I want to clarify some "rumors" I have run into concerning the ECUs in our cars. First, jump starting can hurt the ECU. Second, putting the battery on a maintainer can hurt the ECU. Finally, using a negative post cut off switch can hurt the ECU when you turn it on. Any truth to any of this? My knowledge of things electrical ends at changing light bulbs. Thanks!

The ECU on or cars is pretty damn basic and bullet proof. As long as you are not sparking it its fine.

Modern cars with more sensitive ECUs recommend against jump starting etc because improper use of the cables can cause an arc which *could* damage the ECU. And I did in fact damage a Microsquirt ECU a few years back doing a lot of testing and tuning by not having it properly grounded when I turned the key on.

But for a 914, I would not be at all concerned about the things that you mentioned. Nor would I be that concerned about modern cars.

Zach

ECU's got a bad rap early on because of lack of knowledge by the mechanics of the time. They were all about reverting to carbs because they did not want to work on them. Overall the ECU's are a DUMB system. They have simple parameters. Real failure rates are less than 10%.