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Troubleshooting & Technical Questions & ModificationsHave technical or modification questions about the Crossfire?
Find out the answer, or give advice in here!
Sure I can just depends on whether you need the original modules or just want it to run well. Could probably replicate the whole thing with a few Arduinos and some I/O modules, got to be easier than "flying" afterburning gas turbine engines at Tullahoma with an EPTAK controller.
They can talk about "secret keys" all they want but if it must be usable then the program must know how to handle it. If the program/data memory can be extracted then it can be reverse engineered or it would not work (can believe it or not but am an original CARO.org member and a cryptographer (cypherpunk) if that means anything to you). Just because am retired does not mean am ded.
Surely there are some kids out there able and willing to do the disassembly, an emulator to run on a PC would be trivial and then you can model anything.
Just spent $700 for an SLK230 "project" but is too nice to turn into an emulator.
ps somehow I doubt that a Veron electronics are any more difficult that an F-16 or F111 digital engine and flight controls, it isn't quad redundant.
Padgett - Who is reprogramming SKREEM modules for $300? I assume they have to have the existing SKREEM module to do that. What if it is down and not working? Seems like it is a lot easier to order a new one from Needswings with the correct VIN number. Just my humble opinion.
Padgett - Who is reprogramming SKREEM modules for $300? I assume they have to have the existing SKREEM module to do that. What if it is down and not working? Seems like it is a lot easier to order a new one from Needswings with the correct VIN number. Just my humble opinion.
Jim
It is being done by Josh, he is on Facebook, he was on here but got PO with this crowd for some reason.
He clones your existing SKREEM, so you have to send it to him is my belief.
Someone else is trying to do it as well. He has the instruments and has had some success.
Last edited by onehundred80; Dec 31, 2018 at 11:02 AM.
Reminds me of an old joke about a lady of negotiable virtue. We know it can be done, now we are negotiating what it takes. The knowledge is there, it is just not open,.
All of mine are working and am still recovering from a Dr.'s mistake. Have most of the equipment needed (may even still work) just need data and hopefully that will arrive on Tuesday..
Just reading the description of all the interconnections between the Skreem and other Crossfire systems is mind boggling! To think that just one electronic failure along this complicated path can shut the whole system down makes me wonder why Mercedes did and continues to make everything so interdependent and maybe a bit too much!
Just reading the description of all the interconnections between the Skreem and other Crossfire systems is mind boggling! To think that just one electronic failure along this complicated path can shut the whole system down makes me wonder why Mercedes did and continues to make everything so interdependent and maybe a bit too much!
They do it because they can and it keeps the technicians in a job.��
Remember we have war planes that spend more time in the hangar getting fixed up for the next flight than in the air. They would spend even more time there if they ever saw combat.
If stealthy planes got really invisible to radar they would only find the enemy planes if they bumped into them just like the times before radar. That’s progress?
Last edited by onehundred80; Jan 2, 2019 at 11:24 AM.
spoke to matt, no instructions but here is the info given to me from him.. jim
Yeah, we were wondering somewhere above if replacing those key components would be enough, but didn't want to pull the trigger until I got some sort of confirmation as to whether that would be enough. The consensus seems to be that if you match the ECU / SKREEM / key, and match the trans (manual vs auto) and the engine (base vs supercharged) that it should work.
Status update: I found a compatible wrecked crossfire in a local junkyard and managed to swindle them out of the components for well less than half what ebay wants. They key is broken off in the ignition, but all I care about is the RFID chip matching the SKREEM and the SKREEN matching the ECU. Worth it to me for the learning experience, and I can probably sell the parts if it doesn't work. I will update this thread with the results once I get time to install the parts.
Yeah, we were wondering somewhere above if replacing those key components would be enough, but didn't want to pull the trigger until I got some sort of confirmation as to whether that would be enough. The consensus seems to be that if you match the ECU / SKREEM / key, and match the trans (manual vs auto) and the engine (base vs supercharged) that it should work.
Status update: I found a compatible wrecked crossfire in a local junkyard and managed to swindle them out of the components for well less than half what ebay wants. They key is broken off in the ignition, but all I care about is the RFID chip matching the SKREEM and the SKREEN matching the ECU. Worth it to me for the learning experience, and I can probably sell the parts if it doesn't work. I will update this thread with the results once I get time to install the parts.
when i get home,,next week i will try to get more info from Matt,,,first he said he would come there and fix the car,,or send the car to him and he would fix it. so hold off on selling any of the parts let me C what i can do. jim
Well folks, I did it. Final solution:
I found a junked crossfire in a yard and swiped the ECU, SKREEM, and key. Got a big discount because a key was broken off in the ignition and the car had flood damage (no indication it got as high as the components I was after tho).
I had already wired up a push button start and toggle switches to bypass the ignition, so I didn't care at all about the donor ignition. Wiring up the ignition bypass / push start replacement.
I unhooked the battery, swapped out the ECU and SKREEM, and modified my wiring slightly to allow for placement of the transponder ring around my starter button.
Hooked battery up, reprogrammed fob just to be safe, and vroom. Started right up. Works like a champ. Cart starts and runs as normal. Just need to finish buttoning up.
Startup procedure:
Unlock Doors, enter car.
With fob in hand and near starter button, flip accessory switch on, then master ignition.
Keeping fob near transponder ring, push starter button to start car.
Slip fob in pocket / purse and away you go.
Flip ignition and accessory switches off when parked.
Super easy to work with, and there's even a hidden starter kill switch for added security.
Total cost of repair: ~$200 (plus miscellaneous wiring stuff I mostly already had). Plus lots of my time, but I have no issue with giving my time to help someone in need.
I guess you could say thanks to matt for showing us the parts needed to do this and me for posting the parts.. glad you got it going
I think most of us knew what parts were needed and those components are often on eBay for sale as a package.
I personally cannot see why a new key would have not been cheaper, simpler and easier in the long run though.
I guess you could say thanks to matt for showing us the parts needed to do this and me for posting the parts.. glad you got it going
Thanks, Matt!
Thanks, amx!
In fact, thanks to everyone who contributes to these discussions in a positive way. It's nice to deal with people who aren't just in forums to toot their own horn or call people dumb.
I personally cannot see why a new key would have not been cheaper, simpler and easier in the long run though.
New key route was > $600, and that's on the cheaper end (not going through dealer).
Simpler? Maybe, but then we'd have missed out on a learning experience.
Easier in the long run? Added maybe .5 seconds to starting the car, plus it looks cool and you don't have to worry about the key wiggling loose in the fob or deciding to not turn some day.
Re: Get rid of skreem / security altogether?
Or at the least, paste a link? 
