ECU Capacitors

[Mylee]

Having received a zero response from the ECU Doctor (http://www.the-ecu-doctor.co.uk) :mad: and Paul busy with his young family, I now know what that feels like :D, I bought these

http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t174/mylee69/caps.jpg........And I'm gonna have a go myself! I've done a fair bit of wiring and soldering, but I'm far from a pro!

There's an excellent guide on OZ's site HERE (http://members.lycos.co.uk/ozsamurai/DIY/CondenserReplace.htm) that no doubt will prove invaluble.
I'm either gonna tick one of those must do jobs, or have a giant mobile paperweight!

[LEE.W.]

:)Hee hee, good luck on changing those.I have been meaning to change those on my silver Beat.

[unclejemima]

sounds like fun! Mylee and LEE. W., Is there any problem with your car, or why are you changing the capacitors?
I've been contemplating doing the change myself, but have held off, only because its running good...
Please fill me in!

[Mylee]

Nope, nothing wrong with the car, it's running fine.
It's the age that concern's me. My Beat is 14 years old this year. The capacitors have a service life of generally about 10 years, although the car's mileage is very low. It's something I want to change as I know if they capacitors swell, leak or fail totally they can do unrepairable damage to the ECU circuit board.

[unclejemima]

Nope, nothing wrong with the car, it's running fine.
It's the age that concern's me. My Beat is 14 years old this year. The capacitors have a service life of generally about 10 years, although the car's mileage is very low. It's something I want to change as I know if they capacitors swell, leak or fail totally they can do unrepairable damage to the ECU circuit board.

Oh, I see! Thanks, it makes sense now! How many km does your beat have?

[Mylee]

I'm not sure exactly without looking as I haven't driven it this year :o
I think it was on about 42 or 43 when I put it away for the winter

[unclejemima]

Get out and drive 'er!:D;)
If the capacitors go, the engine computer is pretty much toast, right? Can it cause any engine damage if the capacitor breaks while driving?
Let us know how the swap went!

[Mylee]

Get out and drive 'er!:D;)

Hmmm, no sorry. This GREAT land is still very poor as far as dealing with adverse weather conditions. When it's freezing, snowing or icy we put a salt/grit mix on the roads - Not a good combination with a car that's not undersealed, it leads to corrosion and stone chips :(


If the capacitors go, the engine computer is pretty much toast, right?

I think it's the liquid that's in the caps that's the problem, it's very corrosive to circuit boards. Hence if one does spilt it damages the ECU printed circuits


Can it cause any engine damage if the capacitor breaks while driving?

I think the first signs of problems are 'rough' running, poor fuel consumption and sooty exhaust deposits. Leading to the engine failing to start/run.


Let us know how the swap went

I'll do some pictures, but it will probably be at least a couple of three weeks before I get round to it, if not longer.

[unclejemima]

Sounds good. Thanks! We have lot of snow/salt on the roads now as well, and the salt is horrible for car, undercoated or not it seems!

I imagine an ECU code would be thrown as well, perhaps before any damage occurred to the circuit board.

I'm going to mod my documents holder (I dont use it anyway) to allow access to the ECU without removing the carpet (and perhaps even the seats!), and maybe even incorporate a cooling fan to prolong the life of the ECU. It gets SO hot because its right behind the motor!
I'll take pics along the way as well.