will121
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| posted on 21/8/09 at 07:33 AM |
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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 |
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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 long can i resist the temptation to drop a V8 in?
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nick205
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| posted on 21/8/09 at 07:44 AM |
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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 |
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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 |
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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
The mental gymnastics a landlord will employ to justify immoral actions is clinically fascinating. Just because something is legal doesn't make
it moral.
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t16turbotone
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| posted on 21/8/09 at 08:22 AM |
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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 |
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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 |
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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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jpindy3
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| posted on 21/8/09 at 08:44 AM |
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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 |
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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 |
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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 |
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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)
The mental gymnastics a landlord will employ to justify immoral actions is clinically fascinating. Just because something is legal doesn't make
it moral.
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fatbaldbloke
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| posted on 21/8/09 at 12:53 PM |
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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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