checking the ECU made easy!

well i didnt want to keep taking the ECU out and put it back in.. so Chris (cls12vg30) showed me how he hooked his diagnosis checking thing up and gave me the wiring diagram

so about $17 and an hour later.. and i've got my own ECU checker

just hold down the black buttom to change codes on the ECU,..couldnt get simpler than that

http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/9/web/237000-237999/237018_157_full.jpg

What do you guys think?

Can you elaborate...........just a little :?:

it basically makes checking the ECU a whole lot easier.. instead of having to take the ECU out to see if any codes for bad sensors are coming up (or for whatever reason you want to check the ECU)

now with this i wont need to take it out.. just hold down the black button until i have the ECU in the mode i want and then let go, and the LED's will blink in the exact same way the ones on the ECU would

it basically makes checking the ECU a whole lot easier.. instead of having to take the ECU out to see if any codes for bad sensors are coming up
Well, I know that.....what I meant was can you elaborate on how you rigged it up?? Then again it may not work for the CA18ET as there is a screw you turn to run the codes instead of a switch like the CA20.....and maybe the VG30....but not sure for it.

oh oh oh!

ok.. just go to Chris' site www.v6-s12.com, go to projects and scroll down and you'll see a little diagram

there is also the turn screw on the SE ECU, but to hook this up you just tap into the check connecter (the plug nissan technicians would use to check the car) which is over by the fuse box

is the check connector on all models / all years?

Very interesting, I like the idea of that for my CA18ET

is the check connector on all models / all years?
It should be...Nissan only had one kind of checker...

ignore my ignorance because i am new to this, but when you do this what exactly does it do? when you push the button does it trigger the led's to flash a certain number of times to let you know what code has thrown or what mode you are in? i read that site you linked and it was sketchy on what it does. the wiring for it was great help, but how do you know the modes you are in and all that fun stuff??

ignore my ignorance because i am new to this, but when you do this what exactly does it do? when you push the button does it trigger the led's to flash a certain number of times to let you know what code has thrown or what mode you are in? i read that site you linked and it was sketchy on what it does. the wiring for it was great help, but how do you know the modes you are in and all that fun stuff??
The codes are listed in the FSM, and some of them have been posted here before. But you are right as to how it works...or at least I understood it the same way you interpreted it...8)

Yeah, all this setup does is exactly duplicate the two LED's that are on the ECU. It should work on any engine, since they all use the same method for changing the modes, thought the exact trouble codes differ between models. If you've ever checked the codes on the ECU, you know exactly how it works, when you turn the screw (or now, push and hold the button), the LED's will flash together the mode number. By default it starts out in Mode 1 (oxygen sensor monitor on the VG) whenever the engine is started. Once you get to the mode you want, you just release the button to lock the mode.

interesting, i just may do this tomorrow evening, so long as im not too busy. i dont know about you guys but where i live its getting pretty cold, and i have to supervise and install a garage full of remote starters...... thanks for the info :mrgreen:

OK, this is really awesome, and I hadnt realized Chris came up with such a simple and neat trick (although I'm not at all surprized ;) ), so since my center console is off in the pursuit of figuring out how to remove the dash, I'll do this as well.

Damn, lots of changes by the time this thing rolls under its own power, I tell ya ;)

All good stuffs tho, thanks Chris!

looks great but for the love all things sacred clean out your car :)

looks great but for the love all things sacred clean out your car :)that was just all the stuff i had laying there from when i was installing it.. as you can see there is wire, electric tape, ruler, wire strippers, the diagram, and a few other random items

OH!!! one thing tho!! on the DIAGRAM the hook ups for the LED's are backwards.. it says that #1 goes to the Green and #2 goes to the Red... BUT IT SHOULD BE #1 = Red and #2 = Green

looks great but for the love all things sacred clean out your car :)
Holy hell I will never take a pic of MY interior! LOL!

I'm trying to do this on my 1992 Pathfinder SE-V6 and it kinda works. The lights come on but the button won't work. Push and hold...nothing happens. The 2 lights just stay on, while the motor isn't running. Crank it, the lights go out, and the button still has no effect. I thought the button and/or my wiring might be bad, but it checked out fine :mad:

Here's a couple pics...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v88/92PathSE/ECU%20Lights/IMG_5435.jpg
WD21 check connector test

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v88/92PathSE/ECU%20Lights/IMG_5440.jpg
materials

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v88/92PathSE/ECU%20Lights/IMG_5443.jpg
near completion. what's left out of the photo is the bile of beer bottles...no wonder it took me so long...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v88/92PathSE/ECU%20Lights/checkconnector-wd21-vg30e.jpg
1994 WD21 check connector layout. Same as V6 S12, but it uses more pins.

I'm gonna go work on this some more. It's so uncomplicated, so I don't see where I could have screwed up lol

oh yeah, here's a pic of the truck...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v88/92PathSE/My%20Lift%20-%2011-03-04/IMG_5425re.jpg

I don't know why or how, but it just started working! Thanks for the help guys. Everybody at www.nissan4wheelers.com thanks you! I'll post pics of the final product sometime today :mrgreen:

Done :)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v88/92PathSE/ECU%20Lights/IMG_5450.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v88/92PathSE/ECU%20Lights/IMG_5449.jpg

I'm glad you got it working. Nice Pathfinder too, but I think you need more lights on the front. ;) /jks

What is the switch below the diagnostic module for??

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v88/92PathSE/ECU%20Lights/IMG_5450.jpg

glad to see you got it to work out for you,.. i think its really pretty useful and it definitly saves a lot of time and hassle trying to get that darn ECU out!

The black switch is hooked up to a fan behind the stereo. There's not much room back there and there's so many wires, mainly cause it was installed for free and they didn't take off the previous TWO harness for old stereos. It caught fire 3 summers ago and that really sucked. So now it's got a little airflow which has helped.

I just fixed some wiring back there a couple days ago. The right front speaker wire got melted onto the wire going to a little light above the ash tray. I'd turn on the stereo and the parking lights would come on lol

Thanks for the help guys. Awesome site!

I'm glad everybody is having so much fun with this, it is a neat little project, and certainly makes for a nice conversation piece when the passenger says, "What the hell is that flashing green light?".
"Oh that's monitoring the oxygen sensor."
"Say what?"

I can't take credit for the original idea or the wiring diagram, that was sent to me by a former member of the old Yahoo board that went by the name of Whipaway. I forgot that the diagram had the LED's reversed, now I remember I had to switch them too.
That's cool that you did the same thing on a Pathfinder. Makes sense that it would work the same way.

Well I did the easier thing and bought the original checker from Ebay :
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=7943330244&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT

Basically it only works on the MKII S12 and some other cars and was used before the Nissan 'Consult' tool came out. I used it today and it works great. There is a plug on top of the Fuse box in the cab that you plug it into. Select the correct mode on the ECU itself either to check Fault codes stored or you can use it in real time mode whilst driving for intermittent faults. Any that pop up will flash the appropriate number of Green/Red Lights and Buzzer noises (different tones for Green/Red). Its an excellent piece of kit If your car has Intermittent faults that are not stored.

That's a great find Steve!

Nice one!

If I'm gonna havta take out my ECU this often, I'm buyin one too.

Hey Mike, I just noticed you're in Roch'ster. I just got back from Buffalo, but I'll probably be going up there again sometime over the summer, we should try and get together.

Nice mod, but I have an easier way: pick up the handset for my MT8 :p