NavNet vx2- keeps shutting down

[Anonymous]

Hi everyone. I'm new to this forum and I found it b/c I'm desperatly seeking help with an issue of a 10.4" 2007 vx2 type RDP-149 I just bought the boat 2 months ago and no one can figure this out...

Issue:
Unit was new in 2007. Really good shape physically and Radar is hooked up to it as well.
It turns one and within 30 mins it starts acting up. Brilliant (brightness) goes up and down erratically 8,7,6,5,6,7,8,7,6,5,4,5,6,7,8...then it starts counting down a shut down randomly...3,2,1,3,2,3,2,3,2,1 then just off.

Background:
Owner said he had issues with the radar working...sent it to Furuon and they replaced the radar board in the vx2 unit itself and had Furuno fix it six months ago. He also said he replaced the cord that connects the unti to the radar so thats new. The radar works...when the unit stays on. He's also sent the vx2 back to Furuno a few weeks ago and he said Furuno replaced the power switch b/c it was bad. He says they hooked it up anbd it tsted fine and they updated the unit while it was there and sent it back.

What I've done to try to isolate it:
We thought it was a load or wiring problem so I tested the voltage everywehere and it seems fine. Over 12 volts on the battery(s), at a terminal bus, at the fuse box and even at the end of the power cable that goes into the unit itself. Even after it shut down on me yesterday I disconnected it and measured at the power cord and there were over 13 volts. I even tried wiring the fuse panel straight to the battery and still the same issue. Oddly enough the last 2 trips out it has lasted 2 hourts and then 1 hour before shutting down though.
I tried disconnecting the radar and seeing if it still happened today and it wouldnt even turn on this time. Just kept beeping like it was trying to start up but it wouldn't.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Johnny Electron]

Paperchaser

Owner said he had issues with the radar working...sent it to Furuon and they replaced the radar board in the vx2 unit itself and had Furuno fix it six months ago.

There isn't really a radar board "per say" in the Vx2, so the previous owner could have been a bit clearer in his description of what was done to the unit. Your problem would most likely be totally unrelated to any radar issue. Your problem sounds more like a front panel problem, most likely to do with the power button area. When the previous owner had this serviced, was it a local bench tech, Furuno authorized dealer or the Furuno service center? Was this unit sold/serviced by Furuno USA or other Furuno distributor? I might be able to bring up some case history on it. The problem would really need to be evaluated for repair by a qualified technician (like one of our authorized dealers) or our factory service center. It could be caused by a larger problem like water intrusion/corrosion. I have seen issues in the past where units were improperly installed without the sponge gasket. This could cause the case or bezel to damaged. (High impacts/vibrations and over tightened screws without proper gasket) Hairline cracks can be hard to see. This is only one example of what might have led to problems prematurely on this unit. It is too hard to speculate. It needs to be evaluated.

If in the USA, you can find our dealers using our dealer locator link on our web site. (http://www.FurunoUSA.com)
http://www.furunousa.com/Support/DealerLocator.aspx

If outside the USA, you can find your distributor from the main Furuno.com web site.
Overall, if you are in the USA; I would suggest you let our factory service center evaluate it. You can mail it to our Camas WA. address ( ATTN:SERVICE )
They have a flat $100 evaluation that is waived if you choose to have the unit repaired. Sometimes they will cover some repairs outside of warrantee depending on what they find on a case by case basis.

 

[Anonymous]

JE, I spent a lot of time on the phone with Ron yesterday and we went through a lot of different things and he was really helpul. Perhaps you can speak to him and get his opinion on what we tried and what he's thinking?

Earlier in the day Ron advised me to try to plug the unti in w/o radar or Sd card. I went tio the boat and tried that but it still acted up.

What was odd was that when it was acting up again and the network and data cables were in, as soon as I unplugged them it stopped acting up. It was fine for about 45 miones with nothing plugged in expect the power and then 10 mins after I put just the network cable in, there it went again. I though maybe I isolated it but then I pulled the network cable off and with nothing expect the power plugged in it did a very brief count down again. Damn...

Then Ron called me. We then plugged everything back in including radar and SD card. Ran some momory tests and check some settings. Everything seemed fine. The machine temp or whatever that is was at +161. Ron asked me to keep an eye on that and when it was acting up to measure it again to see if maybe it was over heating. Took about 40 mins and there it went again. I can the diagnostics and it was +162 to 163. Up just a tad.

