ls1121

In my area I have access to a few different Tuners if I am willing to drive a few hours, My other Option is to send them my ECM. I've always thought of the ECM as a Computer that drives different modules in the car. I do not want to change the programming on the ecm that I have in the car, the one that came from the factory. I would like to purchase another ECM and have it Tuned to work in my car with my current mods. I was told, or I did not understand what I was told, that I cannot do this because it would not be married to the car. Why can't a Tuner do "like" a Copy of my Original ECM and load it onto my new ECM and then do the tune. This would allow me to swap the ECM's at any time I want? Can they not make an exact Copy of my existing ECM. I've read about people doing this on LS1Tech with their Camaro's and TransAm's.

EuroRod

Is this prior to plans on moding the car? I assume the existing modifications on your car are not too extreme, if you are still using the stock tune. It might help if you listed your modifications to date, and future plans.

ls1121

Well the mods really have nothing to do with it. I've been told that i cannot have two ECM's that will work on the car and I don't understand why.

EuroRod

No. That doesn't make any sense. I've had ECM's on other vehicles go bad and a simple replacement from a rebuild shop has always worked.

Who is telling you it will not work? A dealer?

ls1121

No a Tuner.

dennis50nj

what does Chuck cow say, he was using that as a selling point for tunes in the beginning so the dealer couldn't tell. it might have changed in 08

0Chuck CoW

The ECM runs the engine....That's about it.

You can tune your original and don't worry about it.... or I can clone a pcm by vin # and you can keep

your original untouched.


In my opinion, it's kind of a waste of money to buy a spare. I'd rather see you spend the money on an AutoCal and

take the tune in and out if you need to...

Call me any time and I can explain more.

914-332-0049
Chuck CoW

Corvette Z51

i agree with chuck that is wast of money just take a copy of your orginal tune then tune your ecu

0Chuck CoW

Yeah... It's that simple.....

People ask me every day to do all sorts of crazy pcm stuff because they want to either hide something,

have a spare, switch tunes, or just leave their original "pristine" and un-touched.

Fact is, I do my best to talk most everyone out of this insane "pcm worry" or the "dealer will know" nonsense.

C6's don't break and the gm dealerships I've seen seem to be very relaxed when it comes to modified cars.

While there is a limit to what repairs are covered and what isn't, most of your friendly, local GM shops are

good about repairing cars with mods....within reason. If you blow your rear end using slicks and a supercharger

there is very little chance you'll get covered under the terms of your warranty.... And why should you???

Check the forum and you'll see that given the # of Vettes out there with full warranties and the # of you

crazy-***-customers beating up the cars.... How many denied warranties have you seen???

Next to NOTHING considering the number of modded cars out there.

They make a great product and absolutely want to preserve the name, customers, and great reputation

and they always seem to be very accommodating.

That being said... Spare pcms and "hidden tunes" and all of that.... Fooey!

Just tune your vehicle....stop worrying about something that will never happen.....and ENJOY TUNED YOUR VEHICLE!

I can have about 80 - 100 Corvette ECMs here most of the time and can pretty much do anything to them you can think of....

But, on that note..TUNE YOUR ECM and enjoy it.

Stay TUNED!
Chuck CoW

dennis50nj

so there is no pcm in the c6 its called the ecm and tcm

0Chuck CoW

Yeah.... Always been a sticking point on ecm discussions.

Some people say pcm, ecm, vcm, computer....

PCM - POWERTRAIN CONTROL MODULE
ECM - ENGINE CONTROL MODULE
VCM - VEHICLE CONTROL MODULE
TCM - TRANSMISSION CONTROL MODULE

PCM and VCM by definition refer to vehicles in which the trans is also controlled buy the same module that runs the engine. (LS1s)

ECM & TCM refer typically to 05 and newer Vettes where engine and trans each have their own controller.

Lots of people like to make "corrections" when you mention the wrong acronym on the forums, but

within reason we all kinda universally use ECM or PCM to mean "engine control module".

Either way, to the OP.... YES, I can prepare 2 ECMs to work in the same vehicle so you can just

swap them when necessary (which will never happen).

