EPC LIGHT

EPC LIGHT

A few months ago the battery in my VW Polo Classic remote key, gave up the ghost.  I used the remote key to lock the car and set the alarm / immobilizer the night before but it refused to open the doors the following morning. So I unlocked the car with the key.  That’s when I realized that my 2007 VW Polo Classic Highline only has one door lock and that I only had access via the driver’s side door.   Neither the left side passenger door nor the rear doors on either side have any locks keyholes. This didn't surprise me because cutting cost has become the new standard in new car design. By not fitting these legacy locks, the car manufacturer saves the cost of three locks, the internal door mechanisms and the labour cost to install them when the car is assembled.  Multiply this amount of savings by the entire vehicle production for the year and you can surely see their total saving.

The Battery inside the electronic key housing.

That brings me to another cost saver implemented in most cars manufactured during 1996 and later. If you heard about OBD II (On-Board Diagnostics II) and CAN-Bus (Controller Area Network-Bus), you will have some notion what I am talking about. With the implementation of CAN-Bus auto electric wiring has been reduced to a bare minimum.  The average older car had between 300 – 400 meters of wiring, used for its head lights, tail lights, windscreen wipers, horn, dashboard electrics, alarm system, central locking, interior lighting etc, etc ...  Much of this wiring are roughly the same thickness (0.5 - 1.5 mm square) to carry the required current to the various devices.  But inside the engine compartment there are numerous thicker wires for the starter, ignition, air conditioner fan motor, alternator, main supply to the fuse box as well as  earth straps to mention but a few.   All these copper wires range between 1.5mm square – 15mm square, some of which are tin plated to minimize corrosion. Not only is this 400 meters of copper wiring expensive, it also weights a good 60-70 kgs.

By embracing the CAN-Bus technology, manufacturers save on the purchase of about 50Kgs of copper wire. Fifty kilograms of copper wire multiplied by the annual car production gives you some idea of the overall saving. Fifty kilograms taken off the weight of a car also gives it a better 'power to weight ratio' hence making it more fuel efficient.  With CAN-Bus technology,  all the  control modules in the car are interconnected, on a serial data network, each module taking charge of a sub circuit of  the electrical system. These modules are network similar to USB (Universal Serial Bus) used in computer networking.

VW EPC LIGHT

However,  CAN-Bus and OBD II was not implemented to save copper, nor to lessen the weight of cars neither to make cars  more fuel efficient.  It was firstly agreed upon by the EPA, then legislated by several Governments whose countries manufacture cars, to install an EMS (Engine Management System) in every new car built after 1996. This management system would monitor the engine and transmission of the car and insure that 'engine emission levels' stayed within a predetermined margin of compliance.  If this level is exceeded due to engine malfunction, the embedded diagnostic system should be able to recognize it and recorded such malfunction and also alert the driver with some form of MIL (Malfunction Indicator Light). Alternatively turn on the EPC light (Electronic Power Control - epc warning light) and stops the  car from revving up or  inhibit the management system and shut the car down.  The frequency of engine misfires or malfunctions are recorded in code format (vw epc code) designed by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) in the ECU's non-volatile memory which is only accessible by the service agents or by someone with a modern day ODB II / CAN-Bus compliant diagnostic scan appliance.

Anyway let me return to the story of the remote control battery. Off I went to the local VW agent to buy a replacement battery.  I drove  a good 40 Km there  and back but still returned without the battery. It was just way too expensive for a small mercury cell. Problem was, I didn't phone to find out how much it cost. At the price that this VW agent charged for the  fob key battery I could manufacture it myself and it would still be cheaper. So I scouted around at a few photographic shops for this particular battery and eventually found a pharmacy that sold them. Hypothetically, if I bought all the pharmacy’s battery stock and sold it to this VW agents at half their asking price I would in fact have made a very comfortable living.

For more information on epc light vw, epc vw, vw epc light, epc on vw,  epc light on vw, epc vw lupo, vw epc warning light, vw epc code, epc in vw, epc indicator light, vw epc online, see EPC light revisited. 

For more information on epc on a vw, epc warning light vw, epc vw tiguan, epc bei vw,epc light, vw epc uyarısı,  see EPC demystified.

For more information  epc warning light, what is epc light, epc light on, what is the epc light, what is an epc light,what is a epc light, epc fault light, see EPC demystified.

If you found this blog informative or even remotely helpful, then at least recommend it to others by clicking on g+1 below. Thank you in anticipation!