Member Since: 15 Jun 2007
Location: Sunny Cyprus
Posts: 3054
Thanks to all for your interest in this.
Seeing that some are willing to source their own bits or already have them, as well as the fact that D4 owners want to do this too, I am more than happy to just join all the few technical dots for everyone and anyone interested in doing this mod and guide everyone through doing it's aspects and requirements which i think are then well within most folks abilities. I will happily supply schematics and wiring diagrams as required .
The biggest stumbling block is of course the new cost of the radar sensor itself.
The entire viability of this mod really depends upon you getting your hands on one at a reasonable price by any means possible. It looks like it was superseded a couple of times but even the latest models use the same one.
You are then going to need to figure out how to physically fit this somewhere on the front of your vehicle. That's down to you guys to sort out and help each other with.
Fortunately it looks like you can hide it behind any amount of plastic layers like bumper skin or number plates, but it must point straight ahead both vertically and horizontally and have no metal anywhere near the front of it
so there is really no shortage of options.
The sensor has a quite simple 5 pin connection, one of which is ground and can be hooked up almost anywhere on the front of the vehicle with but a ring terminal.
As the connector for the sensor is not separately available, then the five wires must be directly soldered to the pins and i was figuring to use some heat shrink to and hot melt glue to make this water tight.
The four remaining wires consist of a direct permanent Battery Feed and one switched by the Engine Control module via it's main Relay to all its various sensors and stuff. Both are an absolute doddle to pick up in the Engine bay and while doing so add wires to the same points to feed the ACC ECU as well, as this needs them too.
The other two are a private CAN BUS between the Radar sensor and the ACC ECU. This pair will need to have the two wires twisted together at a rate of one or two twists per inch.
These two, together with the two power supply wires will need to be fed through the bulkhead somewhere to arrive at wherever you choose to mount the ACC ecu.
This is normally mounted in a hole in the drivers side A pillar on RHD vehicles with a proprietary bracket i imagine is not overly expensive.
Our resident parts superman, Nick (TLO) tells me that the ACC ECU is superseded to NNW501923 for the pre 2010 Range Rover Sport (same as D3) costing just 138.79 plus VAT etc.
I have not checked for the D4 but imagine it's not far different from the D3. if the ACC ECU connetor is the same then its just a viable a mod to the D4 as the D3.
Again the ACC ECU has a connector not separately available, however its pins are pitched at .1 inch just like many computers have and as such pin headers that directly fit on the pins are readily available. its all inside so there is no need for water proofing.
just a couple of 2 pin headers provide connection of the 2 main power feeds and the private can bus to the sensor.
You will of course also have to supply the ACC ECU with its own ground too just like the sensor which ain't entirely rocket science to do.
After which you need only supply four further connections to the ACC ECU.
Two of these go to the Forward Alert switch, costing only about 12 GBP this will also require a ground, and the other two will need to also be done with twisted wires to tap onto the vehicles existing High speed CAN BUS pretty much anywhere you like.
You will of course need to add ACC distance adjusting control buttons on the steering wheel and enable the system in the CCF.
After that, the front sensor will need calibrating which is a diagnostic function already provided in our equipment.
The technical aspects and functionality of the ACC system LR provides on its high end models is well documented for all to read.
28th Jan 2012 7:18 pm
hids4u
Member Since: 12 Apr 2009
Location: Leeds
Posts: 1155
Hi Colin
I would prefer to get what is needed from you. If the radar sensors on ebay or 290 i struggle to see how this is going to be done for 500 pounds
Do you have a source for the radar sensors - can Nick get them?
R
Ian
5th Feb 2012 3:13 pm
Stuarts the man
Member Since: 22 Sep 2011
Location: Glasgow
Posts: 423
Radar sensors from Landrover are over 1000 I am led to believe
5th Feb 2012 4:02 pm
BBS SPY Site Sponsor
Member Since: 15 Jun 2007
Location: Sunny Cyprus
Posts: 3054
Hiya Ian
As Stuarts the man states, New the sensor alone is near 2000 GBP which is why i state getting the sensors at a good price is so important, and why adding this is such a worthwhile thing to do.
I do have a source for a small number of used Radar Sensors at a better price than the Ebay offering and was not planning on making anything out of this mini project, just recover the labour costs to knock up the half a dozen copies of the loom and connect the wiring to the sensor etc, which would make the 500 GBP estimate fairly accurate for the Loom, the Radar sensor, ACC ECU and forward alert switch.
