My honest opinion is leave it standard unless either you or someone you know knows exactly what they are doing. A 2.0L engine with a top mounted intercooler tuned for high octane fuel run in a very hot climate is probably stressed enough as standard.

A front mounted intercooler would be a good place to start BEFORE tuning for more power. This with the decat, sort out the boost and a knocklink and see how you go. If you have Delta Dash you then might be able to turn the boost up and see what you've got.

[Edited by john banks - 9/2/2002 10:17:01 PM]

Hi guys,

Couple questions concerning cars that have been 'remapped' etc..

1) When someone says that a car has been 'remapped' what exactly does that mean, do they just have the stock Ecu programmed ? and what device programs this ? also, if the ecu is reset does the remapped Ecu go back to the stock form ?

2) How neccessary is it to get a Motec, Gems, etc etc Ecu if you only have a turbo back exhaust mod with no cats etc..? They seem very expensive and very complicated to set-up etc

3) I have a JDM STi-7 and I run it on 98 RON plus octane booster; however, I may only be getting a true 98 - 99 RON...how neccessary is it to get a remapp done and do I need to get a Motec, Gems, etc etc Ecu to do this myself if no one does remapping here....I mean do things like my exhuast mod, hot climate, 98 - 99 RON gas call for a new Ecu or a remapp ?


4) Any other advice on the subject will be greatly apprecited


Thanks,
Ray

bttt :)

I hope my post was not to unclear

cheers,
ray

yup, remap generally means reprograming the factory ecu, which can be easy or hard depending on the setup.

Aftermarket ECU most suitable for max power, but not essential, many new ones are easy to fit and can plug straight in to the factory loom.

Ecutek (www.ecutek.com) do some software to custom map ecus, the only sell to the trade, but you might find someone near you, as it's becoming more widespread. 01/02 ecus are being sorted right now, so within a month or two it could be possible to have your ecu tweaked.

Other options are piggy back ecus like the Unichip, although they are becoming less popular.

Gotta go, but I am sure someone here can answer more thouroughly.

Paul

Thanks for input.

What I would ideally like is a Ecu that I can just plug in and it is premapped for 97 - 98 ron fuel, full turbo decatt, hot climate and slightly better performance etc... I guess something similar to a EcuTek 1 or 2 type thing where I can plug and play where there is no Tech needed as there are no techs down here that know how to remapp...anychance of this happening for the JDM STi-7 MY2001 ?

Cheers,
Ray

Yes, very soon. Although if you could get a uk spec ECU, that is mapped for 97 RON.

Paul

The only likely bet is the EcuTek one once sorted for your MY (very near, it seems!) although as most of the suppliers/mappers are UK based, your climate requirements I imagine are a bit further down the line. All of the other manufacturers ECUs come as 'blank' - or with enough info to get the engine started - as the rest is up to you. The EcuTek Tek1/2 are pre-built maps to cater for a standard set-up of tune, i.e. induction kit & de-cat.
The EcuTek MY99-00 version was tested all over the place AFAIK - Oz, Switzerland, Greece, etc. so got a good range of climates so the out-of-box map was known to be safe within it's limits. I imagine that the later ECU reprogramming will get the same treatment.

Yes it is, but aren't there slight differences with the AVCS, injectors (JDM has one hole and the UK has multiple or something like that) ...basically I am not sure if it would be just a straight swap plug and play JDM ecu vs. UK ecu...?

Thoughts anyone ?

Cheers,
Ray

Hey Nom,

I can live with the climate thing, but it would be nice to know my car is set up to run on 97 RON gas, be leaned out a bit more to getter better performance as well as better mpg and also a better map for basic mods such as full turbo back decat. I would purchase a plug and play ECU such as this in a heartbeat should one be developed for my JDM STi-7 :-)

Cheers,
Ray

It is the risk with a JDM model... There are no off the shelf Ecutek performance maps for the P1 and STi 5/6. The only one I would entertain without seeing the car would be one where the lean spots were filled in with extra fuel and the ignition was retarded - so a safety map. To increase the boost on a car in a hot climate is potentially a minefield. I have sent a UK spec ECU to the South of France but the owner is very clued up and monitoring things with a knocklink, and the map is conservative. But I would not want to do this with an STi.

Hi John,

Discouraging news for me I guess :(

What are my alternatives ? Or am I just screwed due to having a JDM STi-7 and living in a hot, humid climate ?

I just received a deltadash although I have not tested it out yet. I don't know much right now but hopefully I will learn the more logs I check with the deltadash and the more I read on here :) I will be able to check my knocking with the delta dash; however, I guess a knock link may be advisable as well ?

Is it dangerous to be running a full SS decat turbo back (with restrictor 1.25mm to cure overboosting) in the climate I live in with only 98 - 99 RON ?

Cheers,
Ray

Following on from the det problem, would water injection be of any help out there? The air's fairly muggy, but not all year round.
Ray - I'm passing through Nassau on Sunday. Will squint to try to see you out of the window ;)

LOL Nom :)

Man I had no idea it was going to be so complicated to mod my car. Guess I will just stick with the decat, monitor my knock via deltadash every couple of weeks and leave it at that.

Front mount sounds ok; however, don't they effect low down torque which is exactly what I want more of ?

Maybe I will get lucky and someone in Japan will make a plug and play ECU for the JDM STi-7 that is designed for hot climates.....or is that asking the impossible ? :):)

Cheers,
Ray

I think you might be asking for trouble from a plug & pray ECU. FMIC a good idea - there's a lot of ideas floating round about them increasing lag, etc. etc. but all they actually do is reduce charge temperature. Which is a good thing. Especially if you live somewhere with sun :)

Does the fact that we are at sea level and have nice fresh air with high humidity (water helps cooling no ? :) make my top mount function better than in a hot climate big city above sea level and with dry heat vs. humid heat ? Or is all the previous a bunch of wishful thinking bs :) ?

I also wonder if a plug and play ECU with concervative mapping but mapped for 97 RON will actually be safer than my current stock ECU which is mapped for 100 RON when all I can give it is 98 - 99 RON ? Surely a concervative ECU with correct RON mapping would be better, no ? what am I missing in this equation ?

Thanks guys.....

Anyone out there live in a hot climate and can only get 98 RON gas that knows of a plug and play ECU as described above perhaps from the Japanese market ?

Cheers,
Ray

Come on experts, voice your opinions :)