Say Adios to the Three Amigos!
A new product has been developed by RSW Solutions and is now available to consumers. The ABS Amigo communicates directly with the vehicles ABS system and allows for DIY diagnosis.
Most DII owners know their dashboard has three lights that when all illuminated together have become known as the Three Amigos; the Traction Control light, the ABS Light and the Hill Decent Control light. When everything is working it’s a great system, however the Hill Decent Control relies on the Traction Control which relies on the ABS system so any problem with the ABS causes all three lights to come on and the system to be disabled.
The tricky part is that the systems can be so sensitive that they may produce faults that are actually false positives – for instance my vehicle had a squeaky brake pad which produced a frequency that interrupted one of the wheel speed sensors. There was nothing wrong with the wheel speed sensor hardware but the interruption was recognized by the system as a fault and subsequently disabled the ABS. On the other hand the original fault codes could have been a true positive caused by a broken or failing component so the warning lights should never be ignored.
What makes the ABS Amigo noteworthy is that the DII’s ABS system cannot be analyzed in detail or reset with a standard ODBII code reader. Until the ABS Amigo, DII owners’ only option when experiencing the Three Amigos was to take the vehicle into a Land Rover dealership or specialty shop with access to Test-Book or similar software systems. So even if the problem was a false positive or if you had already fixed the problem, access to the detailed codes and turning off the warning lights would cost a minimum of one hour shop time, $90 - $150.
The ABS Amigo retails for $195 and can be kept in your tool kit for repeated use. Simply plug the ABS Amigo into the vehicles ODBII port, wait about ten seconds for the red and blue lights to cycle and the green light to flash, remove the ABS Amigo and connect it to your home computer using a mini USB cable. The ABS Amigo acts as a flash drive and stores a text file of the last three faults indicated by your vehicle’s system.
My test showed that there were no current faults however in the past there had been a fault signal from the rear left wheel sensor. The hard fault left the ABS and Traction Control system disabled although there was no real problem with it's functionality. The ABS Amigo cleared the hard fault and the entire ABS system reset in about ten seconds.
RSW solutions is currently working on an enhanced user manual which will provide a full interpretation of the fault codes along with directions on parts needed and the processes to fix the problem, in the mean time some internet research or a certified Land Rover mechanic can help. www.rswsolutions.com.
Brian
A new product has been developed by RSW Solutions and is now available to consumers. The ABS Amigo communicates directly with the vehicles ABS system and allows for DIY diagnosis.
Most DII owners know their dashboard has three lights that when all illuminated together have become known as the Three Amigos; the Traction Control light, the ABS Light and the Hill Decent Control light. When everything is working it’s a great system, however the Hill Decent Control relies on the Traction Control which relies on the ABS system so any problem with the ABS causes all three lights to come on and the system to be disabled.
The tricky part is that the systems can be so sensitive that they may produce faults that are actually false positives – for instance my vehicle had a squeaky brake pad which produced a frequency that interrupted one of the wheel speed sensors. There was nothing wrong with the wheel speed sensor hardware but the interruption was recognized by the system as a fault and subsequently disabled the ABS. On the other hand the original fault codes could have been a true positive caused by a broken or failing component so the warning lights should never be ignored.
What makes the ABS Amigo noteworthy is that the DII’s ABS system cannot be analyzed in detail or reset with a standard ODBII code reader. Until the ABS Amigo, DII owners’ only option when experiencing the Three Amigos was to take the vehicle into a Land Rover dealership or specialty shop with access to Test-Book or similar software systems. So even if the problem was a false positive or if you had already fixed the problem, access to the detailed codes and turning off the warning lights would cost a minimum of one hour shop time, $90 - $150.
The ABS Amigo retails for $195 and can be kept in your tool kit for repeated use. Simply plug the ABS Amigo into the vehicles ODBII port, wait about ten seconds for the red and blue lights to cycle and the green light to flash, remove the ABS Amigo and connect it to your home computer using a mini USB cable. The ABS Amigo acts as a flash drive and stores a text file of the last three faults indicated by your vehicle’s system.
My test showed that there were no current faults however in the past there had been a fault signal from the rear left wheel sensor. The hard fault left the ABS and Traction Control system disabled although there was no real problem with it's functionality. The ABS Amigo cleared the hard fault and the entire ABS system reset in about ten seconds.
RSW solutions is currently working on an enhanced user manual which will provide a full interpretation of the fault codes along with directions on parts needed and the processes to fix the problem, in the mean time some internet research or a certified Land Rover mechanic can help. www.rswsolutions.com.
Brian
