EN

Changelog

What changed

Every beta since the first public build – most of them shaped by real cars in real garages.

beta (after garage test 3)

  • Connection on every page: Connect / Disconnect and an Auto reconnect switch sit in the top bar next to the status lamp. The lamp is red while disconnected and blinks red with the bar turning red when the car stops answering; a message says when the connection is lost and when it is back. With Auto reconnect (default) the app keeps trying after the ignition is switched off or the cable is pulled and carries on in the same recording as soon as the car answers again; switched off it gives up after 10 s.
  • Fewer data gaps: a module that never answers (garage test 3: the air-bag module) is asked only every 30 s instead of costing 0.6 s every 3 s; a single lost reply is simply asked again instead of taking the bus anew (a 4 s gap); taking the bus again no longer waits 2.5 s for a CCM poll that a silenced CCM never sends.
  • Auto-detect used to close a running connection and leave it closed - it now connects again by itself.
  • Weak cable transmitter is named on every page: with a 1N914 diode cable our own frames come back distorted; the engine computer understands them, but in garage test 3 the air-bag module never answered and ABS / body computer only with the engine running. Fix: a Schottky diode (BAT43/BAT85/1N5817) or cable rev B.
  • New VetteALDL logo (mark and wordmark) in the app, the start screens, the icon and the installer.
  • Protected build: the app ships as native code (every module compiled with Cython) plus one encrypted, signed asset pack for the UI, definitions and knowledge base - no Python sources or bytecode, no readable data files; the window shows no page source or developer tools and answers only itself. Licence: freeware, closed source.
  • Guided tests in LiveDoctor – step-by-step runs at the car for the common C4 faults: morning sensor check, engine won't start (crank signal, Pass-Key fuel enable, clear flood, injector pulse), warm-up and cooling (thermostat, fan switch-on and effect – only the ECM's own fan decisions count), idle / air leaks / throttle closing, leak finder (spray and watch the mixture), O2 sensor, battery and charging, knock sensor tap test, full throttle 50→80 km/h, steady cruise. Steps advance from the live data; the result compares the numbers with the service manual and GM's Tech 1 data and names the next checks. They also run on a played-back recording.
  • 1984 L83 and 1985 L98 checked against GM's Tech 1 – the emulated Tech 1 now decodes a real 160 baud waveform: 1985 coolant temperature was wrong (the community ADX used the air temperature table; GM: N × 0.75 − 40 °C), spark advance and PROM ID added, the A/C request flag was inverted, the "fan request" bit is the A/C high-pressure switch; 1984 coolant uses GM's own table, MAP in kPa, P/N, high gear, canister purge, E-cell and cranking added, the "P/N switch" bit is the ignition switch. Body computer 1990–93: the history bits of codes 73/74 are shown.
  • Recordings: a cable or USB driver that drops out while connected is reopened by itself; the recording goes on in the same file with link lost / regained marks, and the time line shows gaps without data. Written to disk at least every 10 s. Sessions are kept for 3 months (was: the last 30 runs) – copy a folder to keep it longer; every connection is listed as its own recording.

beta (after garage test 2, 1992 LT1 with the engine running)

