Apex Auto Tech
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Apex Auto Tech – Stirling’s trusted garage for servicing, repairs, MOTs & diagnostics. Professional care, honest advice, dealer-level standards. 🚗🔧
10/11/2025
🚗 Another tricky electrical fault fixed today at Apex Auto Tech! ⚡
This Hyundai came in with no engine communication, a dead rev counter, warning lights across the dash, and intermittent heavy steering.
After scanning the vehicle, we found multiple CAN network and engine speed signal faults stored in the steering and ABS systems. Communication with the ECU wasn’t possible – even with different diagnostic tools – although the engine would still run. We also noticed flickering headlights and a few other strange electrical behaviours.
📈 Using the oscilloscope, we could see the CAN signal at the ECU was badly distorted and appeared to be shorting between the two wires on that network. At this point it becomes a process of elimination – checking the network layout, then disconnecting modules one by one while crossing our fingers it’s not a wiring rub buried behind the dash (those ones aren’t fun to find!).
💥 The culprit? The rear reversing camera!
It was heavily corroded and shorting out the CAN network – which stopped the car communicating with the ECU and caused all the weird issues. Why Hyundai decided to put the camera on the same network as the engine ECU… we’ll leave that one to their engineers. 😅
Once disconnected, all the faults cleared, the dash lights went out, and the steering returned to normal.
✅ The car’s now running perfectly – just without a reversing camera, since a replacement is almost £600 and the customer was happy to keep the £600 instead!
We’ll include some oscilloscope captures below showing the CAN signal before and after the repair 👇
Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda and Seat timing belt intervals have changed to 140,000 miles with no time/years recommendation.
We have always recommended the origional interval of 5 years or 80,000 miles but to the customer it is confusing and may even feel like we are trying to make work for ourselves especially when the manufacturer is saying it is ok. This turns into us attempting to explain why we don't follow the manufacturer recommendation. It's never been something we have been able to prove because thankfully we have good customers who trust us and listen to our advice and follow the 'earlier change' we recommended.
Our friends at FIFE AUTOTECH LTD VW AUDI SEAT SKODA SPECIALIST and Chay Bblyth in particular have helped with the evidence of an early failure to help us explain our reasoning for using the original interval
A timing belt replacement is expensive but it can be planned for and the cost spread with our new offering service split which is a way of planning for work identifed to be required or used like a service plan. More on service split to come later but you can have a look here https://servicesplit.com/ If you are interested we can provide this service were just not ready to roll it out and advertise it just yet.
Thanks for reading folks and hopefully you won't have to deal with a broken timing belt any time soon.
Mark
PS any car with timing belt needs changed at the correct time.
PPS transit welt belts also fail early and we reccomend 100,000 miles not the 144,000 ford recommend and I have seen a few of those.
I can't think of any more that have worrying intervals atm
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12 Broadleys Road, Springkerse Ind Est
Stirling
FK77ST
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| Monday | 8:30am - 5pm |
| Tuesday | 8:30am - 5pm |
| Wednesday | 8:30am - 5pm |
| Thursday | 8:30am - 5pm |
| Friday | 8:30am - 5pm |
