Cause
GPS antenna disconnected or damaged
The satellite positioning aerial is unplugged, its cable is damaged, or its connection has corroded — and the vehicle cannot establish where it is.
The aerial is almost always on the roof, under the fin or pod, or bonded behind the headlining. On most modern vehicles that housing is shared: the same unit carries the radio and digital radio aerials, the mobile data antenna for connected services and emergency calling, and frequently the receivers for keyless entry and the tyre pressure sensors. Which is why one loose connector there produces a set of complaints that look entirely unrelated — no satellite navigation, poor reception, connected services unavailable, and unreliable keyless entry, all at once.
The causes are physical and mostly follow work rather than age. Reaching the module means dropping the headlining, which happens for sunroof repairs, curtain airbags, roof consoles and aerial upgrades, and the connectors are very often left unseated afterwards. A roof box or roof bars can crush the cable run; an automatic car wash can catch the fin; and the fin's own gasket is a known water path — water entering there runs down inside the headlining rather than staying put, so a damp pillar trim can share a cause with a navigation fault.
One case clears itself and should be eliminated first. A vehicle that has stood a long time, or had a flat battery, holds no recent position and reports implausible movement until it re-acquires the satellites. Ten minutes driving in the open costs nothing and settles it.
Typically a moderate job.
Codes this can cause (13)
Codes where this is a likely explanation first, rather than merely a possible one.
- U0163 Lost Communication With Navigation Control Module Likely for this code Moderate
- U0185 Lost Communication With Antenna Control Module Likely for this code Moderate
- U0198 Lost Communication With Telematic Control Module Likely for this code High
- U0462 Invalid Data Received From Compass Module Likely for this code Low
- U0464 Invalid Data Received From Navigation Control Module Likely for this code Moderate
- U0486 Invalid Data Received From Antenna Control Module Likely for this code Moderate
- U0496 Invalid Data Received From Subscription Entertainment Receiver Module Likely for this code Low
- U0498 Invalid Data Received From Telephone Control Module Likely for this code Moderate
- U0499 Invalid Data Received From Telematic Control Module Likely for this code High
- U0559 Invalid Data Received From Radio Transceiver Likely for this code Low
- P0D1F Control Module Date/Time Synchronization Error High
- U0195 Lost Communication With Subscription Entertainment Receiver Module Low
- U0197 Lost Communication With Telephone Control Module Moderate
Information, not instruction
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