well the car was playing up the other day idle was a bit lumpy and the engine just didnt feel smooth so popped it into my local ford for a pcm update £83 total p[rice plus a health check and i was pleasantly surprised it took about an hour and a bit to do but the idle was sorted the engine was smooth its a lot smoother cruising now the car feels totally different ull as well so if anyone hasnt had it done for a long time its worth having it checked

well the car was playing up the other day idle was a bit lumpy and the engine just didnt feel smooth so popped it into my local ford for a pcm update £83 total p[rice plus a health check and i was pleasantly surprised it took about an hour and a bit to do but the idle was sorted the engine was smooth its a lot smoother cruising now the car feels totally different ull as well so if anyone hasnt had it done for a long time its worth having it checked

So your saying the PCM update fixed the lumpy idle and rough running engine. Did you know it needed updating or was it a case of a dealer advising you it could possibly sort out those issues. Or did you just think what the hell @ £83 it's worth a punt.

What does PCM stand for by the way

Edit: Volvo dealers offer free health checks, I suppose the logic behind that is to try and pick up a bit of work. The old cynic in me all ways ponders ....would unscrupulous dealers "find jobs"

So your saying the PCM update fixed the lumpy idle and rough running engine. Did you know it needed updating or was it a case of a dealer advising you it could possibly sort out those issues. Or did you just think what the hell @ £83 it's worth a punt.

What does PCM stand for by the way

Edit: Volvo dealers offer free health checks, I suppose the logic behind that is to try and pick up a bit of work. The old cynic in me all ways ponders ....would unscrupulous dealers "find jobs"

Every Ford PCM - Power Control Module not only improves your power, it makes your engine purr like a kitten, so it can run more efficiently for better fuel economy.

i thought what the hell ive replaced coils and leads lets give it a punt and see what happens it basically runs the engine tunes it has all the settings the dealer wont tell you that you need it done i just heard it could fix a lot of issues so thought what the hell lets get it done and see and theres a huge difference a more responsive smoother engine that idles like its meant to

By a rough idle what do u mean because mine sits at 795 easy enough but when your coming to a stop at a junction etc it drops WAYY down to about 500 and then seems to blip its self back upto 795 again (could be just a power drain from the battery). Also a smoother power delivery would be nice ive got nothing till about 4000rpm in which case theres like a step and then it just pulls like a train from there on in would a pcm help these issues?

By a rough idle what do u mean because mine sits at 795 easy enough but when your coming to a stop at a junction etc it drops WAYY down to about 500 and then seems to blip its self back upto 795 again (could be just a power drain from the battery). Also a smoother power delivery would be nice ive got nothing till about 4000rpm in which case theres like a step and then it just pulls like a train from there on in would a pcm help these issues?

795 is way too high its only meant to idlke at 700 plus or minus 30 rpm so 670-730 rpm max youre way over so thats an issue that needs fixed dropping to 500 is called an idle undershoot and it requires a pcm update to fix it the main issue is why its idling so high either someones tampered with the throttle stop screw to make it idle higher or you have an issue with a vacum hose or idle control valve or even the pcv valve the pcm will fix the undershoot as for the over idle yiou wont know when till its done asuming that idle speed is when the engines warm its definately too high

Every Ford PCM - Power Control Module not only improves your power, it makes your engine purr like a kitten, so it can run more efficiently for better fuel economy.

i thought what the hell ive replaced coils and leads lets give it a punt and see what happens it basically runs the engine tunes it has all the settings the dealer wont tell you that you need it done i just heard it could fix a lot of issues so thought what the hell lets get it done and see and theres a huge difference a more responsive smoother engine that idles like its meant to

Well worth the punt then, I will bear it in mind if I have any issues like that. I wonder if the dealer I bought it from, did mine prior to hand over?....some how I doubt it.

I had exactly the same problem, the update took 2 hours and it cost £216.  The garage said it would not be done as a part of an annual service.  I am not happy about this, there is nothing in Owner's Manual about PCM needing an update, so I sent a complaint to Ford Head Office.  It is hidden things like this that make me think I shall never get another Ford.

