Recall faulty ECU's for years 91-95 3000GT and Stealth

[chansigril]

Originally Posted by DBLerman

ECU doesn't pose a direct safety concern, that is why there was no recall on them and will never be a recall on them.

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tcase required extraordinary danger for recall to happen.

[RealMcCoy]

Originally Posted by Alt0id

Alright, I see your point. Don't get me wrong, you need business too, I understand.

However, A clutch or something is a wear item. If made right, the ecu should not fail. Its solid state, as long as it isn't exposed to a climate conducive to corrosion, it shouldn't stop working because of inferior capacitors.

There are also unconfirmed cases where 3s's have randomly started on fire which is thought (though unconfirmed) to be caused by the ecu.

That's where I think this has gone all wrong... An ECU is not just a computing device. it is a large array of drivers and switches that DO degrade and fail.. I replace PCMs, TCMs, airbag controllers, body controllers, and all forms of electronics all the time.. Considering the vast number of them in service, and the number of them I've had to replace compared to AC/Delco, Motorcraft, and many others.. My experience would indicate Mitsubishi designs are one of the more reliable on the market..

[Alt0id]

Originally Posted by RealMcCoy

That's where I think this has gone all wrong... An ECU is not just a computing device. it is a large array of drivers and switches that DO degrade and fail.. I replace PCMs, TCMs, airbag controllers, body controllers, and all forms of electronics all the time.. Considering the vast number of them in service, and the number of them I've had to replace compared to AC/Delco, Motorcraft, and many others.. My experience would indicate Mitsubishi designs are one of the more reliable on the market..

Ok, yes I agree, they degrade, however mitsu used inferior capacitors, which degrade too quickly. A good capacitor shouldn't fail that fast. Mitsu saved a buck to give an inferior product that could cause problems. So yes I agree, things wear out, but thats rediculous that brand new these cars were 30-40k+ and mitsu cut corners in areas that didn't even save them that much money.

In the process creating a safety hazard.

[RealMcCoy]

I seriously doubt Mitsubishi realized at the time that the cap they were using would only last ten years before showing a significant failure rate.. but I have to wonder why they would care... Does Ford care about how long the head gaskets, heater cores, timing cover gaskets, and transmissions, last in the first gen Taurus..? At ten years, most manufacturers are discontinuing parts, and stepping away from the older models, they would prefer that they end up in the crusher, and you go buy a new car.. (that will be equipped with even more complex electronics of which several parts won't make it ten years..)

If you want to own and maintain a ten to fifteen year old car, you need to be prepared to fix it when it breaks.. There is nothing about the failure rate of the Mitsu ECUs that indicates they didn't perform to design expectations.. If you want improve on the design, install better caps, or get an aftermarket ECU..

[The Tick]

yeah the capacitor were pretty low quality but the majority of 3s cars now are long past their waranties and since a bad capacitor will only kill the ecu and stop the car from running it is hard to say they will consider a recall esspecially given how old all the cars are now. Plus its not like we don't know its a problem, and if you go ahead and replace them before they go out you save your ecu, and the parts are pretty cheap compaired to buying a new ecu so preventative maintanice is the lesson of the day. Lets just be happy we wont the transfer case battle and call the capacitors a draw.

[marshallh]

Did Mitsubishi not spend considerable R&D designing a phenomenal car? Think of the huge list of things that they did right with these cars.

The Rubycon caps were not a poor choice at the time. It is unfortunate that they did not consider using a more temperature-tolerant grade of capacitor, however, look at how long other high-end sports cars last before breaking down.

This is an unfortunate reality of life, and I sympathize for those who have gotten burned by this issue, but things like this are better put in perspective.

[ProwlerGT]

Many of you responded and presented good arguments on both sides, but I think the general logical consensus is that its just too damn long ago now for a recall to go through. Even the 99's are about to be 10 years old. The ECU issue is widely known to those it really matters to and the number of 3S vehicles continues to dwindle on a daily basis (see part out threads and ebay ads) making the argument for a recall even weaker unfortunately. I don't like saying all that or having to accept it since I started this thread for a greater purpose, but the other fact is that by now most people have either had their ECU's replaced, repaired or they've put in 3rd party ECUs. For the ones that were repaired people wouldn't likely be able to get the recalled ECU if there was one to get and I doubt Mitsu would front cash to compensate owners for having repaired theirs. For those that replaced them there'd be an argument maybe that the recall would be justified if they hadn't tampered with the circuit board, but just how many of those are really out there? The numbers I'm sure are extremely slim for those that have simply replaced with a new OEM ECU or are still using the original ECU untouched.

Nevertheless, as this thread has shown the ECU's have caused stall conditions in traffic and in some cases fires. We all also know all too well how the factory IAC's burn out the ECU or vice versa. For all we know the factory IAC's have been the culprit all along in shorting out the factory ECUs and that the newer revised IACs fix this problem altogether. Yes, the Rubycon capacitors were/are shit and it was a bad call on Mitsu's part, but this recall would be way out of date for a vehicle line thats no longer produced by almost 10 years ago. I don't like it and I think its wrong and always will believe Mitsu should've rectified it with a recall during production at least for all the 1st gens and some 2nd gens, but it just didn't happen and I don't think it would even if we mounted up a petition of complaints to the NHTSA.

What I do think could be done or rather is more likely is that a TSB could get created to warn new owners of the situation with the ECU's and even the IACs if these are not already out there in TSB land.

At this point everyone reading this and/or who is subscribed to this thread would be doing a big favor especially to new owners who haven't a clue about our cars like we do if you went right now and filed a complaint describing your experience with the ECU failure. You can do a separate one for the IAC as well. I was going to write up a template of text for people to use, but everyone's situation seems to be slightly different. Be sure to include all details, where you were at the time (IE: highway, street, turning, red light, etc..), what you were doing, if there was fire especially and don't leave out any details of the extent of what you went through especially if you were frightened and put in a life threatening situation due to the ECU failure.

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If we end up with a TSB for it I'll be happy. I'd like to continue to fight for a recall effort for this, but given everyone's information (which I'm thankful for) on both sides it just does not seem it would happen. Something else happened too while this thread has been active. I had to replace the ECU (PCM) in my Ford van. LOL - That made me think a bit. Though it had not rendered me in danger and didn't melt or catch on fire, it is a 95 vehicle and the equipment was just old and worn.

Part of every dealership's production is to make a car that will only last "so long" in order to keep making money on new cars later. I however.... I'll always have my 3000GT. I just hope they keep selling the parts.

Again, I thank everyone who participated in this thread. Both sides of the argument were great imho. I don't mean to kill this thread though... if ya'll wanna keep talking about it.. by all means go for it.

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