Best VFM ECUs currently to run a V6
Discussion
I'm doing a bit of research around the best ECUs currently available and I'm interested to hear your thoughts on what offers the best value for money at the moment. The ECU will be used to run a 2.5 rover KV6.
The basic things I'd need it to have is 6 cylinder support, wideband lambda control (possibly 1 per bank), turbo/s/c support and self learning/correcting air/fuel.
I used the KMS MD25 on my last engine (4 cylinder turbo) which was very easy to use and would be familiar, hence I was thinking about going the KMS route again. To get the dual lambda control though I would need to move to the MD35 which is getting a little pricy at around £1300 for the base unit with no wiring/sensors. What alternatives are out there? Is megasquirt worth a look or does this become a project within a project?
The basic things I'd need it to have is 6 cylinder support, wideband lambda control (possibly 1 per bank), turbo/s/c support and self learning/correcting air/fuel.
I used the KMS MD25 on my last engine (4 cylinder turbo) which was very easy to use and would be familiar, hence I was thinking about going the KMS route again. To get the dual lambda control though I would need to move to the MD35 which is getting a little pricy at around £1300 for the base unit with no wiring/sensors. What alternatives are out there? Is megasquirt worth a look or does this become a project within a project?
If you want to run full sequential (COPs and injection) then I highly recommend the DTA S80. If the Rover has a DBW throttle, that can be catered for as well with an external controller.
Not many ECUs in this price point cover DBW.
The DTA has dual lambda as standard.
I used this ECU on my VR6 Turbo with excellent results.
RE: self learning, that's a bit of a misleading selling point. All that means is lambda targetting. You still have to tell the ECU what to do. It won't just run the engine and tune itself out of the box.
I looked at the Emerald but it's too basic for me and the software interface is nowhere near as nice as DTA's.
One other thing to consider is who will be tuning it for you and what ECUs they have experience of.
Allan Warburton at DTA knows Rovers quite well and could probably supply a base map to get you started.
DTA also supports most, if not all, stock sensors, including cam phase control but obviously not knock or MAF.
Not many ECUs in this price point cover DBW.
The DTA has dual lambda as standard.
I used this ECU on my VR6 Turbo with excellent results.
RE: self learning, that's a bit of a misleading selling point. All that means is lambda targetting. You still have to tell the ECU what to do. It won't just run the engine and tune itself out of the box.
I looked at the Emerald but it's too basic for me and the software interface is nowhere near as nice as DTA's.
One other thing to consider is who will be tuning it for you and what ECUs they have experience of.
Allan Warburton at DTA knows Rovers quite well and could probably supply a base map to get you started.
DTA also supports most, if not all, stock sensors, including cam phase control but obviously not knock or MAF.
Edited by SuperchargedVR6 on Thursday 7th March 16:27
Personally i think EMU new product on the market is best value for money now will do DBW knock sensors, wide band lambda, all spec on www.ecumaster.co.uk
What you're really paying for on an aftermarket ecu is the overheads spent during the development. The cost has to cover the hardware (typical ecu will have approx £35 worth of electronics components inside, not including the connector and enclosure, the two most expensive parts, especially for anything with MILspec i/o), the assembly of the h/w (buttons if done by either machine or overseas) and the biggy, the cost to develop and validate the software.
As aftermarket ECU's are low volume items, they are expensive to cover the costs of development, which can easily run into thousands of hrs of labour. And of course, if the s/w is particularly clever or novel, the authors will charge more for people to use it. In my experience a huge number of the cheaper offerings have NOT been properly coded or validated, and often contain numerous bugs/glitches and questionable strategy implementations. Unfortunately, the average aftermarket customer is not in a possition to be able to diagnose issues with the h/w and s/w environment robustly (the average customer has trouble enough just trying to get the right numbers into the cal ;-)
As aftermarket ECU's are low volume items, they are expensive to cover the costs of development, which can easily run into thousands of hrs of labour. And of course, if the s/w is particularly clever or novel, the authors will charge more for people to use it. In my experience a huge number of the cheaper offerings have NOT been properly coded or validated, and often contain numerous bugs/glitches and questionable strategy implementations. Unfortunately, the average aftermarket customer is not in a possition to be able to diagnose issues with the h/w and s/w environment robustly (the average customer has trouble enough just trying to get the right numbers into the cal ;-)
VFM vs features you really can't beat a MegaSquirt IMO.
The latest iteration MS3 has a pretty meaty spec list, full knock windowing, enough outputs for a sequentially injected 12 cylinder engine etc etc.
Those that knock the system are generally miss-informed or are basing their opinions on one of the first iterations of the ECU that they used 10 years ago.
Additionally if you don't want to build anything the MS3Pro is a complete package pre-done with the option of being watertight if you want it.
http://www.diyautotune.com/ms3-pro.html
The latest iteration MS3 has a pretty meaty spec list, full knock windowing, enough outputs for a sequentially injected 12 cylinder engine etc etc.
Those that knock the system are generally miss-informed or are basing their opinions on one of the first iterations of the ECU that they used 10 years ago.
Additionally if you don't want to build anything the MS3Pro is a complete package pre-done with the option of being watertight if you want it.
http://www.diyautotune.com/ms3-pro.html
Edited by Richyvrlimited on Tuesday 12th March 14:24
Max_Torque said:
In my experience a huge number of the cheaper offerings have NOT been properly coded or validated, and often contain numerous bugs/glitches and questionable strategy implementations.
Spot on 
I did like my DTA S80 but I struggled with VVT variator (hydraulik ring) consistency.
Mainly because there was no provision to vary the PIDs and PWM against oil temp and / or pressure.
It was fine when the oil was fully up to temperature and the targetting was as good as what I saw the factory ME7 control them, if not slightly faster.
But until then, small PWM swings would give unexpectedly large cam movements.
Still, most standalone users don't expect or want the fine control you get with OEM computers because the car's primary role has changed.
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