wrx287

iTrader: (8)

I have been thinking about this for a while now and seeing as im currently out of work as are so many others. I was just wondering if there is anywhere to learn about it? I have huge respect for the guys that do it now i;e Andy Forrest.JGM (Simon) and Bob Rawle but at the moment mapping is very limited in Wales even though the above guys are very generous to trave 100's of miles to deal with our needs Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

STI_Baly

iTrader: (23)

I too would be interested but only so i can map my own.

Although i don't actually think that some of the big boys mentioned above have time to teach. Is there a course at college of some kind where this could be studied.

n one

iTrader: (5)

Contact these people, Britains national mapping agency


Ordnance Survey, Britain's national mapping agency

STI_Baly

iTrader: (23)

stistussy

beat me to it!

wrx287

iTrader: (8)

I meant mapping cars

GazTheHat

Download the opensource s/ware, get the cables, laptop, det cans.

Practice and prey!

AL99

iTrader: (1)

this is what i did...

buy some books on engine theory, read them.. buy some more.. read them..

now you know the theory you need to learn the hardware side of it.
get an apexi power fc (if your car supports it- or open source as above), datalogit (fcedit for the apexi), innovate LC1 wideband and wire it all up. - not difficult. read all the manuals...

I then took the the default ej20 base map from datalogit and reduced the entire timing map by upto 8 degrees ( basically reduced timing more as load increased so the first 3/4 rows left unchanged then gradually retarded map). it was a very safe map to say the least!

become a member of the fcdatalogit forum also.

now set boost to wastegate spring only (eg 7 psi ) and now go drive and log some information, making sure what you are logging looks right and feeling how the car drives. Make sure the wideband readings on fcedit match that of the xd16 gauge ( or whatever innovate gauge you are using). And if you really want to be precise take it to a pukka rolling road and compare afr's to see how close your innovate is to the real thing.

Now start tuning ignition timing and fuelling. You will be amazed how quickly it all comes together following a few simple rules. Everything in small stages at first, increase timing by only +1 at a time in cells you believe need more etc, also get the fuelling to what you believe is best for your car. the basic fuel and ignition maps is really just the tip of the iceburg. there are many other things to consider when mapping like quickly stabbing the throttle and at what revs you do it. EGT's, intake temps and so on.. The apexi ecu is good because its not overly complicated and gives you the basic tools you need to get good results.

I then moved onto different injectors, new turbos, exhausts, fmic and mapped my car each time for each new tuning part. Ive even tried with % methanol mixes and mapped accordingly. Its a very rewarding feeling when you have mapped your own car. plus there is the cost saving too.

I do it for fun (a hobby) and to save myself money - and am fully aware of the consequences of any mistakes i make. but so far after 12 months all is fine and i really enjoy it.

Becoming a mapper as a full time job however (or even part time) would be much more of a challenge imho. As well as the skill, you need lots of respect, take JGM on here - i have never seen a bad word written about the guy - if you can get to this "ultimate" status by being exceptionally good at what you do and having a very good track record then there is no reason you shouldnt do well. throw in a bit of good luck and good timing (no pun intended) and your off!


good luck.

GC8

Do you honestly expect people to trust someone who knows absolutely nothing with their engine?

wrx287

iTrader: (8)

Does'nt everyone have to start somewhere

Spooky Mulder

I am not a professional mapper but have mapped a couple of cars and helped others out in the early days get the best out of their LINK set ups.

Mapping as described above is pretty easy as decribed by AL99. What is much harder IMHO is taking a car you know nothing about and have no base map and start from there. This is very difficult, especially with the more advanced ECUs available now.

The on-boost stuff is pretty easy in my opinion and my original LINK car did pretty well in its day. Getting things like cold and warm start and other complexities really throws you. When you are sitting in the car with a proper mapper deciding how many degrees you want on your injector end angle then you might get a bit lost

Even with experience we once fit a new turbo and it took input from both Pat and Andy Forrest to get the wastegate anything like under control as the profile and behaviour was so far away from the original turbo.

These things all come with experience and when you are faced with a new car, with unknown components then...

Edited to add: PS Of course with some ECUs you can take a base map, fire it up and drive off in self-mapping mode - not recommended for best results

Prasius

iTrader: (1)

where to begin with open source tuning - NASIOC

Hopefully this will be of some use. I have some slight interest in this mainly from a data logging perspective - I'm just curious about whats going on in my engine beyond what my gauges tell me. I'm not brave enough to map; not without someone looking over my shoulder!

I imagine you having to be brave on your own car, find friends who are brave enough to let you tinker from there.. and then in.. oooh.. 10 years time I guess you can go into business! - I do get the feelling there are lots of people who can map out there - but there is a very small group who turn a skill into an art

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

I would PM stickymicky as he had a go of mapping his apexi ecu on a brand new engine with excellent results. As a complete newbie he might be able to offer you some directions on which way you should go ???