ECU Wanted

sholloway · 2nd December 2006, 16:47

My 75 diesel has succumbed to the dreaded soaked ECU. The ECU has drowned and gone to meet its maker according to the garage trying to fix it. Does anyone have one for sale or any tips on reviving the corpse?

Many thanks.

yp53 · 2nd December 2006, 16:52

The only thing you can do (short of replacing it) is to let it dry out completely.

It might even be worth taking it out of the box and giving it a warm through with a hairdrier - unless you can see some either any dirt particles that shouldn't be there or physical damage to any of the components (anything charred black, or part of a PCB track that has vapourised).

You might be lucky - fingers crossed.

Kandyman · 2nd December 2006, 18:12

Hi there sholloway and welcome to the forums,

Sorry to hear about your troubles

keep us informed how you get on

Phil · 2nd December 2006, 18:16

Can second hand ones be recoded?

Mike · 2nd December 2006, 18:22

s/h ECU's are of no use at all apart from on the original car as recoding is not possible.

hth

Mike

crofts · 3rd December 2006, 02:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike

s/h ECU's are of no use at all apart from on the original car as recoding is not possible.

hth

Mike

Speak to Total Tuning Tel:- 07722 288844. [email protected] . They may be able to help with drowned one if not they say they can recode secondhand ECU's. Got nothing to lose and could be a much cheaper option.
Please let us know how you get on. Good luck

Mike · 3rd December 2006, 05:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by crofts

Speak to Total Tuning Tel:- 07722 288844. [email protected] . They may be able to help with drowned one if not they say they can recode secondhand ECU's. Got nothing to lose and could be a much cheaper option.
Please let us know how you get on. Good luck

Interesting info Crofts............the manufacturer always maintained that the car ECU was one time programmable to a single car only.

Anyone heard reports of a s/h unit being reprogrammed successfully?

Mike

Kandyman · 3rd December 2006, 09:08

I have not heard of it been done Mike, But if they can remap a ECU to upgrade it,it would make sense to be able to put the manufactures one on there and start back a fresh if needed to ?

But what do i know i'am a jar head so my daughter tells me

Mike · 3rd December 2006, 09:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kandyman

I have not heard of it been done Mike, But if they can remap a ECU to upgrade it,it would make sense to be able to put the manufactures one on there and start back a fresh if needed to ?

But what do i know i'am a jar head so my daughter tells me

lol @ kandyman - afaik the ECU bit that is 'remapped' is not the bit that marries the ECU to the car.

ColinW · 5th December 2006, 15:58

Theory/
As an electronic engineer, I would say you have a better than 50/50 chance of getting it to work again.
By itself, water is not the problem. Unfortunately, the contaminated water, which will be electrolytic, gets onto the printed circuit board, and because the power is on, behaves as if there are many short circuits all across the circuit board. In a few cases this can cause catastropic failure. However, it can just cause the programme to go mad, thus disabling the car.

Remedy/
Dissonnect battery & remove the ECU module. I do not know if this is possible, but try and extract the ECU printed circuit board, ie the board with all the Chips on. Try not to touch the board except by the connector, as electrostatic discharge from yourself can destroy the IC's.
It is worth just having a look on the board for evidence of salt deposits. These need be not that obvious, but you can see sort of water marks, particulary where the water has been.
Now you will have to wash the board, initialy with warm tap water, and a soft brush, pay particular attention to the watermarked areas.

DO NOT BE AFRAID ABOUT THE WATER. BOARDS ARE CLEANED IN THE FACTORY USING WATER AND QUITE AGRESSIVE CLEANERS TO REMOVE SOLDERING FLUXES..

The next step is the most important. You now have to rinse the board with a good quality de-ionised water. Do this several times in fresh de-i .
Shake off as much of the water as you can. Do not be tempted to blow it off with your breath . You can blow it off with a good quality electronic airduster aerosol, that is used for computers etc
Now you must dry it thoroughly. A fan oven set to 50- deg C. Make sure the oven is at temp before you put it in. Leave for about 1/2 hr, or longer if you have the time.

Now at this point it is important, that you put it back in the case ASAP, having previously wash & dried the case as well.

Now what I don't know, and I'm sure somebody will, if the ECU needs some form of reset after putting it back. Batteries are disconnected routinely, so it should start working again.

NOW. If it works again, it is worth taking the ECU out once more, and coating the printed circuit board with a protective lacquer. This is routinely done in aerospace and militatry electronics for this very reason. Even condensed water droplets cause havoc with modern electrtonics.

