94 Legacy got flooded

[Shoe]

So a few weeks ago my 97 Subaru got water in it when my street flooded. The water looks like it got almost as high as the headlights, and there was water inside. It had all drained out the next day when I checked it out, but it looks like there was at least 6" of water inside.

The water never got inside the intake, and the oil and trans fluid look fine. After a few days of drying out the engine started up and eventually ran fine for a few loops around the neighborhood, then threw a knock sensor code. I replaced the knock sensor but there is no change, it immediately comes back after I clear the code. I haven't tested the circuit yet but I'm pretty sure I'm not getting any power to the sensor. I found the ECU and unplugged it and sprayed in some contact cleaner yesterday but so far no change so I'm afraid the ECU is probably bad. If I have to replace the ecu, what numbers do I have to match for a replacement? I've seen anywhere from $50 Ebay units to $250 rebuilt ones.

The numbers on my ecu are;

22611 AD0 21

JA18000 DJ9

 

Or is there anything else I should be doing?

Thanks for the help!

[johnegg]

96 - 97 ECU will work just fine.

trans does not matter,

engine does not matter.

 

get some WD40 and spray ALL of the connectors.

 

fresh water or salt water?

[Shoe]

Thanks johnegg I was hoping you would answer. It was fresh (rain) water. We got about 11 inches of rain in 6 hours and everything flooded. I have already sprayed all the connectors I could find with WD40 and contact cleaner, and I'm pretty sure everything is dried out, except the ECU that I just uncovered yesterday. Does this sound like a bad ECU or should I be looking elsewhere? I'm thinking ECU since it looks like it got wet and everything was fine beforehand.

I've seen some low priced ecu's on ebay so I might try one of those, but I hate to spend much money on a car I was about to sell cheap anyway. It's been so dependable for the 7 years I've owned it I hate to sell it to a junk yard.

[johnegg]

well you can't sell it for much if it does not run.

 

look for a ECU, "computer" at www.car-part.com .

sort by distance / zip code to see what is close.

then sort by price to look for a bargain, even with the shipping.

you may have to search 96 and 97 separately.

imprezas may work, but i would stick to legacy,

outback, GT, LSi brighton, L, LS does not matter.

 

there is not much demand so they should be pretty cheap.

 

you could also try opening the ECU and spraying it out with wd40.

it has been days and is probably dry now but you never know.

just a few small screws to open.

inside is a single circuit board.

[Shoe]

Thanks John. Last night I pulled out the ECU and took it apart. It looked like the bottom 1/4 of it got wet, and there was a little bit of corrosion and dirt on the board. I sprayed/cleaned it as best I could and let it sit out and dry overnight. This morning I put it back in the car and started it up. No codes! Hopefully it will stay good. If not I know where to find a replacement now. Thanks for all your help.

[doublechaz]

Nice win!

[Shoe]

Just a quick follow up. The knock sensor code came back after a few short drives, so I went ahead and ordered a cheap ($50) replacement from a 96 off of Ebay. It came in today and everything seems to be back to normal again after installing it. It seems to be a little low on power, but it might just be that the AC was on or it might take the new computer a while to learn the engine. Thanks again johnegg for all the help!