1996 850R Require ECM

FLY 753 GP · Post by **FLY 753 GP** » 13 Nov 2014, 23:21

My service dealer were unable to fix my 850R and proclaimed an ECM is unobtainable anywhere. I am now starting a private search for the part.

Post by **phils94850** » 14 Nov 2014, 06:05

Check on ebay... sometimes youll find one for sale as a upgrade. Is your car an automatic trans ?

Post by **scot850** » 14 Nov 2014, 07:34

Also try the usual suspects (I'm assuming the Pretoria is not the South Africa one).

1) Erie VoVo
2) vandsautodismantlers in California
3) Chapman Motors On Vancouver Island in Canada.

Neil.

Post by **erikv11** » 14 Nov 2014, 07:38

You can use a non-R ECM, i.e. one from a turbo car with the same kind of transmission, with no problems whatsoever. A regular turbo ECM puts out a few less horses at the highest RPMs but the difference is barely noticeable. Just match the emissions setup (±air pump, ±EGR) to avoid a check engine light. Basically a 96-97 ECU is what you want. If your car has EGR and an automatic transmission then I'd be happy to sell you my 95 R ECU but you should be able to find one local no problem (assuming you *are* in South Africa).

As a side note, ECM failures are very rare and your dealer may be wrong ... at the least they should have known that an R ECU is not required, e.g. for testing purposes.

Post by **phils94850** » 14 Nov 2014, 08:00

What problems are you having with your car exactly ?

FLY 753 GP · Post by **FLY 753 GP** » 15 Nov 2014, 03:00

Thank you to all who responded. Yes, Pretoria South Africa, and the car has automatic transmission. The car merely cut out (immediately, i.e. without stuttering) just after I had started it. Thereafter it refused to start (as though there was no spark). The dealer diagnosis indicated flooding, explaining the ejectors were not operating properly and continuously pushed through fuel. I also suggested we use a non-R ECM, but they insisted it cannot be done - they said it "would not map". To what I asked? They had no reply. I will follow up on the various options suggested, thank you. If at least I can just get the car going, albeit with a little less power. Thank you all. René Oosthuizen

Post by **phils94850** » 15 Nov 2014, 05:17

The car just cutting out is usually a cam or crank sensor and wont re-start. Not the ECM. As stated earlier the failure rate of the ECM in our cars is very low. I had one do this to me, after replacing the cam and crank sensors it ended up being a bad coil so id check that as well before replacing the ECM

Post by **abscate** » 16 Nov 2014, 07:13

Have a good look at the connector to the ECU for dirt, corrosion, or possibly incomplete seating.its much more likely to be a connector issue than an ECU issue.

FLY 753 GP · Post by **FLY 753 GP** » 15 Dec 2014, 04:48

Thank you for further feedback. One thing is clear to me, I should try a few other potential culprits before pursuing the "defunct ECU" route. I will advise once I have had time to investigate the matter further.

Post by **tryingbe** » 15 Dec 2014, 06:54

FLY 753 GP wrote:I also suggested we use a non-R ECM, but they insisted it cannot be done - they said it "would not map". To what I asked? They had no reply.

Most tech that works in the dealership are probably not old enough to know about anything about 850 made in 96.

I have a 96 R-ECU in my 94 Turbo 855. Works just fine.