Hey all,

Firstly, what a freaking awesome site!! Many hours will be spent here I assure you!

I have a 94 XG Manual Ute, that has a drinking problem which is common to pretty much all XG's. One solution I have been told is to replace the ECU with either an ED/XG XR6 manual ECU or even a standard ED Manual ECU. The reason being, that the XG has a different map in it to allow for more mid range torque or something like that, and using one of the above ECU's will help reduce the consumption.

I have tracked down an XR6 ECU for a darn good price, but I wanna know

1) Will putting an XR6 ECU into a standard ute work fine?
2) Is what i have been told true, and that it will improve the economy?
3) I have looked at the one currently fitted and it is a 3DAC, which according to the Catch Code list, is both 1994 ED Falcon, manual & 1994 XG 4.0L Manual. with Smartlock. So is there any difference??

Thanks in advance guys!

first of all welcome to the website/forum,
i dont know about the difference in fuel consumption between the ute and sedans but i do know if you fit the xr6 computer they will give you slightly better performance, have you considered buying a j3 chip from TI PERFORMANCE i think they will not cost you more than 150 for a straight plug in with the xr6 tune loaded to it or you can get it dyno tuned to suit your needs
http://www.tiperformance.com.au/j3_performance_chips.html

Give the ute a complete service, replace all the filters etc and fit a new oxygen sensor. I can't see how swapping over a ECU will alter fuel economy. In my gregory's manual for the EL it actually has the fuel trip figures and the standard EL GLI uses less fuel then the XR6 because of it's lazy ecu tune, lower fuel pressure regulator and a taller diff.

cheers...

Cheers Blokes,

Bit of info on the ute
275,000k
Pacemaker headers with 2.5in high flow system
T5 Manual
Did have POD filter, but have replaced with stock air box, and only half of the snorkle.

I gave her some TLC over the weekend. Got some Subaru Upper Engine Cleaner, Liqui Moly Detox and fresh Penrite HPR 15. The difference is amazing, it was running okay before the service, but after it is 100% better. The o2 sensor was on the shopping list but senility kicked in and I forgot to grab one, but will do so soon. Initial impressions indicate that it has improved the fuel consumption somewhat, but will average it out over the next few tanks to get a good indication. Anything has to be better than 16.3L/100km that I was getting, and no I am not being overly hard on her.

I was told on other forums, that the XG tune was different to what was in the Sedan / Wagons (ED) to improve mid range torque etc when loaded. The down side was the drinking problems. Replacing the ECU with one from an ED Manual (Std or XR6) would improve this situation.
But I might just wait, am thinking bout a Wade cam, if I do that, will approach TI for a custom J3 chip.

sort of on topic.... i spent months putting up with woeful fuel economy EF motor with dizzy in XF ute ( basically XG) had a lean 02 sensor fault and traced every wire and checked every pinout and in the end just bought a new 02 sensor. Should have done that sooner, went from average on trip computer (installed one from ED) of 17 litres per 100 to 11 litres per 100. Mostly around town driving. Gained nearly 200 km's per tank. Huge change in throttle response and overall driveability. Definately now worth the effort of the engine conversion. So the moral of the story is , if you think its stuffed change it! Better off wasting money on beer than petrol I reckon.

If you've got 3.27 diff then fitting the XR6 ECU will give the benefit of making gears shift up a bit sooner (the ECU sees relatively high roadspeed vs tps/rpm with the taller diff vs 3.45 it's programmed for) - which could well help with economy - at least give u more control over it anyway - in addition to any difference in midrange fuel/ignition strategies you've mentioned.