Topic: Anyone had a 22re ECU go out?

[Jagdverband44]

I have an intermittant check engine light, lopey idle and a lean miss at all rpms. Thought the lope and miss were from running a 268 cam until I checked my plugs. All of the electrodes are burned and there is grey ash. When the diagnostic plug was jumpered, the check light blinked 5 times; indication of too lean or rich, bad 02 sensor, or a bad ECU. I just replaced the 02 and my AFM is turned up 4 notches past stock, yet it still runs lean under load and when cruising. The thing only idles rich. I disabled the Idle Air Control Valve (IACV) thinking it was malfunctioning and got the same weird running problem. The ECU is in the right kick panel and there was a rust hole right above it that allowed it to be subject to condesation when it rained.
This is the last step before I replace the ECU, just want a few opinions first. THX 

[yotaneck13]

mine went bad after a deep water crossing left a foot of water in my cab lol never quite ran right after that what year is your rig i may have a reman one i just bought for ya

[Jagdverband44 [OP]]

Thats exactly how I would describe the way it runs; not right. Will not high idle when cold and the throttle response is unpredictable and the engine misses. PM me, I need an ECU for an 85'.

[yotaneck13]

sorry cant help ya out all i got left is a 90 and 91

[yotarunner85]

I had a similar problem with my 85 pick up, found out it was just a bad engine ground. Know anyone else that has one you can swap over to yours to see if that fixes the problem before you buy one?

[Jagdverband44 [OP]]

I'll check grounds, but they're new. The truck is from the coast so it has rust in the firewall that I did my best to patch up but the water still got in.

[signguy]

i had mine go out on my 92, idled weird sometimes and the light was on. got another ecu and it was all fixed just make sure you dont get one from a california truck like i did, they have 2 O2 sensors and the light will still be on 

[Sparkplug]

I have seen lots of ppl think their ecu was bad, and placebo affect happen when swapping new ones in. I have never had one go out, like mentioned before, check grounds and wiring. I also have a couple known good 85 ecus if you know yours is bad.

[Jagdverband44 [OP]]

Swapped it with another, still got the problem.

[Outsane]

there is a check in the FSM...

you can short the connecter to check codes from the ECU and if the connecter is shorted and the Check engine light stays lit you have a bad ECU

There is also a list of voltages you can check in the FSM

btw... I think have a bad ecu

[Jagdverband44 [OP]]

I just stumbled upon this post from almost 5 years ago! So many start threads when in a bind and never return with a conclusion to their problem. In short, my problem was and continues to be a bad ECU. Both the right and left footwell in the Second Gen body style can develop leaks where the drip tray is spot welded to the kick panel and the ECU is placed directly below this common leak point! This point is subjected to water exposure more than any single point on the vehicle because it is a channeling point where water will collect and sit. The ECU and all of the wiring responsible for running the engine will become subjected to increasing amounts of water being dripped on top of them as the rust at the seam continues to grow and the gaps get wider. The location of the ECU makes it very susceptible to incurring water damage and also from your passenger spilling a trail soda.

   One particularly bad storm (one of the few in SF) made the right footwell fill with water and although my truck started and ran, it loped like a crappy V8 and caused me quite a headache getting to work. Sure enough the wires and plugs entering the ECU were soaked due to the steady drip of water onto them and caused inclusion into the ECU itself. The problem solved itself after sitting in a parking garage during the day with the battery disconnected. Afterwards, the effects of the damage were very obvious, as I had a conundrum of weird drivability issues from pinging to loss of power. I have since welded in new panels to both sides of the truck under the drip tray and even the replacement panels I got had rust in the seam.

  SO.. If you are having drivability issues with your 22re that absolutely cannot be explained, it may be your ECU that experienced some water damage as I am still running the same ECU and will continue to until I go Diesel as it still works, albeit not well.

 

[Ghettofab88]

Swapped it with another, still got the problem.

This post and your last post have me confused.

Only way to really know if an ECU is bad is to replace with a known good unit.  Looks like you tried that and it didn't work, but your last post has you still convinced its a bad ECU.  Or, are there also wire harness issues?

Kevin

[Jagdverband44 [OP]]

This post and your last post have me confused.

Only way to really know if an ECU is bad is to replace with a known good unit.  Looks like you tried that and it didn't work, but your last post has you still convinced its a bad ECU.  Or, are there also wire harness issues?

Kevin
[/ The running issues previously stated were related to the poor rebuild that came with the truck. The rod journals were ground 1/8" oversized causing a low oil pressure problem. The oil pressure was so low that the timing chain tensioner couldn't keep proper tension, causing the running issues that I stated before like missing, pinging, not starting. The current ecu was fine until water got into it, and I have replaced it since the last post, which took care of the drivability issues.