Programming Engine ECMs
One of the most common requests we receive from clients is to purchase software in order to program Electronic Control Modules (ECMs) on today’s commercial trucks. Most often they are referring to engines such as CAT, Cummins, Detroit, Mack, Volvo, International, and others. Before we answer that question, we need to dive a little deeper to make sure the customer is asking the right question to begin with.
Parameter Changes Vs. Programming
Quite often, when customers ask to do “programming”, they are using the wrong terminology. If you are simply looking to change parameters on an engine, this is not considered programming. Examples of parameters that you may want to change:
– Maximum road speed
– Maximum cruise control speed
– Adjust idle shutdown timer
– PTO settings
There are literally hundreds of parameters that can be set on today’s modern electronic engines found in commercial trucks. There are also a variety of tools available to do this that range from OEM software to aftermarket software such as Noregon JPRO, TEXA IDC5, PF-Diagnose, and many others. You will find a big difference in these aftermarket programs. For example, JPRO can change around 5 parameters on Cummins engines. The TEXA dealer level diagnostic tool can do over 100.
The other question we ask clients when talking about programming is the ability to program injectors. For this, the options are much more limited. While OEM software will work great for programming injectors, the purchase price can be very high, and annual fees add up quickly.
– The only aftermarket tool we know of that does injector programming on all engines would the one from TEXA, which has the added benefit of no annual fees.
Programming ECMs Properly
Every week we have customers that have acquired the ability to reprogram ECMs but run into an issue. The most common reason is that they are doing the programming improperly. With today’s sophisticated trucks, there is a lot of traffic on the vehicle connectors. This includes ABS, transmission, GPS, engine, cab controllers, and many more. While programming through the dash connector may work, it is not recommended unless you pull fuses for all other ECMs on the vehicle.
Alternatively, the best way to program ECMs is to bypass the datalink entirely and connect straight to the ECM. This would allow you to program ECMs both on the vehicle and on the workbench. Our company, Diesel Laptops, manufactures and sells a complete line of bypass and breakout cables for exactly this reason.
The other best practice we always recommend is backing up your ECM before making any changes. Most software offers the ability to create this backup, which they may call an image, work order, template, or something along those lines. We also recommend printing all engine parameters to PDF or regular paper, so you have a backup as well. Failure to backup your current engine configuration can turn a 30-minute job into an entire day.
Why Do You Need To Program?
This is always the first question we ask clients. Most often we are told, “because it will fix the truck.” However, we don’t see this as the case most times. When a new truck or engine leaves the factory, there is often quite a bit of programming done by the dealer in the first year or two. This is while the truck is under warranty, and all the costs are absorbed by the manufacturer. Once a truck gets a couple of years old, the “bugs” in the software are worked out and the customers have been taken care of. A lot of OEMs are now doing “over the air” programming, which means they will just program the ECM of a truck while it is out in the field and doesn’t need to be brought back to the dealer.
Let’s take a step back and think about the situation. You have a 5-year old truck in the shop, and a technician has diagnosed it and said it needs a software update. This truck has been running for 5-years, and just now it has a software “bug” that needs to be programmed so it can be fixed? Probably not. It is more than likely a misdiagnosed issue.
While we agree that a lot of troubleshooting from the OEMs will state that you should calibrate an ECM to the most current software level, this very rarely resolves the issue.
The software updates from manufacturers such as Cummins clearly tell you what the bug fixes are. In our experience, less than 10% of all ECM programming requests resolve the issue.
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