I did the decent thing earlier in the year and lent my stim to a fellow enthusiast who was having a few ECU problems...I could do with it back but I haven't a clue who I lent it to (senior moment).

Was it you?

search your previous.you were posting on a topic regarding m/s a while ago

quote:

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search your previous.you were posting on a topic regarding m/s a while ago

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Author: Subject: should i be scared of megasquirt route??
will121
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posted on 21/8/09 at 07:33 AM Reply With Quote
should i be scared of megasquirt route??

im looking at programmable ECU for my 2 litre zetec, Ive been looking at a Emerald ECU as Dave Walker is only 10miles down the road but at around £650 general plug and play. Ive always fancied the cheaper megasquirt which seems readily available now for £300. But, I feel nervous of the unknown elements of megasquirt with number of posts about programming, enrichment etc, etc and in hind sight is the £350 potential saving worth it? Would appreciate comments and your thoughts

thanks.
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speedyxjs
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posted on 21/8/09 at 07:38 AM Reply With Quote
I think most people on here are going the megasquirt route. I was planning to use the original EFI but have been persuaded to go megasquirt




How do you spell Achmed?

A... C... Phlegm

Achmed, the dead terrorist
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nick205
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posted on 21/8/09 at 07:44 AM Reply With Quote
Always worth looking at the whole package so to speak.

Does the £650 Emerald ECU include package include a rolling road set-up or any other back-up/assistance? Proven maps for your exact engine type and set-up etc?

Longer term also, would it make the finished car more attractive to more buyers (I know it's not built yet, but again it's always worth keeping these things in mind).
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Project7
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posted on 21/8/09 at 07:47 AM Reply With Quote
I've got both - Emerald on my 2.0 zetec in my 7, and a megasquirt on my 1.6 zetec 'development' engine (which i've had running but not properly tuned).

Although people have had very good results with megasuirt and the DIY tune route, I cant reccommend Emerald enough, and for me at least the peace of mind of a pukka rolling road session.
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Benzine
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posted on 21/8/09 at 08:17 AM Reply With Quote
If (when) I do another project then I'd probably go down the emerald route. I find megasquirt really hard to understand and it's taken me a long long time to try to get to work, I think I'd be fine if I had someone with me for a solid day explaining everything from the very beginning, I can try and read read read about it all day and it doesn't seem to make much more sense

On the other hand if you're megasquirting an engine that loads of people have already done then you'll be able to get loads of info about those builds + maps etc





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t16turbotone
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posted on 21/8/09 at 08:22 AM Reply With Quote
mmmh....i brought a MS kit, built it, installed it and ime running on it now...but on reflection i should have gone emerald. Just the sheer amount of time involved in the MS route is considerable, then when you finally get the engine running (after trying to digest the million page mega manual) your next big problem is trying to get someone to map it properly. Most rolling roads wont touch it, your only real chance is to try and convince troy at northampton motorsport to take it on.. All in all the £650 emerald route WILL turn out to be the quickest, cheapest, least hastle way. However if you enjoy learning/brain damage and have lots of time you will learn lots about efi
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balidey
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posted on 21/8/09 at 08:30 AM Reply With Quote
Why do most rolling roads not want to touch MS?
Surely if they started to offer basic mapping services then they would give themselves a huge number of potential customers.
And I assume that people who map engines for a living should be able to adapt and use MS pretty easily.

Or am I missing something? (as usual)
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cd.thomson
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posted on 21/8/09 at 08:33 AM Reply With Quote
I believe the issue is the DIY nature Balidey. A lot of places used to offer tuning but now explictly dont because theyve had so many in where a days work trying to get the thing operational is wasted because the MS was assembled incorrectly.

Just to add Will, I'm in the same boat as you, confronted with the costsaving but negative feedback about the MS. My solution is to get a megasquirt unit from Phil at extraefi. This means youre getting a unit that has been run and tested okay, has a base map specific to your engine setup (probably close enough to get it started at least) and Phil is supportive by phone and email when it comes to the setup. You're still saving £300+ over emerald and other aftermarket ecus with much less exposure to failure.

[Edited on 21/8/09 by cd.thomson]

[Edited on 21/8/09 by cd.thomson]




Craig
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posted on 21/8/09 at 08:44 AM Reply With Quote
get a emerald,the thing with the ms is that they are quite slow when it comes to mapping it on the dyno,
by the time you have payed for the dyno time it will work out the same as the emerald





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cd.thomson
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posted on 21/8/09 at 09:06 AM Reply With Quote
jpindy, I'm not sure you can advertise in your signature without being a registered trader. Doesn't bother me in the slightest but Chris will kick off.




Craig
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will121
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posted on 21/8/09 at 10:23 AM Reply With Quote

quote:Originally posted by cd.thomson

Just to add Will, I'm in the same boat as you, confronted with the costsaving but negative feedback about the MS. My solution is to get a megasquirt unit from Phil at extraefi. This means youre getting a unit that has been run and tested okay, has a base map specific to your engine setup (probably close enough to get it started at least) and Phil is supportive by phone and email when it comes to the setup. You're still saving £300+ over emerald and other aftermarket ecus with much less exposure to failure.



thats just complicated my discision more as think Phil (extraefi) is near me in about 10miles the other direction!!! i know some time ago he was offering physical maping assistance but think he is no longer able to offer it, think i will need to check bank ballance for dicision.
Only other negative thought, as will be on a track car will want it Rolling road checked and adjusted. thinking Emerald it will be

[Edited on 21/8/09 by will121]
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Benzine
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posted on 21/8/09 at 10:42 AM Reply With Quote
Yeah buying a complete MS unit would work, I wish I'd done that, I've had to have mine looked at twice now and it's still not working right.

When I have mine all working well then I wouldn't hesitate to use MS again (if I was using the same engine and setup or it was a commonly used engine that's been MS'd a lot)





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posted on 21/8/09 at 12:53 PM Reply With Quote
I've written up quite a lot of stuff on why you should or shouldn't use MS, plus my own experience, on my website - open on the link below and go to the megasquirt page. You might find something useful in the throttle bodies section as well.
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New Topic New Poll New Reply

Fairly sure it would have been someone from Bedfordshire as they picked it up from home. South side of Bedford as I recall....oh dear, is this the onset of Alzheimers....now what was the question

Hi,

That would be me...

Sorry about keeping it so long.

I will return after xmas if that is OK
Can you U2U me you address and phone number and I will contact you.

Once again many thanks for the loan it was very helpful.

Cheers

Frank

No problem - thanks for the reply. Hope it helped. U2U on its way.
Ian