Sambob

Looking for a bit of helpful advice if possible.

I bought my Subaru 3 years ago... it's now at 107k. Richard Henry and myself have looked after it, serviced it regularly and say it's a good runner, etc.

It needs a new backbox and mid section Andy tells me as it has rusted and is perishing ***Have now purchased Prodrive 2.5" backbox and centre pipe***

I just need a little bit of help and advice on finding a good mapper in my area who can look over the car, advise me and give me a reasonable price to remap the ECU. I know of Andrew Carr, but I have tried getting in touch with him a few times, but he hasn't got back to me.

I'm in the Leeds/Bradford/Halifax area.

Many thanks,

Sam

Sambob

Been reading Engine mappers guide 1.1, might give it a go myself with RomRaider... I've got an OBDII that might do it? Anyone?

Options...

"1. Keep the car std but just remap for more oomph and better fuel economy.
2. A full custom remap will bring boost in much earlier and hold higher boost levels for longer but the map will be geared to running much more efficiently ( which is also more economically) as it wont be possible to push too much boost with all 3 cats in place. Typically a Green/K&N/Cosworth air filter and a backbox are fitted at this stage."

This would get the car to about 250-260bhp

I'm a Network Manager for a large organisation aftering being a techie for 13 years and have had my head in computing since I was 12 (I'm 33 now) so I think I may possibly be able to learn how to mod my own ECU to around 270BHP, with a little bit of help from you guys...?

Anyone got any advice for me? Here's hoping I don't break it!

ricodjs

Sambob,
got exactly the same model, albeit a wagon with the PPP kit (So has the Prodrive exhaust mod)

I'd be tempted to not do it yourself until you're a lot more comfortable with what you're doing.
He's based down in Swindon unfortunately but I can thoroughly recommend Bob Rawle for remapping.

He's got me 291BHP & 330ftlb+Torque from a MY07 2.5 WRX TD04 with no other mods, save a K&N panel air filter.
He can also help explain the ins and outs of mapping if you want to take it further.

hth

Sambob

Thanks for reply. Swindon's a bit too far to be honest. I'm still debating whether to learn to do it myself, but if someone local gets in touch and can do it for a reasonable price I may be more inclined to pay.

I'm not bothered about huge boosts, just around 260-280BHP with turbo kicking in around 2500 rpm, and hopefully remap will give better fuel economy.

Still need to know which exhaust to go for tho. So you didn't have to go for a decat system? Just K&N filter? Is it just a straight swap K&N or induction kit K&N?

Tidgy

the fuel pump you linked isnt a walbro, its some random 'felco' that the advert title ha been made to look like a walbro

Sambob

ok, thanks for that.

Gambit

iTrader: (6)

and if you are changing the fuel pump change the fuel filter at the same time as its in-tank on hawks

supersai101

My hawkeye WRX

Word of advice though, if you have a standard second cat (the one under the car), the japspeed cat back will not bolt onto it. The flange on the cat is 2.5" and the japspeed flange is 3". Found this the hard way, thankfully I was able to get a full refund for the japspeed. I now have a prodrive sports cat, M2 Motorsport straight through pipe, then a Blitz nur spec r all the way back. The noise it makes is incredible!

Sambob

Thanks supersal101, I will be replacing the middle section and back box minimum as they definitely need replacing due to corrosion. Does anyone know if all or any of the below will fit onto standard cat downpipe?


a. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/351010705235
b. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/350496248186
c. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/271767331569

Also, I'm not sure if I should replace the downpipe as well, anyone with experience? Does the downpipe usually need replacing at this stage in the cars life? Up pipe may also need replacing?

supersai101

I believe only the M2 one will fit as that is 2.5 inch. My blitz nur spec r is 3 inch but the flange tapers down to a 2.5 inch so it fits. Most cheap ebay ones don't taper down so a 3 inch system has a 3 inch flange which won't fit. If by down pipe you mean second cat then it shouldn't need replacing I removed mine the other week and it was fantastic condition. Although my car only has 56k on it. If yours does need replacing mine is for sale

Sambob

just won this on eBay....

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/301732398043

have spoken to him and will probably be buying the centre decat prodrive pipe off him as well. he's keeping the downpipe (cat) for MOT. Is yours the standard downpipe? Hopefully mine wont need replacing, but I may be in touch if it does...where abouts are you?

supersai101

The center pipe doesn't have a cat in it, it is usually just a silencer.

http://s20.photobucket.com/user/Psyk...t-600.jpg.html

On this diagram, I have the front catalytic converter and rear catalytic converter for sale. Both from a wrx hawkeye 56k when removed. I am in north wales but can ship

supersai101

Another thing to keep in mind, is that the front and rear catalytic converters are different for hawkeyes with the 2.5 engine, the ebay exhaust you won will fit, and so will the center pipe, but his rear cat will not fit onto your front cat. You can buy both his front and rear cats though to replace your entire exhaust system from the turbo back and that will fit.

McGoo

Im also in a similar situation, my 2.5 hawkeye will need a remap soon, is it worth replacing the up pipe with a decat at the same time as a full exhaust?

