PC III Longevity

[Guest Bruce]

I'm not sure if A=B here:

 

There seems like alot of good reasons to add a PC III so I've got one on the list but then someone mentioned the other day that they were on their 3rd unit and that the other 2 died a mysterious death. Also, a BMW rider told me his GPS didn't last too long. Coincidently, I tried riding with my Sony Discman in my pocket figuring some BB King might go well and it skipped horribly and, after checking things out, it was clear that vibration was the source of the problem!

 

I've used this thing for years while working out and it never skips. You have to drop it about a foot to make it skip. So it seems the vibration is just the right frequency to drive it crazy and yet I hardly notice any vibration. So I gained a new appreciation for the engineering challenges of keeping the electrons happy and on the job.

 

Anyone shed some light on this?

[robbiekb]

Hi,

 

Actually it wasn't my PC III that kept dying, it was the main CPU for the bike pre - power commander! It totally sucked as I wasn't able to get it to the Shop for weeks until one of my friends who is also a Ford Factory certifed mechanic showed me how to jump the bike by manually starting the fuel pump using jumper cables.

[al_roethlisberger]

Hi,

 

Actually it wasn't my PC III that kept dying, it was the main CPU for the bike pre - power commander! It totally sucked as I wasn't able to get it to the Shop for weeks until one of my friends who is also a Ford Factory certifed mechanic showed me how to jump the bike by manually starting the fuel pump using jumper cables.

 

 

Not sure about the context of this example.... but just as an aside, our ECUs aren't protected from spikes/surges, and as with any any EFI/ECU equipped bike... it is not recommended to jump or push-start them, as many people have fried their ECUs this way.

 

There is a link on Guzzitech somewhere about adding a resistor to protect the ECU, but I couldn't find it via a quick glance.

 

Although it seems like a real disadvantage, in reality the occasional push-start if you are stranded probably won't kill anything.... unless you have bad luck that is. But jumping from a car is a definite no-no. Although I'm sure other folks have other opinions, this is what I've always been told

 

al

[Guest Marcel]

Hi,

 

I've been using a GPS V on my Transalp (on various very bad quality roads) for 2.5 years. And on my Guzzi for a year, good and bad roads. It's still working fine.

 

My alarm on the Guzzi has broken down. Have seen it opened up, and all the components had extra glue for vibration. These were not replaced. The company replaced the receiver module wich was separate. They had a new version of it which was tuned differently (no moving parts), whilst the old did have a moving part.

 

My PCIII is loose in the seatcowl pocket(?) where it is recommended. I think the vibration it receives is not too bad. No moving parts, so just electrics. If the soldering is right, it should not be a problem.

[robbiekb]

So just to be completely forthright about what happened to my bike (coz i think i was confusing everyone **grins**)

 

here's what happened.

 

I'd switch on the ignition, fuel pump doesn't switch on, all other electrical systems were working great. Basically at this point I owned a shiny bright green lump of metal. My friend (ok it was a girlfriend at the time ) had been a Ford Mechanic who specialised in the computer systems that the Auto Industry uses to control pretyt much every major car function these days.

 

After about a week of calls to Moto International, she diagnosed that my CPU/ECU had died a death. It was recieving power, but just wasn't switching on the fuel pump. She tested this by jumpering across the CPU to manually switch on the Fuel Pump. We weren't jump starting the bike at all. With a diagnosed bad CPU, Moto International gave me the CPU from a newer LeMans to get my bike into the shop for service and they then went through it there. This problem repeated itself a few months later and then finally one day all of these niggly problems just stopped happening. Incidentally this coincided with when i put on the aftermarket pipes, the power commander etc.

[al_roethlisberger]

....eeeeeeeenteresting. I also had a ECUapparently die(so says the dealer ) last year, although the bike would run.... just very badly.

 

al

[robbiekb]

the other thing that was weird is that this all happened within the first 6 months of me owning the bike. After that, everything cleaned up and knock on wood i've had comple reliability ever since

[docc]

Mebbe your sweet green Guzzi was just waiting for the Ford mechanic to move on . . .

[jrt]

You don't want a resistor on the ECU, you want a diode. Resistors aren't directional, and a diode is like a one-way gate, so it can be set up to prevent a 'spike' from going into the ECU. I bet you'll find it if you do a search for transil diode. I printed the files off and probably have a pdf somewhere if anone needs it.

J

[docc]

Again, I thought this was an issue with the older 16m computer, not the current 15M on our bikes.