FAR TOO MANY people buy spare ECMs with the "safety net" intention of "what if something happens".

Total waste of money...(but you guys still want it) I try to discourage it
so the money can be better spent on other things.

You will NOT likely break your C6 ever.... Nor will have have any of the "dealer will know" or "warranty worries".

Most of you guys wax and polish and take excellent care of your vehicles and most certainly

don't engage in any reckless behavior that might break the car... Iven the guys that ride em hard don't bust em

so, tune your C6... Mod your C6... and enjoy your C6.

I find that the guys that worry about the PCM the most... have the least to worry about....

It's always tough to convince people to relax when it comes to this.

I'll make you a spare or even a clone, but.... I'd rather see you keep your money in YOUR pocket.

Enjoy your TUNE & CoW BOOSTER! package and stop worrying.
Chuck CoW

Alvin@PCMofNC

You didn't list your year model or transmission, but it is possible to have a separate ECM if you want to leave yours alone (exception being TCM for 6L80e).

If you have a manual C6, any year/engine, then getting another ECM is no big deal. We sell them here, most tuners do also. You would install the ECM (after it's flashed with your VIN/operating system), do a couple relearn procedures, and then once that is done you can change back and forth between ECM's without having to do any more relearns.

If you have a 4 speed automatic vette, the above applies as well, except you will have a separate T42 transmission controller. If you want a spare T42 it's just a matter of flashing it for your VIN/operating system and installing it, no relearns associated.

If you have a 6 speed auto vette, you can change out the ECM, but unfortunately the TCM is part of the transmission in a 6L80e, so you are not able to swap it out.

dennis50nj

isn't the tcm in o5 in the trans solenoid pack?

0Chuck CoW

Skol

Sorry to dig up an old thread, but I searched and found this. So instead of creating a new thread on a topic that's already been discussed I figured I would just post in this one. I'm in a similar situation. I have a 2013 Grand Sport 6-speed. I added a Halltech MF103 intake and full Z06 exhaust from manifolds to the tips. I took it to the dyno today to check A/F and it's running pretty rich. So tuning would probably be my safest bet to keep it running safe. I have a service manager that's awesome and doesn't care if I tune, however I'll be moving to Florida in May and might not be so lucky. So to avoid potential warranty issue down there, I would love to get a spare ECM for tuning and retain my stock one for any time I have to take it in. I have my stock intake as well, so I could put stock intake and ECM on for the dealer down there if I ever have problems that require me to take it in. If I do something stupid, I obviously don't expect GM to pay for it. However, I don't want to be turned away for legitimate things just because I modded other parts of the car that have nothing in common. I've already experienced this with a Service Manager at another dealer denying me warranty coverage on my O2 sensor saying since I worked on my own car he refused to touch it. Luckily, my main service manager said he doesn't care what I do and if I get a spare ECM he'll flash what's needed to make it work with my car so I can then go use it for tuning. So this is something that's easily accomplished correct?

So how much would a spare "ECM" cost for a 2013 Grand Sport 6-speed?

long_tall_texan

Yes. It can be done.

Other option is to use a DiabloSport Intune or Trinity, and then get a custome tune from DiabLew Tune (06MonteSS). DiabloSport handheld units save your original tune. Then if you ever want to revert back to stock, it is just a 5 minute re-flash and computer is back to stock with absolutely no trace of tune ever being on the car. Yes, it has been confirmed by DiabloSport that once removed, no trace is left behind. It has also been checked by a few on here that have access to dealer tools to see if they can find any trace.

Excellent and fast service with Lew. Highly recommend.

0Chuck CoW

YES, it can be done...... You can have a second ECM with the theft disabled to run your car.

Key information will NOT be there eventhough the ECM will behave the same.

Again, it's silly to have a spare ecm, but if you're going to do it.... Do it right and give me a call.

And, if you're going to do it right, MY tune and CoW BOOSTER! can't be beat.

There's more to it than simply turning off the theft system. That's easy.

914-332-0049
Chuck CoW

kazoo794

Are there any videos on how to replace an ecm on a 2005 C6?

0Chuck CoW

Yup . Super simple. Call any time for help.

kazoo794

This is great, thanks