Ecu Cap Tech In Dallas/ft. Worth?

[vassiton]

I want to get the capacitors replaced in the ecu on my 1999 LS but I
can't be without my car. Any reliable techs in the Dallas area do it?

[Exhaustgases]

Maybe get a used one and get it fixed, then just swap them, and you end up with a spare.

[billydpowell]

I haven't heard of any around Dallas, wish I was one...

[vassiton]

Thanks guys. Too bad. Oh, btw, to swap ecu's you have to have the security keys reprogrammed by a dealer or have the master key for the replacement ecu's car. Just so you know. Not having to deal with any of that is just one of the benifits of doing this cap job.

[landar]

Frank, I have to ask you this question: What leads you to believe that the caps must be changed? Are you having some particular problem with the car?

Also, let me have you ponder this... does ECU stand for Engine Control Unit or Electronics Control Unit?

As you may know, there are various control units in your car. There is a Theft Deterent ECU, a Brake Control ECU and so on. And they all use microprocessors and hence capacitors which age and could go bad.

What issues are you having which lead you to believe you need to replace the capacitors?

[vassiton]

Engine Control Unit.
SOMETIMES: "transmission jerks from 1st to 2nd gear, and kinda slips from 2nd to 3rd"

AND the fact that it is a 99. This issue is more of a problem for the earlier models but includes my year:

http://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls400/656360-all-my-crazy-lexus-issues-solved-ecu-leaking-capacitor.html

It's not really a problem yet, but these caps do have a shelf life. I was just putting out feelers for future reference. I plan to drive this thing until the wheels fall off. (Or I ever find another Black Onyx with blue interior. Never seen another one since I got mine.)

[Exhaustgases]

That is nice about Gen 1 easy ecu swaps. At least in the Gen1 the ECU also is the TCM all in one box, and it is special for Trac or no trac cars. landar is right about all the other ecu's in the car there are many. The one is engine control unit, and all the rest are electronic control units confusing nomenclature. Frank, also look at club Lexus for the ripple test, that is supposed to tell you if the caps are going bad, so maybe do that before diving into the ecu. But still order the caps to have them in hand when needed.

Maybe you need to purchase a wrist strap, and read up on ESD, get a soldering iron and practice a bit, then read the tutorials and go for it. I think the hardest part is dealing with the interior stuff of the car, not goofing things up and removing the ecu. The rest is easy.

When handling electronics you have to be very careful about electrostatic discharge, that is where you walk across a carpeted floor and when you touch some grounded metal object you get a spark. Even your bed blankets can do the same, it will ruin the micro circuits that work at very small voltages, those static voltages are in the thousands of volts and punch through the small molecular separation of the micro circuits.