ECM Problem

[Skipster]

My '88 dies once it is warm. My wrench thinks it's the ECU. I have been through 3 DME relays. Does anyone know of a shop that can repair ECUs?

Thank you!!

[RickM]

Call Pelican. I believe they have Loren (or others) rebuild ECUs.

[emcon5]

Electronic Counter Measures?

Tom

[Skipster]

John at Pelican was very helpful but they are not rebuilding them at this time. After searching these boards, I am surprised that there are so few postings regarding ECU issues.

Are the ECUs in these cars usually trouble-free?

Thanks in advance.

[nhromyak]

Supposedly, these hardly ever fail. Apparenlty I am one of the unlucky ones and mine intermittently failed.

I was told the ignition circuits tend to go out often. Basically, the main transistor overheats and fails. This sounds like your problem. It could also be your ignition coil. But then again if your replacing DME relays, you may have something else happening to your DME computer. The DME solder joints (along with DME relays) seem to vibrate loose as well due to some cold solders. I tried this one too.

Otto - Otto's Venice checked mine out after I was lucky enough to place my DME in a known good 911 and watch his car run just like mine. This was after I tried many different things and double-check wiring and sensor readings etc. etc.

However, I think Loren rebuilds them. I can't find his contact info right now. I am pretty sure I have it at home...somewhere. PM me if you can't find it.

It looks like vertex also has rebuilt DMEs:
http://www.**********.com/dme/


I had voltage regulator problem (overvoltage) for some time with my car. My DME and engine began to get progressively (albeit slowly onset) worse.

Good luck.

[RickM]

Solder joints and relay failure discussions pop up here now and then. Unfortunately if a relatively small amount of water makes its way to the floor your ECU is cooked.

Anyway, if Pelican doesn't rebuild any longer then Loren's contact info is: www.systemsc.com or 310-545-3716


Also, I posted this info a while ago:

An option that the BMW crowd has been using is a company by the name of Programa. They supply or Repair & Return european auto electronics at reasonable prices with a warranty.
Give them a try. http://www.programainc.com/
Tele: 561-338-8843

***and***

I called Gabriel of Programa to get a sense of the R&R service they provide. Here's what I've learned:

- Apparently 911 cores, in good shape, are hard to come by. Additionally, volume is very low.

- A rebuild service is available for repairable boxes. Water damaged units can sometimes be rebuilt but chances are lower (much).

- All work is done on a case-by-case basis as there are many variations, even within model years.

- When rebuilding the unit it is not merely repaired. The unit is completely tested using multi/many step process...using a stock (known baseline) chip.

- If there are known weak spots or upgrades that apply to your unit then they are addressed during the rebuild.

- They will match Vertex prices.

- Three year guarantee.

- It would REALLY help to have the Porsche AND Bosch part number when contacting them.

- They also rebuild ignition amplifiers. (?not sure i know what that is?)


BTW, I have no financial interest in this company. I'm merely providing facts to make an educated decision.


__________________

[RickM]

BTW, a common technique for troubleshooting an electronic circuit that fails when warm is to shoot component cooler(Radio Shack) onto the various components to see if the problem clears up.

May be a bit tough though as the ECU is a dual layer configuration.

[Skipster]

Thanks guys. I will be making some calls in the morning.

I truly appreciate all of you responses and suggestions. This is a great board.

[PatrickB]

Nick is on the right track... If you can find a shop that has a couple of other 3.2's in for service, see if they will help you out by swapping known good working parts into your car... I did this after I suspected my DME was bad.... After swapping many different components, we figured out I had several faulty fuel injectors... Some people think injectors last forever... Mine finally crapped out after 135k miles and 21 years of service... New injectors has the engine running better than it ever has!!

[Skipster]

Well...it turned out to be a bad distributor cap. The outside of the cap looked fine, but the inside had a small burn. If you would like to see a pic, send me an IM.

I hope this helps someone save $$$$ and time.