Ecu upgrade, what to expect ?
Discussion
ChimpOnGas said:
Super mega nice 
May I suggest a JE alternator bracket and a full ACT induction pipe down the N/S inner wing for that OEM engine bay look perfection.
After that I'll be happy to pay you many beer tokens to detail my engine bay, which is what you might call neat but well used
Great job
Funny that,,, with all that room where the disi was the OE alternator bracket looks massive ugly fat and heavy, yeah the pipe will be ordered, it's a two stager because of the road issue, I'll run the car a little until road is fully up and running then have bigger plenum air pipe etc and a full on map at that stage. May I suggest a JE alternator bracket and a full ACT induction pipe down the N/S inner wing for that OEM engine bay look perfection.
After that I'll be happy to pay you many beer tokens to detail my engine bay, which is what you might call neat but well used
Great job
Dave my engine bay is a disgrace in those shots, dust and crud and corrosion, haven't touched the car for months,,,
It's a bit better now though
Dave give me some more time and I'll post a pic of one of my motorbike engine covers,,, all by hand,
No machines just elbow grease and various levels of wet and dry and polish till you sweat,,,
Looks like liquid metal and smooth as a smooth thing, polished metal is art to me, when it's in the shape of an old English motorbike gearbox cover with all those rounded edges and glorious lines it's harmony.
The casings have a brushed look, nice but I just couldn't stop myself any longer so pulled one off and took a deep breath and rubbed it down,,, buffed it up and wow,,,, still imperfections but I was so cautious but I'll be doing it again with purpose soon enough,,, it'll be perfect.
Then we'll talk beer tokens hahahah, I'm joking,, I'd do it for fun mate, I'll need it foe a week and new exhaust gaskets etc,
You won't believe your eyes, you'll wet your ....
hold up ,,, I need to drive not grunt, at least give me a while to enjoy my cars new beginning 
elaborate. As in a racing start,,,, I like them Nah, I want useablity decent temps and pressures,,decent torque but it's never setting the roof on fire but it might go a few thou between rebuilds as I'll do some touring in it etc.
my goal since the day I got into Tvr was to prove if built right and a few decent mods I could own a reliable car, they all go wrong it's just how often! Other than snow and minus degrees temps you could drive mine daily from now on and I will;)
Goodman Richard.
It's clear to me now that any Ecu upgrade that's refined and works properly is miles ahead of the old Lucas system.
I'm sure cars will run on Lucus successfully for many years to come but for me after years of naff old cars electrics, and because I'd hope to keep my car for many years ahead, I've now got a truely modern classic with state of the art computer electronics controlling its every move. Ecu upgrade is so much more than a mod, its reliability and that's priceless.
Let's see how these things perform over many years, that's the true test.
It's clear to me now that any Ecu upgrade that's refined and works properly is miles ahead of the old Lucas system.
I'm sure cars will run on Lucus successfully for many years to come but for me after years of naff old cars electrics, and because I'd hope to keep my car for many years ahead, I've now got a truely modern classic with state of the art computer electronics controlling its every move. Ecu upgrade is so much more than a mod, its reliability and that's priceless.
Let's see how these things perform over many years, that's the true test.
that's why the dog keeps growling in the night then Dave, test tomorrow? I'm not feeling so confident to be honest, so many life savers I'd be better in reverse. I should be ok but just one foot down or a bad position or the indicator two early, or the wrong turn and its over. Feels like big pressure but I'll focus and do my best
It's in Burton so keep the f
k off the roads tomorrow morning if I were you I hardly know the place! It's been great riding the bikes again, pass or fail, 1200 Suzuki Bandit, rapid. I was doing Gerrards at Mallery Anthony, 75mph counter steering, the other guy was wobbling around so I joined a leg down lesson
just a small oval in second gear, I scrapped my new boot so thought that was more than enough leaning. It's been great fun, these guys want you to ride at all speeds, the bikes are so fast, one handed around Gerrards ???? At speed, What's the weather for Monday, not good so I've seen
Can't come in the car yet, won't ride a bike in the wet so it's not looking good. I've seen Peters thread re Snetts,
I'll see if I can get car mapped on the rolling road in time for it.