Ron pulled some history on the machine and it looks like last month just a update was done when it was sent back to WA by the original owner. I was under the impression the power button was replaced to but its not in the work order. Unless it wasnt documented which I'm sure didnt happen maybe that is the issue.

I'm going to put the unit in a buddys boat who has the same unit and see if the probelm duplicates in his. If so, it has to be the unit.

Please let me know what you think of all this. Thanks,

 

[Johnny Electron]

It sounds like Ron has you on the right track. I would suggested you take EVERYTHING off the unit but the power cable, including any grounding wire attached to the fly nut/wing nut at the back of the display. Ensure that where the power cable is connected to your power system that the cable shield is connected to NOTHING. That shield is already internally grounded inside the unit and if grounded the shield can act as a path for electrical flow and could cause voltage differential problems. This also includes your chart card. Make sure you batteries are charged and if everything works fine then add one thing at a time and see if you can find what is causing the problems to appear. If you find that the network cable connection is what causes the problem, then look closely the hub or connecting devices and wiring. A good inspection and find many problems. If you have problems with the unit without anything connected, it needs to be fully evaluated by a qualified Furuno dealer or our service center. In this case, I would recommend the service center. Keep us posted on your progress…

 

[Anonymous]

Gotta love intermitent issue!

So I went by the boat yesterday and tried this. I couldnt recreate the issue at all.
I first tried only plugging in the power like you suggested. 1.5 hours and nothing happened.
I never plugged in the radar and I left the SD card in b/c with these off/out yesterday the issue occurced so I suppoe that rules them out.
I then plugged in just the blue network. 45 mins...nothing happened.
I then plugged in data 1 as well...20 mins, nothing
I then plugged in data 4 as well...20 mins nothing.
I then screwed on the green wire...20 mins nothing.
Everything was plugged in expect the radar...30 mins.nothing.
I turned it off, plugged in the radar as well so 100% plugged in...30 mins nothing.

About 4 hours on the boat yesaterday and couldnt recreate the issue at all. :angry

The only thing I did differently yesterday was put my batteries on 1+2 instead of just 2 which I usually have them on. I'm going to try again today on just 2.

 

[Johnny Electron]

Your right, intermitent issues are the worst to track down. You will find I a pattern with enough time, but what a pain. This is a good case to remember once you locate the problem. Maybe someone else will at least be helped by your efforts. Hang in there...

 

[Anonymous]

New update...

So I pulled the unit out and was going to put it in my buddies boat but we decided to hook it straight to a battery first. We through an in-line fuse in the positive and hooked it up and left it at his tackle shop over-night. When he came in this morning the unit was powered down and wouldnt even turn on. It has to be the unit right?

We are going to send it in to Furuno, WA today. Any feedback on who's attention I can get there to help me out best?

Thanks,

 

[Johnny Electron]

If you left it with the unit turned on it might have drained the battery low enough it wouldn't turn on. The NavNet displays are very good about protecting themselves from bad/low power. Just send it to the service center with all the background information you can. They are really good there and if the problem is in the unit, they will find it. Make sure to provide all your contact information so they can contact you when they complete the evaluation.

 

[Anonymous]

Forgot to mention we tried another battey of course to make sure it wasn't that. We also checked the in-line fuse to make sure it wasn't blown. It simply wouldnt turn back on.

Was talking to Ron in MD and he mentioned it sounds like the power supply. He said it sounds like the intermitent problem is finally just a problem if it wont turn back on at all. Hopefully this is it!

 

[Anonymous]

Glad to say it looks like we finally got it all figured out. Used the boat over the weekend and it seems to work fine. Ended up that it doesnt look like I got all the facts from the previous owner and whomever he had doing work form him. When I purchased the unit it was immediatly sent back to Furuno for a repair but it doesnt sound like Furuno was given the proper information to properly diagnose the issue. I took it upon myself to make sure I was invloved going forward and sent it to furuno myslef and talked to them personally. I got a call from headquarters asking me if I pressure washed the unit lately. I said no but I cant speak as to what happened before I bought the boat. Apparently the SD slot was left open, fresh water got in there and the SD card reader, SD cable and touch pad (hence to power button automatically dimming and shutting the unit down) had to be replaced due to water damage. What impressed me the most was that I sent it back to Furuno on a Friday, they got it Monday and had it back in Florida by Wednesday so I didn't miss a Bahamas trip. Thats unreal and I really appreciate it!