Changing ECM...Please help

[luckyirishguy]

Apologies for the ignorance but this is my first time dealing with this issue

I recently purchased a TAHOE that had a replacement/salvage ECM.
I work at a school and brought it to my automotive department for a complete service/tuneup. During the process the found an ECM issue... and this is what i was told:

"The ECM is shorted to ground for the vent valve. It has burned out the vent valve. You will need a new ECM and an evap vent valve. you will have to go to Chevrolet for the ECM. You need the OE number to order an ECM and the ECM in your vehicle is not the original so we have no idea of the original number."


I called the dealership and they want $375 just for the part.

What are my options?
Can I order a Refurb unit and get it programmed somewhere else

2005 Tahoe LT 5.3 Gas RWD

 

[Scottydoggs]

ive seen ebay sales where they will set your car/trucks vin to a used pcm/ecm what ever you care to call it. for iirc 175.

if you go to a junk yard find a truck the same year engine tranny and all, if flex fuel you want one from a flex fuel truck if not you dont want one with flex then. has to be the same configuration. try to crank it and fire it up after installing it, if it fails to crank or run you'll need to do a security learn, key to run for 10 minutes and off and back on in less then 10 seconds. then back to run for 10 minutes. you do this a total of 3 times, 4 th time it should crank and run. only issue is your vin# will not mach when scanned for inspection. pretty sure a tech 2 can change a vin# not 100% sure tho. some tech 2 guys might chime on with more info on that.

what codes you got? never know you might just need a new evap solenoid installed.

cause i cant say ive ever heard of your description for a bad part being a bad pcm.

 

[luckyirishguy]

yes.... thats kinda what im asking,

1. Where do I find out the original OE part number b/c the ECM in the truck is not the original

2. what other options do I have for getting a replacement PCM and having it properly programmed outside of going to the dealership?



I will find out the codes specifically

 

[xDan]

Curious on this one as well. I know the PO of my Tahoe changed the ecm with a salvaged one, at a tech school but they didn't have a tech 2.

 

[adriver]

(non-mechanic here), but I thought the only difference in PCM was 99-02 was red, and 03-07 was Green. What year is the Tahoe? & What color connector is on the PCM?
They are all interchangeable if in the years, the different engine is only programming that can be changed, and your PCM needs your vehicles VIN programmed in.

2. http://www.lt1swap.com/programming.htm (never used, but a website I had bookmarked).

 

[Scottydoggs]

theres some pcms that are just dbc and some that are just dbw, then theres one that goes both ways.

for what hes got going on a direct swap from a truck of the same year ect would work best.

00-03 iirc are cable driven 04-06 dbw. cant use one for the other there. even if you had a tuner in hand.

 

[Scottydoggs]

yes.... thats kinda what im asking,

1. Where do I find out the original OE part number b/c the ECM in the truck is not the original

2. what other options do I have for getting a replacement PCM and having it properly programmed outside of going to the dealership?



I will find out the codes specifically

having the original os is not all that important. not sure theres anyway to tell what was in there originally.

long shot but calling a dealer with your vin, they might be able to tell you its part# of the pcm.

does black bear sell tuned pcm's? they would be able to set the vin and all im sure, and then you get a better running truck in the end.

 

[Tonyrodz]

theres some pcms that are just dbc and some that are just dbw, then theres one that goes both ways.

for what hes got going on a direct swap from a truck of the same year ect would work best.

00-03 iirc are cable driven 04-06 dbw. cant use one for the other there. even if you had a tuner in hand.

Just a correction--my 03 is dbw.

 

[BlackBearPerf]

having the original os is not all that important. not sure theres anyway to tell what was in there originally.

long shot but calling a dealer with your vin, they might be able to tell you its part# of the pcm.

does black bear sell tuned pcm's? they would be able to set the vin and all im sure, and then you get a better running truck in the end.

Not sure if the year and engine size was mentioned, but if it is a 99-06 Tahoe 4.8 or 5.3, we do have that computer type, and we can tune it, and send it out.

 

[luckyirishguy]

theres some pcms that are just dbc and some that are just dbw, then theres one that goes both ways.

for what hes got going on a direct swap from a truck of the same year ect would work best.

00-03 iirc are cable driven 04-06 dbw. cant use one for the other there. even if you had a tuner in hand.

lol.....i have no idea what this means

having the original os is not all that important. not sure theres anyway to tell what was in there originally.

long shot but calling a dealer with your vin, they might be able to tell you its part# of the pcm.

does black bear sell tuned pcm's? they would be able to set the vin and all im sure, and then you get a better running truck in the end.

i called the dealer. they literally said they would only give me the part number on an invoice (basically, they will give it to me after i buy it)

Not sure if the year and engine size was mentioned, but if it is a 99-06 Tahoe 4.8 or 5.3, we do have that computer type, and we can tune it, and send it out.

how do i contact you for more information?