Wish me luck
Thanks chaps, I can tell you the last two hours have been horrific, I did module 1 and 2 all today. I'm knackered,,,,,
Passed both so I'm about to insure my bike
Peter since 2009 you have a hazard avoidance test, 50kmh then jink between two cones,,, I did it at 62 Kmh, the guy new I could ride, thank god cos I made a few errors on the road! What a relief, put myself under huge pressure to pass, I was so focused, you'd think I was testing ejector seats
Anyway that's bloody over with.
Ok so I'm taking car back to Dom next week for a fettle, it still won't be fully mapped so he's asked me to keep the revs low until the roads mended.
The cars still starting stopping and going pretty well and all gauges are steady so I'm really pleased with it,
Can't really say much more until I have a proper map!
It's going to be faster that's for sure.
Passed both so I'm about to insure my bike
Peter since 2009 you have a hazard avoidance test, 50kmh then jink between two cones,,, I did it at 62 Kmh, the guy new I could ride, thank god cos I made a few errors on the road! What a relief, put myself under huge pressure to pass, I was so focused, you'd think I was testing ejector seats
Anyway that's bloody over with.
Ok so I'm taking car back to Dom next week for a fettle, it still won't be fully mapped so he's asked me to keep the revs low until the roads mended.
The cars still starting stopping and going pretty well and all gauges are steady so I'm really pleased with it,
Can't really say much more until I have a proper map!
It's going to be faster that's for sure.
Don't get me wrong,,, my shoulder has been hurting since Monday, I won't ride that often or that fast.
Kids Peter,,, hold on a mo,,, I lived on the back wheel at that age it's easy when your young.
The best thing this week was nothing to do with the test? Riding Mallery,,,,, I watched Barry Sheene threre when I was about ten years of age, blowing Phil Read away, I was hooked,,,,,,
I never really thought I'd blast down the main straight and counter steer through Gerrards, not that fast but it really felt good. Countersteer,,,, that's bonkers that is,, go right but turn left,,,,,, takes bottle to even try it. My bikes really slow compared to the Suzuki which is a very good thing. Warp speed comes to mind. Modern bikes are flipping good to ride, mine with my shoulder might be all wrong but I'm not aiming on riding far,,,,, only round the TT course a few times that's my aim, not stupid fast but just to sweep through some of those famous corners and towns. It's one I've always wanted to tick off.
I've been riding all week,,, I'm beat up. I'm looking at my bike and thinking should I just sell it now before I scratch it and buy a bungalow instead :big laugh:
Nope in a bout another half hour I'll have insured it and let's let the noise begin. It's serviced, polished and tightened up, I need a few local test rides to see if anything works loose!
Kids Peter,,, hold on a mo,,, I lived on the back wheel at that age
it's easy when your young. The best thing this week was nothing to do with the test? Riding Mallery,,,,, I watched Barry Sheene threre when I was about ten years of age, blowing Phil Read away, I was hooked,,,,,,
I never really thought I'd blast down the main straight and counter steer through Gerrards, not that fast but it really felt good. Countersteer,,,, that's bonkers that is,, go right but turn left,,,,,, takes bottle to even try it. My bikes really slow compared to the Suzuki which is a very good thing. Warp speed comes to mind. Modern bikes are flipping good to ride, mine with my shoulder might be all wrong but I'm not aiming on riding far,,,,, only round the TT course a few times
that's my aim, not stupid fast but just to sweep through some of those famous corners and towns. It's one I've always wanted to tick off. I've been riding all week,,, I'm beat up. I'm looking at my bike and thinking should I just sell it now before I scratch it and buy a bungalow instead :big laugh:
Nope in a bout another half hour I'll have insured it and let's let the noise begin. It's serviced, polished and tightened up, I need a few local test rides to see if anything works loose!
Great shots there mate, I'd only ever ridden light bikes really, off road mostly!
