Wierd problem not starting after Cleaning ECU !!

[skippy69]

:( Could anyone pleeease help me??? I've followed a thread on how to check red plug on ECU unit for oil leak, It was swimming in oil so I've cleaned up the loom & ECU with WD40 pretty well, then put it all back !
But when I've gone to start my hazards have started flashing dash lights have come on & she wont start :( No problem driving her until I unpluggeg the unit, cleaned it & plugged it back in ???

Would appreciate any ideas cos I'm really stumped :(

regards

Craig

[discool]

Did u clean inside the ECU ?

[skippy69]

Hi Discool

No, but I think could get past the secure screws if I needed to, do you think I should try & crack it & see if there's more oil inside the unit ?
I'm willing to give it a go if need be :rolleyes:

[mikethecamera]

Sounds to me like you've got short circuits on the terminals.

When you unplugged and cleaned with wd40, was it completley dry before putting it back together?

I'm guessing here 'cos I've never done one, but I clean circuit boards and connectors in my work, I always use a solvent cleaner that evaporates and leave to dry completley before reconnecting.

Try some isopropyl alcohol, pcb cleaner, or at worst some nail polish remover, get all the wd and oil remnants off, leave to dry and try again.

Unless you're pretty damn sure theres oil inside,(which I doubt, cos it was running before), DON'T open it and try cleaning the pcb, I once spent all day one sunday removing components and resoldering a kn**kered lucas pcb out of an xjs, what a job!!

Good luck
Mike

[discool]

Hope you disconnected the battery or pulled the fuse. But have look at Urban Panzer's guide. http://www.discovery2.co.uk/Injector_harness.html

[skippy69]

Cheers mikethecamera :o) think you've spotted my school boy error !, I'll get some goodies tomorrow & try again ;O)

really appreciate the help !

regards
Skippy

[skippy69]

Hi , yes I dissconected the neg/earth as per the thread .

cheers

[skippy69]

:eek: right ! NOW i'm really flumoxed , got a tin of the pcb cleaner & properly did the loom plug & socket, cracked the cover off the Ecu unit being very carefull , gave it a blast with the cleaner.
Put it all back together neatly & re sealed the cover back onto the ECU etc, put it all back into the beast, turn the ignition on & again the hazards start flashing & all the dash lights go on ??? it's like the engine's now on lock down !, I'm wondering if the alarm imobiliser's kicked in cos I set it off by accident while refitting the ECU. it's the only thing I think I could have done :confused::(:eek:

[mikethecamera]

If you set off the immobiliser whilst refitting the ecu you obviously hadnt pulled the fuse or disconnected the earth!!

Oh dear!, again I'm not up on disco ecu's or immobilsers, however there are a couple of tricks that work on other motors you can try.

1st discoonect the battery altogether, reconnect the ecu, leave battery for 1/2 hour, then reconnect see if this cures the fault, if not disconnect battery again, turn the ignition on (position where ignition lights would normally be on), then reconnect the battery, (you'll get a spark, don't worry). you should be able to reset your immobiliser then, hopefully!.

Mike

[skippy69]

Cheers will give that a try after trying the "turning the key in the door left/right reset trick" :o

thanks

skippy

[Langley]

Hi
How did you go resetting the immobilizer - by coincidence I was looking here tonight to see if anyone had a solution to this oil "wicking" problem.
I have just had a similar problem with the ECU (ONLY A Land Rover would leak oil from its computer! :) Firstly, you should not have cleaned with WD-40 - it will have diluted the oil and worked its way further into the ECU and may have (probably has) blown the chip. There is absolutely no problem with you keeping on top of this problem by unplugging the ECU and cleaning it of oil on a regular basis, eg: bi-monthly (or at least evy service according to our mechanic), but in future only use Contact Cleaner as it is electrically inert (WD-40 is not). We had an ECU die because of the oil wicking its way up through the wiring from the engine and into the ECU. An $850 AUD fix to replace the loom in Australia - and that only delays the recurrence for the next 200,00kms. A new ECU was put in and it required plugging the mechanics computer (via the red plug near the clutch pedal) into the car's brains to "authorise" the new ECU/have the immobiliser reset. Unless other suggestions have worked, you will probably need to go to your nearest dealer to do the same.
The only permanent fix to this will be to pot (seal) the wires at their origin - I work for an electronics company and am looking for a solution using some of the whizzy gear we use to seal and protect electronic equipment we make that is used at sea. I will keep you all posted - unless someone can think of something else first. Regards to all. Rod

[Langley]

Oh - I meant to also say that un-plugging the ECU to clean the connections and replugging it together is not a problem PROVIDING you are doing this in your driveway and the car keys are in the kitchen (IE: The ignition is completely OFF).
There is no need to disconnect the battery ('cos who remembers where they left the code# to the radio anyway! :D:D)