Hi Rob
I haven't mentioned this earlier, but I do appreciate the feedback and time you are spending on this. I know what its like to have a product that everyone uses with no problems, except for a couple of "problem children"

One thing I noticed, in relation to a comment you mentioned about ".... the power PIC crashing". When I apply ignition, the unit boots. Pretty obvious. If I turn the ignition off, while the unit is still booting (ie the logo has come up, but before the "loadinng visuals..." etc comments are done, the unit continues to boot. It finishes loading whatever modules it has to and then shuts down. (with the pop).

If I understand how everything fits together correctly, then the power pic you were referring to earlier is keeping this thing up until the boot has completed.

Does the processor signal the PIC not to dump the power until the boot has completed. If so, why does it not keep it up when the ignition is killed.

It sounds as if the PIC is working correctly.....

Peter