Yes Anthony all insured so I went for a local ride, came home and checked the bike, everything still tight so went for 74 miles, mega, my Thruxton is pretty fast, at night anyway! I love the riding position and it handles pretty good, sounds outrageous,,,,
Richard you can use this thread as much as you like
Matt, ok I've had the car a week, stutters a bit but we new that already,,even so I've managed 265 miles on a tank off super, cold starts and a 25 mile journey, mixed A roads and duel carriageway and town traffic, loads of roundabouts and about 7 miles of countrylanes tight twisty! So not the best conditions to get good fuel figures but still 265 miles pretty damned impressive. Re your fuel figures Matt,
And I've been experimenting with the throttle, it seems to good to be true :scrathchin: not sure if my milometer is working properly?
Simon you knew all along
For the first time in ages my cars totally happy, feels like I'll never open the bonet again, increadable level of confidence in its manners, I've turned the corner, all that reliability worries,,, by a process of logical conclusion it's simply disappeared.
I love walking towards it, I don't stress over the Ecu/ temp/ fuel ratio, something shorting out or the disi just jiving up the ghost,
I met Peter some three odd years ago to buy some lovely wheels off him and to see his 4.6
He explained what a decent Ecu set up could do, it took me some time to understand why and then sometime longer to raise some funds
In hindsight, he was right and it's the first thing I should have had competed on my car. It's like going from the dark into perfect bright sunshine in one foul swoop.
I don't write this because Dom gives me favours, Mbe Emerald mega squirt or whatever, whichever you look at just consider who's gonna look after it and map it, get all that in order and it doesn't really matter which one you use, it will transform the car, pick it up from the late 1070's and plonk it firmly next to any modern car on the road.
It's a revelation, my forced year off the road was so worth it
God I hope it stays like it
Yes Anthony all insured so I went for a local ride, came home and checked the bike, everything still tight so went for 74 miles, mega, my Thruxton is pretty fast, at night anyway! I love the riding position and it handles pretty good, sounds outrageous,,,,
Richard you can use this thread as much as you like
Matt, ok I've had the car a week, stutters a bit but we new that already,,even so I've managed 265 miles on a tank off super, cold starts and a 25 mile journey, mixed A roads and duel carriageway and town traffic, loads of roundabouts and about 7 miles of countrylanes tight twisty! So not the best conditions to get good fuel figures but still 265 miles
pretty damned impressive. Re your fuel figures Matt, And I've been experimenting with the throttle, it seems to good to be true :scrathchin: not sure if my milometer is working properly?
Simon you knew all along
For the first time in ages my cars totally happy, feels like I'll never open the bonet again, increadable level of confidence in its manners, I've turned the corner, all that reliability worries,,, by a process of logical conclusion it's simply disappeared.
I love walking towards it, I don't stress over the Ecu/ temp/ fuel ratio, something shorting out or the disi just jiving up the ghost,
I met Peter some three odd years ago to buy some lovely wheels off him and to see his 4.6
He explained what a decent Ecu set up could do, it took me some time to understand why and then sometime longer to raise some funds
In hindsight, he was right and it's the first thing I should have had competed on my car. It's like going from the dark into perfect bright sunshine in one foul swoop.
I don't write this because Dom gives me favours, Mbe Emerald mega squirt or whatever, whichever you look at just consider who's gonna look after it and map it, get all that in order and it doesn't really matter which one you use, it will transform the car, pick it up from the late 1070's and plonk it firmly next to any modern car on the road.
It's a revelation, my forced year off the road was so worth it
God I hope it stays like it
^^^^^^^ this.
Just a little update, Doms rolling road is being calibrated, I'm patient,,sometime next week I'll be dropping the car off for full mapping session/s and to sort my sticky gear shift. It's had a new clutch but getting gears is not clever!
I might be doing stage two of my France trip but this time in the Tvr,, new ucu, hopefully everything running tickity boo, see if I can get say 23-24-25 mpg out of a 4.6 ?
So I'm still only using the car occasionally and do get an amount of stutter,,, but seems better on fuel
Smells much less, even with the odd bit of shunting it's easier to drive,
Cooling system, and temp is far more stable, never to hot,,,,
It's a transformation of how it feels and a different level of confidence comes about, total belief it will start and run smoothly,,,
So next week get her upto speed and onwards and upwards
Just a little update, Doms rolling road is being calibrated, I'm patient,,sometime next week I'll be dropping the car off for full mapping session/s and to sort my sticky gear shift. It's had a new clutch but getting gears is not clever!
