May 2001 Volume 3, No. 5 OnStar Service Issues Techline News SI 2000 Now Updated Weekly Beginning the first week in April, the SI 2000 website is being updated once a week. The latest inform a t i o n will be available each Friday morn i n g . This is twice as often as before . To access the information, use your internet browser to go to web- site http://service.gm.com. Do not use “www” in this addre s s . Click on Service Manuals, Bulletins and Campaigns. You will need to type your User Name and P a s s w o rd to go past this point. Most systems on GM vehicles are Next, on the SI 2000 Home Page, integrated completely into the vehicle. select the area you’re interested in. They carry out their intended functions By the way, notice that you now without reacting to influences from out- have a choice of two languages: side the vehicle. Contents English and Fre n c h . A few systems, though, can be The information that is updated affected by the behavior of something OnStar Service Issues . .1 each week includes Service Manual, outside the vehicle. For instance, the SI 2000 Now Updated Weekly . .1 Bulletins, Campaigns, and Pre l i m i n a ry radio depends on receiving an acceptable I n f o rmation (PI) titles. signal from the radio station’s tower. Dealership PC Network Strategies . .4 By clicking on Latest News, you Radio reception can be affected by exter- will see a list of Bulletins, Campaigns nal interference from overhead electrical Dinghy Towing -- A Reminder . .5 and PI titles that have been re c e n t l y wires, faulty ignition in nearby vehicles, added. A box at the end of the page and driving past tall buildings or through Recognizing OE Batteries . .5 allows you to select 2, 4, 6 or 8 tunnels. weeks. Service manual revisions and New Mid-Size Truck Rear Suspension System . .6 additions are not indexed. Similarly, the proper operation of the OnStar system is affected both by in- Malibu Exhaust Rattle . .7 The internet will always be your vehicle components and by influences f reshest source of service inform a- coming from outside the vehicle. The Armrest Lowers Itself During Braking . .7 tion. The service information on GM OnStar system has several independent ACCESS will continue to be updated GM Service Clubs, Part 4 . .7 on a two week cycle. And it’s even elements that must work together in order for the system to function properly. possible that new bulletins may TAC Tips . .8 appear on SI 2000 before the paper The hardware in the vehicle. The copies arrive in your dealership. Vehicle Interface Unit and Vehicle Bulletins . .8 – Thanks to Lisa Scott Communications Unit, the cellular anten- na, the GPS antenna, and related cables Service Operations must operate properly and must interface continued on page 2 1 correctly with the vehicle. The Cellular Phone System GM TechLink is a monthly magazine The cellular phone network. The Issues for all GM retail technicians and ser- cellular network must be able to deliver a There are numerous issues that arise vice consultants providing timely two-way cellular call. information to help increase knowl- from utilizing a cellular system supplied edge about GM products and improve The OnStar Call Center by an independent third party. Cellular the performance of the service Application. This application must be towers can be busy, depending on the department. This magazine is a com- able to send and receive information level of traffic on the system. Some panion to the GM Edge publication. from the vehicle. areas of the country may have a limited or inadequate number of cellular towers Signals from US GPS satellites. The Publisher & Editor: to handle the load of cellular phone calls. OnStar equipment in the vehicle must Mark Stesney also be able to receive and interpret sig- GM Service Operations nals from the US Global Positioning [email protected] Satellites orbiting above the earth. Technical Editor: The OnStar system relies upon all of these independent systems to work Jim Horner together to provide service to OnStar [email protected] subscribers. It is precisely this interaction 1-248-816-3641 that makes the OnStar system unique. Production Manager: But this interaction of internal and external factors can complicate the prop- Marie Meredith er diagnosis of customer concerns. Desktop Publishing: The diagnosis of the in-vehicle hard- Greg Szpaichler, MediaWurks ware is not significantly different from [email protected] diagnosing other on-vehicle modules. The real difficulty in diagnosing the OnStar Cellular Phone System FAX number: system lies in assessing whether the 1-248-649-5465 customer’s concern is the result of a problem in the vehicle hardware or an OnStar has made