Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Future proofing the ecu

I hope to have fun maintaining my new to me +4 for many years to come but being an old dinosaur I have a bit of an aversion towards its modern electronics. I wonder how reliable and how available they will be as time goes by. Fortunately most things can be fixed or worked around but it’s not so easy for the all critical ecu along with its integral immobiliser. Yes I know that these things are mostly super reliable but it still bugs me to be at the mercy of a component that has been obsolete for over a decade, vulnerable to other components failing and nigh on impossible to repair should or when it decides to conk out. So driven by my irrational fear of modern tech I decided to have a bash at making some spares by recycling and converting a couple of old Ford ecu’s

Step 1. Find a suitable donor ecu.
The +4 Duratec ecu is a bit of a hybrid. It originates from the Ford Visteon family of ecu’s but has a bespoke Morgan tune. Identifying the exact hardware model is not that easy as there are so many similar variants. However searching through ebay’s pre-loved listings using the +4’s original hardware codes will usually shake out a few contenders. Worth mentioning that as far as I can see Ford had stopped using this particular model by 2006 in their vehicles. Morgan continued to use it until around 2014 in the Duratec +4’s until the GDI came along. Some are already starting to look a little tatty now as the last donor vehicles are coming to the end of their lives but a few are still in really nice condition.

This 2005 unit is still looking mint. Ford did do a nice job ruggedizing these and encapsulating everything with a conformal coating. I wonder how many end up in the crushers each day….


Step.2. Sort the immobiliser.
The embedded PATS immobilisers is a bit of a nuisance… Second hand ecu’s rarely come with their original keys or transponder chips so will most likely need a new set programing. Programing an immobiliser would normally be done by the factory. I don't know if a Morgan dealer would tackle it but a Ford dealer might using their own software or even a specialist lock smith with the right kit. Either way other than hacking the original eeprom reprogramming immobiliser chips to these modules will also require access to a Ford Outcode/Incode calculator to complete the security process. They don’t make it easy so if you are looking for a second hand ecu and come across one with original keys or chips….. grab it!

I use the little interface box below to program the immobiliser. I knocked it up a while back when I had other ecu problems with my previous car (and too much time on my hands). It has an old Mondeo steering column immobiliser RF transponder coil stitched in to enable chip programing. The chips can be dropped into the little tooth paste cap glued to the underside of the lid and then zapped with the appropriate software to pair them with the immobiliser.

It’s a bit of a one off.… I hope the electrickery experts here aren’t looking too closely

The first thing is to erase all of the old chips from the donor's memory before programing in a couple of genuine ID60 chips. Two is the minimum number and once they have been entered up to 8 can be programed by just a simple ignition key sequence in the car if needed. Worth noting that whilst the ID60 chips look similar to the clone chips available at the high street locksmith/shoe repair shop they are not the same animal. Unlike the clones ID60’s can be re-programmed many times and don’t appear to degrade. Easily purchased new or liberated from old Ford key fobs.


Step 3. Acquire a Morgan tune.
One option would have been to clone the factory tune from my car and write it back to the donor but other calibrations are available and who wouldn’t fancy a remap anyway. I’ve used a Viezu remap before with my 4/4 with good results so purchased a copy of their +4 off the shelf performance tune.

Step 4. Flashing
Powering up the donor ecu in the car by turning on the ignition for a quick flash over the OBD was not something that I was prepared to do. The donor ecu will contain a map specific to the engine management and control of the ancillaries of the original vehicle and who knows if its compatible with the Morgan’s bespoke electronics and MFU. Much safer flashing on the kitchen table using my little interface box.


Step 5. Insert the new key chips
After the ecu has been flashed whip out the original key chips and insert the new. A sharp knife is usually enough to drag the little chip holder out of the key body. I don’t but it might be prudent to glue them back in to prevent them from falling out accidently. They are not held in that securely and it’s a ride home in a tow truck if they do fall out when you are away. I prefer to hide a spare chip in the car.


Step 6. Install the new ecu and go test the new remap.
Once the old Ford map has been overwritten it’s good to put into the car. Turn the key and bingo, the car fires up! And yes that remap did make me smile

One of the recycled unit will be permanently installed in the car whilst the original and a second unit are off to my spares stash. Even if I never need them I’m sure the next owner might appreciate them.

Excellent stuff - thanks for posting.

Now starting to wonder what they used in my Feb-14 4/4 .....

Roger, that's seriously impressive stuff you can do, thanks for sharing

Nice one Roger.

Great work, quite an adventure it must be very satisfying

Way above my skill set. Do you fancy trying to create more robust PCBs for my Roadster?

GREAT info and pics Rog, thanks for posting.

I kinda threw in the towel when things went digital in matters automotive having had more than my fare share of issues relative to manufacturers wishes to maintain a degree of control over the kit you bought and by which ever means possible, much as they did in the past by introducing "special tool" requirement in the early days of Allen keys or Torx bits Posidrive etc which at the time were not part of the tool kit of the average would-be home mechanic. I guess with the arrival of digitisation manufacturers thought all their birthdays had come at the one time..given how simple it is/was to utilise digital means to inhibit access.

I think for some time now it may be possible to fit an after-market ECU to vehicles as a replacement for the original, and part of the package available is that it comes with a basic programme to run the engine which can be modified via your laptop or perhaps your mobile phone to more suit your ideals, perhaps even play you a tune....?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRXwWbo_mX0 and if you beam up the link, note the vid was made 14 years or so back in time. There is another version by the Red Bull team for our American Cousins..

Trying to get back on topic, as a confirmed Luddite.. (-: I think it is just great that there are ever those determined not to be excluded and take the time to overcome issues. I guess the other side of the coin is that crooks are just as skilled, perhaps more so, given it seems unless you keep your car keys in a tin box overnight, they can seemingly clone your key from outside your house and use the clone to then steal your car...Hi-tec hot wiring perhaps..!

Sorry John I’m not an electrical engineer but I reckon there are members here who could back engineer it for you

So far I haven’t seen a complete replacement for the later vehicles only piggybacks. But then of course you have the benefit of two ecu’s…..