[Zxridge]

I have a bad ECM on my 2003 gl1800a I found one from a 2001 with abs the part number from my bike is 38770-MCA-305. 8415-230619. The numbers off of the 2001 is 38770-MCA-305. 8415-214447. My question is will this ECM work for my bike. Thanks for your help

 

[GoldWingrGreg]

Yes ... they are the same part number. Unless the one you found is a freshly made version of the same part, it will fail soon too. The ones from back then are one-by-one all failing. Their DNA says it is time for them to die.

 

[Richard Clem]

Not necessarily.

 

[Zxridge]

Not necessarily they will fail. Where did you get the map from in you post Richard

 

[sullivap]

They don't all die, but enough of them do that makes long distance traveling a hellish experience. DAMHIK

 

[OldFatGuy]

Not necessarily they will fail. Where did you get the map from in you post Richard

Here's one option: Visited States Map

 

[cycledude]

I have a bad ECM on my 2003 gl1800a I found one from a 2001 with abs the part number from my bike is 38770-MCA-305. 8415-230619. The numbers off of the 2001 is 38770-MCA-305. 8415-214447. My question is will this ECM work for my bike. Thanks for your help

Curious how you determined your 2003 ECM is bad ?

 

[Capt. Bob]

I have a bad ECM on my 2003 gl1800a I found one from a 2001 with abs the part number from my bike is 38770-MCA-305. 8415-230619. The numbers off of the 2001 is 38770-MCA-305. 8415-214447. My question is will this ECM work for my bike. Thanks for your help

It will work. That is not the ECM that came in that 2001 from the factory. It is one from a later model or the one they replaced it with when they did the overheating recall on the early GL1800's. That's the part number I put in my 2001 when my ECM failed and it was from a later model.

 

[Fred H.]

The early model ECM's before the overheat recall will have better throttle response in the lower gears due to more advanced ignition timing. Honda drastically neutered the ignition timing in 04 as part of the overheat recall campaign.


I believe what is happening to the ECMs is that the internal capacitors are failing as they age, and there is no way to open them up to fix them since they are potted. It's hard to predict when they will fail, but it does seem to be happening more and more. This is probably going to become the Achilles Heal of these bikes as they get older.

 

[garyem]

I have a 2002 ,is there any kind of clue this is going bad.Its little to costly just to replace

 

[Fred H.]

I have a 2002 ,is there any kind of clue this is going bad.Its little to costly just to replace

Some have reported seeing fault codes for the knock sensors when they start to fail.

 

[MrAlex714]

When I was still riding a 1986 Yamaha Venture Royale, someone got with this company and they made a harness and made an ignition profile. I bought one. Was it as good as the oem one,no? Put it was programmable and only $225.00. I personally never tried to tweak it, but it was a good safety net on a long trip. Don't know if they could even do one for the Gold Wing, but if someone has a good working knowledge of the ECU and willing to put in the work it might be a viable option. BTW the company is in the Czech Republic, so there may be a language barrier.
http://www.ignitech.cz/cz/vyrobky

 

[GoldWingrGreg]

I have a 2002 ,is there any kind of clue this is going bad.Its little to costly just to replace

Yes ... there are 2. One is age, they are basically all aging together and many are beginning to fail. As with all parts, some will live a little longer, while others will die quicker. Another is to wait for an FI light.

 

[garyem]

Thanks guy's for the Info on some clues of what to look for. Hope it happens close to home :wink2:

 

[UNCLEJOHN]

Yes ... there are 2. One is age, they are basically all aging together and many are beginning to fail. As with all parts, some will live a little longer, while others will die quicker. Another is to wait for an FI light.

SOUNDS LIKE YOUR TALKING ABOUT "WINGERS "":surprise::serious::frown2:

 

[oldbikerbill]

Some have reported seeing fault codes for the knock sensors when they start to fail.

Egads, I've had a knock sensor fail on my 2005, now I have something else to watch for in the 'warning light'? As mentioned before on this forum, my FI light came on in the mountains of TN, I could not get a dealer to look at it, I cut my ride short, headed home, it was a concern until I got back to FL. Looked at Spyders at Barney's in Brandon on Saturday, sure did sit good, maybe I should get more serious. I know things break, but the older things get, the more they break.

 

[techdude2000]

A failing ECM will usually give two symptoms. 1. Rough idle and possible stalling after 50-60 miles of warmup, 2. Throwing a knock sensor code that doesn’t change when the knock sensors are swapped left and right combined with the bad idle condition. No one has really narrowed down what the exact cause of these failures is, so it could be age and heat cycle related or just age. :shrug:

 

[oldbikerbill]

Some comfort TechDude, I've had none of those symptoms yet.

 

[20 20 vision]

A guy I used to ride GW with (he has passed away) had Honda in Ohio install a Valkyrie ECM in his 2006 GW. Perhaps Valkyerie ECM is an option?


His Valk ECM really added some grunt to his bike.