Aftermarket ECM
03-05-2009, 10:16 PM
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Aftermarket ECM
Looks like I'm going to have to replace my ECM due to the problem below that I posted in an earlier thread. Are all ECM's just your standard OEM factory replacements? Are there high performance aftermarket models? If so who makes a good one? I'll be spending the money anyway might as well spend a little more and upgrade if possible. I've got a 99' model.
Sorry for the length on this. Be patient with me.
I bought my truck from my father April 2005. Before I bought it he had the transmission re-built by an independent shop in Wisconsin. 108,000 miles on the truck when I got it. 2 year warranty on the re-build. Several months after I got it while driving and holding the gas pedal steady(somwhere between 25-30 mph) between 2nd and 3rd gear it would shift back and forth quickly between those 2 gears unless I sped up and let it shift solidly into 3rd or slowed down enough to let it drop back comfortably into 2nd. It did this intermittently without any real pattern to it, i.e. sometimes it did it sometimes it didn't ususally mostly while climbing hills . I live in North Carolina, took it to an independent transmission shop here. They replaced the valve body and flashed the computer, shop in Wisconsin payed up. The problem wasn't solved by this fix. I traded the truck back to my father so he could take it back to the original shop. Supposedly they replaced the transmission with a new one. I got it back and soon after had the same problem except between different gears. Have had it at the dealer for some other service and I told them about it and they flashed the computer too just like the first 2 shops did. Now truck has 140,000+ and the problem seems to have gotten worse. Now with overdrive on it does it in the 40-50 mph range between I guess 4 or 5th and overdrive and if I turn off overdrive it does it again between 20-30 mph. Now it does it whenever I drive it period.
The original shop said it must be an electrical problem, maybe "electrical noise" interfering with the computer caused by poor ground connections or something. The dealer never heard of such a thing or else they never considered it because I believe they thought their computer flashing thing worked. I took it to yet another indy shop, the guy worked for the local Dodge dealer for like 15-20 years. He also said the first place to start is to see if it is bad ground connections causing "electrical noise". I thought the first shop was crazy for suggesting this but now another transmission guy has suggested it. I did replace the alternator with a re-man one last summer. I understand an alternator can be the cause of electrical noise. But this problem didn't seem to be much changed or exesperated by the new alternator. I'm a building contractor by trade and my mechanical knowledge is somewhat limited on these new fangled vehicles but I'm tired of relying on just 1 or 2 ideas about this problem. And what is the deal with all of this computer flashing stuff, what does any of that do for my truck? Please Help!
Sorry for the length on this. Be patient with me.
I bought my truck from my father April 2005. Before I bought it he had the transmission re-built by an independent shop in Wisconsin. 108,000 miles on the truck when I got it. 2 year warranty on the re-build. Several months after I got it while driving and holding the gas pedal steady(somwhere between 25-30 mph) between 2nd and 3rd gear it would shift back and forth quickly between those 2 gears unless I sped up and let it shift solidly into 3rd or slowed down enough to let it drop back comfortably into 2nd. It did this intermittently without any real pattern to it, i.e. sometimes it did it sometimes it didn't ususally mostly while climbing hills . I live in North Carolina, took it to an independent transmission shop here. They replaced the valve body and flashed the computer, shop in Wisconsin payed up. The problem wasn't solved by this fix. I traded the truck back to my father so he could take it back to the original shop. Supposedly they replaced the transmission with a new one. I got it back and soon after had the same problem except between different gears. Have had it at the dealer for some other service and I told them about it and they flashed the computer too just like the first 2 shops did. Now truck has 140,000+ and the problem seems to have gotten worse. Now with overdrive on it does it in the 40-50 mph range between I guess 4 or 5th and overdrive and if I turn off overdrive it does it again between 20-30 mph. Now it does it whenever I drive it period.
The original shop said it must be an electrical problem, maybe "electrical noise" interfering with the computer caused by poor ground connections or something. The dealer never heard of such a thing or else they never considered it because I believe they thought their computer flashing thing worked. I took it to yet another indy shop, the guy worked for the local Dodge dealer for like 15-20 years. He also said the first place to start is to see if it is bad ground connections causing "electrical noise". I thought the first shop was crazy for suggesting this but now another transmission guy has suggested it. I did replace the alternator with a re-man one last summer. I understand an alternator can be the cause of electrical noise. But this problem didn't seem to be much changed or exesperated by the new alternator. I'm a building contractor by trade and my mechanical knowledge is somewhat limited on these new fangled vehicles but I'm tired of relying on just 1 or 2 ideas about this problem. And what is the deal with all of this computer flashing stuff, what does any of that do for my truck? Please Help!
03-06-2009, 07:09 AM
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In mills river myself. Any codes coming up? Think I might have an extra DTT noise filter around here from a previous truck, will have to look around to be sure. Pm me.
03-06-2009, 07:42 AM
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I have been out of the bis. for a few yrs. , but did a a lot of diagnostic / computer work , at least until a few yrs. ago only dealer computers , but once any truck / car gets to be a couple yrs. old , there starts to be cores avalable , then the after market gets a hold of those & does repair [ on very few , something like 80% there is no problem , just parts changers ] .
If you do find a bad computer , then you need to find the reason for its failure [ most bad computers are killed by bad mechanics / parts changers ] , its hard to access the info , but get a pin out chart , and then checking each position for the correct value [ volts , ground , resistance ect ] in the wiring harness of the truck/car , if there is a ground where there shouldn't be , you kill the new computer [ making up 10% of the bad ones ] .
If you do find a bad computer , then you need to find the reason for its failure [ most bad computers are killed by bad mechanics / parts changers ] , its hard to access the info , but get a pin out chart , and then checking each position for the correct value [ volts , ground , resistance ect ] in the wiring harness of the truck/car , if there is a ground where there shouldn't be , you kill the new computer [ making up 10% of the bad ones ] .
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