Hello, I am new to the board and am looking for some help. My wife owns a FI 1989 Susuki Sidekick.  She tried to start the car and smelled something burning under the dash. She then called a tow and had the car taken to the shop. The mechanic reports the ecu is toast and says that the wiring harness requires replacement. The total estimate is $1500. Does this sound right? I have in the past done major car repairs on carbed vehicles. I need some advise and direction. Any help would be appreciated, thanks in advance.

hello
what kind? sammy ,tracker/kick? if its a tracker or sidekick  it not all that bad of job i have several of these my brothers and i run in the woods and we go through wiring and ecu's pretty offten you can buy a good used ecu for around 100.00 and the wiring harness about the same and just remove the dash and replace it. once the dash is removed its not bad and to remove the dash is not bad at all. i'm doing one today it was a 5 speed factory and i changed it all out to a automatic so i had to change the wiring harness and all. so as of today i have 2 days work in it and thats changing the motor and tranny and wiring harness and should be up and running it by noon today it not that bad of job but i dont know your mechanic skills. but 1500.00 sonds a little step to me let me know if you need a wiring harness and ecu i have them.
thanks rick.

Thank you for your quick response. On various cars in the past I have changed clutches, engines, strust, shocks, and the regular maintenance stuff. Just have not had to do alot of electrical stuff. What would the parts run? And is the harness that leads to the ECU plug into another harness, or does this harness run throughout the entire vehicle? And when the ECU cooks does it generally fry other electronic ignition components? Again thank you for your assistance. 

hello
sounds like your on your way to making a good mechanic. the ecu plugs in to the main wiring harness i dont know if you have been into one of these yet but they are really not that bad of a job, even if you have to replace the complete wiring harness but before i changed out the wiring harness i would check it out if you had a short or a bad wire in the harness you should see signs of burnt wiring,melted covering something that would show where the wiring got hot or even melted. and for the ecu i have had them to just go bad driving, up and quit with out any reason. put in another one in and off i go. before i did anything i would check the wiring harness for what i told you about check to see if it has been hot enough to burn it or melt it somewhere in the harness if not i would just replace the ecu and go from there. theres a lot of mechanics out there that can tune in on your mechanic skills and if they know you dont have a clue as to whats going on then something that cost as little as 100.00 job can cost you 1000.00's see where i'm coming from here. chances are the ecu is your only problem but to be on the safe side i would check the wiring harness out first. and about the ecu messing up other parts i have not had that problem before. now you could have if you wiring has a dead short in it or got hot enough to melt it causing it to short out some way. as for the parts i have the ecu for 100.00 shipped and the wiring harness for 150.00 shipped. i hope this helps you and if i can help you out on this just post and i'll do my very best.
thanks rick.

I went to the shop over the weekend and looked at the vehicle. The speakers and the access panel under the steering wheel was pulled. The ECU was lying on the floor board. The wiring harness on one pin melted and the wire seperated at that point. I see in your profile you are in KY, I am in Lexington. Where is your shop located? The ECU and wiring harness you have for sale, are they new, rebuilt or used? If I supply the parts the mechanic will install for $800.
What would happen if I took the existing wiring harnes and adapt the contact that is damage and reuse?

hello
i'm in morgan county i'm about 80 miles east of you something like that.west liberty is the city
so just one wire was burnt from the plug on the ecu? it would be worth a try you would have nothing to lose by trying it. i would replace the one wire or plug your talking about and try it my start right up for ya. it sure would be worth a try. the ecu and wiring harness i have is used but i drove it here befor i parted it out. who is your mechanic down there? i work for  about every car lot buy here pay heres and all. i have work for north broadway auto sales ,tri city,( big mike speaks) havent seen him in a while. i have mechanic all over down there. i have a good friend down there thats a excellent mechanic and does peope right his name is bobby slone does that name ring a bell for ya? bobby and i work togather for dave baker and mike ott at varity auto mart let me see if i can get you his phone number to get up with him if not i could make the trip myself and see what you have going on. let me know.
thanks rick jones.

I mailed the ecu to EvaPro in Florida for a rebuild. $150 and a lifetime warranty. But they said it was too far gone. The board was toasted. Can I still see about buying the used one ?