How To: Chipping Honda ECU's

How To Chip Honda Ecu's
I couldn't find anything on this with a quick search so I have decided to share a post I made over at NZH a while ago about how to chip ecu's.


Tools:
Soldering iron (15watt works well for me)
De soldering braid
Solder sucker
Solder
multimeter

PGMFI City Turbo:

Parts:
Chip 27SF128,27SF256 or 27SF512 work well.
28 pin dip socket.

Chippable ECU:

City Turbo T2 (108) (should work on T1 as well if you use T2 Rom image)

Difficulty 6/10

Method:
Warm up your soldering Iron.
While its warming up get some small wire cutters (finger nail clippers work too) and cut each leg of the 28 pin rom.
Attachment 21620
Rom

Then take a hair dryer and warm up the chip so the glue loosens and you can pull it off.
Now take your solder sucker and remove each leg thats left in the PCB
Make sure the holes are nice and wide open.
Attachment 21622

Now check that none of the traces are torn and take some isotopic alcohol and clean all of the left over glue off the PCB.
If everything checks out insert your socket and solder each pin back in.
Attachment 21621
Check with your multimeter for any shorts between pins.


Now insert your chip with the City Turbo T2 map (or in my case im using an ostrich 2.0)
Attachment 21630

Data logging port:
CN3
No datalogging yet.

Rom editors:
Work in progress so far it can change the boost limiter.

More:
This is still a work in progress. More info and all information relating to this can be found here.
ecureverse - Reverse engineering project for Honda City Turbo ECU - Google Project Hosting

OBD0

Parts:
Chip 27SF256 or 27SF512 work well.
28 pin dip socket.

Chippable ECU:
PR3
PW0

Difficulty 3/10

Method:
Warm up your soldering iron.
Once warmed up take the de-soldering braid or solder sucker and remove the solder from the back of the stock chips pins so you can remove it. (A quicker and easier way is to just chop the legs then de-soldering them one at a time also your less likely to damage traces this way.)
Once the stock chip has been removed make sure the holes are nice and open a bit of flux will help with soldering the socket in.
Now insert the 28 pin socket and solder the pins into place.
Insert your new chip into the socket making sure the notch (half moon) is the correct direction.

Attachment 21623

Area to work with (mine is already chipped so cant show you what it looks like with stock chip and what it looks like once stock chip is removed)

Attachment 21624

Data logging port:
Pin-out left to right.
1: Earth
2: RX (receives data from computer)
3: 5V
4: TX (sends data to computer)
5: Nothing
Only Earth,RX and TX are required to data log.
Data-logging requires a serial TTL converter.

Rom editors:
BRE
Turboedit

Data-logging programs:
Iv only been able to get BRE to work for data-logging and limited features in my own program.

--------------------------------------------------
OBD1:

Parts:
Chip 27SF256 or 27SF512 work well.
28pin dip socket
2X .004UF SMD resistors
2X .00001UF SMD resistors
74hc373 SMD latch

Chippable ECU:
P05
P06
P08
P30
P28
P74
P75
obd1 PR3
obd1 PR4

Difficulty 4/10 if latch is present 8/10 if latch isn't present.
Attachment 21625
Image from PGMFI.org

Method:
If your ecu is one that doesn't have the latch present then that's the first part you should solder on. There are 2 methods for this. Either use a 10 pin solid center ribbon cable. Solder each pin and make sure there are no bridges. Then solder the ribbon cable to the chip. The other method is to solder the chip directly onto the ecu. If you have the slim 74hc373 this is quite easy, If you have the non-slim 74hc373D this can be a bit harder but not impossible. It just requires you to bend the pins in a bit. Make sure you mount the latch in the correct direction.

Once you have the latch soldered in you want to test to make sure all the pins are connected correctly.

Test pinout:
ECU - Latch
1-----20
3-----15
4-----12
5-----16
6-----19
7------9
8------6
9------5
10-----2
11-----3
12-----4
13-----7
14-----1 & 10
15-----8
16-----18
17-----17
18-----13
19-----14
(Pin 11 on the latch goes to pin 22 on the MCU)
Attachment 21626
Image from QCWO.com - Home
Attachment 21627

Once you have tested every pin and confirmed a connection you will want to solder in C91's resistor, This is right next to the latch and is a .00001UF SMD.

Now de-solder the holes for the socket using the de-soldering braid.
Once they are opened up solder C92's resistor in, This is on the back between the sockets pins. It is a .00001UF SMD.

Now insert the socket in and solder up each pin make sure not to bride anything.

Once that is done solder in C50 and C49's resistor they are on the back above the sockets pins and are both .004UF SMD's.

Now if your ecu is a auto and your cars a manual you will want to remove RP17 and RP18 then bridge RP18 with a wire. These are in the bank of resistors on the back and just above the sockets pins.

