S-Class (W220) 1999-2006: S 320 CDI, S 320, S430, S 500, S 600

i980 scanner not connecting to ESP module? ESP, ABS, BAS issues

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Old Dec 18, 2014 | 01:48 PM
  #1  
_Ryan's Avatar
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From: NH/Boston
2004 S600 Biturbo
i980 scanner not connecting to ESP module? ESP, ABS, BAS issues

I was recently driving when the car suddenly died. ESP and BAS warnings came on as well as ABS light. Car would crank but would not restart. Towed home. Started up when I got home but ESP BAS and ABS lights were still on.

I bought the carsoft i980 scanner for Mercedes thinking I could save a little bit of money vs buying the full star system.

I can communicate with several modules in the car, SRS, door modules, airmatic, etc, but it will not communicate with the ESP module. Thinking the module might be bad I ordered a replacement. Swapped it in and same issue. My module looks perfect. No corrosion, no evidence of water damage, not even any dust. It looks brand new. Nothing burned out on the inside either. I am guessing that the module is fine and the scanner is the problem, but I wanted to see if anyone else has had this communication issue.

I know of a couple common reasons why the ESP BAS lights come on but none seem directly related to my issue. The big difference being that my car will not start and drive but it does crank over. Most issues like the brake switch, wheel speed sensors, and steering angle sensor will default to a different failure state. Before this the car was perfect. I had never seen any of these lights before.

Anyone been able to communicate to the ESP module using the i980 scanner?
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Old Dec 19, 2014 | 12:17 AM
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Mercedes
Have you changed the cps ? Try that it's a $30 part
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Old Dec 19, 2014 | 08:29 AM
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From: NH/Boston
2004 S600 Biturbo
Originally Posted by tusabes
Have you changed the cps ? Try that it's a $30 part
I don't feel like shotgunning parts at this thing. That is why I bought the scanner. I want to definitively know what is wrong so that I can replace the part and be assured that the car won't die on me again in the middle of rush hour traffic downtown Boston. I need a scanner that works.

$30 for a CPS, $20 for a brake switch, $100 for a steering angle sensor, $100 for an ESP module, it adds up and still doesn't give reassurance that the problem is fixed and won't happen again.
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Old Dec 19, 2014 | 09:41 AM
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It's not shot gunning . A car that will crank but not restart when hot , but will restart once it cools off is classic cps failure , a code reader will not usually indicate a CPS failure. Not even star will see it.

Now you can be stubborn and keep wanting a magic scanner that will pinpoint the exact problem , which does not exist - or you can replace a common failure prone part that exhibits the exact symptom you described . Your choice .

Last edited by tusabes; Dec 19, 2014 at 09:44 AM.
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Old Dec 19, 2014 | 09:46 AM
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From: NH/Boston
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But that isn't the full issue. Does a cps cause esp bas and abs lights to activate? The car will occasionally not start even when cold. Hot or cold seems to have no bearing.

Has anyone been able to successfully use the i980 to communicate with the esp module in a w220?
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Old Dec 21, 2014 | 09:52 AM
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2003 S500 - Toyota Corolla (in the rain)
How old is your battery? Might sound a bit crazy to you but a weak battery can pull in all kinds of electrical gremlins on these cars.

Before my battery was replaced the doors would just randomly lock and unlock while driving, the headlights would occasionally dim and then brighten, warning lights intermittently coming on, etc.

Although the battery tested OK at the local auto parts store it still wasn't strong enough to run all of the electronics on the car. Replaced battery and all of a sudden everything worked the way is was designed.
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Old Jan 6, 2015 | 04:27 PM
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i use the same skanner to scan abs, no problem.
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Old May 22, 2015 | 07:46 AM
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As an update, the scanner will i980 scan abs but not the esp module or a couple of other modules.

I ended up getting the DAS/STAR system right after this post and it connected perfectly to all modules.

To anyone looking to buy the i980 to do any serious work, I wouldn't waste the money. It does connect to a lot of modules and it can monitor some basic things, read a lot of fault codes, but that's the end of it. If you run into big issues, you are still left without being able to solve the problem, or if a problem exists in a module that you can't connect to, you are out of luck. DAS is so incredibly powerful. It is a lot of money, but one time to a good repair shop to get something diagnosed and you end up paying more than the full system. The i980 is simple in operation and easy to use. I still use it occasionally if I just want to check a quick fault or monitor something. The DAS takes more time to use and is a lot more cumbersome.

Last edited by _Ryan; May 22, 2015 at 07:49 AM.
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Old Nov 24, 2023 | 12:22 PM
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2005 c240
No abs

Originally Posted by _Ryan
I was recently driving when the car suddenly died. ESP and BAS warnings came on as well as ABS light. Car would crank but would not restart. Towed home. Started up when I got home but ESP BAS and ABS lights were still on.

I bought the carsoft i980 scanner for Mercedes thinking I could save a little bit of money vs buying the full star system.

I can communicate with several modules in the car, SRS, door modules, airmatic, etc, but it will not communicate with the ESP module. Thinking the module might be bad I ordered a replacement. Swapped it in and same issue. My module looks perfect. No corrosion, no evidence of water damage, not even any dust. It looks brand new. Nothing burned out on the inside either. I am guessing that the module is fine and the scanner is the problem, but I wanted to see if anyone else has had this communication issue.

I know of a couple common reasons why the ESP BAS lights come on but none seem directly related to my issue. The big difference being that my car will not start and drive but it does crank over. Most issues like the brake switch, wheel speed sensors, and steering angle sensor will default to a different failure state. Before this the car was perfect. I had never seen any of these lights before.

Anyone been able to communicate to the ESP module using the i980 scanner?
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