ecu mapping/remapping
- Thread starter iBot
- Start date
ECU mapping requires a lot more than soldering skills if you want to actually tune the cars yourselves.
I've been trying to break into it for a while now but i'm finding it quite difficult to do and there is so much to learn. Some background in electronics and thermodynamics would be largely beneficial.
Problem is the best way to learn from what i've gathered is to get hands on with it. Problem is when you rely on a car to get you to work, it does cause problems.
Jonnycoupe knows much - hopefully he'll be along shortly.
What car do you have?
I've been trying to break into it for a while now but i'm finding it quite difficult to do and there is so much to learn. Some background in electronics and thermodynamics would be largely beneficial.
Problem is the best way to learn from what i've gathered is to get hands on with it. Problem is when you rely on a car to get you to work, it does cause problems.
Jonnycoupe knows much - hopefully he'll be along shortly.
What car do you have?
You shouldn't need soldering either, except maybe to make up a cable harness. The ECU will have a port somewhere for the garage to do diagnostics - mine is under the steering wheel for instance. You may also need to unlock the existing ECU - my car needs this, but I don't know how common it is.
Then you need to understand what is on the map, and what changing all the stuff meas. I've watched Paul Blamire do my car and it looks relatively simple - but I bet it isn't. Especially as it usually takes him several tweaks to get it right.
M
Then you need to understand what is on the map, and what changing all the stuff meas. I've watched Paul Blamire do my car and it looks relatively simple - but I bet it isn't. Especially as it usually takes him several tweaks to get it right.
M
I have access to fair few cars.
Would this be any use?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ELM-323-OBD2-...7QQihZ006QQcategoryZ30921QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
I know a lot of my friends wouldnt mind having there 0.60's logged and such.
but AFAIK obd2 is for reading only, not writing/flashing anything.
Would this be any use?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ELM-323-OBD2-...7QQihZ006QQcategoryZ30921QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
I know a lot of my friends wouldnt mind having there 0.60's logged and such.
but AFAIK obd2 is for reading only, not writing/flashing anything.
Soldato
- Joined
- 10 Oct 2006
- Posts
- 3,670
99% of cars remapped today are done via obd2 port which can be used for writing and reading this is how tunners and dealers update the ECU map. Most of the current cars come with EDC16 ECUs which are encrypted which slowed down the tunners for a while when they were released however its now a straight forward to bypass with the correct software.
Generally speaking remaps increase the boost pressure on turbo cars tweaking the fueling and timing, I personally think its pointless remapping a NA car as the gains are so small generally the most you get is better throttle response and maybe a raised rev limiter etc.
You do have to be careful mapping turbo cars if you do it wrong and get the mixture going lean it could mean bye bye engine or get it too rich which would cause heavy fuel consumption on a petrol or a very smokey diesel.
Generally speaking remaps increase the boost pressure on turbo cars tweaking the fueling and timing, I personally think its pointless remapping a NA car as the gains are so small generally the most you get is better throttle response and maybe a raised rev limiter etc.
You do have to be careful mapping turbo cars if you do it wrong and get the mixture going lean it could mean bye bye engine or get it too rich which would cause heavy fuel consumption on a petrol or a very smokey diesel.
okay so the first port of call is getting my laptop a usb or com port obd2 wire? Can I use this to monitor my engine when i'm driving? And work out my top speed, average speed etc? I suppose this depends a great deal on the ecu and car it's self
Soldato
- Joined
- 10 Oct 2006
- Posts
- 3,670
It does depend on the car, a popular one for vag cars is VAGCOM software. This allows you to run full diagnostics on every control system in a VAG car, clear error codes etc, set up the car for things like anti highjack etc basically things the dealer charge a arm and a leg for. You can monitor all sensors including boost, intake temp, intake airflow,speed, revs, coolant temp, A/F ratio etc etc the software records this and allows you to graph the data. Some tunners use this data when doing custom remaps some on the road some on a rolling road.
Its handy also for speed runs also. It can chart what ever time/speeds you want like 1/4 mile times, 0-60, 30-70, 70-130 and so on its very accurate as it doesn't have the fudge factor of the speedo its within about 1% of GPS timing gear. (You can also calibrate out the fudge factor in the speedo using the software also)
See http://www.ross-tech.com/
Its handy also for speed runs also. It can chart what ever time/speeds you want like 1/4 mile times, 0-60, 30-70, 70-130 and so on its very accurate as it doesn't have the fudge factor of the speedo its within about 1% of GPS timing gear. (You can also calibrate out the fudge factor in the speedo using the software also)
See http://www.ross-tech.com/
Depending on the car, you could buy a obd adapter to connect to your computer.
You then need software to read the results, this wouldn't nessacrily mean you could remap the car, more so that you could read the info from the ecu.
If you were going to map through the obd2 port, being good at soldering is much use, as the maps are configured on the computer.
Generally speaking, the equipment needed is a lot more expensive than just getting it remapped by a company.
You can buy a diagnostic kit from (http://www.autotap.com/), depending on your car, this will allow you to read data from the ecu. The equipment used to write on the other hand, is a lot more expensive.
You then need software to read the results, this wouldn't nessacrily mean you could remap the car, more so that you could read the info from the ecu.
If you were going to map through the obd2 port, being good at soldering is much use, as the maps are configured on the computer.
Generally speaking, the equipment needed is a lot more expensive than just getting it remapped by a company.
You can buy a diagnostic kit from (http://www.autotap.com/), depending on your car, this will allow you to read data from the ecu. The equipment used to write on the other hand, is a lot more expensive.