Car with/without ECU

[ConKbot]

short version
I would prefer not to have any ECU's in my car


long version
i think it all comes down to what you were brought up with, if you like working on cars
and what kind of systems you are most comfortable working on,
money comes in to this too if you have to pay for repairs.

when i was growing up it was mechanical fuel pumps, carbs, points and condensers all the way, i had all the usual old cars
like vivas escorts granadas and the rest and there was nothing i couldnt fix and if something wouldn't start
i could tell you within 10 mins why, electrical problems were easy to fix because they had basic wiring looms,
if a fuel pump wouldnt run back then it was either a fuse, relay, wiring or the pump itself (most were mechanical)
and you could diagnose all of them with a bit of wire and 12v bulb,
now days if a fuel pump wont run there could be loads reasons why as they are tied in to different circuits and sensors.
and parts were in abundance in scrap yards, anything you wanted you could go to the scrapy and get,
my local ones were open on a sunday too and i used to love pulling bits of motors on the top of a pile,
i used to come out of there each time with a pocket full of bulbs, fuses and nuts & bolts 

Replace bulb with OBDII scanner, and thats how most stuff is today.  OBDII scan, and popping the codes into google, read a couple forum links, and you have your answer as to the most likely cause.  Even without popping the hood. 

[AndyC_772]

Wasn't a Ford was it?

Nope, BMW.