  • Recordings – play a session back. Every connection is recorded; the new Recordings page opens any session, support bundle (.zip) or bus recording from another computer and plays it through the whole app – dashboard, live data, charts, codes, body, ABS, LiveDoctor – with pause, jump, 0.5–20× speed and markers for output tests and cleared codes. Recordings are decoded again with the current (corrected) definition.
  • Normal ranges in Live data: a Normal column for the present engine state (key on, running, warm, idle); values just outside are amber, clearly out of spec red (knowledge/norms.json – GM Tech 1, the service manual, typical values of healthy cars).
  • Trouble codes checked bit by bit against GM's Tech 1 (1989 $6E, 1990–91 $8D, 1990–92 $8E, 1992–93 $DA2, 1993 LT5, 1992–93 CCM): every code of every ECM now sits on the bit GM uses.
    • 1990–95 ZR-1 (LT5): code 31 (camshaft sensor) was on the bit of code 26.
    • 1989 L98: code 41 had no valid bit; codes 35, 55, 61, 63, 64 were missing.
    • 1990–91 L98: code 55 (ADU / A-D converter) was missing.
    • Bits that GM's Tech 1 shows only as a number (e.g. LT1 54 and 56) are shown too, so a set bit is never hidden.
    • 1992–93 body computer: Pass-Key #3 codes 64/65 and the LED-dimming history codes added.
  • LiveDoctor, checked against the service manual: new rule idle too high with the IAC almost closed (extra air – throttle not closing, vacuum/PCV leak, lost IAC position); idle rules no longer switch off above 1100 rpm; charging limits 13.0 / 16.0 V; O2 0.1–0.9 V; the IAC advice no longer suggests turning the factory minimum-air stop. Dash diagnostics: ABS flash codes 1986–91 and the different ABS list of 1995 LT1 / 1996.
  • Body computer tests: instrument lighting – gauges, speedometer, radio and (1992–93) green LED dimming, recorded from GM's Tech 1.
  • ABS: at standstill the module sends 3 counts per wheel (1.5 km/h) and 150 rpm – now shown as 0.
  • Dashboard: the orange value arc animates together with the needle (it ran ahead of it).
  • Air bag module: reply window 600 ms (garage test 2: no answer within 300 ms).
  • Buy me a coffee: a quiet link in the menu, Settings → About and Help → Credits. VetteALDL stays free.
  • Cable page: the schematic showed as a broken image on a laptop whose Windows registry gives .svg another file type – the app now sends the type of its own files itself instead of asking the registry.

beta (the night after garage test 1)

  • Air bag (SIR) page: 1990–93 DERM ($FA) current and history codes and clearing over the ALDL – the layout and the commands were learned from GM's own Tech 1 body software running in VetteALDL's emulator.
  • ABS / ASR page: wheel speeds on the car, wheel-sensor and brake-switch test, wheel-speed mismatch warning, pump / ASR / fluid status, stored codes with speed and ignition cycles, clearing (1992–93).
  • Body computer tests (1990–93): warning lamps, horn, rear defogger and courtesy relays, chimes – the Tech 1's CCM test commands.
  • Definitions checked against GM's Tech 1 data lists (1989 $6E, 1990–91 $8D, 1990–92 $8E, 1992–93 $DA2, CCM): inverted or mislabelled status bits fixed (A/C request and clutch, ASR, QDM faults, injector banks, gears – the "A/C clutch on / injector error with the engine off" of garage test 1), O2, TPS and MAP volts, knock retard, fuel integrator byte, 1990–92 LT5 oil temperature (was upside down), air temperature tables, missing fan / TCC / 4th gear / power key bits. Details: docs/tech1-datalists.md.

beta (after garage test 1, 1992 LT1)

  • Automatic mask check: while reading, the same reply bytes are decoded with every definition of that ECM and reply size; the one whose numbers make physical sense wins. A clearly wrong selection switches by itself (garage test: the 1990–91 L98 mask on a 1992 LT1 showed 5300 rpm, 0.1 V and −40 °C with the engine off), otherwise a bar offers Switch. Output tests are blocked while the data do not fit.
  • New physics rule: high rpm with MAP at barometric pressure and a closed throttle is impossible.
  • Auto-detect compares every definition of the same ECM and reply size – a 1992 LT1 that answered only the short request form was identified as a 1990–91 L98.
  • Connection debugger: a cable that is already in the car (modules talking during the bench test) is no longer reported as a broken cable; a cable whose own echo always comes back distorted while the car answers cleanly is named as a weak transmitter (diode cables: use a Schottky diode or cable rev B).
  • Output tests: a click while not connected is refused with a message (after the Connection debugger the connection is closed - those clicks used to vanish); the running test is shown in words with a countdown and the ECM's confirmation, and its button is lit.
  • Bus monitor: our own frame coming back distorted is shown as ECHO≠, no longer counted as garbage.
  • Connection page: the cable held by the running connection is shown as "in use", not "no cable found"; an FTDI driver installed by Windows Update is recognised.
  • Engine stopped: 0 rpm instead of 25, no desired idle (the ECM leaves 255 there) - as on the Tech 1.
  • New page Body & switches (1990–93): the car seen from above with doors, hatch, key, lock cylinder, lock/unlock buttons, seat belt, lights, rear defogger and oil level switch live from the CCM; a switch test (✓ once a switch is seen in both positions) and a timestamped change log for intermittent contacts.
  • Read codes now on the Trouble codes page (connects by itself if needed).
  • Less talk, more car: the connection tools (debugger, bus monitor, cable, sessions & support) moved into a collapsible Tools group; the connection procedure only appears when a connection fails or on Problem connecting?; counters and the engine log are folded into Connection details.