But the price of the sensors i can get is totally dependent upon volume, hence i was Gauging interest.
In addition folks will also need to change their steering wheel control to one with the ACC button, but i figure most could resell their removed one without problem.
Having found a source of some sensors at a viable price and having already done all the requisite research and figuring out the technicalities required to retro fit this, which are really not that hard with their being a requirement to tap into only 4 wires on the vehicle, i just thought it would be of interest to those members who love to retro add stuff to their vehicle and would like to collaborate on it.
Interestingly enough, although the Adaptive Cruise Control was never originally fitted to any Discovery 3 as far as i know. The IDS system is programmed to look for it as an optional fitment. As such it would be covered by our MSV-2 Discovery 3 equipment. even in SV.
So even an SV owner could fit, activate and calibrate this.
The calibration is pretty straight forward, no pun intended, as the first thing you have to do is check that the Sensor is aimed straight forward, then you put the ACC into learn mode, which causes the ACC symbol to stay on in the dash, after which you simply drive by a sufficient amount of metal objects like parked cars, lamp posts etc until the system is satisfied and puts the light out. This kinda happens normally anyway.
Early next week i will be temporarily retro fitting this to my D3 and will takes some pictures and maybe even knock up a video of it working.
5th Feb 2012 5:02 pm
BBS SPY Site Sponsor
Member Since: 15 Jun 2007
Location: Sunny Cyprus
Posts: 3054
Here are a few pictures of the parts all connected up ready for testing on the Disco 3, with the exception of the Forward Alert switch, which i am still waiting to arrive from TLO.
Click image to enlarge
At the top is the Radar Sensor connected with 4 wires about 4M long to the ECU ECU at the bottom. This also has a ground wire which could be attached almost anywhere.
To the front left is the two wires for the Forward Alert Switch as well as a Ground feed
To the right is the OBDII plug and socket i will be using to temporarily connect the 4 wires to the vehicle for testing.
This is a close up shot of the ECU connections all made by common 2 pin SIL connectors due to not having a supply of the correct connector.
Click image to enlarge
Edited for correction 20th Jan 2013
In the above picture i have mis labeled the Can Pairs
The twisted pair on the right with the Yellow heat shrink is not the HS CAN Pair but is actually the RADAR CAN PAIR and the pair in the middle with the White Heat shrink is not the RADAR CAN PAIR but is in fact the HS CAN PAIR.
here is a corrected picture
Click image to enlarge
In a final install i would fill the remainder of the cavity with hot melt glue to keep it all secure but in the meantime i have just used a cable tie.
As can be seen, despite this being quite some advanced system to retro fit, the wiring is really very basic and the tapping into the existing wiring of the Vehicle really minimal.
I have also drawn a schematic which shows how simple the connections are.
Last edited by BBS SPY on 20th Jan 2013 4:46 pm. Edited 1 time in total
6th Feb 2012 5:53 pm
Russell
Member Since: 24 Aug 2007
Location: Kent
Posts: 10564
Colin
looking good, what about D4MY12 will it work on that? If so do you want a test vehicle?MY17 D5 1st Edition Namib Orange
MY15 D4 HSE Kaikoura Stone
MY12 D4 HSE Nara Bronze Sold and gone
MY11 D4 HSE Stornaway Grey Sold and gone
D3 S spec Silver Sold and gone
Tow bar, full length roof bars, side steps, tow bar storage unit, surround camers.
D4 camera club
6th Feb 2012 6:33 pm
BBS SPY Site Sponsor
Member Since: 15 Jun 2007
Location: Sunny Cyprus
Posts: 3054
Hiya Russell
Thanks
As i said all along, as long as that sensor can be got at the right price, the rest is really quite easy and well within the average DIY skills.
The only difference with a D4 will be with the ACC ECU part number. This will be different as The CAN BUS on a D4 is 11 bit and a D3 29 Bit.
