Fanatec motors replaced what else can it be?

[Alex Townsend]

Hi guys. Looking for a little help here.
I've recently replaced my Fanatec CSW v1 motorblock and I still have the same issue...

Wheel starts to power up, power button flashes red and the fans turn on, wheel jolts 1 degree or less to the right then it powers off...

Seeing as this was the issue before I bought the new motorblock, anyone out there had a similar experience or know what this sounds like?

Could it be the power supply brick not supplying enough power for the wheel base to POST?
I've had a look over the PCB and everything looks normal, no burn marks or bursting capacitors etc.

Value any offer of knowledge on what to test and how as I'm not sure I can break the news to the wife that I need to drop a couple of thousand MYR on a new Thrustmaster or something to tide me over until I can afford to go down the v2.5 or DD route...

 

[Alex Townsend]

Think I must be the only person with ancient hardware or perhaps the only one with this specific sim racing hardware... who knows?

Anyway, I checked the power supply for my CSW v1. Its rated at 24v output is 5A
So, I looked around the house and found an old Netgear router power supply. This supply is also 24v but only 1A output...
So, with limited, (read: no real electronics knowledge whatsoever), I plugged the Netgear PSU into the Fanatec wheelbase.

It turned on, wheel moved a jolt to the left, but this time also to the right. Then it stayed powered on instead of powering itself off.
Well, I don't know if it's truly a good sign or not. But the power supply I've ordered is rated the same as the old one, so hopefully this means that the wheel will power up and POST properly in a matter of days.

Will report back on my findings here. For anyone out there that may give a flying one.

 

[Neilski]

Have you asked Fanatec if the symptoms suggest a root cause?

 

[Alex Townsend]

Yes, and they said it sounded like the motors had gone and required a new motor block.
I had one off eBay so put it in but still the same symptoms...
So now I'll wait until the power supply arrives, it cost RM60 including postage which is about a tenner so will see what happens when that arrives.

 

[Cote Dazur]

If it was the power supply then the good news is you have an extra set of working motors.
Let us know how it goes.

 

[Alex Townsend]

If it was the power supply then the good news is you have an extra set of working motors.
Let us know how it goes.

Ha ha, I thought exactly the same thing.
Power supply has been shipped so hopefully will be with me tomorrow or Thursday.
Just hope I haven't lost any of my mediocre racing skills in this forced downtime...

 

[Alex Townsend]

So, a little update
New PSU arrived, the fit is not that snug with the new socket...
I have another power brick arriving from a different company to test and, failing a snug fit with this unit, I'll attempt removing the connector from the original PSU and splicing it on to one of the new PSUs.

I also have an FFC 9 pin cable coming in case that is the issue with the unit receiving the message to start up properly when pressing the power button.

It powers on sometimes, starts to POST, goes left, finds the zero peg, spins right for a short time then heavy spins left and locks there...

On closer inspection it looks like I did scratch the code wheel when changing the motor block over.
I searched and found a guy called eKretz on another forum, known for being a bit of an expert when it comes to repairing and modifying Fanatec hardware.
He said that he repainted the lines on the code wheel using a microscope and black nail polish.
My wife and daughters have black nail polish for Halloween so I've ordered a fine detail brush and microscope to perform this job next.

It could also be that I installed a faulty code wheel sensor, even though it was purchased new from Fanatec, when the old one may have been working ok, so will check this theory too.

I will keep trying to repair this unit...

 

[Cote Dazur]

If eKretz is in your corner, you are in good hands. He his the ultimate expert in fixing and improving those wheel base. and also great guy.

 

[Alex Townsend]

Another update in this, seemingly unending repair job...

So far to date;

Replaced main cable
Replaced power brick
Cleaned zero sensor
Cleaned pos sensor
Replaced pos sensor
Rewired zero sensor connector as it had snapped
Cleaned code wheel
Stripped wheelbase down to remove code wheel
Repainted code wheel scratches

On the rims
BMW GT2 replaced broken pin from spares
Formula Black, replaced internal main cable

Work to finish
Replace power button ribbon
Reassemble wheelbase and test

Fingers crossed this works. If not I'm going the DD route...