGCOM in the Settings window of FiatECUScan. You also have to set the correct Serial port. The Port Speed is not important when using VAGCOM interface.
NOTE: You have to solder a short wire between pins 1-7-9 of your interface's OBD connector in order to connect to ABS and Power steering ECUs. Also, you need to have a connection on pin 3 of the OBD connector in order to connect to airbags.



Getting started with ELM 327 interface




Please, don't ask me which interface to buy. I simply don't know if given interface is working, faulty or fake. The ELM interface should have version 1.3, 1.3a or 1.4 inside.
You need to install the drivers for the interface.
YOU DON'T HAVE TO CHANGE ANY SETTINGS. JUST LEAVE THEM AT DEFAULT.
The screen below shows the default settings of my interface.

Now you have to set the Interface Type to ELM 327 v1.3+ in the Settings window of FiatECUScan. You also have to set the correct Serial port and Port Speed. Port speed is usually 38400 for all ELM 327 v1.3 interfaces.
You can use the Test button to test your ELM 327 interface. It shows the version of the ELM 327 software and also tests how the ELM interface responds to various commands. You should see an OK response under each command.
If you see a message saying that COMX does not exists it means that you have selected incorrect serial port. If you see a message saying Timeout it most probably means that you have selected an incorrect port speed.


NOTE: You have to solder a short wire between pins 1-7-9 of your interface's OBD connector in order to connect to ABS and Power steering ECUs. This is not required if those ECUs are on the CAN network. The EPS of Fiat Punto MK2 for example is on the can network.




Locate the OBD connector in your vehicle. It is usually located on the bottom of the fuse box next to steering wheel.



Installing FiatECUScan

Download the latest version of FiatECUScan from home page.
Start the .MSI install program and follow the on-screen instructions.


Using FiatECUScan

After successful installation the program will be added to your start menu. So, you have to locate FiatECUScan in your start menu and start it.
The program will open the vehicle/system selection screen.

Main window




If you are starting the program for the first time, then you need to set you serial port and other settings first. Click on Settings button (or press F9). On this dialog you can change interfaces, languages, paths, graph colors, fonts, etc.
When you are ready click OK to confirm your changes, or click Cancel. The Settings window will close and the program will return to main window.


Back on the vehicle selection screen.

Here you can use the arrow keys to move up/down in the list, or use TAB key to switch between Make/Model/System/ECU selections.
Select Make/Model/System and make sure that the cable is properly connected to your vehicle. Then click on "Connect" button (or press F10) to start the connection. The program will show "CONNECTING..." message and try to connect to selected ECU. The key should be turned to MAR position when connecting to the ECU.
NOTE: You can press CTRL-F10 to start the connection in "simulation" mode. This will allow you to explore the available parameters, actuators, adjustments for selected ECU without a physical connection.
NOTE: If there are multiple ECUs available, and you are not sure which of them is installed in your vehicle then just try to connect with each of them. The correct one will not show the "Invalid ISO Code" message.


If connection fails the program will show a message for the reason of connection failure.


Some of the possible messages are:
- The port COMXX does not exists - means that you have selected incorrect serial port number, or your cable is not connected to the computer
- Invalid ELM interface - means that your ELM interface does not respond properly
- Timeout - If you are trying to connect to an ELM interface then you have probably set an incorrect port speed
- ELM327->ECU Connection failed - There is no physical connection between the ELM interface and the ECU. This message could also appear if you are using an old ELM interface (before v1.3)


The program may show the "Invalid ISO Code" message.


This means that you have not selected the correct ECU. In this case you may continue but it is not guaranteed that the parameters, error codes, actuators or adjustments will work properly.
If there are multiple ECU choices (usually there are multiple choices for airbags, and also for ABS) then go back to the main window and select another ECU.


After successful connection the program will show the

Info screen

On this screen you can see the ECU identification info:


You can click "Disconnect" (or press F11) to disconnect from the ECU and go back to vehicle selection window.
You can navigate the screens using the following keys:
F2 - Switch to Info screen
F3 - Switch to Errors screen
F4 - Switch to Parameters screen
F5 - Switch to Graph screen
F6 - Switch to Actuators screen
F7 - Switch to Adjustments screen

Errors screen

On this screen you can check and clear the Fault Codes stored in the ECU.


You can use arrow up/down keys to select a fault code and see its description.
Or you can click on "Clear Errors" button (or press F10) to clear the fault codes from the ECU.


