Common problems when replacing the relays
Lately I've had customers who purchased relays come back to say that they didn't fix the problem or that now the problem is different. I thought that was strange so I investigated.
I got one of their GM5 modules and opened it up. See picture below. First thing I noticed was 5 of the component pads had been damaged and where now missing from the back of the board. The pictures were taken after I extracted the new relays that the customer had installed.
While the missing pads looked bad it was not the cause of the problems he was experiencing. I removed the relays to get a look underneath and that is where I found the problem. See picture below. He has ripped up two traces, two more pads and you can't see it in the picture, but, he also ripped out some of the plated through holes (plated through holes are copper bonded to the walls of the holes which connect the pad on the top with the pad on the bottom)
When I work on these modules I use a Metcal soldering iron that can put out up to 80 Watts of heat and a High Vacuum Desoldering Pump. Even with this equipment it still takes me about 5-10 minutes to get the each relay out and only 2-3 minutes to put the new ones in. Then there's cleaning and inspecting under a microscope that takes a few more minutes.
The other day while working on a customers GM5 module I pulled
out a plated through hole while removing the relays. Good think I caught it
because if I hadn't, the module would not have worked correctly when I put
in the new relays. The hole I damaged happened to be a critical one. I caught
the problem and had to add a wire to jumper around the broken connection.
I took some pictures of the board. See if you can identify the hole that I
ripped the plating out of.
The answer is hole #6. Hard to tell isn't it? In fact I can't tell unless I look at it with a microscope. Below is what it looks like through my 20x microscope. Hole number 5 has a little bit a damage, but, most of the plating is intacted. You can see the copper plating is ripped up on the right side and you can see a little bit of light green between the two copper colored areas. Now look at hole 6. It has nothing but that light green color. That is a total lack of plating. Without this plating the top pad & trace and the bottom pad & trace are isolated from each other. Trying to fill the hole with solder usually doesn't work and if it did, is not considered a reliable connection. The only option is to add a wire to the board to rejoin the broken connections. It can be tricky finding where the trace goes and getting a good place to solder on a wire.
Want to know how to make sure this doesn't happen? When pulling the solder out of the hole make sure that the pin wiggles freely in the hole and is not still attached to the sides. Pulling the relay out while it's still attached is the easiest way to pull out plated through holes, rip up pads or traces and permanently damage the board. After removing a relay inspect the relay leads for signs of copper plating. This is how I discovered that I pulled out a plated through hole. See picture below. The pin from hole 5 has a small piece of copper on the left side. The pin from hole 6 has a complete piece of plating still attached. The pin from hole 4 is clean.
Doing the job right is not that difficult with the right tools. Your chances of success drop rapidly without them or if you are impatient. Get a good solder sucker if you don't have one and get a decent soldering iron if you don't have one. Take your time. Do not pry the relay out of the board, unless your board has the red conformal coat then you may need to do a little trying as the conformal coat partially glues the relays to the board. Make sure you can wiggle all the pins freely before trying to pull the relay out. If it's done right, the relay should pratically fall out of the board. You should only need to pull the relays out if they are stuck due to conformal coat at the base of the relay.
If you don't feel confident doing it yourself then please find a professional to do it for you or send it to me for repair. I charge as little as $80 including the two door lock relays and Priority mail return shipping. If you already bought the relays from me and changed your mind about doing it yourself then it's only $50, just ship me the relays back with your module.
FAQ Section
I have the relays, but, don't feel confident doing it myself. Can I sent it in for repair? Sure, no problem. Since you already have the relays just send them back with your module. Cost is $50 for Priority service (3-4 days) including shipping within the US. Live outside the US, see below. Want it back faster, see below.
I think I messed up the board doing it myself. Can you fix it for me? If you replaced the relays yourself and feel that the board might be messed up because the module has even more problems or the problems are just different. I'll still work on it, but, troubleshooting is very time consuming and cost is $80 including Priority mail return shipping. For this job I do not offer Express service, where I repair it the same day and ship it back Express mail. The reason is I don't want to be rushed to get it to the post office by the 4pm deadline. With this type of service I do a detailed check of all the traces, pads and plated through holes which take time. I want to do it right so you don't have any more problems.
I want it repaired and sent back ASAP! Priority service is 3-4 days within the US. If you want it back sooner I offer Express service for $20 more where I repair it the SAME day I receive it and ship it out Express mail (next day to most areas).
I don't reside in the US, can you still repair my module? International is not a problem. I do it all the time. Cost is only $20 more than my standard services which basically is just the difference in shipping cost between domestic and international. That means Priority International service (6-10 business days) is $100 and Express International service (6 business days) is $120.
Can I drive the car while the GM5 is out of the car? Yes, you can drive the car without the module. A few things won't work, obviously, like windshield wipers, interior lights, alarm functions, remote lock/unlock, power windows (make sure the windows are in a position you can live with before removing the module), remote trunk release, headlight washers and a few other minor items.