Increase N/A Power- no ECU

22Silver · Postby **22Silver** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 2:07 pm

I've been told I can't have a standalone ECU or even a piggy back because I can't RW the car with one.
I've also been told that I can't port/polish AND stick more aggressive cams in without a chip, it is one or the other on the factory ECU
I've also been told that if I go for porting or cams, then new headers will change the flows up too much and a new ECU is neccessary.

Someone tell me this expert is wrong please? I thought porting and polishing and cams and headers + exhaust + maybe a CAI would be fine on factory ECU?

hks_kansei · Postby **hks_kansei** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 2:18 pm

It's not a simple yes/no answer.

Mild cams might work on the stock ECU, mild porting might as well.
The problem is that doing a mild job of either is still expensive, and you may end up spending a ton of cash on a few kw.

Basically, on a stock ECU you can't really make any decent power, intake exhaust are about it... and they only give 2/3 of stuff all increase anyway.

In Victoria you can have an engine with power, or legal.
Only way to have both is to get a car with the power from factory, or buy something pre-emissions (and even then it's probably a grey area)

22Silver · Postby **22Silver** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 2:29 pm

They're building the engine ground up anyway, so it's a case of "well I guess it's already in pieces..."

Is it very hard to hide an aftermarket ecu? Is a stock ECU reflash even a thing?

Mr nanotech · Postby **Mr nanotech** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 2:36 pm

You live in Melbourne dude... Victoria only requires a single road worthy when the car is first registered to your name. Do whatever you want to it. It will never have to pass another RWC as long as you intend on keeping the car.

hks_kansei · Postby **hks_kansei** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 2:56 pm

Aftermarket ECUs usually go in the same place as the factory ECU, under the passegner side footwell carpet.

Pretty unlikely to be picked up on a roadside stop, but if it is ever sent to EPA they'll ask to see the ECU anyway, since I think they need to physically inspect it as part of the testing.

But, as Josh said, as long as you keep paying rego it doesn't need to pass a RWC ever again.
And if you keep it quiet, and avoid attention, you're less likely to be reported to EPA.

Luckily naturally aspirated mods are mostly internal, so pretty hard to find from a visual inspection. (as long as the car isn't rocking back and forth with a big loping idle)

meanmx · Postby **meanmx** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 3:00 pm

Not sure about passing a roadworthy but if a friendly police officer one day pulls you over and has suspicions he will send you to the EPA and they will guaranteed find all those mods. That's the risk you take modding your car

rossint · Postby **rossint** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 3:32 pm

I did mild cams on my car with factory ECU, it made about a 10% gain. I've just fitted an aftermarket ECU and made another 10%.

22Silver · Postby **22Silver** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 4:22 pm

Is there a way I can have a standalone that is dead easy to unplug, plug stock back in for EPA and then back to standalone without losing the tune on the chip?

ralt · Postby **ralt** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 4:30 pm

Hi.
You do not need an aftermarket ecu to make reasonable power from a 1.6 motor. But you have to have a very well modified cylinder head this is the key. Look at my results in the dyno section to see what I have with standard ecu and injectors.

spikes · Postby **spikes** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 4:35 pm

I saw a thread on MT.net where somebody built a MS2 inside the OEM ECUs casing. It looked pretty damn factory.

22Silver · Postby **22Silver** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 5:43 pm

ralt wrote:Hi.
You do not need an aftermarket ecu to make reasonable power from a 1.6 motor. But you have to have a very well modified cylinder head this is the key. Look at my results in the dyno section to see what I have with standard ecu and injectors.

I see. This sounds interesting. What is the name of this mod. All I see in the thread is that the head is modified. How?
Mine is an 1.8 so I can't simply buy the same head.

edit: You shaved the head, and that's it?

sailaholic · Postby **sailaholic** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 5:53 pm

Don't believe everything you see with out checking the info.

Ralts improvements go beyond what the calculated theoretical fuel flow of his injectors should achieve. If they are true then that is awesome, if the dyno used just likes to put out high numbers then it may leave you disappointed.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

ralt · Postby **ralt** » Mon Feb 17, 2014 10:51 pm

Hi.
Yes it works on standard injectors. Perhaps somebody should organise a dyno day I would love to be there. I could go on but what is the point.

Mr nanotech · Postby **Mr nanotech** » Tue Feb 18, 2014 2:23 am

22Silver wrote:Is there a way I can have a standalone that is dead easy to unplug, plug stock back in for EPA and then back to standalone without losing the tune on the chip?

Sure is. I have a megasquirt which uses the factory wiring harness. It's a bit of mucking around to get it in as you need to wire in your wideband O2 sensor and what not, but after it's all done you can plug and play.
Think of the ECU has a hard drive. When you disconnect the power supply from your computers hard drive and remove the hard drive completely from the case, do you lose your information? You burn the information to the ECU the same way you do with your computer.

Long story short, if you did (rare) have to do an EPA test, you could just swap in the stock ecu and be on your way.

22Silver · Postby **22Silver** » Tue Feb 18, 2014 5:03 pm

This makes me happy.
Looks like I'll shave the head, port and polish, cams, headers, injectors and ecu.

Anyone know if the car will work at all with a standard ECU and these mods? As long as it can limp to EPA and pass a test all is well.