On ‎10‎/‎15‎/‎2010 at 9:47 AM, catch said:

So your saying the PCM update fixed the lumpy idle and rough running engine. Did you know it needed updating or was it a case of a dealer advising you it could possibly sort out those issues. Or did you just think what the hell @ £83 it's worth a punt.

What does PCM stand for by the way

Edit: Volvo dealers offer free health checks, I suppose the logic behind that is to try and pick up a bit of work. The old cynic in me all ways ponders ....would unscrupulous dealers "find jobs"

just a thought as we put more sh t in the petrol, a number of fords were NOT happy with methanol, maybe this update gives a more tolerant map?

 

as for software updates its standard on any modern car - you should be happy they made the effort….   most brands leave the faulty trash they built it with - with all the associated security, reliability and safety bugs it originally came with

Can someone explain this to me? If the car was fine when it left the factory, why does it need an 'update' to work?

Yes, i don't get it either, it's not like software wears out with use and needs replacing to revitalise it.

My understanding of software updates on cars is that when they release the software they have only tested it on so many cars for a period of time. 

As more cars are sold and the various components in the cars wear in lots of different conditions show up where the software could work better or fix issues that didn't appear during fords testing. 

Modem engines are much more complex than they used to be with lots more electronic components so they can't test for every possibility. 

12 hours ago, StephenFord said:

Can someone explain this to me? If the car was fine when it left the factory, why does it need an 'update' to work?

just because windows turns on (boots) it doesn't mean its not full of faults and security glitches - (if it was, why has it had some 45 gigabytes of updates since launch?) the exact same issue applies to cars

take a look at the Mk4, I've been told there has been so far some 21 software updates to the headunit and its still doesn't work for most users, randomly jumping radio channels and the front speakers turning on and off....

1 minute ago, Botus said:

just because windows turns on (boots) it doesn't mean its not full of faults and security glitches - the exact same issue applies to cars

take a look at the Mk4, I've been told there has been so far some 21 software updates to the headunit and its still doesn't work randomly jumping radio channels and the front speakers turning on and off....

I was just waiting for someone to do a 'windows' comparison.LOL  I don't buy it. On a laptop, you are constantly adding stuff to it, programs, apps, surfing the net, all exposing to further unforeseen threats unplanned from the factory setting. A car doesn't operate like that. All you do is add petrol, oil and coolant top ups. I still fail to see the need for a 'software' update to get it to work again from when it left the factory...

he's better evidence from the main man round here....

 

 

3 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

I was just waiting for someone to do a 'windows' comparison. LOL  I don't buy it. On a laptop, you are constantly adding stuff to it, programs, apps, surfing the net, all exposing to further unforeseen threats unplanned from the factory setting. A car doesn't operate like that. All you do is add petrol, oil and coolant top ups. I still fail to see the need for a 'software' update to get it to work again from when it left the factory...

Windows and your car is EXACTLY the same.... rubbish when sold - improvements are available

the windows comparison is not the same, after releasing Windows there will be some new software you add to your PC that might need a windows update to make it work to its optimum level, or a hacker may have found a way in so an update plugs that hole, or you might add a new graphics card that was built after windows came out and might need a windows update to make it work to its optimum level, 

if petrol had changed I can understand why it might need a PCM update due to different characteristics of the new fuel (burn rate etc) and therefore the windows analogy might be more valid but petrol has not changed

The reason why Ford releases software updates is basically to solve known issues and to improve the product. This can be basically anything. In case of the PCM common reasons for a software update are:

* To solve the engine not properly starting under certain conditions. 
* To improve fuel economy.
* To improve bad idling.
* To make the engine run smoother.
* To stop the engine from cutting out in certain conditions.
* To improve the power/torque output (some software versions are known to have less power/torque then specified).

Yes, the engine will run fine on older software versions but in most cases updating to the latest software version results in a signifant improvement. Some engine types really benefit from a software update.