Megasquirt owners thread

Red_Bullet · Postby **Red_Bullet** » Fri Aug 30, 2019 11:09 am

Seems that everybody has the lean condition hot restart issue. Me included until now. The consensus is that it's caused by heat soak in the injectors and fuel rail. I just let EGO correction handle it. Fixed!

https://flic.kr/p/2h7AcXZ

[url][url=https://flic.kr/p/2h7AcXZ]

[/url]hot restart ms3 fix by Keith Wade, on Flickr[/url]

shirtz · Postby **shirtz** » Fri Oct 11, 2019 3:58 pm

after reading this thread from the start over a few days my mind is pretty blown.

im reasonably handy with mechanicals but car electronics is new territory for me - im keen to learn though.

I have a 93 NA8 that's id like to megasquirt. id keep it NA for a while and hope to turbo it eventually. MY main question is:

how did you guys get your knowledge about installing and tuning MS? is there a MS for dummies thread where I can begin?

bartmanftw · Postby **bartmanftw** » Fri Oct 11, 2019 4:25 pm

There's a lot of good mx-5 specific info on miataturbo.net and more generic info on msextra.com/forums but it is definitely a steep learning curve. I'm not sure if there's any guide for dummies. I'd start reading there I think there's only so much you can learn without diving into it and trying it for yourself.
I've also written some info here that I've attempted to keep simple:
https://bartuneengineering.wordpress.co ... ecu-setup/
It also helps working as an OEM engine calibration engineer

Install is very simple with the PnP models so not a big deal unless you want to dive into a DIY build.

ManiacLachy · Postby **ManiacLachy** » Fri Oct 11, 2019 4:51 pm

This is probably the best "for dummies" video you'll get. It's really not that hard to install.

Doing it NA first and then adding power mods later is definitely the best learning path.

Also check out this tuning playlist by pedxing. He's done a nice simple easy to understand walk through of the basics, should help you wrap your head around things.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLhdvjX1ljQGtvfTEbS2ViKBzz8iCJDRF_

At first it'll be overwhelming. Then you'll think you get it, but it doesn't work like you think it should. Then you'll stumble to something that you think works, but isn't quite OEM/smooth, think you understand it. But then you extrapolate to make it better, and nope you don't understand. Then slowly over many cycles you begin to get a grasp.

At least, that's how its been for me :mrgreen:

Still so much to learn.

ManiacLachy · Postby **ManiacLachy** » Fri Oct 11, 2019 4:54 pm

And here's a working link to bartman's site. (gotta wrap it in the url tags, or the forum will try to shorten it and break the link)
https://bartuneengineering.wordpress.com/guides/megasquirt-ecu-setup/

Looks interesting, I'm going to have a poke around.

Lokiel · Postby **Lokiel** » Fri Oct 11, 2019 10:26 pm

As with most things, "learning by doing" really helps, especially when there's a lot to learn.

If you try and watch/learn everything about tuning before you start tuning yourself, you'll quickly become intimidated and never attempt it yourself.

Pick one of these video series, there's a few MX5-specific ones now, watch each episode a couple of times and attempt it yourself before moving on to the next one. If something is unclear then do some extra online research on that issue only until you understand it, then complete those tasks.

"Baby steps" will help you gain confidence in tuning and there's plenty of online information available these days.

Red_Bullet · Postby **Red_Bullet** » Sat Oct 12, 2019 9:51 pm

The manual is very detailed and does take you through step by step in getting each system running. Spark, fuel etc. That worked for me, mine was a diy install, I put an MS3-Pro board in the standard ECU case. It was a bit fiddly and took a lot of planning, I come from a technical sparky background so am ok at reading wiring diagrams and have good wiring skills. I don't think I'd recommend my method to a beginner. Then with tuning there is miata turbo forum, I spent lots of time reading that stuff, paying particular attention to "Braineak" he knows his stuff on that forum. One of the problems I had was there is almost too much info around!

I just had a quick look at Baretune's page, that really does look like excellent info.

bartmanftw · Postby **bartmanftw** » Sat Oct 12, 2019 10:49 pm

I just had a quick look at Baretune's page, that really does look like excellent info.

Thanks

I've been meaning to add more guides/info to it. Any requests?

shirtz · Postby **shirtz** » Mon Oct 14, 2019 8:45 am

thanks for all the info guys. ill get reading - but no too much

shirtz · Postby **shirtz** » Tue Oct 15, 2019 2:42 pm

out of interest, anyone in aus build DIY kits for a fee?

Red_Bullet · Postby **Red_Bullet** » Wed Oct 16, 2019 10:06 pm

Hell no, it was really labour intensive :frown:

bruce · Postby **bruce** » Thu Oct 17, 2019 2:04 pm

He said FEE not FREE. I'm sure someone would do it, but cost a lot due to the hours taken.

ManiacLachy · Postby **ManiacLachy** » Thu Oct 17, 2019 2:13 pm

Better to buy one professionally assembled by DIYAutotune, or similar IMO. Its easy to mess up wires or connections, better to have a proper company with a track record and a reputation to turn to if there's issues. I don't think the computer that controls your car is a good place to cut corners and pinch pennies.

Lokiel · Postby **Lokiel** » Thu Oct 17, 2019 3:09 pm

bruce wrote:He said FEE not FREE. I'm sure someone would do it, but cost a lot due to the hours taken.

It's one of those things you only do once, it takes time and concentration/comprehension - small screw-ups can be hard to diagnose and large screw-ups can render the board useless.

Save yourself the heartache/hassle and buy it already assembled, it's worth the extra $$$.