Topic

Is it possible to read the EKA without a working Fob. I just bought a Rover 216 from 1995 with the Lucas 5as installed. The Fob broke while changing the battery. (Yes I think it`s really broken and not out of sync.) It came without the EKA. It's basically bricked. Can pscan be helpful in any way? Or, what may be an alternative route? Thank you.

https://www.the-t-bar.com/forum/pscan-uk-diagnostic-tool-forum/97739-finding-the-eka#197340

Thx for the reply. So it basically means no? It does not work without a working fob? I found this post, but I was not sure if it's the only way. Can I add a new fob without a working fob? In order to have a working fob? So many questions, sorry.

Sorry, I don't know. I don't have the Lucas 5AS or a pscan although I have often thought of buying one. I simply knew that it could return the EKA as that is how mine was retrieved for me. I have the Pektron system. Someone with more experience with pscan/5AS should be able to provide definitive information.

Failing that, Paul Brown at Technozen Electronics is the guru on all things SCU.

The 5AS can be accessed (and the EKA read) even if the car has been unlocked with the key only. It's only the later Pektron unit that would need unlocking (either with remote or known EKA) to be accessed. At least that's what the T4 would allow you to do, never had the chance to test with pscan but I would imagine it's the same since this is down to the ECU internal coding to allow access or not based on car lock status.
You mention your car is a 1995 216. Do you mean an early mk3 Rover 200 (bubble) or a late mk2 (R8) 216 with the Honda engine? It is my understanding that the Honda-engined cars never had any form of EKA.

Thanks for the response. It's a late mk2 non-bubble (R8) 216 with the Honda engine (convertible). That is a fair question because there are MJ up to 93, 93 to 94.5, 94.5 to 96 and 96 onwards. This model has the Honda ECU and the Lucas 5AS (previous models had the 14VT). So it has the EKA (according to the manual - which shows the K-series engine and bubble interior anyway....)
The problem is that the T4 guy nearby doesn't have the 3pin connector, and the car has no OBD-style connector. Thus my inquiry about the pscan.

Does the car have a round three pin plug made from green plastic?
If so then yes, pscan can access the 5AS, read the EKA and code in replacement fobs.
However it can't (yet) access the Honda engine ECU.
I didn't know that Honda engine ECUs could work with the 5AS, so that will be interesting to confirm.

On the other hand if the alarm is a Honda based system then pscan will not (yet) work with it.

You might find this video interesting:-

I'm about 99.9% sure that the Honda 216 and diesel-powered cars that use the RF transmitter (starting from 94.5 MY, ie all cars who have BD as their last letters in the VIN) don't have any form of EKA. Their engine ECUs were not as "advanced" as MEMS and are not paired to the 5AS (you could actually replace those engine ECUs with one from any similar donor car with no need for reprogramming). A friend of mine with a 94.5 MY 216 SLi not long ago had his fob out of sync with the car, I told him how to sync it again by pressing down on the fob 4 times but in the interim when he only used the key, he never had to use any form of EKA to get the car started...the car has the 3-round plug with green cap in the engine bay.

In fact, the 94.5 MY diesel and Honda-engined cars, which again use the same RF fobs, have a specific immobilizer unit, one used in many other Rover cars, such as 600 and 800, its part number is YWC103630 and it looks like this. It's a Lucas 3TH unit. The K-Series engined 94.5 MY and beyond cars don't use it.

Does anyone have a wiring diagram for one of these diesel or Honda ECU cars? I would like to get one of these units and try it out.

Also, concerning the YWC103630 unit, does anyone know what fobs can be programmed into them? 3TXA ?

I am wondering, maybe that YWC103630 unit isn't actually the alarm. Is it possible that on cars with the MEMS ECUs that the alarm sends a code to the MEMS to unimmobilise it, but on the diesel and Honda powered cars that instead the alarm system sends a signal to that unit and the unit then powers up the engine ECU?

I say this because on Rimmers sites the part seems to be fitted to quite a wide range of cars, including Rover 800 which I always thought had a totally different alarm system, and because it looks like a power relay.

If it is just a sort of clever power relay that understands the EMS code from a Rover 5AS then it would allow MG Rover to have a simple immo feature on just about anything.

My wifes old Audi 80 had a similar power based immobiliser system in the rear wing, which unfortunately was under 6" water when I bought the car. I pretty quickly discovered that I could get round it by just shorting two of the wires together.

YWC103630 is not an alarm. You cannot code anything to it. It is specific type of relay, nothing more.

Let me set some facts strait. EKA code is used in case that you forget you fob, or loose you fob to be able to get your engine starting. It does not mean you have to pair your alarm ECU with the engine ECU. EKA existance does not mean that alarm ECU is paired with engine ECU. Once EKA is entered you will be able to start the engine numerous times without entering it each time.

If you have passive immobilisation feature then you have alarm ECU paired with engine ECU.

If you want more info on this subject I am willing to provide it, but not on the open forum, since I have Honda engined Rover with EKA code.