 

[CountryBoy19]

lol.....i have no idea what this means

DBC: driven by cable (the butterfly on the throttle body is open by a cable directly connected to the accelerator pedal.
DBW: driven by wire (the accelerator pedal has a position sensor that tells the PCM what throttle position is being demanded, the PCM sends a signal to an actuator attached to the throttle-body)

i called the dealer. they literally said they would only give me the part number on an invoice (basically, they will give it to me after i buy it)

Call another one? Most dealers are ****** find a good one and they would be willing to help you most likely. That being said, if your vehicle runs fine now is there any doubt as to the current PCM being proper & fit to run your vehicle?

I'm sure some PCM cross to others (IE, they can be substituted) but because most of us DIYers don't know which ones can substitute for which, we err on the side of caution and recommend replacement with exact matches. If yours isn't having any other problems other than the short then I would say you should be ok to find another that matches that part number.

how do i contact you for more information?

Their website is in his signature: www.blackbearperformance.com

 

[adriver]

how do i contact you for more information?

click on their signature or type it in.
http://www.blackbearperformance.com/

 

[luckyirishguy]

Call another one? Most dealers are ****** find a good one and they would be willing to help you most likely. That being said, if your vehicle runs fine now is there any doubt as to the current PCM being proper & fit to run your vehicle?

I'm sure some PCM cross to others (IE, they can be substituted) but because most of us DIYers don't know which ones can substitute for which, we err on the side of caution and recommend replacement with exact matches. If yours isn't having any other problems other than the short then I would say you should be ok to find another that matches that part number.

Their website is in his signature: www.blackbearperformance.com

The only report i got from our Automotive Instructor was
"The ECM is shorted to ground for the vent valve. It has burned out the vent valve. You will need a new ECM and an evap vent valve"

The current ECM is a salvage unit

 

[CountryBoy19]

The only report i got from our Automotive Instructor was
"The ECM is shorted to ground for the vent valve. It has burned out the vent valve. You will need a new ECM and an evap vent valve"

The current ECM is a salvage unit

Was the truck running fine before? Or it has never run right since the salvage unit was put in?

 

[HiHoeSilver]

BlackBear all day.

 

[luckyirishguy]

Was the truck running fine before? Or it has never run right since the salvage unit was put in?

i purchased the truck a month ago. haven't driven it much bc i wanted to get some standard servicing/tune up work done first. but i dyeing the short time it actually drives pretty well. I brought it to our automotive instructor to look it over and do some standard servicing... all he said was he found the source of my check engine light and it was caaused by "The ECM is shorted to ground for the vent valve. It has burned out the vent valve. You will need a new ECM and an evap vent valve"

 

[CountryBoy19]

i purchased the truck a month ago. haven't driven it much bc i wanted to get some standard servicing/tune up work done first. but i dyeing the short time it actually drives pretty well. I brought it to our automotive instructor to look it over and do some standard servicing... all he said was he found the source of my check engine light and it was caaused by "The ECM is shorted to ground for the vent valve. It has burned out the vent valve. You will need a new ECM and an evap vent valve"

IMHO, if everything else is fine except that one thing then I would be inclined to believe that the ECM currently in it is the original part number or at least a compatible part number. Therefore, replacing it with the same part number and flashing it to match your VIN should be all that's needed.

If you don't have the ability to flash it yourself then a Tuned ECM such as the suggested Blackbear Performance may be the way to go...

 

[Scottydoggs]

i purchased the truck a month ago. haven't driven it much bc i wanted to get some standard servicing/tune up work done first. but i dyeing the short time it actually drives pretty well. I brought it to our automotive instructor to look it over and do some standard servicing... all he said was he found the source of my check engine light and it was caaused by "The ECM is shorted to ground for the vent valve. It has burned out the vent valve. You will need a new ECM and an evap vent valve"

really need them codes they pulled to tell you any thing more.

be great if its a 30 dollar fix. vs a pcm and a few hundred later.

 

[luckyirishguy]

really need them codes they pulled to tell you any thing more.

be great if its a 30 dollar fix. vs a pcm and a few hundred later.

I've added this to the original post


The codes are
P0060
P0161
P0449

The automotive instructor said "Do not order the vent valve because the short in the ECM will just burn it out again."



Thoughts?

 

[mattbta]

THose codes are for bank 2 O2 sensors....