I have a 3G TL. Remember seeing a thread long ago about resetting the ECU to smooth out the rough idle. My TL has a slight vibration for quite a while. Dealer checked and said all normal. Got some free time today, so I disconnected the battery for an hour, started the car, idled for 10-15 minutes. To my surprise, this trick actually made the idle smoother.

So, here is my question. With today's complex car computers (all modern cars, not just Acura), would it be a good idea to reset the ECU on regular basis? Should we treat the ECU like a home computer and restart/reset once in a while?

 

IMO, if that fixes it but the rough idle comes back, its just masking another problem.

 

Does the idle seem to get worse when the car is in drive with the AC on and foot on the brake? Does the RPM raise or lower when the AC turned on while sitting still in drive? There are generally two reasons this can happen:
1. A non-detectable (by ECM) slight misfire that's amplified only by a high load idle.
2. A roughness caused by too low of an engine speed at idle.

There are other possibilities BUT these above I see most frequently.

 

the vibration seems to be the same at all times. doesn't matter the engine is hot or cold. dealer checked engine mount and cleaned fuel system. this vibration is reduced 'til ECU reset today.

 

Same thing happened on mine. Reset the ecu and cleared up. I think i had a dirty injector causing mine tho.

 

No. You'd be better served to have the problem diagnosed. The ECU is constantly learning and re-learning engine and driver behavior. It should be fine.