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Ok, got a guy wanting to sell me a load of Toyota computers that were removed from cars due to defect. Anyone ever scrap one of these and is it even worth the trouble? I've never seen one and i'm guessing its about half the size of a laptop, but dont even have a clue. a quick google search didnt help much. thanks!
how much can you get the load for and how many lbs?
we havent negotiated anything as of now. i only spoke to him on the phone briefly and didnt think i was interested in car computers. once i get a handle on what they are and value, i will shoot him a price accordingly. just hoping to get some info on here from someone that can tell me what to expect. he has about 150 of them but i have no idea of size/weight
I have one I'm holding onto as well. I may ship it with another large lot of server boards I have. I have no idea what they're worth.
I've only done a GM computer a couple of times. The board was about 6 x6" with the bottom all cast alum. I'll do them all day long if I can get them. Stay away from the Fords, they say that they are filled with a plastic like tar and almost impossible to get into. That's about all I know.
I an auto repair shop were the owner died and his workers were cleanning out his shop. he must have had about 500 car computers and the workers told me to take what ever I wanted and I ended uup with about 100 of these. they were all about 6" wide and about 8" long, cast aluminum hoseing and the boards were high grade. Like Mechanic said some had like an epoxy that coverd the boards and could not get the boards out off these. I would not buy them unless I could not see them first and then I would not offer him to much for them, maybe .50 or .75 ea. They are a little bit of work but can be worth it. Good luck and let us know what you end up doing.
I pay .50 ea if I have to but the top alum cover will pay at least that so all the rest is pure profit.
they also have huge plated pins.
wasnt worth the hassle. he wants at least $10 each (HA!) and thinks he'll retire off this find. in fact, he said him and his brother were trying to melt down some of the pins to extract the gold but couldnt get a source to produce enough heat. I'm sure they are doing this in their garage, and you'll be able to see some results on americas funniest videos. my intuition was that the faster i can move away from these guys the better :)
And if they don't watch what their doing you'll be reading about them in the obit's.Quote:
Originally Posted by shendog
ECMs/ECUs arent as good as the TCU/TCM out of a late model chevy. I get some from time to time from a buddy that works at the local chevy dealership. Those things have some very nice gold in them. They are heavy cast alu. I pay $3.00 per pound and make great money off those. Bit of a basturd to break down but well worth it. If you guys/gals get ahold of one when breaking it down be careful and not lose any of the thin gold wires. They are gold and thin but add up. And the pins are HEAVY plated. The chips are mostly gold capped and glued to the case with some wicked glue so a chissle is needed lol. For those who dont know TCU/TCM is the transmission control unit / module.
do you know where on the vehicle the tcm is usually mounted?Quote:
Originally Posted by joebob49
how much $ do you generally get after you break one down, or are they too varied to give a general value?
I part about 10 cars a year, the modules are going to be in the engine compartment or in the dash. If the modules are good sell them to me =) Actually the tcm and ecu are worth about the same, in the $3-$4 range in scrap. I have not broken any down, all of my modules have sold.