Information on the 1227808 ECM

The 1227808 ECM (called the '808) was used in Holden's first mass produced V6 vehicle - the VN 3.8L PFI V6 Commodore, released in 1988. This same ECM had previously been used in the 2.0L PFI L4 JE Camira (1987), and the 1.6L PFI L4 Astra (badge engineered as the Nissan Pulsar). The even earlier non-oxygen sensor, 1.8L TBI L4 JD Camira also used the basic '808, but these model's ECM were missing U4, the oxygen sensor amplifier, and were designated the 1227277.

The basic '808 is based on the US 1227165 (which first shipped on US vehicles in late 1985), and in fact is the same part, but the '808 is missing U2 (SXR chip) that gives the '165 its 8192 baud ALDL capability. The '165 also comes in a longer case of the same width. The '808 and '277 (Australian models) are limited to 160 baud ALDL in their standard unmodified state. There have been a couple of revisions of the basic 1227165, and the latter boards seem to have fewer problems.

The thumbnail 1227165 (above left, and the enlarged image) are from Vim Fuego's site (not his real name, see link below). The Australian 16183082 & 16206304/5 which are functionally the same as the '165 but have mostly surface mount components (in particular U5) and probably have an improved layout and ground plane for greater reliability.

Non GM schematics of the 1227165 are available from Ludis Langen's site. These are absolutely fantastic, especially if you're an electronics engineer, but they don't tell much about how the '808 really works.

Another aspect of the '808 is the software. Vim Fuego has a collection of V8 and V6 memcal binary images, which is the actual code that runs on these computers. You can also get L4 (4 cyl.) memcal images too. Ludis has a cross reference of GM P4 ECMs that lists similar ECMs to the '165. These include the 1227752 (which is in the same case as the '808) used on US 1.5 and 1.6L PFI L4 turbo Isuzu cars, the 1227303 used in the US imported TBI L4 1.6L to 2.0L Korean LeMans (Daewoo?) which is a 1227752 but without one of the quad drivers (U6), and the 16198259 which is a later US part number for the '165.

Just as soon as we get some time (not likely ;-), we have some important updates to add to the information contained here.