an arrangement Write to: with Verizon to provide cellular service issue with the other external systems for the OnStar system. To provide OnStar TechLink necessary for OnStar operation. PO Box 500 with truly national coverage, Verizon has Troy, MI 48007-0500 On-Vehicle Equipment Issues signed agreements with local carriers in areas where Verizon doesn’t have a GM TechLink on the Web: Many on-vehicle equipment issues license. http://service.gm.com can be resolved by simply ensuring that the system components are installed or In order for a cellular call to be deliv- connected properly. The cellular antenna ered between OnStar and a vehicle, General Motors service tips are Verizon must ensure that every local car- intended for use by professional tech- mast must be installed on the vehicle rier in the chain handling the call must nicians, not a "do-it-yourselfer." They and the coax cable must be tightly con- recognize the phone number assigned to are written to inform those techni- nected to the Vehicle Communication cians of conditions that may occur on Unit (VCU) and the antenna base. each vehicle. some vehicles, or to provide informa- Long distance is yet another aspect. tion that could assist in the proper At present, OnStar has two call centers, service of a vehicle. Properly trained one in Charlotte, NC and one in Troy, MI. technicians have the equipment, tools, Unless a vehicle is located in one of safety instructions and know-how to these two cities, it is likely that the vehi- do a job properly and safely. If a con- cle will at some point have to make a dition is described, do not assume long distance call. This involves a long that the bulletin applies to your vehi- cle or that your vehicle will have that distance carrier and adds to the complex- condition. See a General Motors deal- Vehicle Communication Unit (VCU) ity. and the Vehicle Interface Unit (VIU) er servicing your brand of General While this sounds very complicated, it Motors vehicle for information on is usually seamless. The vast majority of whether your vehicle may benefit from OnStar calls are successful. The ones the information. The GPS antenna must have a good connection both at the antenna and at that may require service are typically the Inclusion in this publication is not nec- the Vehicle Interface Unit (VIU). The GPS exceptions, not the norm. essarily an endorsement of the indi- vidual or the company. antenna coax is rather fragile cable. When inspecting or replacing the cable, GPS System Issues Copyright© 2001 General Motors Corporation do not bend it to a curve less than 2 inch- The Global Positioning System (GPS) All rights reserved. es in diameter or the cable will be dam- is an example an everyday civilian benefit aged. resulting from a system originally devel- 2 Other New Refinements - Progression tones replace the tradi- tional audio feedback of a ringing phone, busy signal or other similar oped for the military. the voice recognition software incorporat- message. The tone is an audio note ed in the vehicle hardware. If there’s a There is a mathematical principle that repeats at regular 5 to 15 sec- problem with this part of the system, it’s called triangulation that says you can pin- ond intervals. right there in the vehicle. Then, there’s point an unknown location if you know its the voice recognition software at the When the OnStar Call Button or the distance from three known locations. other end of the call within the Virtual emergency key is pressed, you will hear GPS uses 24 NAVSTAR satellites orbiting “connecting to OnStar,” followed by the Advisor System. This part of the system the earth. The location of each satellite is progression tones. With normal cellular can be affected by interferences on the known at any given time. The satellites connection times, the tones could last as cellular communication network. constantly broadcast radio signals. A GPS long as three minutes before a connec- receiver compares the amount of time it Most voices are readily recognized, tion is made. takes for the signals from at least three but some users may experience difficulty It is important to wait until the sys- different satellites to reach the receiver. with certain numbers, words, or phrases. tem makes a connection, or the “unable By translating time into distance, it can The customer may have to be trained to connect to OnStar” message is heard. calculate the receiver’s location on earth. to modify their speech pattern slightly to OnStar recommends that you try to con- The OnStar receiver in the vehicle take full advantage of the voice recogni- nect several times. If a successful con- receives the GPS data, decodes it, and tion system.