ECM swap
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Sep 2010
Posts: 2,630
Likes: 185
From: Mountain West, Big Sky Country
As long as both bikes have the same features. ie security or no security, fuel injected it should be an easy swap.
if you have security and your buddies bike does not or if uou are fuel injected and his is a carb it is a no go.
if both bikes do not have security and both are fuel injected then no harm will come from swaping ecms.
its plug and play. suggest you mark them so you know tge difference
if you bike runs well above 2k rpm and its just a problem down low. its not the ecm.
suggest you think about other things. like an air leak at intake, crank sensor, cam duration etc.
if you have security and your buddies bike does not or if uou are fuel injected and his is a carb it is a no go.
if both bikes do not have security and both are fuel injected then no harm will come from swaping ecms.
its plug and play. suggest you mark them so you know tge difference
if you bike runs well above 2k rpm and its just a problem down low. its not the ecm.
suggest you think about other things. like an air leak at intake, crank sensor, cam duration etc.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 5,604
Likes: 4,045
From: Virginia
Thanks for the replies.
I assume the dealer did a fault check during their diag work. Anything popping up would have been an opportunity to sell me something. Their ending comments were along the lines of "we can put the "stock" program back in, but with the work done before (stage 2 kit) it most likely will run poorly/lean. Don't know why it has a "race" program,to put anything else in, we will have to charge you. It's been this way since I bought it, maybe 3k miles ago. The guy I bought it from said it was the results of the stage 2 kit. On the road, it's not an issue, but around town/stop & go it's a nuisance. With wife on, she complains of the jerking back & forth, hurts her neck (she wears a full coverage helmet, so that accentuates the jerking).
I assume the dealer did a fault check during their diag work. Anything popping up would have been an opportunity to sell me something. Their ending comments were along the lines of "we can put the "stock" program back in, but with the work done before (stage 2 kit) it most likely will run poorly/lean. Don't know why it has a "race" program,to put anything else in, we will have to charge you. It's been this way since I bought it, maybe 3k miles ago. The guy I bought it from said it was the results of the stage 2 kit. On the road, it's not an issue, but around town/stop & go it's a nuisance. With wife on, she complains of the jerking back & forth, hurts her neck (she wears a full coverage helmet, so that accentuates the jerking).
Senior Rider
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 251
Likes: 12
From: Vancouver Canada
Ecm
I tend to agree-my first step might be to get a good tuner. And I would also get some info options from Fuel Moto (a sponsor of this site).
Lumpy idle sounds like cams; jerkiness might be tune.
I've never tried to swap an ECM, so that's out of my depth, but if you're certain the old owner didn't get it tuned properly, a DynoJet tuner ( I have one, it's not the only type) with a basic tune, then into "learn" mode might solve the problem.
I understand the gas issue. One reason I went for a learning tuner is because I'm hopefully heading to CA in a few weeks and I've had the gas problem before. With my setup I can get a "learn" tune on the fly and not kill the engine.
Lumpy idle sounds like cams; jerkiness might be tune.
I've never tried to swap an ECM, so that's out of my depth, but if you're certain the old owner didn't get it tuned properly, a DynoJet tuner ( I have one, it's not the only type) with a basic tune, then into "learn" mode might solve the problem.
I understand the gas issue. One reason I went for a learning tuner is because I'm hopefully heading to CA in a few weeks and I've had the gas problem before. With my setup I can get a "learn" tune on the fly and not kill the engine.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 14,144
Likes: 11,219
From: San Diego, CA
Swapping ECMs is not the same as just switching parts... I wouldn't do it... too much work, hassle for little return..
It has never run good since you bought it....?
While there could be many things that would lead an engine to run poorly like you describe, I have to give the dealer a little bit of credit to have checked for several of them..... So it sounds like you need a good tune...
You shouldn't need to bump up the idle to get it to stay running.... Funny thing about EFI... it can be tuned to a level you can only dream about with a carb.... BUT... and it's an important BUT ... a bad tuner (person) can really mess up how an EFI bike runs ....
I have an 88 with a stage III, HD 95ci big bore kit... with the HD download it ran good. I later put another tune on it from DynoJet (I have a PV tuner from fuelmoto) and it runs excellent...!! Oh yeah, both my bikes run quite well on Calif., 91 octane premium... but they have good tunes... Unless you have a radical build, no need for higher Octane gas with a good tune
My best advice is to get a dyno tune from a competent tuner... or, if you feel like learning a little about EFI tuning, call Fuelmoto, get a PowerVision tuner. Then consult with both FuelMoto and DynoJet to get a map for your mods...
It has never run good since you bought it....?
While there could be many things that would lead an engine to run poorly like you describe, I have to give the dealer a little bit of credit to have checked for several of them..... So it sounds like you need a good tune...
You shouldn't need to bump up the idle to get it to stay running.... Funny thing about EFI... it can be tuned to a level you can only dream about with a carb.... BUT... and it's an important BUT ... a bad tuner (person) can really mess up how an EFI bike runs ....
I have an 88 with a stage III, HD 95ci big bore kit... with the HD download it ran good. I later put another tune on it from DynoJet (I have a PV tuner from fuelmoto) and it runs excellent...!! Oh yeah, both my bikes run quite well on Calif., 91 octane premium... but they have good tunes... Unless you have a radical build, no need for higher Octane gas with a good tune
My best advice is to get a dyno tune from a competent tuner... or, if you feel like learning a little about EFI tuning, call Fuelmoto, get a PowerVision tuner. Then consult with both FuelMoto and DynoJet to get a map for your mods...
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Beercan321
Ignition/Tuner/ECM/Fuel Injection
3
Jul 22, 2008 07:14 PM
Stumpman
Ignition/Tuner/ECM/Fuel Injection
5
May 13, 2006 09:54 PM
