LS1 Edit: Warranties, PCMs, and Safety... Oh my!
06-15-2002, 10:42 AM
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LS1 Edit: Warranties, PCMs, and Safety... Oh my! Just sold my old f-body and I am geting a new Camaro. I want to use LS1 Edit, but I am worried about a few things.
Warranty: Has anyone had warranty denied soley for the use of LS1 Edit? I'm not planning on any major engine modifications (at least until warranty is up), only exhaust, and maybe a ram air intake. I'm also looking forward to being able to disable CAGS and correct the speed/odometer for my new wheels. If I only corrected the speed/odometer and didn't play with anything else, would that affect my warranty?
Safety: Has anyone ever had a problem while programming with LS1 Edit that required a complete reprogramming? I have access to desoldering equipment and could pull the chip and read/write the flash chip, but I don't want to void my warranty while backing it up either. (Maybe it'll be in a socket!) Is everything stored in the one flash chip, or are there others?
Since appearently GM has a tool that can flash chips in a blank computer, are the necesarry pins from the flashram available on the external connectors? Anoyone know where?
PCMs: I've seen some talk of buying new PCMs, mostly in conjuction with locked ones... Who sells these and how much does that usually run? Would this be a good option, I could keep the original one as a backup. Maybe I could by a locked one and reprogram it.
Warranty: Has anyone had warranty denied soley for the use of LS1 Edit? I'm not planning on any major engine modifications (at least until warranty is up), only exhaust, and maybe a ram air intake. I'm also looking forward to being able to disable CAGS and correct the speed/odometer for my new wheels. If I only corrected the speed/odometer and didn't play with anything else, would that affect my warranty?
Safety: Has anyone ever had a problem while programming with LS1 Edit that required a complete reprogramming? I have access to desoldering equipment and could pull the chip and read/write the flash chip, but I don't want to void my warranty while backing it up either. (Maybe it'll be in a socket!) Is everything stored in the one flash chip, or are there others?
Since appearently GM has a tool that can flash chips in a blank computer, are the necesarry pins from the flashram available on the external connectors? Anoyone know where?
PCMs: I've seen some talk of buying new PCMs, mostly in conjuction with locked ones... Who sells these and how much does that usually run? Would this be a good option, I could keep the original one as a backup. Maybe I could by a locked one and reprogram it.
06-15-2002, 11:11 AM
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Re: LS1 Edit: Warranties, PCMs, and Safety... Oh my! to answer your warranty question just do this
save stock PCM programming after scanning! back up that saved version also!
save your changes under a new file name to your stock PCM,, name it like EDITEDLS1 or something. Every program change you make you can save it under a different name, so at any time you can go back to the edit before and set it back..
if you have to go to GM, simply set your cars PCM back to the stock programming! Its a piece of cake!
then no one would know
save stock PCM programming after scanning! back up that saved version also!
save your changes under a new file name to your stock PCM,, name it like EDITEDLS1 or something. Every program change you make you can save it under a different name, so at any time you can go back to the edit before and set it back..
if you have to go to GM, simply set your cars PCM back to the stock programming! Its a piece of cake!
then no one would know
06-16-2002, 02:12 PM
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Re: LS1 Edit: Warranties, PCMs, and Safety... Oh my! </font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Originally posted by 98TAauto:
<strong>to answer your warranty question just do this
save stock PCM programming after scanning! back up that saved version also!
[...]
if you have to go to GM, simply set your cars PCM back to the stock programming! Its a piece of cake!
then no one would know</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I was wondering if this would truly be the case, so I fired off a few emails to the address listed on their website. They tell me that, indeed, if you restore from your original backup, it'll be just as if you'd never tampered with it in the first place. There is no way at all to tell.
I must commend these guys for having some of the best customer service I have ever run across! They have joined the handful of other companies I have run across with this superior level of customer service that was once so common, but now almost as scarce as the Dodo. They answered my emails in less than 24 hours, and answered all of my annoying questions and follow up questions.
I'd still like to know how to at least read, if not write the contents of the flash memory in circuit. (without having to desolder anything) Anyone have any sort of idea how the GM tool does it?
-JBrisby
<strong>to answer your warranty question just do this
save stock PCM programming after scanning! back up that saved version also!
[...]
if you have to go to GM, simply set your cars PCM back to the stock programming! Its a piece of cake!
then no one would know</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I was wondering if this would truly be the case, so I fired off a few emails to the address listed on their website. They tell me that, indeed, if you restore from your original backup, it'll be just as if you'd never tampered with it in the first place. There is no way at all to tell.
I must commend these guys for having some of the best customer service I have ever run across! They have joined the handful of other companies I have run across with this superior level of customer service that was once so common, but now almost as scarce as the Dodo. They answered my emails in less than 24 hours, and answered all of my annoying questions and follow up questions.
I'd still like to know how to at least read, if not write the contents of the flash memory in circuit. (without having to desolder anything) Anyone have any sort of idea how the GM tool does it?
-JBrisby
06-17-2002, 10:09 PM
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Re: LS1 Edit: Warranties, PCMs, and Safety... Oh my! Keep in mind that you might not want to be reflashing your PCM while your car is having problems...also, are you prepared to reflash if you break down on the road and the car needs to be towed to a GM dealer? You might want to keep that in mind!
06-18-2002, 06:02 PM
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Re: LS1 Edit: Warranties, PCMs, and Safety... Oh my! </font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Originally posted by cobray:
<strong>Keep in mind that you might not want to be reflashing your PCM while your car is having problems...also, are you prepared to reflash if you break down on the road and the car needs to be towed to a GM dealer? You might want to keep that in mind!</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I had considered that, and those are valid points. If you truly have a problem, the code would come back after you restore the PCM, and if you break down and don't have your laptop with you, well, you're SOL. It just sets my mind at ease knowing that I can bring the car in for little things (like say the power mirror) and not worry about them finding funky computer settings and voiding my engine warranty.
-JBrisby
<strong>Keep in mind that you might not want to be reflashing your PCM while your car is having problems...also, are you prepared to reflash if you break down on the road and the car needs to be towed to a GM dealer? You might want to keep that in mind!</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I had considered that, and those are valid points. If you truly have a problem, the code would come back after you restore the PCM, and if you break down and don't have your laptop with you, well, you're SOL. It just sets my mind at ease knowing that I can bring the car in for little things (like say the power mirror) and not worry about them finding funky computer settings and voiding my engine warranty.
-JBrisby