If some of the errors are still available after "Clearing" this means that you have not fixed the problem that causes these errors (faulty sensor, open circuit, etc.)


Parameters screen

On this screen you can see live data from the ECU.


Use arrow up/down keys to navigate through the parameters and press SPACE to select/unselect a parameter. You can also select/unselect a parameter by clicking the checkbox on the left. Selected parameters are colored red.
You can use the buttons on the bottom to re-arrange the list of parameters:
Click "Selected Up" (or press S) to move the selected parameters on top of the list.
Click "Alpha Sort" (or press A) to re-arrange the parameters alphabetically by name.
Click "Units Sort" (or press U) to re-arrange the parameters alphabetically by units.
Turn on/off the "Auto Up" button (or press R to do it). When it is on the parameters are automatically moved on top when you select them.

Templates
This function allows you to quickly select a group of parameters by pressing the keys from 0 to 9.
You can store a template by pressing CTRL-X where X is a key between 0 and 9. You can load a template by simply pressing the a key between 0 and 9. You can view the stored templates by clicking on the "Templates" button (or by pressing T).


This function is designed to try to match the parameters in different ECUs as much as possible. So that if you select "Engine speed" for template "0", then disconnect and connect to another engine, then select template "0" it will still select "Engine Speed".

Graph screen

On this screen you can create graph of the live data, and also create CSV files with recorded data.


The parameters must be selected on the Parameters screen before switching to this screen.
Click on Start/Stop button (or press F10) to start and stop recording of the data. The program has capabilities of creating multiple recordings. So that each time you click Start a new file is created, and each time you click Stop the file is saved. You can give each of those files a name, or leave the default naming with File 1, File 2, etc.
You can select which file to view on the screen from the drop down box with files (right above Import and Export buttons). You can also Import/Export .CSV files from here. Note that .CSV files are also automatically exported each time you click Start/Stop (The files are saved in the "CSV Folder" which can be configured from the Settings window).
You can select the recording rate from the dropdown box. The rate must be selected before starting of the recording session.
You can change the horizontal scale of the graph at any time.
You can also change the number of graphs (1 to 4) at any time.
From the parameters section on this screen you can select which parameters to draw on the displayed graphs. Checking/unchecking a parameter here does not affect data recording. The data for all of the available parameters is recorded.
The parameters section also shows the current value for each parameter and the Min/Max values of each parameter during recording.
When data recording is stopped you can select a file from the file drop down box and click on Export CSV button (or press E).
NOTE: The Graph screen is available even after you disconnect from the ECU. This way you can examine the recorded data offline, or load a .CSV file with data and examine it.

TAGS
This function allows you to insert tags in recorded data which will allow you to recognise certain conditions when examining recorded data.
The tags are asigned to keys 0 to 9, and you can insert them into the recording by simply pressing a key between 0 and 9. You can press T to show/hide the window with tags, where you can edit the text value of each tag.






Actuators screen

On this screen you can run various actuator tests.


Use the arrow up/down keys to select a test. Test description is shown in the box on the right.
On the bottom right of the screen you can watch how some parameters change during test execution. The parameters must be selected on the Parameters screen before switching to Actuators screen. Please note that some ECUs freeze the parameter values during actuator tests and you may not see any change in the parameter values.
Click on "Execute" button (or press F10) to run the selected test.
The program will provide feedback for the test results. You may get a "Test Failed" message with additional description of the reason. Some tests are simply not supported on all versions of given ECU, others require specific conditions to execute properly (most of them require the engine to be turned off).


Adjustments screen

On this screen you can run various calibration or configuration routines.


Use the arrow up/down keys to select an adjustment. Adjustment description is shown in the box on the right.
Click on "Execute" button (or press F10) to execute the selected adjustment.
The program will provide feedback for the adjustment results. You may get a "Test Failed" message with additional description of the reason. Some functions are simply not supported on all versions of given ECU, others require specific conditions to execute properly (engine on, engine off, engine heated, etc.).
Some of the adjustments return a status code after execution.
On this screen you can also do Injector Classification for the JTD engines.


Communication problems

Watch out for appearance of the latency warning message at any time when the program is connected to the ECU as shown on the next image. It shows that the communication with the ECU is not stable because of serial port latency or because the system is overloaded.



Additional Tips

To connect to some modules you will need a modified interface or an adapter cable.
See http://www.fiatecuscan.net/SupportedVehiclesList.aspx for details about the required interface and cable adapter for each module.


That is all.
If you have more questions please visit my forum.