I might be doing stage two of my France trip
but this time in the Tvr,, new ucu, hopefully everything running tickity boo, see if I can get say 23-24-25 mpg out of a 4.6 ? So I'm still only using the car occasionally and do get an amount of stutter,,, but seems better on fuel
Smells much less, even with the odd bit of shunting it's easier to drive,
Cooling system, and temp is far more stable, never to hot,,,,
It's a transformation of how it feels and a different level of confidence comes about, total belief it will start and run smoothly,,,
So next week get her upto speed and onwards and upwards
Without that Mickey Mouse chicane the bikes are deemed to be coming down the hill onto the pit straight to fast,,
I've seen a side car get it wrong and sure enough,, riders nearly ended over the fence and into the pits,,,,
Safety,,,,ruins the flow but in some cases you can see the point.
I've seen a side car get it wrong and sure enough,, riders nearly ended over the fence and into the pits,,,,
Safety,,,,ruins the flow but in some cases you can see the point.
I don't think they have enough days in the week at Doms place right now ? Even on my standard engine spec it can be two days work to get a map running well, my view is, it might take a number of sessions to get your map working in all ambient temp situations,,
Having had it installed the benefits are right in your face so to speak,, obvious, better than I'd hoped, a little tweaking hear and there over a period of time,,,should be good for years after that, without the rolling road issue my car would have been mapped weeks ago.
Im easy about though,, the changes made are there for a long time to come, hopefully.
Having had it installed the benefits are right in your face so to speak,, obvious, better than I'd hoped, a little tweaking hear and there over a period of time,,,should be good for years after that, without the rolling road issue my car would have been mapped weeks ago.
Im easy about though,, the changes made are there for a long time to come, hopefully.
On a rolling road
You'd be better calling Dom and asking him?
I'll develop an interest one day but I'm never going to map the car so right now I'll let Jay do it and see what I can learn from there.
COG Has been talking about closed loop, controlling idle,, that has sparked more interest in reading up but right now Daz I'm just interested in the results,,,
I've also decided I want drivability and economy and forget about horse power,,, my car is fast enough for what I want the car for, I'm not even going to increase Plenom size,,, I quite like it standard...ish...
The economy debate,,, Daves massive success with Lpg does get you thinking,,,
If I'm to use the car as regularly as I'd like it's important I get a usable car, ultimate power never comes into my thinking anymore, I'm not interested, but a car that can do hundreds of miles everyday and give a healthy fuel return does matter to me,,, old age maybe,, nah,,, just good sense because I'll drive it for longer and further
My engine right now seems smooth as silk, if I could maintain that equilibrium over 10's of thousands of miles,,,,
I've cracked it;)
You'd be better calling Dom and asking him?
I'll develop an interest one day but I'm never going to map the car so right now I'll let Jay do it and see what I can learn from there.
COG Has been talking about closed loop, controlling idle,, that has sparked more interest in reading up but right now Daz I'm just interested in the results,,,
I've also decided I want drivability and economy and forget about horse power,,, my car is fast enough for what I want the car for, I'm not even going to increase Plenom size,,, I quite like it standard...ish...
The economy debate,,, Daves massive success with Lpg does get you thinking,,,
If I'm to use the car as regularly as I'd like it's important I get a usable car, ultimate power never comes into my thinking anymore, I'm not interested, but a car that can do hundreds of miles everyday and give a healthy fuel return does matter to me,,, old age maybe,, nah,,, just good sense because I'll drive it for longer and further
My engine right now seems smooth as silk, if I could maintain that equilibrium over 10's of thousands of miles,,,,
I've cracked it
;) Yeah it seems like good sense to me too.
The fuel economy debate,, I was once of that opinion,,it's a Tvr, it's fast, it's gonna drink fuel, but the more I think about it the more I think getting the fuelling perfect for the daily driving, slow, light throttle openings etc is a must if these cars are to be kept on the road, as cars have better economy figures than ever before,, it's the only drawback from using the Tvr more!
I've never known a time when I don't consider fuel expensive,, so I've always got the best economy out of my cars,,
I enjoy getting good figures, the fastest drivers are also often the ones who use the least fuel too it's a good trait so as I feel like some long distance driving is coming on,, I want to see what this Mbe system can do,, it's not going to be drastic but 23 mpg is better than 19 and so on.