6th Feb 2012 6:48 pm
wiggs
Member Since: 03 Sep 2006
Location: Manchester
Posts: 14368
Colin ....
you wouldnt know if this ecu is the right one for a d3 or d4 would you ?
cant get any joy out my microcat G4 Gone ...but not forgotten
9th Feb 2012 7:11 pm
BBS SPY Site Sponsor
Member Since: 15 Jun 2007
Location: Sunny Cyprus
Posts: 3054
Hiya Wiggs
Yes i certainly would
As sad as it may make me seem to anyone who has not physically seen me drink and take pictures of well placed dummies, i do also happen to be a dab hand at interpreting Ford part numbers
In this case you have AH42-14B588-AA
The initial A is the most important element in your case, as it indicates the year this item was introduced. It follows hexadecimal standards in that 9 would be 2009 but A is 2010 and B would be 2011 etc.
The H4 after the A denotes the chassis or model type this item is globally applicable to.
The 2 after that denotes the department responsible. with trim, body and electronic etc having their own code.
The code between the hyphens actually denotes what the item is, as in all engine management ECU's are 12A650, instrument packs 10849 and so on.
Interestingly this also corresponds with the call out code on Microcat
The final AA is a designation for hardware and software versions and try as i might, i simply forget which is which.
For example AA on the end of an instrument pack might indicate an MPH one where BA might be relevant for a KPH version but once both are updated to newer XB software this element of item code becomes rather irrelevant.
Anyway, as indicated, the preceding A really does make this look like a D4 ECU
9th Feb 2012 8:01 pm
Ent
Member Since: 12 Oct 2007
Location: In the cack
Posts: 6485
That's great news Colin as the ACC module above is being kept warm in my garage. Game on!Club Exped trailer
Club Timed Climate
Club Flappy paddle steering wheel
Club 300bhp
Club Prospeed test pilot/lab rat
Club National Luna Stella conditioner
Went past your place the other day the trailer was on show looked good bud...
Flack
9th Feb 2012 10:27 pm
Ent
Member Since: 12 Oct 2007
Location: In the cack
Posts: 6485
Cheers Mick, I've moved it now as I'm starting building the new garage.Club Exped trailer
Club Timed Climate
Club Flappy paddle steering wheel
Club 300bhp
Club Prospeed test pilot/lab rat
Club National Luna Stella conditioner
9th Feb 2012 10:41 pm
BBS SPY Site Sponsor
Member Since: 15 Jun 2007
Location: Sunny Cyprus
Posts: 3054
I guess that the ACC ECU is also well placed then Ent
I figure the Pin outs will be the same, but since it's you, i will check this out
Although the switch pack with the Forward alert switch had not arrived, i still had a go at temporarily slapping this on the D3 the other day and getting it going.
Click image to enlarge
I spared absolutely no expense on fabricating a suitable mounting bracket for the radar sensor
Click image to enlarge
Having enabled the ACC in the CCF i got the ACC Lamp flashing and after clearing the faults i read only two.
One was something about the FA switch and the other that there was no calibration.
I tried calibrating it several times until i ran out of time on that day, hence the picture of me out on the end of a road with continuous metal railings to the RHS, which have always done the job whenever i have calibrated these in the past, but sadly it failed.
This might be down to the switch problem, and i do now have the right switch pack, it might be a wiring issue and there are a few i need to look at, or it could be down to the alignment of the Radar sensor not being accurate enough as we pretty much threw it on as you can see and visually judged this. It might also be because the radar sensor needs to be lower or located offset to the vehicles center as it is in an RRS. Although i note it is mounted centrally on a 2010 on model, but perhaps that might be a different sensor. It could also be that the sensor is shaking and needs sturdier mountings.
Although i have to say that there may be one other embarrassing possibility i may have got wrong. Which is i may have fitted the sensor upside down
So it is back to the drawing board for the moment and i will have another go at this next week.
I am hoping that this location for the Radar sensor does not prove to be the problem, as it is fairly simple to do and the Grille will clip into place over it and cover it completely
10th Feb 2012 6:35 pm
Ent
Member Since: 12 Oct 2007
Location: In the cack
Posts: 6485
Good work fella!Club Exped trailer
Club Timed Climate
Club Flappy paddle steering wheel
Club 300bhp
Club Prospeed test pilot/lab rat
Club National Luna Stella conditioner
10th Feb 2012 7:55 pm
hids4u
Member Since: 12 Apr 2009
Location: Leeds
Posts: 1155
Hi Colin
Did you get this working in the end?
Still interested for a d4
Best Regards Ian
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
