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Handling control modules

Handling control modules


All control modules are sensitive to electrostatic discharge (ESD), and can, if handled incorrectly, be damaged so badly that they cease to work. A malfunction may not be immediately apparent. A damaged control module may degenerate over time, and a fault arise a long time after the initial damage. It is therefore vital that the following rules are observed if for some reason a control module is to be removed or changed.


• Avoid unplugging or removing the control module unless absolutely necessary.

• Never touch the connector's contact pins and never position the control module in such a way that the pins could come into contact with foreign objects.

• Before unpacking a new control module, ground the packaging to the car body. Open the packaging as shortly as possible before installing the control module in the car.

• When carrying out any work on a control module, it is important to ground yourself from time to time. This is particularly important when you have been sitting in the car, when changing your position, or when moving round the car. It is even more important in climatic conditions with very dry air (i.e. during the winter in countries with a cold climate).

• Avoid wearing clothes made of synthetic materials.

• Avoid foot wear with insulated rubber soles.

• Always handle an electronic control module with suspected faults with the same caution as a fault free electronic control module. This considerably increases the possibility of localising the source of the problem.