As with Dave COG has a fasination with lpg, I've realised I have a fasination for getting good running economy figures,,,
Dave bugs me with his pics of cheap fuel,,,
and his numbers,,, impressive to say the least,
I rode my two cylinder motorbike across a thousand miles of mid France at 90 mph and it returned at least 75 mpg,,,,
Door to door it cost 60 quid in petrol,,,,,, it's fking unbelievable but it happened,,,,
At that sort of cost,,, if you can hack it,,, the worlds your oyster on a bike as cheap as that,,,
So it brings me smack bang back to the car, if the car could do say25/26 mpg on a steady throttle setting,, long runs etc,,
Rather than 20 mpg and worse in traffic,,, over time that's a real saving but more importantly you feel good about it and use your car more,,,, hence keeping them on the road for longer and more often.
The fuel efficiency debate should be hotted up,,, with decent after market Ecu etc, we have the technology to maximise this area as we can the ultimate power curve etc,
So an after market Ecu install costs a couple of grand,,, considering the doors it opens up and how your car should run there after,, no disi caps/rotors,,,never over/under fuelling, consistent electrical signals and readings,,,
We buy tyres cos we need them,, buy a decent Ecu install and only then will you realise how much you've given the car,,
It will pay that couple of K back in no time,, just in peace of mind.
After all that I found a good point,,, peace of mind,,,
That's it in a nutshell,,,,,, even when my Cux ran well I was always listening for the odd misfire or when something was going to go down,,, my guts always a bit tight,,,, as soon as I turn the key now the engine runs with this proficiency and clean burn that's confidence boosting, very rarely do I sit at lights and smell the fuel,,, stuff like that,,,
I've had a few good engines,, Xj6 for one,,, I bet I could Rev my Tvr engine and it would settle back to tick over and still the 50p would be standing,,,, I'm not the only one I'm sure,
This last big step replacing the engine management system has been the best thing I've done,,,,,, just thought I'd waste an hour telling you that
The fuel economy debate,, I was once of that opinion,,it's a Tvr, it's fast, it's gonna drink fuel, but the more I think about it the more I think getting the fuelling perfect for the daily driving, slow, light throttle openings etc is a must if these cars are to be kept on the road, as cars have better economy figures than ever before,, it's the only drawback from using the Tvr more!
I've never known a time when I don't consider fuel expensive,, so I've always got the best economy out of my cars,,
I enjoy getting good figures, the fastest drivers are also often the ones who use the least fuel too
it's a good trait so as I feel like some long distance driving is coming on,, I want to see what this Mbe system can do,, it's not going to be drastic but 23 mpg is better than 19 and so on. As with Dave COG has a fasination with lpg, I've realised I have a fasination for getting good running economy figures,,,
Dave bugs me with his pics of cheap fuel,,,
and his numbers,,, impressive to say the least,I rode my two cylinder motorbike across a thousand miles of mid France at 90 mph and it returned at least 75 mpg,,,,
Door to door it cost 60 quid in petrol,,,,,, it's f
king unbelievable but it happened,,,, At that sort of cost,,, if you can hack it,,, the worlds your oyster on a bike as cheap as that,,,
So it brings me smack bang back to the car, if the car could do say25/26 mpg on a steady throttle setting,, long runs etc,,
Rather than 20 mpg and worse in traffic,,, over time that's a real saving but more importantly you feel good about it and use your car more,,,, hence keeping them on the road for longer and more often.
The fuel efficiency debate should be hotted up,,, with decent after market Ecu etc, we have the technology to maximise this area as we can the ultimate power curve etc,
So an after market Ecu install costs a couple of grand,,, considering the doors it opens up and how your car should run there after,, no disi caps/rotors,,,never over/under fuelling, consistent electrical signals and readings,,,
We buy tyres cos we need them,, buy a decent Ecu install and only then will you realise how much you've given the car,,
It will pay that couple of K back in no time,, just in peace of mind.
