Do I have the right Dinan Chip for my ECU?

[jmonaco]

Hey r3vlimited, I need your expertise.

So I was thinking about buying a Dinan performance chip for my BMW. I bought one on craigslist without thinking about needing a specific model chip for a specific ECU. I did some reading afterwards and realized I may not have bought the correct Dinan Chip.

I have a 1991 BMW 325i. My ECU is 0 261 200 524. I've posted pictures of my DME as well as the Dinan Chip.The person I bought the Dinan Chip from said it was for a 173 ECU.

Does my ECU number have to match the Dinan Chip number or would the 173 Dinan Chip work with my 524 ECU?

Thank you!

[AndrewBird]

I'm going to assume it won't work, but I would call Dinan to find out exactly.

[Kershaw]

try it. if it doesnt work, pick up a 173 dme. they are cheap.

[Robert]

IT WILL NOT WORK.

I bought a 173 ecu for a 525 ecu , i had detonation in my engine. also ran really lean with the chip, you need the right chip for the right ECU.

[jmonaco]

Alrighty, thanks for the replies....

Anyone looking to buy a Dinan chip for a 173 ECU :D

[nando]

try it. they're the same damn thing (motronic 1.3). a 173 wont' run any different than a 524. if it did then something else caused the issue.

the only difference between a 173 and a 524 is a few more check codes.

[jmonaco]

try it. they're the same damn thing (motronic 1.3). a 173 wont' run any different than a 524. if it did then something else caused the issue.

the only difference between a 173 and a 524 is a few more check codes.

Thanks for the reply nando. Do you mind if I pick your brain a bit?

To my limited knowledge, there are maybe four or five other E30 ECU numbers. I have to ask, if the only difference between a 173 and a 524 are check codes, is this true of the other ECU's as well?

Why would BMW make ECU's which did the same thing, but had a different number of check codes?

I've heard that the 173 is the "best" ECU. Is there a reason for this?

Thanks in advance!

[nando]

because the ones with more codes are newer. 524/525/526 tended to come in the last model year of the E30. 173 was the first Motronic 1.3 ecu. there's also 351 and 380. Additionally, there are other #s used for cars in europe, M30s, etc. But they're all really the same with different chips.

a 173 isn't any better than any other Motronic 1.3 ecu - they're all the same thing!

[jmonaco]

Ok, I guess it's worth a shot then. The only reason I'm skeptical is because of this...

IT WILL NOT WORK.

I bought a 173 ecu for a 525 ecu , i had detonation in my engine. also ran really lean with the chip, you need the right chip for the right ECU.

But I'm sure everything will be fine