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Citroën Xantia refuses to run

A 1999 Citroën Xantia had a new starter motor fitted, after which it would not run anymore. While cranking it would fire briefly and then die. The car’s battery had been disconnected for the starter motor job. A crankshaft sensor code was logged and thus the crankshaft sensor was replaced, regardless of the good signal. Later the ECM was replaced all with no positive results. The question was if the immobilizer could have reset itself by disconnecting the battery. Proper measuring revealed what the real problem was.

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Crankshaft

Ford Fiesta stutters

When trouble shooting intermittent problems, a good automotive oscilloscope is indispensable. A Ford Fiesta with J6B engine was suffering occasional stuttering. The shop it was brought to did not have an oscilloscope, so they could not easily locate the source of the problem. They did replace some components, but the problem remained. Using an automotive diagnostic oscilloscope, the problem was soon found.

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Throttle valve

Hesitant Renault Megane

Intermittent problems in cars can give garages a hard time, especially when their only diagnosis device is a fault code scanner and no codes are stored in the car. A garage deals with a 1998 Renault Megane 1.6 L with K7M engine with a dual fuel system, both petrol and LPG. Every now and then, the engine hesitates, both on petrol and on LPG. The garage performs some measurements and replaces the ECM, to no avail. Using an automotive diagnostic oscilloscope the search was continued and the culprit was found.

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Ford Mondeo with fuel pump issue

In modern cars with sophisticated and complex components, trouble shooting requires powerful tools. A Ford Mondeo 2.0 TDdi would no longer run. Fearing that wrong fuel was tanked, the tank was emptied and the fuel system cleaned. The proper fuel was added but the engine would still not start. Since wrong fuel was used, damage to the fuel pump was suspected. The pump was replaced, the engine replaced and the pump replaced once more, to no avail. Diagnosing using an automotive lab scope showed that a seemingly innocent component caused the problem.

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Troublesome Volvo XC70

A Volvo XC70 had serious engine related drivability problems. The engine lacked power, would hold back and even stall. Error codes indicated problems in two different areas. Replacing components did not improve things. Proper measuring with an automotive diagnostic oscilloscope revealed two independent problems. Fixing these solved all problems.

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MAF

Honda Jazz holds back and stalls

A 2006 Honda Jazz with L13A i-DSI engine occasionally holds back and sometimes even stops. No error codes were stored in the car. Several components have been replaced or swapped with an other car. A lot was driven in the car with a scanner hooked up to monitor the "live data" to find an anomaly in sensor or actuator data. Nothing showed up. Only after diagnosing with a good automotive diagnostic oscilloscope, the cause of the problems was revealed.

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Case studies
Ignition

VW Golf 4 accelerates with loud explosions

A Golf 4 turbo GTI was having serious problems with accelerating. Accelerating from 0 to 80 km per hour would take approximately 16 seconds, which is far too long for this car. Apart from the lack of power, the engine would hold back every half second and produce a lot of explosions in the exhaust. Based on an assumption, measuring with an automotive oscilloscope was started, but it lead to no solution. When the assumption was ignored and measuring was started at the basics, the cause was found in a different area than initially was thought.

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Case studies

Opel Agila with electrical problems

An Opel Agila runs bad and generates lots of throttle related error codes. The garage replaces the throttle body, throttle position sensors, the ECM and even a part of the wiring harness, to no avail. When measuring the vital signals with an automotive oscilloscope, the cause of the problems is revealed.

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Case studies