After all that I found a good point,,, peace of mind,,,
That's it in a nutshell,,,,,, even when my Cux ran well I was always listening for the odd misfire or when something was going to go down,,, my guts always a bit tight,,,, as soon as I turn the key now the engine runs with this proficiency and clean burn that's confidence boosting, very rarely do I sit at lights and smell the fuel,,, stuff like that,,,
I've had a few good engines,, Xj6 for one,,, I bet I could Rev my Tvr engine and it would settle back to tick over and still the 50p would be standing,,,, I'm not the only one I'm sure,
This last big step replacing the engine management system has been the best thing I've done,,,,,, just thought I'd waste an hour telling you that
Hoofa said:
Pupp said:
ClassiChimi said:
Countersteer,,,, that's bonkers that is,, go right but turn left,,,,,, takes bottle to even try it.
What you twittering on about; how do you think you turn a bike at anything more than a dribble? Not be steering left for going left that's for sure! Yeah, Mallory is ok I guess
Ain't that a flipping ace bike,, the more I look the more I see,, it's magnificent and that nutter of a rider,,, who's he think he is,
He's all counter steer and bar pushing
top boy,,, What does/did that bike weigh?
I was in ore of those pictures a few weeks ago,,, s
t up by them,,,then rode a bike for 3 weeks,,, Now I just have massive respect for both the rider and that gloriously prepared bike,
My instinct says I could achieve better than 25 mpg but until I've actually done some testing I'll stay on the side of caution Dave,
Chatting with Jay regards mapping, he said he'd be on it at least 1 day,,, possibly two,,, so the fuel usage sounds about right too,
I realise Doms got cars backed up for mapping right now so I'm trying to give him enough time to get through the list a bit,,,
I can hardly wait but they say good things come to those who wait,,, so here's to a beautiful map and happier running,,,
Davey, so your happy with your upgrade too,,,mines only been in there a few weeks and I'm over the moon with it so far and that's without it even being on the rolling road, just Jay doing his best up and down the busy M6,,, which as Dom pointed out is all bks and I can't do it properly without the road.
Ok I went with Dom and the Mbe, any decent install is a tremendous upgrade compared to what we had.
Nothing wrong withCUX14 but it's all so old and the wiring etc, just to many variables to faff about with when things aren't right. Best 2k I've spent since the day I got the car over 4 years ago and many thousands spent on other areas,,
Chatting with Jay regards mapping, he said he'd be on it at least 1 day,,, possibly two,,, so the fuel usage sounds about right too,
I realise Doms got cars backed up for mapping right now so I'm trying to give him enough time to get through the list a bit,,,
I can hardly wait but they say good things come to those who wait,,, so here's to a beautiful map and happier running,,,
Davey, so your happy with your upgrade too,,,mines only been in there a few weeks and I'm over the moon with it so far and that's without it even being on the rolling road, just Jay doing his best up and down the busy M6,,, which as Dom pointed out is all b
ks and I can't do it properly without the road. Ok I went with Dom and the Mbe, any decent install is a tremendous upgrade compared to what we had.
Nothing wrong withCUX14 but it's all so old and the wiring etc, just to many variables to faff about with when things aren't right. Best 2k I've spent since the day I got the car over 4 years ago and many thousands spent on other areas,,
My cars booked in for 8am tomorrow at Tvr Power / Powers Performance for some mapping tweaks and a fiddle here and there
I drove the car a fair way today,, shunting,, annoying or what,,, with that ironed out I think I'm really happy with the car/ it's spec/ condition,, this should be the icing on the cake so to speak . Fingers crossed .
I drove the car a fair way today,, shunting,, annoying or what,,, with that ironed out I think I'm really happy with the car/ it's spec/ condition,, this should be the icing on the cake so to speak . Fingers crossed .
N7GTX said:
ClassiChimi said:
My cars booked in for 8am tomorrow at Tvr Power / Powers Performance for some mapping tweaks and a fiddle here and there
I've been waiting since July..........Edited by N7GTX on Tuesday 13th October 21:33
I'm only getting mine done so I stop calling
I do need the car at the mo and Dom knew this months ago so he's just keeping his end up
I just hope it all goes to plan, I'm really enjoying driving the car so with the map tweaked it should be a bit of a joy.
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