I've had my Fiat Panda 1.1 57 plate for three and a half years, and since then I have had three new ECUs and now it seems its ready for a fourth.
As before when I've had a new ECU put in the engine warning light is on and I've experience engine stalling.
I was just wondering if anyone on here knows if I could get a better ECU from another company instead of fiat or if there is much else I can do other than buy a different car.

Thank you x

Have you changed the plugs and HT leads in this time...?

Yeah HT leads, Plugs and coils have been changed.
Had them all change first time this happened because garage didnt know what was wrong.
Took it to another garage and had ECU replaced works fine for a couple of month until it breaks again, apparently its a common fault in fiat panda and puntos.
I dont no if this is true tho just taking garage word and online complaints, one day the car works fine the next its stalling and engine lights on.
Thanks x

there are a few people on ebay that repair the ecu for about 100 quid

4 ECUs in as many years? Surely there's some underlying issue causing them to keep failing. Finding that cause may well be a better idea than finding the cheapest replacement, though it does sound like it's too late for your current ECU.

Have a careful look at the connector. Any poor connection could cause overheating at the connector and possible failure.

X FRANKIE RABBIT X said:

Yeah HT leads, Plugs and coils have been changed.
Had them all change first time this happened because garage didnt know what was wrong.
Took it to another garage and had ECU replaced works fine for a couple of month until it breaks again, apparently its a common fault in fiat panda and puntos.
I dont no if this is true tho just taking garage word and online complaints, one day the car works fine the next its stalling and engine lights on.
Thanks x

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It sounds to me like the people you've had working on the car couldn't diagnose the problem so they've worked on the 'if in doubt, replace' approach.

You don't really think it's normal for Panda ECU's to be replaced every year, do you?

There are many reasons why the car is misbehaving, but the first thing you need to do in order for us to be able to help, is to give us as much information as possible about the car and it's fault.

Such as model year/exact model/engine type/gearbox type/mileage. When does the fault occur, under exactly what circumstances? Does it happen regularly? Is it temperature dependant?

Tell us all you know about what is going on - I suspect it has nothing whatever to do with the ECU, the undiagnosed fault lying elsewhere.

Give us a chance to help you.


Dave

PS Do you know how to use a Multi-meter to check voltage?

Model is Fiat panda 1.1 active, 57 plate, manual and 48,000 miles. It can happen at any time on and off when im driving when its just running but the temperature gauge has dropped below the middle line and it drops and goes back up randomly thats the only thing ive noticed other than engine warning light and stalling. All fluids are topped up and changed yearly coolant was done last year as well as air filter, oil, oil fillter and plugs. All ht leads have been changed, coils. I think thats about it. Thanks so much ! x

I dont no how to use a multimeter to check voltage.
p.s the ECU have been sent to fiat and they have sent replacement as the were faulty fiat said theres a chip in the ECU that breaks, again i dont no if this is true just taking there word for it.
And no i dont think its normal to have 4 ECUs, :-( feel like im being scammed. Thank you all so much and anymore advice is very welcome x

Your fault description is a bit like a challenge to understand.

Am I correct in this:
Normal driving, the temp gauge drops, then rises, and/or drops again, then the car stalls.

If this is correct, it may suggest a thermostat or temp sender problem. If the ECU is told that the engine temp is cold, it will overfuel. This will likely stall a hot engine.

Sorry, yeah temp drops and rises intermitantly and engine misfires intermitantly, it also is using a lot more petrol than usual.
It has stalled once on one occasion, it didnt want to start without revs and when i came to a stop i had to rev the engine to keep it running but that has only happened once so far.
Hope that makes more sense x

Hi Frankie, from your fault descriptions it does sound like it is linked to the temperature sensor.

The Fiat part number relating to your car for temperature sender appears to be: 7588920.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Fiat-Pand...Car+Make:Fiat|Model:Panda&hash=item46154b106c

IF I'm right the problem will either be: faulty temperature (£10); faulty connection; or faulty wiring.


I'm not guaranteeing that replacing the temp sender will solve the problem, I would need to have hands-on and check the operation of same, but it's a better place to start than merely replacing the ECU.

Why don't you Google "How to use a Multimeter" or something similar, then you could learn how to do simple diagnosis yourself?

Dave

Thanks so much dave x x
p.s the first garage i took my car to i asked them if it could be faulty wiring and the owner of the garage told me my car doesnt have any wire i no im a woman but im not retarded.
I never went back to that garage after that x
Im gonna check out what you said first as its cheaper too again thank you ! x

owner of the garage told me my car doesnt have any wire

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Some garages are utterly useless, I know not everyone is an expert in cars, but how stupid do they think "normal" people are!? That's like a plumber telling you, and expecting you to believe, that your dishwasher or washing machine doesn't have any pipework...

Hi Frankie Rabbit - I sympathise with your problem as this is very similar to mine! I posted an item about two years ago when suffering the same symptoms (except mine did not actually stall) i.e. at normal temp the gauge would drop to cold in an instant causing severe hesitation. The gauge would then rise to normal or near normal. I could tell when a problem was about to occur if the gauge hovered just below the normal level.
This happened just after buying the car a 1.1 Active 07 reg (18,000mls).
The car was in and out of the garage for weeks. The dealer seemed to try everything to sort the problem which he said was resolved, at the end of the 3 month warranty, after completely rewiring the ecu (??).


However, the problem has, 2 years later, just re -occurred in the last few days. The engine warning light has just appeared today. I first noticed a change in running over the last couple of weeks which put down to the awful weather. It now seems the dreaded lurgy is back again! I am very reluctant to return to the original garage so I am watching this space.


I can't help you with your problem but at least we know we are not alone!

Its the ECU nothing else get another one if possible and sell it!

im not sure what ecu is used on panda but suspect its similar to a punto so magnetti marelli iaw something
these ecus show temperature fluctuations as the first cause of breaking down internally so you are quite likely following the wrong path in looking for a faulty engine sensor or wiring
my thoughts seeing as you've had 4 ecus is an alternator overcharging

Thanks everyone x
Exbrava2012 i found this site: http://www.ecutesting.com
Im looking into getting one from here mabey, cheaper than fiat which cost me £600 with 1 yr warrenty and broke.

Also, Car has been to garage this weekend (tanvic), computer read a fault code which was, coil pack 1 error (coils were changed at other garage), check with a volt reader and it was faulty connection at ecu, a driver transitor chip that breaks inside the ecu, so im told and causes the engine to drop to two cylinders intermitenly.

Anyone know the part number for a Fiat panda 1.1 57 plate ECU?
I think its, IAW 5AF but im not sure.