MadMaxSC400

I was driving in San Francisco last night on Market street (the artery that splits the financial district in half) and my engine died. Of all places, it had to be the busiest street in the city on Saturday night. The car would run for a couple seconds and die again, so I limped it into the Metreon parking lot. I walked with a couple of friends to the closest Schwab building, where I work, and used the security guard's workstation to get on CL and look up the fuel ECU threads. Knowing that it was dying of fuel starvation because of the slow sputtering, I looked up the threads where people were talking about it. Finally I found the thread that links to this very important site and found the two diag terminals that bypass the fuel ECU (FP and +B in the diagnostics port by the intake manifold). I grabbed a paperclip from someone's desk in the office and headed back to the Metreon. I first tried resetting the ECU by unplugging the battery and checking the contacts, but that didn't work. I made a jumper with the paperclip and stuck it into the sockets, and the car started right up.

So, a big thanks to CL for helping me get home. One thing though, I don't understand why this isn't in the FAQ, especially since it's such a common problem. If one of the admins would like me to do a write-up, I'd be happy to do it.

Also, do you guys know if I should just replace the fuel ECU with the one for my car, or get one from a different year that maybe is better made? Or something aftermarket? I'm going to order it tomorrow, because I don't want to strain my fuel pump for too long. Also, does anyone have anything on how to install it?

lex400sc

I don't have the time I used to to mine out faq material, but if someone does the write-up, I'll definitely post it in the faq. This goes for anything else I missed that's faq-worthy

PS: good job Mcgyver, now why weren't you at the meet today???

Dx3

iTrader: (13)

Damn man,

I would have just shouted at my car for a while and called AAA!!! Good job, and yeah, would be interested in reading the write-up.

Peace,

Jonny

MadMaxSC400

Meet? I didn't see anything regarding a meet. Where was the thread?
As for the write up, I'll make one. Do you want me to email it or ?

PERRYinLA

You may have seen that thread floating out there where Phil Alridge (sp?) says the ECU's effect on fuel pump life isn't really significant. In that same thread, I mention that if that's so, removing the ECU or bypassing it actually improves reliability.

I'd be interested to hear what a new ECU costs. It may not be cost-effective if its only function is to lengthen the life of the fuel pump.

As for replacing it, it's very easy once you get to it behind the driver's side rear panel, which means you need to remove the rear seat.

aliga

iTrader: (147)

you can get a walboro for about 100 bucks!

London Bill

Glad to be service of MadMax, I am afraid my Soarertt website has been neglected since I swapped over to a 1994 V8 Soarer (two of them in fact) which are slow as hell compared to a tweaked Twin Turbo but my Eaton M90 blower will be fitted soon which will push around 400bhp - and no turbo lag

The Fuel ECU by-pass is only meant to be a diagnostic tool/get you home fix, by shorting the diagnostic port you remove the logic controlled fuel pump operation which not only switches the pump from low/high output on demand but also controls the fuel cut-off if the engine is stalled like if you have an accident, a safety feature which should not be over-ridden.

MadMaxSC400

Good to see you're still around, Bill - that site seriously saved me a lot of annoyance, such as having to tow it and all. I would carry around the shop manuals if they weren't so damned big. The new ECU is $270 bucks, thanks to the Carson Toyota people. The local dealer wants $315. One of their guys said that the pump would last a year or so in that bypass mode, and that driving it while waiting for the part to ship should be no biggie.
I would replace the fuel pump with a higher flow one, but I don't think it would do anything other than waste gas on the low end. My motor actually runs leaner on the top end when the chip's installed. One thing I will do though, is order the TRD lower temp thermostat. The motor pings when it's warm out, and a lower therm should help even that out without running it too cold.