Im also looking for a mapper in the north west but I dont want to pay more than £300 for a remap. Any recommendations?

supersai101

Group B motorsport in deeside do great remaps.

Hawkeyes don't have cats in up pipe

McGoo

[/QUOTE]

thats great info, i wasnt sure if ours even had an up pipe at all!

One less thing i dont need to buy

Ill check out groub b motorsport now

Sambob

I thought 1 of the cats was in the centre section....silly me... lol

I think he wants to hold onto both cats as his system is decat as he's thinking about next MOT.

Will the prodrive backbox and centre piece fit on my existing system, and will I still be able to achieve around 270bhp with both standard cats?

Sambob

£300??? to reprogramme an ECU? I definitely need to learn how to do this. Any mappers want to teach me?

supersai101

I think the prodrive center section and back box will fit your existing system but don't quote me on that.

300 is a really good price in my opinion. Best bang for buck. Companies like revo that do maps for vag cars charge around 400 to 600.

Sambob

sounds like an inflated price as it's a specialist job, but I suppose I wouldn't complain if it was my niche.

I think I'm going to invest some time into learning how to do it, at least on mine. I just need pointing in the right direction (hopefully some kind mapper might help and not point middle finger)

supersai101

I am all for DIY and learning to do things on cars, 5 years ago I didn't know how to change a stereo and now from reading and trying I can do most things from head gaskets to turbo swaps. But remaps is one thing I wouldn't dare to do myself, there are just way too many parameters, you have to know about how an engine works inside out, fuel / air ratios, ignition timings, boost, knock, and a million other things. Then you have to learn about the software and different types of ECUs.

There are plenty of professional training courses out there though if you are interested. As a software developer this is something I would be really interested in doing myself, but I would definitely not try it without professional training.

As I read somewhere, ECU remapping is kind of like sword swallowing, straightforward once you know what you are doing but could have deadly effects if you don't lol.

Sambob

I would guess you are right, there will be a lot of variables and parameters and I would say experience is key.

For me, I would only want to learn how to do my 2.5 WRX hawkeye and I would have thought there would be perhaps a handful of pre-sets for different configurations. I am not bothered about using mine as a guinea pig...so long as I can reset the ECU back to standard if I mess up.

We have 2 cars in our household if I break it, although Mrs might not be happy lol

First step would be finding out the best method so can reset back to default if needed. I would guess that there are at least 2 methods....

Has anyone used RomRaider? Does anyone know if this the right piece of software to start with.... before I even install it on my laptop, would this OBDII cable do the job?

http://postimg.org/image/j7mwnu7kl/

http://postimg.org/image/5dbsnecup/

bludgod

iTrader: (3)

the only cable worth buying is the openport 2.0 cable - what you've pictured looks like a generic diagnostic lead and it's not the same stuph.
http://www.tactrix.com/index.php?opt...hk=1&Itemid=53

Once you have the tactrix cable then you can start mapping the car yourself but it's a bit of a learning curve to get started on. You can use romraider or ECUflash to edit the map once you've downloaded it from the car.

Sambob

Ok, nice 1. Thanks for this.

I found this one http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tactrix-Op...item1c59710249 Do I need the adaptors? Those kits are more expensive.

Can I download preset ROMS for my 2007 WRX from somewhere? I would backup my existing ROM first of course in case I needed to restore...Do you know which CPU the ECU on 2007 hawkeye has?

"Subaru/mitsubishi interface
From re-flashing to logging to diagnostics, the Openport 2.0 can do it all with just a PC laptop and a USB port. Use it with EcuFlash software for unlimited tuning and logging of Subaru’s, Mitsubishis, and an ever-expanding list of supported vehicles. The Openport's industry-standard SAE-J2534 interface can also be used with OEM re-flashing software for any car sold in the USA since 2004.

A Smart Cable Means Faster Tuning.

The Openport 2.0 uses a built-in 32-bit ARM processor to allow fast communication with your ECU without burdening your PC - which means reliable faster re-flashing and logging for you. Using built-in microSD slot, the Openport can log continuously from your ECU without a PC, day after day, to help work out those hard to replicate bugs in your tune.

The Openport 2.0 is our newest tuning tool hardware that is capable of communicating with most OBDII compliant vehicles using a standard J2534 interface. Combined with our EcuFlash software, the Openport 2.0 is capable of re-flashing a large number of newer Subaru and Mitsubishi vehicles, and support for other cars is in progress.

