97/98 Turbo 2000 - Prodrive ECU - Findings
 

Hi all,

Thought I'd post this up as have been struggling to find a definitive answer and this may prove useful to others at some point. I have a UK turbo MY97, and have been looking into ECU options, I found that a Prodrive ECU from the same year would work on my car and give me the increase I was looking for, and it seemed it was either going to be plug and play or need the keys coding.

Well I found the correct SP ECU, and have gone about fitting it tonight. Once it was fitted almost to my surprise it fired straight up, however.. it only ran for 3-4 seconds and then cut out, the check engine light then started flashing. I was going to attempt to start it again but as soon as I turned the ignition on the check light came straight back up.

So in my experience the SP ECU is not plug and play for this year.

If we have any ex or current Subaru techs who know the process to coding the keys I'd love to hear it, is it something that only a main dealer can do?

hi , yeah it has to be done buy a Subaru main dealer or someone with access to a Subaru select monitor (Subaru diagnostics) and have the ecu re-coded to your keys , seems only to be on this year group pre 96 cars don't have this and jdm imprezas didn't have the immobilizer in the ecu , I have had my sp ecu coded to my key buy my local Subaru garage it cost £45+ vat , probably bang for buck it would have been better to go with an esl daughter board in your original 8s ecu, which can be mapped to your mods as they grow ,turbo ,injectors etc etc ,but the sp ecu was a nice little boost if that's all you want with a dyno of 256 bhp on mine and better drivability

hope this helps

Cheers Wrench, great info. I'm going to try a dealer but I'm fairly sure it'll take some explaining as having worked in Service at a main dealer before I know there's a fair chance whoever I speak to won't have a bloody clue what I'm on about! So i'll also check with my specialist to see if they have the diagnostics.

Can you advise how Subaru actually code the ECU to the keys? is it done with the ECU fitted into the car or not? Reason being obviously the car won't start when fitted, so I'm hoping it's done with the ECU out of the car so then I can just swap it over in the car park myself once done.

I completely agree with you about ESL, and this was my initial plan, however I am only after the sort of power yours made, so ultimately at less than half the cost of ESL including key coding the SP ECU was the best bet.

just tell them your old ecu had a fault and you had to get a replacement ecu, but need the keys recoded to the new ecu. take your V5/proof of ownership with you & it wont be a problem

dont mention about it being an upgraded prodrive ecu etc

I can put a prodrive base map on an ESL board on request and disable the immobiliser at no extra charge (ESL is 295+VAT).

Cheers

Andy

Gambit, good idea! Will approach it that way if I have to go through a main dealer. Though I'm checking with Extreme Scoobies as in there on Saturday anyway for other work so hoping he can do it.

Andy that's very interesting, do I take it then that someone could send you an 8S ECU, and you could return it equipped with ESL and a Prodrive map downloaded plus disable the immobiliser for £295 + VAT? If so this creates a true plug and play upgrade for 97/98 owners looking for Prodrive power to start with the option to upgrade further later on.

The deciding factor for me to go for the SP ECU was the cost difference, considering I really do only want a reasonably modest upgrade and have no big power plans for the future, I couldn't justify £600 for ESL fitted.

Yes, I can put any combination of stock maps on as the twin map feature is effectively two entirely separate ECUs, not offsets and with all the parameters exposed, so you could have SP on 1 and uk turbo (8s) on 2, or any combo of prodrive, euro, wrx, sti, etc.

If you buy the software and cable for an extra £75+VAT I can supply a library of virtually every OEM map inc. forester and legacy that you can play with to your hearts content, although the real value is a tailor made map of course.

It does open up a huge amount of options at just 295+VAT. The only extra is the install at 25+VAT if you don't like the idea of soldering it in. If you can solder, it's easy enough.

You can also map yourself if you like to tinker as it comes with a proper manual:

http://www.enduringsolutions.com/Manual.pdf

Cheers for the above Andy.

So just to clarify for anyone looking for a mild ECU upgrade for their 97/98 classic there are two options.

1. An SP ECU from the Prodrive performance pack (make sure it's for a 97/98 car and not 99/00), it's best to assume your keys will need coding to the new ECU regardless and factor in this cost when purchasing. Though there does seem to be cars out there where the ECU has worked fine with no coding needed. You can by all means try, my experience is that upon fitting the car will start, but then cut out after 5 seconds or so, afterwhich the check engine light starts flashing. Coding seems to typically cost approx. £50. The SP ECU's seem to go from anything from £100 to £250, depending how lucky you are!

2. send your original ECU or another 8s off to ESL, for fitment of an ESL daughterboard, which will return with a Prodrive base map and another base map of your choice as well as the immobiliser disarmed to avoid any coding meaning complete plug and play, and of course means your then set up for any future mods as can get it mapped accordingly rather than buying another ECU. Cost is currently GBP 384.00 inc vat plus postage of course, or can be had for a little less if you solder the board in yourself.

Just to add finally, I had my ECU coded today by my specialist, Extreme Scoobies in Chelmsford, so anyone picking up an SP ECU in the Essex area doesn't have to go to a main dealer! :-)

What was the cost bud?