beta

  • The window always fits the screen it opens on (it was a fixed 1360×880 – on laptops with a small or strongly scaled screen a third of it, window buttons included, was off-screen). Small screens start maximized and slightly zoomed out; size, position and zoom are remembered.
  • Zoom: Ctrl + / Ctrl − / Ctrl 0 and Ctrl + mouse wheel.
  • After installation the app opens in front instead of behind other windows (only on the taskbar).
  • Virtual Tech 1 and Dash diagnostics no longer overflow narrow windows.
  • Help: FAQ on window size and zoom; reporting a problem uses Send to the VetteALDL team.

beta

  • Send to the VetteALDL team straight from Sessions & support: the support bundle is uploaded over HTTPS (after you confirm) – no e-mail program needed. E-mail and GitHub issue stay as fallbacks.
  • One table of canonical channels (rpm, coolant, MAP kPa, TPS %, O2, BLM, INT, …) decided by name and units now drives the dashboard, LiveDoctor and the plausibility check – no more gauges picking a value in the wrong units.
  • Parameter glossary: an ⓘ button in Live data explains each channel and its typical warm-idle value (six languages); dashboard tiles show the same text as a tooltip.
  • Connection debugger and auto-detect report progress in your language (no more mixed PL/EN lines).
  • Auto-detect: when two ECMs send identical frames (1992–93 LT1 $DA2 vs ZR-1 $8E) the car you selected wins.

beta

  • Automatic cable mode: FTDI D2XX, then VetteFTDI (WinUSB), then a USB-serial COM port – whichever works first.
  • The genuine FTDI (WHQL) driver is bundled and installed silently by the installer or from the connection procedure – Zadig is only needed for cables with counterfeit chips.
  • Small separate uninstaller; clean upgrade over an older version.
  • Send to support: e-mail ([email protected]) or GitHub issue with the support bundle.
  • Optional check for new versions (GitHub releases).
  • Two copies of the app can no longer share one port.

garage test build

  • Virtual Tech 1 page: black rectangles on some graphics cards fixed (GPU rasterization off by default, VETTEALDL_GPU=full restores it).
  • Installer: update over an existing installation and uninstall from Windows settings.

first public beta

  • Virtual Tech 1 screen: GM's hand-held scanner emulated (LCD with its own glyphs, keypad and keyboard shortcuts, frame log), running cartridge images you import yourself – against the simulator or your car through the cable.
  • Output tests for 1989 L98 ($6E), 1990–91 L98 ($8D), 1990–92 ZR-1 ($8E, incl. the secondary port throttles, injector module and fuel pump) and 1992–93 LT1 ($DA2) now use the exact frames GM's Tech 1 software sends; the old "experimental" $8D table is gone.
  • 1992–93 LT1: reference-period values (GM A172).
  • Help: body computer and ABS/ASR 1990–93, A–B resistor modes, Virtual Tech 1, how to report problems – in all six languages.
  • The installer ships only VetteALDL's own definition files (community ADX sources are credited, not redistributed).

internal preview

  • Cable rev B, VetteFTDI driver with bundled Zadig, live data, trouble codes with diagnostic paths, LiveDoctor, connection debugger, dash diagnostics, output tests, bus monitor, sessions and support bundles, six languages, own window and installer.
  • Definitions for every OBD1 Corvette 1982–95; CCM 1990–93 (GM A111/A173), ABS/ASR 1992–93 (A175).