2000 F-body lost class 2 communication with IPC (no-start)

[leres]

I was working on the factory radio in my Camaro this afternoon and found myself in a no-start condition. I think things went south when I turned the ignition on with the radio fuse removed, which apparently also controls powers the instrument cluster. I remember re-installing the fuse with the ignition on and seeing the instrument cluster reset (the guages bounced from max to min); since then I'm unable to start the engine.

At first I didn't notice that the instrument cluster doesn't display anything but once I did I broke out efilive and was suprised by the number of DTCs:

• P0650
• P1626
• U1000
• U1016
• U1096

I believe the problem is I've either lost class 2 communication with the instrument cluster or else the IPC has failed in some way. When I scan for modules I see three: ECM, BCM, and EBCM; the IPC is missing.

All fuses test good; my car is a 2000 but I'm running the 2002 operating system with some minor fuel map tweaks. Anybody see this before? Did I somehow kill my instrument cluster?

[joecar]

Hi Craig,

There's also the SDM/airbag missing (BCM shouldn't be on the F-body bus).

Did you disturb:
- the splice pack that is the bus "backbone"...?
- any wires that belong to the bus...?
- any grounds...?

Did you check all the other fuses also...?

Disconnect the battery, allow 10 minutes, reconnect the battery.

[leres]

There's also the SDM/airbag missing (BCM shouldn't be on the F-body bus).

Sorry, the modules efilive can see are ECM, EBCM and SDM. (I knew there are 4 in the car and that I'm not seeing the IPC).

Did you disturb:
- the splice pack that is the bus "backbone"...?
- any wires that belong to the bus...?
- any grounds...?

I disconnected/connected SP200 while diagnosing this issue but not before.

I was working on the radio in the center cluster not around any ground points (as far as I know).

Did you check all the other fuses also...?

As I started, all fuses test good (at the IP and in the two under hood boxes and I also double checked them last night).

Disconnect the battery, allow 10 minutes, reconnect the battery.

Good suggestion but it doesn't change the symptoms.

I think my move now is to send my cluster out for testing/repair.

[leres]

This turned out to be a bad fuse. I checked all the fuses inside and under the hood twice with a littlefuse LED tester and all were good. But later I used a DVM on the cluster connector and was missing a circuit. I pulled the fuse and saw that splatter that might have given me a false reading.

Anyway once the cluster had power again everything started working.

[joecar]

Craig, thanks for the follow up, I'm glad it was only a fuse.