We include a USB cable with each Openport, which is all the hardware you'll need unless you have one of the few vehicles that require a separate re-flash adapter. For Subaru you'll only need a re-flash adapter for the 2001 through 2005 WRX, but not STi, unless you're working on an early non USDM STi in which case you made need one of our WRX adapters. No other Subaru vehicles require re-flash adapters including Forester, Baja, Legacy, or naturally aspirated Impreza models. For Mitsubishi, you'll need the adapter for most pre CAN vehicles which include the 5-9 Evo. Please see our other listing for the system with the adapters

Technical Details

72Mhz 32-bit processor
USB 2.0 full speed device (USB-A/Mini cable included)
Field upgradeable software
Supports these major OBD protocols:
CAN 2.0 (CAN/ISO15765)
K-line (ISO9141/ISO14230(KWP2000)/dual K line)
J2534 PassThru support with Windows DLL
Standalone datalogs to microSD / microSDHC card without a laptop
Able to apply GND or 5V-25V to OBD pins 1,3,9,11,12,13 or AUX 2.5mm stereo connector
Able to log from Innovate Motorsports 2.5mm stereo MTS data bus
RGB status LEDs

What cars work with EcuFlash?

This is a common question that does not always have a simple answer. There are really several levels of EcuFlash "working" with a particular car, i.e.
Can EcuFlash read and re-flash a ROM for this car?
Do XML definitions exist for this car's ROM so that I can edit various maps and tables from within EcuFlash?
Is EcuFlash able to log from or provide other supporting tuning functions for this car?

In general, EcuFlash can re-flash a much larger number of cars than there may exist XML definitions for. This means that you may be able to read and write from some cars, but not edit anything until a XML definition is made by us or someone in the larger OpenECU community.

Often times the current release of EcuFlash does not have the most current XML definitions in existence, and you may need to visit various forums to find what you are looking for. An upcoming version of EcuFlash will allow you to automatically submit any new ROMs you find to Tactrix so that we can more quickly create XML definitions for these.

Here is an incomplete list of the known cars that EcuFlash can re-flash currently:

Mitsubishi:

Airtrek Turbo
Brilliance
Eclipse GS/GT/GSX
EVO 5/6/7/8/9/10
Galant
Lancer
Magna
Mirage
Montero Sport
Outlander
Pajero Sport

... basically any Mitsubishi ECU based on a H8, SH-2, or M32r processor

Subaru:

Baja
Exiga
Forester NA(05+)/turbo/XT
Impreza NA(05+)/WRX/STI
Legacy NA(05+)/GT
Liberty NA(05+)/GT
Outback NA(05+)/XT
Tribeca

... basically any Subaru ECU based on a HC16, or SH-2 processor"

bludgod

iTrader: (3)

http://www.romraider.com/forum/viewt...hp?f=35&t=7591


thats the list of all the stock roms available - your car is most likely "A8DK100Y" or "A8DH200Y" depending on when it was manufactured.

If you sign up to romraider and have a search around there are some roms that will help you get started tuning but you'll be doing most of the logwork yourself. It's unlikely you'll be able to get a straight up download that will 100% match your car, your fuel and make a million footpounds of torque.

Sambob

for my reference

http://www.wrxtuners.com/forums/f70/...oftware-18288/

http://www.scoobypedia.co.uk/index.php/Knowledge/ECU

http://www.romraider.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=26

http://www.clubwrx.net/forums/tuning...r-tactrix.html

Sambob

Ok, thanks for your help, you have really pointed me in the right direction, just what I was after. If you have any other info you think may be useful to me, please by all means post. thanks again bro.

P.S. I'm only looking to do a little tweak after replacing exhaust. I'm just looking for around 260-270hp, turbo kicking in a bit sooner around 2500rpm and better fuel economy if possible.

Sambob

which air filter mate? induction k&n or just straight replacement?

bludgod

iTrader: (3)

straight drop in filter should do for those figures - the downpipe will be a bit of a restriction to the turbo coming to life sooner, but if you go too big then it will slow things down.

You say you only want a small increase - so why not aim for 230hp? Best to avoid trying to get to a fixed hp goal unless you have all the money to throw at it. Try to focus on making your car run to the best of what it can be. You'll have a long road of learning about fuel ratios/boost pressure/turbo efficiency/ignition timing/knock control etc. at pretty much every stage of your mapping you'll have to decide (knowingly or not!) between something that will work and something that will kill your engine. Accidentally set the wastegate too high, run a little lean (on spool up/cruise or on boost), maybe get one of the timing tables wrong and you could soon find yourself needing a headgasket/pistons/rings or something else that can be quite costly.

Add up the potential cost of any of those failures, don't forget to value your time as well as you could be hundreds of hours in research and development, plus getting the openport cable for "a little tweek". It may make more financial sense to just pay someone the cash to map the car the right way and off you go?

I'm not saying don't do it, I'm just trying to help you add up the pro's and con's - you can kill your motor at standard power as much as you can kill it with changes to boost/timing/fuel etc.

Sambob

well, the 2.5 wrx hawkeye is 227hp as standard and from what I have gathered, from ricodjs (has almost the same car), my Impreza should be able to hit around 260-270 hp comfortably.

I do hear what you're saying though, and last thing I want to do is damage the engine, so I will do alot of reading first before I do invest in the kit. Only £100 though for second hand one and to be honest, I'm quite interested to learn how to do this now. I may be inclined to pay a mapper to show me how to do it like, not that I would try to edge in on their business or patch.

I do have money, but I don't really want to throw too much at it