Hope this helps, you have nothing to lose.

Good luck

Colin

2nd December 2006, 16:47	#1
sholloway Newbie Rover 75 Saloon Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Lincoln Posts: 2 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	ECU Wanted My 75 diesel has succumbed to the dreaded soaked ECU. The ECU has drowned and gone to meet its maker according to the garage trying to fix it. Does anyone have one for sale or any tips on reviving the corpse? Many thanks.

2nd December 2006, 18:16	#4
Phil This is my second home Rover 75 CDT Connoisseur SE Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Wales Posts: 12,227 Thanks: 469 Thanked 523 Times in 241 Posts	Can second hand ones be recoded? __________________

2nd December 2006, 18:22	#5
Mike This is my second home Rover 75 V8 Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,448 Thanks: 0 Thanked 206 Times in 32 Posts	s/h ECU's are of no use at all apart from on the original car as recoding is not possible. hth Mike __________________ Mike [SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

5th December 2006, 15:58	#10
ColinW Regular poster R 75 Club CDT Auto Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Reading Posts: 99 Thanks: 0 Thanked 4 Times in 1 Post	Rescue package Theory/ As an electronic engineer, I would say you have a better than 50/50 chance of getting it to work again. By itself, water is not the problem. Unfortunately, the contaminated water, which will be electrolytic, gets onto the printed circuit board, and because the power is on, behaves as if there are many short circuits all across the circuit board. In a few cases this can cause catastropic failure. However, it can just cause the programme to go mad, thus disabling the car. Remedy/ Dissonnect battery & remove the ECU module. I do not know if this is possible, but try and extract the ECU printed circuit board, ie the board with all the Chips on. Try not to touch the board except by the connector, as electrostatic discharge from yourself can destroy the IC's. It is worth just having a look on the board for evidence of salt deposits. These need be not that obvious, but you can see sort of water marks, particulary where the water has been. Now you will have to wash the board, initialy with warm tap water, and a soft brush, pay particular attention to the watermarked areas. DO NOT BE AFRAID ABOUT THE WATER. BOARDS ARE CLEANED IN THE FACTORY USING WATER AND QUITE AGRESSIVE CLEANERS TO REMOVE SOLDERING FLUXES.. The next step is the most important. You now have to rinse the board with a good quality de-ionised water. Do this several times in fresh de-i . Shake off as much of the water as you can. Do not be tempted to blow it off with your breath . You can blow it off with a good quality electronic airduster aerosol, that is used for computers etc Now you must dry it thoroughly. A fan oven set to 50- deg C. Make sure the oven is at temp before you put it in. Leave for about 1/2 hr, or longer if you have the time. Now at this point it is important, that you put it back in the case ASAP, having previously wash & dried the case as well. Now what I don't know, and I'm sure somebody will, if the ECU needs some form of reset after putting it back. Batteries are disconnected routinely, so it should start working again. NOW. If it works again, it is worth taking the ECU out once more, and coating the printed circuit board with a protective lacquer. This is routinely done in aerospace and militatry electronics for this very reason. Even condensed water droplets cause havoc with modern electrtonics. Hope this helps, you have nothing to lose. Good luck Colin

2nd December 2006, 16:52	#2
yp53 Loves to post ex- Rover 75 CDTi Tourer Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Timsbury, nr Bath Posts: 328 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	The only thing you can do (short of replacing it) is to let it dry out completely. It might even be worth taking it out of the box and giving it a warm through with a hairdrier - unless you can see some either any dirt particles that shouldn't be there or physical damage to any of the components (anything charred black, or part of a PCB track that has vapourised). You might be lucky - fingers crossed.

2nd December 2006, 18:12	#3
Kandyman Banned ROVER 75 2.5 V6 Connoisseur SE Limousine 2004 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Welling Posts: 10,995 Thanks: 0 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	Hi there sholloway and welcome to the forums, Sorry to hear about your troubles keep us informed how you get on

3rd December 2006, 09:08	#8
Kandyman Banned ROVER 75 2.5 V6 Connoisseur SE Limousine 2004 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Welling Posts: 10,995 Thanks: 0 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts	I have not heard of it been done Mike, But if they can remap a ECU to upgrade it,it would make sense to be able to put the manufactures one on there and start back a fresh if needed to ? But what do i know i'am a jar head so my daughter tells me