To enable your ecu to use your new external rom instead of the inbuilt one you will need to bridge J1 with a wire. This is on the back and to the left of C50.

Attachment 21628
Socket
Latch
White is the MCU

Attachment 21629
Data-logging port:
Pinout top to bottom:
5: Nothing
4: TX
3: 5V
2: RX
1: Earth
Only Earth,RX and TX are required to data log.
Data-logging requires a serial TTL converter.

J4 needs to be unbridged to enable datalogging.

Rom editors:
Crome
Uberdata
Hondata

Data-logging programs:
Freelog
Hondalog
ECU control

Outro:
This information is a collection of my, PGMFI.org and qcwo.com knowledge.
It is presented as is and any damage caused by the use of this is at your own risk. This is only scratching the surface of Honda chipping.

For more info visit
pgmfi.org Index page
Hondata - Honda ECU Modification and Enhancement

u reackon u can chip Kpro's?

Hondata stuff is best installed by a official dealer.
Justin at RevZone is Australia's Hondata dealer.

I only deal with Honda OBD0,OBD1 and OBD2(remaps in rare cases). Nissan OBD0 and OBD1. Holden Pre 96 and Links.
Not that I can provide anything more then Technical support over the internet since I'm in New Zealand and don't want the hassle of anything international.

Great work man.

Any info on chipping RB20 ecu's ? :D

Chipping RB20 or most RB and SR ecus is the same as doing Honda OBD0 if its a Nissan OBD0 one. You just remove the stock 28pin eprom and solder in a socket. If its a OBD1 then youll need to get a Nistune adapter board then burn two chips in odd/even.
There was a guy in Australia making copys of them for cheaper but I dont have his contact.

OBD0
Attachment 21635

OBD1
Attachment 21636

If you have Crome here is a plugin I was working on to support Nissan code.
Attachment 21637
I do have a newer version but I do not want to release it to the public.

Hey mate great work on the tut. Just a question... I've got a B18A1 ECU with hodata chip. I just bought me a VTIR 95 integra. Can I use The chipped ECU on my new car? Also, what about the VTEC function? How do I make it run VTEC?... if I can use it?

If your VTIR is OBD1 it should plug straight in.
Which ECU does the b18a1 use? You may need to add the needed parts to convert it to Vtec. Or you could just re-chip the VTIR ecu (if its obd1) and plug the hondata into that.
Then its just a matter of getting a base map and having it tuned for your new setup.

I dont have enough attachment space left to write up a guide on how to convert non-vtec to vtec.
But I have some info in my Book2 on my website.
http://www.bmgjet.com/

There is also another way to do it but it it requires changing your loom.
You can use the additional outputs of the ECU with Hondata or Crome gold and set it up to trigger the vtec solenoid. It just means youll have to change the pin on the loom for vtec to match that output.
But then youll still have the problem of the intake air bypass valve if your using the factory b18c intake manifold. So it would just be best swapping your hondata into your new ECU.

Thanks for the great info. Just 1 more question.... If I chip my ECU and install the S300 in it, where can I find a base map to flash onto it? Cheers.

Hondata forum and site has lots of basemaps.
Just make sure its a legit S300 since some of the copy's have problems with uploading maps to them.

you wouldnt happen to chip ECUs for people would you?, and also would a USB TTL converter work with the datalogging?

I do chip them but Im only providing this server within New Zealand.
Yup a TTL converter works fine, Just be aware that the cheap ones arnt quick enough for tuning but they do give the information out just a bit slow.

I've got the P72 square shape ECU. I noticed that it's not on ur list of chippable ECUs. What does that mean for me getting it chipped to use S300 on?

Manual ones can be chipped, Auto ones cant be.
Ones after 95 cant be chipped either.

my ecu is a manual and its from a 95 vtir. I've got the hondata already in a PR4 ECU, all I want to do is install it in the P72. Is that possible and how can I do it. Thanks.

http://www.hondata.com/s300socketing.html

Thanks for that. I've got the S300 and according to my ECU being the square shape, im meant to run the S300j. Can I install the S300 in my ECU, providing I extend the DATA LOGGING connection to reach the S300?

Haven't tried it myself, But it should work since that's the only difference along with the JDM ecu not controlling the purge control valve.

Does the AUD Vtir come out with the square ECU, or the rectangle shape ECU? I'm trying to work out if the guy I bought my 95 VTIR off has changed the ECU for a square JDM one before selling me the car. How can I find out what ECU I've got? Whether its JDM or AUD? I know that its a P72. Cheers..

No idea, Not in AU so havnt dealt with any AUD models of them before.
But get the full code off the sticker on the side.
Then look in the PGMFI bin page in the Wiki and find the one that matches and it will say where its from.