Frequency Of Installing Chips

[PaulRV6]

How frequent can you change chips? I know that the ECM learns the settings so if you keep swapping chips too soon then what happens to the ECM with this? Is this even a valid concern?

paul

 

[bruce]

Originally posted by PaulRV6
How frequent can you change chips? I know that the ECM learns the settings so if you keep swapping chips too soon then what happens to the ECM with this? Is this even a valid concern?

If you disconnect the Orange wire by the battery for 30 secs, that wipes the ecm memory's clear.

Depending on the driving you do, they learn in rather quickly.

 

[ijames]

They learn in quickly, 10-30 seconds per cell so a couple of miles of stoplight to stoplight driving is all it takes. Also, if you are swapping very simliar chips or using a fuel pressure much different that the 43-45 psi most chips expect, you might be better off not clearing the ecm (unplugging the orange wire) since your whole blm table will be skewed away from 128 anyway.

 

[TurboDave]

I agree with Carl, I hardly ever reset my ECM with a chip change. Just really don't need to unless you KNOW the next chip is WAY different than the previous (shouldn't be).

BTW, bruce, it really only takes a few microseconds for the memory to dump when unplugging the orange wire. It'll be gone faster than you could unplug and replug the connectors

 

[bruce]

Originally posted by TurboDave
I agree with Carl, I hardly ever reset my ECM with a chip change. Just really don't need to unless you KNOW the next chip is WAY different than the previous (shouldn't be).

BTW, bruce, it really only takes a few microseconds for the memory to dump when unplugging the orange wire. It'll be gone faster than you could unplug and replug the connectors

Sorry, Dave that's not universally true. At low temps, it does take some time for them to clear.
Funny that you have to agree but with an disclaimer.

What I said universally is true.

And it depends on what you call a WAY different change. Changing the injector constant is a TINY change, but effects the whole calibration.

And who says a chip change shouldn't be a major change?.

If you are making a change, and the change is going past center, then you're wasting time and gas for it to relearn to neutral before learning toward the correction.

BTW, there was a tech letter in about 85-86 that stated clearing codes in sub zero temps, could take as long as 3 minutes.

 

[TurboDave]

Originally posted by bruce


Sorry, Dave that's not universally true. At low temps, it does take some time for them to clear.
Funny that you have to agree but with an disclaimer.

What I said universally is true.

And it depends on what you call a WAY different change. Changing the injector constant is a TINY change, but effects the whole calibration.

And who says a chip change shouldn't be a major change?.

If you are making a change, and the change is going past center, then you're wasting time and gas for it to relearn to neutral before learning toward the correction.

BTW, there was a tech letter in about 85-86 that stated clearing codes in sub zero temps, could take as long as 3 minutes.

Jeeeezzz, guess I'll have to step aside for somebody that obviously knows a butt load more about these cars than I do

BTW what was my disclaimer?

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. The ram in the chips absolutely will not take that long to dump.
Like the internet, you can't always believe everything you read. The source of this tech artical was???