Ken E

What are the benefits of going for an aftermarket ECU, what's the difference between the various ECUs available, what sort of money should I expect to pay for one inc fitting and mapping etc, can the ECU be transferred to a later car if I decide to change in a year or something, and (finally) how does this mod compare with others ? (I was told that a twin dump downpipe and an induction kit may give the same performance increase as a link - will this be a recipe for det though ?)

I have a MY95 WRX with a panel filter and a super drager with decat downpipe, always run on SUL + Millers.

I'm trying to decide on the following options:

1. Get another ECU;
2. Spend my money on some other mods;
3. Don't bother spending my money on any mods, leave the car as it is for now.

Can anyone give any information on this that could help me decide on the best option.

Many Thanks

Ken

Adam M

Link is cheaper than motec.

motec is generic and is the same model for all? cars. Only requires a different loom adaptor to move bewteen models.

Link is model specific.

Resolution of motec map is finer, therefore gives greater control and can be smoother than link.

Motec is programmed by laptop, link by tuning module which is smaller and easier.

Remappable ecus work in tandem with other mods.

there is no set gain from an ecu, you can choose what safety margin you want at a desired boost etc. Also, it enables you to exploit the benefits of other mods.

There is only so far you can go on a standard ecu, breathing mods make car run leaner if they are adding power. Can only go so far on standard ecu which runs rich anyway.

If you keep improving breathing, it simply wont have enough fuel, will run lean and then die a death. but you need to do some serious mods before this happens. ie, headers, full exhaust, induction, hybrid turbo etc.

If you do these after the mappable ecu, you can do them safely and extract a good benefit from them.

Remember the map is only as good as the mapper! cant say that too many times, so call bob rawle. trust anyone else at your own risk, I wouldn't.

If you are questioning how happy you are already, then you probably dont need more power, and can do better things with the money.

links are around 1k with all the bits you need, and some other bits too that are worth having, mapped and installed.

motecs are upwards of 2k.

there are other ecus, but I dont know who would map them.

For less money, exhausts and filters give good gains and sound good. after that, ecus, are in my opinion the best way to go.

hope this has helped.

GraemeF

Dont't forget GEMS , Unichip plus others...

As Adam has quite rightly said you can expect to pay anything from around 1k upto 2.5k for the ECU install and mapping/fuel etc.

The KEY to have a chip change is with the guy doing the mapping for you.

Having the ecu changed with allow you to have the car setup 100% correctly to all your mods, type of fuel you are running and increase boost over standard safely...

I had my ecu replaced on my STi5 as it had eaten 3 MAF's and I had had enough at that point. I went through all the available options like , link, motec, Unichip and several aftermarket fuel/boost controllers but finally decided to go with GEMS as I found a guy that prepares EVO's and Scooby rally cars & road cars and maps them with GEMS at a very reasonable cost and these cars fly..

I now have a lot more torque ,the car is certainly alot more responsive and I am properly mapped with SUL & Millers.

So it all comes down to WHO does the mapping for you!

All ECU's do primarily the same thing, just that some have more control than others which ultimately will all further better tunning of your car.
Some ECU's also have Anti-Lag, Launch Control, water injection, data logging via laptop etc etc which you may or may not want but they are STANDARD options on Motec, GEMS you just have to enable and set them up.

Hope this helps you a little more, I have the details of the guy who did my GEMS install if you want it. Email me privatley

Enjoy

Scott J Davies

I agree with Adam M an ECU is the way forward for better performance and protection of your engine.

Link is model specific and is an 8 bit unit and getting on somewhat now.

Motec is the daddy and is a 32 bit unit, however it wasn't specifically designed for applying to a Scoob. But it does have lots of included benefits ie built in traction control, optional antilag (if you want to be like Moray ) and launch control. Powerstation are the daddies with this one.

There are other, other alternatives though, the Apexi Power FC is the same price as a link, but is a 16 bit unit, is Scoob model specific and has all the programable features of a Motec, bar the traction control etc. It also has knock detection built in on the impressive little optional hand unit. IMHO the choice over a link ecu. You can datalog via a laplink as well. It is the preffered choice in the Jap market.

However the Motec is the daddie and PS would be the daddies for that daddie.

SJD



[This message has been edited by Scott J Davies (edited 29 June 2001).]

AlexM

Link isn't 8-bit.. it uses a 16bit microcontroller.

Deep Singh

Ken I would recommend driving a car that has had the aforementioned ECU's fitted and then decide for yourself which you feel is the best for you.This is probably not that difficult on this board because alot of the guys here are happy to help.
Also,Powerstation are not the only ones to map Motec, Bob Rawle also does them and currently runs one on his own STi(approx 350 BHP with standard engine internals) Good luck!