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bought a spare ECU , can I just connect when needed

2K views 8 replies 3 participants last post by  herman maire 
#1 ·
Just bought a spare ECU for the Range Rover to have on road trips.... it is a good used unit. Can I just connect when/if ever needed?

I am reading some nonsense about having to reboot the ecu at the dealer..... I am having a hard time believing this . I have taken ecu's out of porsche's and BMW and NEVER had any trouble after connecting. is there something special about this ecu? It is essentially a BMW ecu

any opinions appreciated .
 
#5 ·
herman maire said:
thanks for the reply.

The ECU i am referring to is the main ecu ( engine control unit) . The main engine computer.
herman,

The vehicle will not start when you swap the PCM's, unless you swap the immobilization control module with it. You need to check and see if the place that you got the PCM from has the module. ibis1 ;)
 
#6 ·
ibis1 said:
herman maire said:
thanks for the reply.

The ECU i am referring to is the main ecu ( engine control unit) . The main engine computer.
herman,

The vehicle will not start when you swap the PCM's, unless you swap the immobilization control module with it. You need to check and see if the place that you got the PCM from has the module. ibis1 ;)

Thanks for the reply. Thats bad news.... are you 100% sure? I dont think I can get the alarm computer. Does this make the ecu a large paper weight? It seems kind of crazy if they build these ecu's ( engine computer) like this.

Thanks agaimn
 
#7 ·
herman maire said:
ibis1 said:
[quote="herman maire":1gv3ebsk]thanks for the reply.

The ECU i am referring to is the main ecu ( engine control unit) . The main engine computer.
herman,

The vehicle will not start when you swap the PCM's, unless you swap the immobilization control module with it. You need to check and see if the place that you got the PCM from has the module. ibis1 ;)

Thanks for the reply. Thats bad news.... are you 100% sure? I dont think I can get the alarm computer. Does this make the ecu a large paper weight? It seems kind of crazy if they build these ecu's ( engine computer) like this.

Thanks agaimn[/quote:1gv3ebsk]
herman,
Things don't always work as designed. If you purchase any ECU (control module) new, used or remanufactured to be used as an emergency replacement. Make SURE it works BEFORE you need it. So take your replacement and install it at your convenience prior to your trip. In this case if it does not work and I don't believe it will, at least you know a head of time. Let me tell you from my experience that engine ECU's (PCM) on these vehicles rarely fail. I hope this helps and good luck with your Rover! ibis1 ;)
 
#8 ·
The other thing to think of is the mileage of the car is stored in 2 locations one in the BECM and the other in the instrument panel. The mileage will revert to the higher of the 2. I don't know if this is permanent but something to be careful of. Maybe someone else know. If you swap in a BECM with high mileage do those miles get permanantly stuck on the car?

What I am saying is hopefully your not putting more miles on your car then it really has.
 
#9 ·
Hello again,

I have another question, I was getting my truck serviced at the dealer and inquired about if my second hand (emergency spare) ecu would just plug up. Answer, NO.

So what they have to do is download the info from my current ecu and upload the info to the spare ECU. But then this leaves my current ecu unusable. Is this true?

This seems crazy, if for some reason my current ecu got damaged by water, how would they get any info out of it, they wouldn't, so there has to be a way to download the info to upload into the spare and still have my current ecu working.

Any other advice?

Thanks again 8~
 
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