[NTLUG:Discuss] new to list, have a question

Sun Dec 7 09:28:54 CST 2003

Anyone know the switches to use when un-tarring the tarball for the
diag. software?  I'm a bit of a newbie, so it's less than intuitive (for
now ;)).  The documentation only says to unpack the tarball.  

My truck is a Chebbie 1500, so it's nothing exotic.  I just want to be
able to hear what the sensors are telling computer.  And of course, take
corrective / preventive action!

On Sun, 2003-12-07 at 20:36, Steve Baker wrote:
> Rev. wRy wrote:
> > On Sat, 2003-12-06 at 08:24, Clay Ramsey wrote:
> > 
> >>I hope that some of you are gearheads as well!  ;)
> 
> Me!  Me!  I'm a gearhead *and* a geek!
> 
> >>DO any of you know of any software (Lin based of course) that I can use
> >>to re-program the chip in my truck, as well as talk to the computer to
> >>hear what may be wrong with sensors etc etc???  I already have a RH 7.3
> >>laptop, so all I need is the software (and connector).
> 
> Hearing what's wrong with the sensors is possible.  Many of the codes
> are standardized (by California State law) - some others can be found
> on gearhead web sites - yet others are secret, known only to the manufactureres.
> 
> So, you can read the codes - but you may not be able to find out what
> they all mean.
> 
> You can also (typically) clear out codes for problems you may have
> fixed yourself.
> 
> My MINI Cooper'S has an unholy nasty feature - if you don't tighten up
> your gas cap, it triggers a warning light that you can only clear
> by taking it to the dealership.  So using something like freediag
> to zero it out is a really useful thing!
> 
> However, reprogramming the computer is next to impossible...read on...
> 
> > Check sourceforge.  Several projects popped up simply searching on
> > 'vehicle' including:
> > 
> > http://sourceforge.net/projects/freediag/
> > 
> > "Freediag is a suite of vehicle diagnostic protocols and an OBD II
> > (mostly) compliant Scan Tool, currently for Linux platforms."
> 
> Those tools allow you to probe diagnostic codes and reset faults and
> such - but they emphatically do not allow you to reprogram your cars
> software.
> 
> I'm a MINI Cooper maniac (we MINI owners hang out at www.metroplexMINI.org).
> 
> I've worked long and hard to figure out what it takes to reprogram the
> ECU chip in a MINI - and it's NOT easy.
> 
> I don't know in detail about your truck - but most modern vehicles
> have careful and secret protocols to prevent 'unauthorised' reprogramming
> of the Engine Management Unit (ECU).   The companies that offer 'chipped'
> ECU's spend most of their R&D money figuring out how to crack those
> protocols and they DON'T reveal what they know *EVER*!
> 
> As I understand it, there are 256 numerical 'algorithms' (probably math
> formulae of some kind) that a manufacturer can choose between - and
> each car has a 16 bit 'random' code built into it's ECU ROM.
> 
> When the 'programmer' (typically a laptop with a OBD-II serial port
> adapter) tries to download new software to the car, the following
> thing happens:
> 
> 1) The car sends it's 16 bit unique ID.
> 2) The programmer knows which of the 256 algorithms this car
>     uses.
> 3) It feeds the 16 bit number from the car into the appropriate
>     formula - and computes a 16 bit result.
> 4) This new 16 bit number is sent to the car.
> 5) In the case of the MINI Cooper, if the number doesn't match the
>     number the car expects back, the ECU shuts down and refuses to
>     do anything (even unlock the car doors!) for three hours.  I'm
>     told most cars aren't that extreme - but suffice to say repeated
>     trying of all 65536 response codes isn't going to work.
> 
> This is a hard nut to crack!
> 
> The way the 'chipping' companies do it is to beg/borrow/steal a legal
> programmer (eg by bribing an employee at a car dealership) - and they
> program a PC to behave like a car's ECU computer would.  Then, they
> can carefully feed the 'legal' programmer all 65536 possible codes
> for one of the algorithms - and record all of the bazillion results the
> programmer returns.
> 
> However the car manufacturers typically limit the rate at which these
> programmer machines will download code.  That can make doing a full
> search of the entire number space take an insanely long time - so
> it's safe to say that nobody has cracked all 256 algorithms - which
> is why chipping companies typically only support a few car types.
> 
> Welcome to the wonderful world of DRM.
> 
> There is an OpenSource package to completely replace the entire
> engine management computer with a complete new (Open) hardware
> design - and consequently allow you to put any software you like
> in the car.
> 
> That would take a LOT of nerve - bad ECU software can do LOTS of
> damage - and possibly be life-threatening!
> 
> I don't have the URL, but it shouldn't be hard to find.
> 
>     :-(
> 
> ---------------------------- Steve Baker -------------------------
> HomeEmail: <sjbaker1 at airmail.net>    WorkEmail: <sjbaker at link.com>
> HomePage : http://www.sjbaker.org
> Projects : http://plib.sf.net    http://tuxaqfh.sf.net
>             http://tuxkart.sf.net http://prettypoly.sf.net
> -----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK-----
> GCS d-- s:+ a+ C++++$ UL+++$ P--- L++++$ E--- W+++ N o+ K? w--- !O M-
> V-- PS++ PE- Y-- PGP-- t+ 5 X R+++ tv b++ DI++ D G+ e++ h--(-) r+++ y++++
> -----END GEEK CODE BLOCK-----
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> https://ntlug.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss