PCM 3 dead after flat battery

[Technomad]

OPC Glasgow has had my 997.2 for three months because they couldn’t source a replacement window regulator. That was bad enough, but they didn’t charge the battery in the whole time, until the day I went to pick it up. Two days later, the battery was as flat as a very flat thing (I assume it’s pretty much fecked) and I had to do the dance with the emergency terminal and jump leads to get the bonnet open. Reconditioned the battery overnight, so the car will now start. But the PCM 3 system is completely dead - won’t turn on at all. I’ve checked all the fuses that might be related on the main box - all good. It’s not just the display as the instrument panel isn’t showing any of the data that would usually be relayed from the PCM.

Any ideas then about how to reanimate a PCM 3 head unit? I have heard that there’s a 10A fuse on the back of the unit itself - can anyone confirm this?

TIA…

[Jefferson Steelflex]

There should be a fuse on the head unit itself.

On my 996 with PCM2 mine came back from an engine rebuild and battery disconnect/reconnect that blew the 5a fuse on the back of the unit. I’d assume the PCM3 has the same so worth a check.

[Technomad]

It appears not: no sign on the back of the PCM 3.0 unit - all the references I've seen are, like yours to the PCM2.x systems, which do have a fuse on the back. Ah well…

[Rich_AR]

Hopefully you didn't connect the battery terminals the opposite way by accident as this is known to blow the PCM and kill it.

There is however a 10A fuse somewhere on the PCM (passenger side I recall reading), but that could be for the older 997 units (PCM 2.x etc as per above)

Edited by Rich_AR on Tuesday 10th July 07:51

[Technomad]

Nothing connected the wrong way around - that’s something I’m absolutely paranoid about!

[jonno_]

Daft q - why is any of this your problem?
OPC broke it, OPC fix it foc?

[Technomad]

That is in fact my view, and they’re picking the car up tomorrow.

[Technomad]

Well, they picked the car up, tested the PCM 3 and called me to tell me it was dead. Well, d'uh… They also said that the expiry of the PCM probably isn't related to their allowing the battery to go flat or the revivification of same. That falls very heavily into the area of 'trying it on' - more specifically, 'failure of duty of care'. If they don't change their tune, they'll be finding out just what it means when a civil case is based on, "balance of probability".

[EGTE]

Not wishing to be inflammatory, but you said you picked the car up from the OPC and two days later the battery and PCM were dead.

I would have thought the court would find it difficult to rule that the battery was dead when you picked it up, because how would the car have started, if it was?

[Technomad]

See original post - they charged it up the morning of the day I picked it up, having left it untouched for three months.

[EGTE]

Ah okay, missed that.

Good luck.

[DJMC]

They'd argue "coincidence" in court.

How would you counter that with evidence?

[short-shift]

Replacement (used) head unit on eBay is typically £500 or so (but watch the spec to make sure that any unit you buy there is a European model and that it has at least the same features as the unit you have which seems to have died). So bad news but, in the grand scheme of things, not a complete disaster.

James

[Helicopter123]

Technomad said:

Well, they picked the car up, tested the PCM 3 and called me to tell me it was dead. Well, d'uh… They also said that the expiry of the PCM probably isn't related to their allowing the battery to go flat or the revivification of same. That falls very heavily into the area of 'trying it on' - more specifically, 'failure of duty of care'. If they don't change their tune, they'll be finding out just what it means when a civil case is based on, "balance of probability".

OP, if they argue that you hooked up the battery terminals the opposite way by accident, and this blew the PCM, I think you would lose. I would be looking for a contribution or gesture of some description here rather than going straight down the legal route.