VE Series 2 intermittent stalling

[fab4272]

Hi all,
My VE Series 2 with 3.0 SIDI has been stalling the last 5 days. Engine runs smoothly then for no reason it can shudder then stall, or cut out completely. When this happens and I leave the ignition on, the butterfly on the intake is clicking on and off rapidly. The dash displays engine immobilised.

When I try to restart, most times it won't start straight away, but if I wait a few minutes it will, but then again will stall within 30 seconds. After cooling down for a few hrs it will run again like normal until this happens again.

Took it to the mechanic who picked up a fault in the battery. Changed that, car ran great for 4 days but is now doing it again.

The only error coming up on the scanner is " key transponder key error". He thought it might be the transponder being faulty and the computer switching on the immobiliser when it couldn't find the key, but then he thought that when the car has been started, the key is then bypassed as it would be unsafe to switch the car off when driving.

Anyone else experience this at all? I'm thinking either the TPS or ECM.

Would Holden have better diagnosis equipment better than a general necessary than a general mechanic? His scanner was about the size of a laptop and had my model car in its database.

Thanks.

 

[fab4272]

Ok. My auto elec has pulled the following code off the ECM.

DTC B3935 (Transponder Key Error).

Funny, as the car starts, and I can't imagine the the ECM would cut the engine out after starting thinking there is no key, that would be dangerous.
He's going to relfash the ECM to see if that clears it, if not he's talking about replacing the modules and maybe the instrument cluster.

I frankly am not keen of replacing items just to see if that fixed the problem. Has anyone else encountered an intermittent stalling problem in the VE Series 2 and also had this code returned?

Thanks.

 

[snortings]

Why replace the instrument cluster?

 

[fab4272]

I think it was just a passing comment.

Anyway, my car is now at Holden. My auto elec says it is a problem with a module in the dash somewhere (he called it the ECM). Says he can't fix the issue as the codes he needs to replace/reprogram will not be released by Holden.

 

[AussieAs]

Gday My sv6 is doing exactly the same thing how did you end up with yours did you figure it out.
my mechanic is saying ECM might be stuffed. And what did they slug you for it.
Cheers

 

[AussieAs]

I think it was just a passing comment.

Anyway, my car is now at Holden. My auto elec says it is a problem with a module in the dash somewhere (he called it the ECM). Says he can't fix the issue as the codes he needs to replace/reprogram will not be released by Holden.

Hi I'm having the same problem what problem did it end up being. EcM ?

 

[Martbar]

Hi I'm having the same problem what problem did it end up being. EcM ?

Mate OP hasn't logged on for about 6 months. If no one picks it up this time, you might have to start your own thread. This has been discussed in some detail before. Good luck.

 

[krusing]

To the OP, and others reading this with the same fault,

The B3935 is a Body Control Module error, not an ECU error,
I have B3935 as "Transponder Authentication Error" [similar to above]
If you can find someone with a good scan tool,
it will show the live data and show you which key is working and not working.
How many Keys you have for the Car ?
Have you purchased any news ones of recent ?

Possibly get all your keys erased from the BCM, and reprogrammed in,
Keeping in mind, the first Key to be programmed in will be a Master Key,
and the others will be slave keys.

 

[Fu Manchu]

The transponder reader is mounted up under the steering column. It’s attached by a single screw. It hides behind the shroud. It’s made from a brittle clear plastic. They can crack and become unstable. If they loose connection with the key because it’s moved a bit, then this is what happens.

In these situations, if a repairer suggests replacing a BCM or ECM, I’d be making a discrete mark in the module. A scratch in the plastic or metal of the ECM. If you get charged for a new ECM at a thousand dollars and they’ve changed the key reader, you’ll know if the ecm or BCM is the same one as when you left it with them.

The key reader doesn’t need VIN matching to the best of my knowledge.

 

[krusing]

The transponder reader is mounted up under the steering column. It’s attached by a single screw. It hides behind the shroud. It’s made from a brittle clear plastic. They can crack and become unstable. If they loose connection with the key because it’s moved a bit, then this is what happens.

In these situations, if a repairer suggests replacing a BCM or ECM, I’d be making a discrete mark in the module. A scratch in the plastic or metal of the ECM. If you get charged for a new ECM at a thousand dollars and they’ve changed the key reader, you’ll know if the ecm or BCM is the same one as when you left it with them.

The key reader doesn’t need VIN matching to the best of my knowledge.

Side note to @Fu Manchu comment:

I would ask for the old one back, "since you own it", and you have paid for a new one,
If they say they have thrown it out, they need to retrieve it.