CAN Bus Reverse Engineering: Control Real Car Dashboard

Decode and Control Vehicle Functions Without OEM Docs, CAPL Scripting, CAN Bus Analysis, Work with Hardware & Software

What you'll learn
- Identifying the correct CAN pins on a vehicle connector, even when there is no schematic or pinout available
- Determining the correct CAN bus speed (baud rate) using Logic analyzer
- Capturing and analyzing real CAN bus traffic to identify frame IDs associated with specific dashboard actions — such as blinkers, speedometer
- Decoding message payloads, by interpreting the bit-level structure of the data fields inside CAN frames
- Using CAPL scripting in the Vector toolchain (such as CANoe) to simulate and test message injection
- Building and refining a DBC file, which is a powerful way to describe and simplify the interpretation of CAN frames, making the data easier to work with
- Creating a virtual dashboard replica, allowing to visualize and control the dashboard behavior

Requirements
- Basic Can BUS knowledge,

Description
Welcome to this practical course where we will reverse engineer a car's dashboard systemwithout having any documentation.

Our mission is to take control of certain dashboard functions — such asturning blinkers on/off and changing the displayed vehicle speed— using CAN Bus communication.

We’ll go step-by-step, from connecting to the car’s electronics, analyzing the traffic, to writing custom CAPL scripts and creating avirtual dashboard replica.

By the end of this course, you will gain a deep, practical understanding of topics such as:

Identifying the correct CAN pins on a vehicle connector, even when there is no schematic or pinout available — using methods like continuity testing and trial analysis.

Determining the correct CAN bus speed(baud rate) using Logic analyzer

Capturing and analyzing real CAN bus trafficto identify frame IDs associated with specific dashboard actions — such as blinkers, speedometer updates

Decoding message payloads, by interpreting the bit-level structure of the data fields inside CAN frames and understanding how individual bytes represent physical values.

Using CAPL scriptingin the Vector toolchain (such as CANoe) to simulate and test message injection,

Building and refining a DBC file, which is a powerful way to describe and simplify the interpretation of CAN frames, making the data readable and easier to work with.

Creating a virtual dashboard replica, allowing you to visualize and control the dashboard behavior

This course is designed for a wide audience, including:

Automotive reverse engineerswho want to dig into vehicle internals and uncover how systems communicate.

Embedded software and hardware developerslooking to test their own devices or gain better insight into how to interface with OEM car electronics.

Diagnostics and service tool creatorsaiming to create their own solutions for vehicle testing, maintenance, or feature expansion.

Car hacking enthusiastswho enjoy learning how modern vehicles operate and want to explore beyond the surface.

Everything will be introduced and explained in a clear and accessible manner. Whether you're working on your own car, building a testbench, or simply exploring for fun, this course will provide you with the skills and confidence to successfully reverse engineer CAN-based dashboard systems.

Who this course is for:
- Automotive reverse engineers who want to dig into vehicle internals and uncover how systems communicate.
- Embedded software and hardware developers looking to test their own devices or gain better insight into how to interface with OEM car electronics
- Diagnostics and service tool creators aiming to create their own solutions for vehicle testing, maintenance, or feature expansion.
- Car hacking enthusiasts who enjoy learning how modern vehicles operate and want to explore beyond the surface.
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