unknown driver.

[joelmaupin]

alright got a new problem now. It wiged out on me last night again. (all the dummy lights come on and radio shuts off but is still running fine. normally just restarting it fixes that issue for a while.) so I left it at a friends house and unhooked the battery for the night just hoping to clear whatever I could and give it a fresh start. I came back this morning and connected the battery. and now it wont even turn over? ive checked and repaired every ground that I can find and every one I have read about. when I try to start it all my dash lights work. but I have no radio for some reason. and the message center says "unknown driver" any ideas at all? im stumped. thanks for any help.

[joelmaupin]

also the windows and door locks are not working. also tried another battery from my friends car and nothing.

[bobgto65]

check your connectors to the PDM, Theft deterrent module (located to the left of the radio cavity (radio must be removed to get to it), the ignition theft deterrent exciter module (located on the ignition cylinder). and make sure they are clean and corrosion free. Check for corrosion at your positive battery terminal. Check your fuse for the PCM and other module fuses. Unfortunately, with al the other problems together, this sounds like a bad module - it could be the Instrument Pamel Module, Rear Integration Module, the PCM, a faulty data bus, or even the left door module. You may need a scanner to teat all the modules and find the bad one.

[joelmaupin]

Yea I'm assuming that is the pcm or one of the modules. Is there anyway to narrow it down tho? I'm assuming to scan that I will need a tech 2 which I don't have the money to get done.

[sandrock]

In my experience, the unknown driver message comes from the passenger front window module...at least it did on my '01.

[joelmaupin]

Well can I just unhook it to see if it goes away? Or is it a must have?

[sandrock]

Unhooking it actually made mine appear...so your message coming on would tell me your module is bad. Possibly. So many modules on this platform....

[joelmaupin]

Yea. I wish the car was a little dumber. This would be way easier.I'll call my friend and have him mess w it a bit. I just need it to start I'd like to at least get the car home!

[joelmaupin]

Could it have anything to do with the car not being able to see my keys anymore? I keep thinking about that for some reason. And gonna go buy a brand new battery for it too. I have no idea how old the one that is in it is. Maybe my car just doesn't like the battery any more. Can't hurt anyway. Well I guess it could I didn't think unhooking the battery over night would hurt either. Ha boy was I wrong!

[bobgto65]

I installed a OBDLink SX in my car which connects to the OBD port and to the computer with a USB. When I turn the computer off, I have very similar problems to what you get, no power windows or locks, key fob does not operate, open the door and courtesy lights stay off, the drivers door lighting for the switches stays on indefinitely as does the ignition switch light, security dash light stays on not flashing, and when you put in a key and turn it, it won't start and the DIC says unknown driver. I think the OBDLink messed with my PCM. In any event, when I disconnected the battery and reconnected it, everything reset back to normal.

[joelmaupin]

Well the battery has been unhooked for about 24 hours now and I just talked to my friend and had him go reconnect it and still nothing at all. And that Odblink six. Is that just for tuning or is it for diagnostics?

[joelmaupin]

Plus my issue is going to be trying to find a scanner that can talk to the modules to see which one is weird. I have a pregnant girlfriend at home and can't really afford very much. Ya know? Gotta figure this out somehow tho.. anyone on here from western Ohio that would let me swap some parts till we find the bad one!

[bobgto65]

The OBDLink SX is hardware designed to be used with several software packages. It came with a free software called OBDwiz that will read the DTC codes and allows you to reset them, and monitors basic parameters. You can buy several other programs but the best is ScanPro XL but then you also have to buy the extra GM diagnostics package but that will cost over $200 for both. I have the shop manuals and read the diagnostic tree for your problem and most of the initial steps involve scanning the various modules for errors so you may want to find out what a GM dealer or independent dealer with the correct scan tool will charge you to do this. Then there is the issue of getting your inoperable car there so maybe you have AAA or does your car insurance policy have towing coverage? The second issue is that in the state your car is in it may not be possible to scan it at all. In that case, you may need to replace them one at a time until you find the bad one, starting with the PCM. But I believe (and I may be mistaken) that if you replace the PCM, it has to be programmed for your car by the dealer. And I have a funny feeling that the PCM is the culprit. If you need modules, GM charges an arm and a leg so buy them used working from Andrew (harofreak00) for 10% of the dealer price.

Don't forget to check all the fuses that go to the modules, some are in the engine fuse block, some in the fuse block under the back seat bottom. Maybe you will luck out and just need a fuse. There are spares in the rear fuse block. You don't have to remove the fuses. If you have a DMM just touch the pin leads from it to the small metal contacts showing through the top of each fuse to see if there is continuity.

[joelmaupin]

Any clue what they charge to program the pcm if I do end up having to go that route? My other thought was could it be somewhere in the data bus wires for all the doors and such? I've already repaired that splice under the seat once. Could that be screwed up again but bad enough to just really confuse everything in the car? I know I'm just throwing things out there but I've never had a car with so many *dang* computers or had one mess up where I've had to troubleshoot it. Thanks for the help you are giving me tho. I really appreciate it. I def need my car back as soon as I can make it happen! I'm already tired of sharing my gfs jeep with her! Thank god we work at the same place and the same hours!

[bobgto65]

I did confirm that a repalcement PCM will have to be programmed by the dealer. I suspect it will be one hour labor. But bear in mind it may not solve your problem. You should recheck the wiring repair that you performed for good continuity and lack of shorts. And don't forget to check the fuses.

[joelmaupin]

Well my friend got it to start today. By actually hitting the eject button on my DVD player. Going to take all the after market stuff out tomorrow and a brand new battery and see how it acts.

[joelmaupin]

Ok well problem is solved. It was the connection in between the stereo interface and the stock ribbon harness. It had just simply wiggled apart a bit. And when I happened to stop it it just a bad connection. We were able to wiggle the radio to reproduce the unknown driver message and then wiggle it again to fix the problem. Opened the dash and the connectors were almost apart. Very loose! I put them back together and used some zip ties to make sure it won't come back apart and all is well again. Thanks for all your help. I'm so glad it was that simple. Just took a little while to track down!

[bobgto65]

At least it turned out to be something easy to fix and you did not have to get the car towed or get a PCM.