Alternatives To Power Fc

[seraphyn_r33]

Reading in the latest HPI, they had an article on engine management systems. By what i was reading they really gave the thumbs up to the tomei reytec and also the tuning of the factory ecu.

My next mod is going to be an ecu, and originally i was 100% for a power fc, but after reading this article, it made me think a bit more.

So i have a few questions on the other two options -

1. What kind of price would i be looking at for a tomei reytec?

2. Also what kind of power gains would i see from these two, say compared to using a power fc?

3. Im located in Albury, which is three hours from Melbourne and Canberra, and 6 hours from Sydney, so would i be better off going for a power fc since they are more common and more commonly tuned? i dont want to travel across the country to get my car tuned.

4. Does anyone know any good quality tuners that tune the reytec or the factory ecu from either melbourne or canberra?

and finally

5. What kind of average cost would i be looking at to get either one of these three tuned? experiences?

Im not rolling in cash but i still want the very best for my car. Ideally i want the best bang for buck scenario.

[justin911]

I think dr drift tunes 33 factory ecu's these days

he's in melb.

[R31Nismoid]

Whats the budget?

Without setting the grounds, no-one can really offer any decent solution as it might not fit the price.

IMO - PFC or Chip/tune is the best BFYB.

Havent really seen anything on this reytec - but then i tend not to even bother with half the crap that spills out of HPI these days as its all propganda and plugging the products they are involved with, rather than whats best for the application.

[seraphyn_r33]

I would be looking at spending about the 1000-1500 mark

[infamous_t]

I wasn't impressed with that article in the last HPI at all, a lot of contradictions between reviews.

Like R31Nismoid said, it just sounded like the whole article was selling you the Reytec.

I looked into it after reading the article, its quite expensive ($1K+), and they need your old stock ecu.

Info: http://www.tomei-p.co.jp/_2003web-catalogu...eytec_rset.html

If your on a budget Chip or Power FC,

If not on a budget Power FC is still good, but id consider Wolf or Haltech also...

But to answer your answers specifically:

1. What kind of price would i be looking at for a tomei reytec? $1K+ plus your old stock ecu.

2. Also what kind of power gains would i see from these two, say compared to using a power fc?Chip & Reytec utilize stock ECU so f**k all difference there, can't imagine much difference with Power FC.

3. Im located in Albury, which is three hours from Melbourne and Canberra, and 6 hours from Sydney, so would i be better off going for a power fc since they are more common and more commonly tuned? i dont want to travel across the country to get my car tuned.Ask your local(close) tuners what they DO support.

4. Does anyone know any good quality tuners that tune the reytec or the factory ecu from either melbourne or canberra?

5. What kind of average cost would i be looking at to get either one of these three tuned? experiences?Varies between shops, chip tuning is usually more time consuming therefore more expensive than other two methods. As all three have a base tune, it shouldn't take to long. $200-$300 I would estimate would cover tuning, but don't forget installation costs of ecu.

[Swiper the Fox]

I wasn't impressed with that article in the last HPI at all, a lot of contradictions between reviews.

Like R31Nismoid said, it just sounded like the whole article was selling you the Reytec.

http://

Im glad i was not the only one reading this article scratching my head..

Both Autronic and Haltec make plug-in ECU's now and having just purchased an Autronic i must say i was suitably impressed.

both are around the 2K mark

for Autronic see Godzilla Motorsport in QLD

for Haltec see Croydon Racing in NSW

[KISIN]

haltech

[vinnie32GTS4]

i just bought the latest issue of Hot4s (im not a fan of hot4s but this issue had an article on ecu's)

it had reviews on a lot of brands for ecus. They spoke highly of this one called Link Engine Management which is based in NZ. They also said motec is really good and every one i have spoken to has said the same. I was just wondering if Motec ecu's are plug n play or do the yhave to be hard wired in???

[bloodzkull]

motec may be very good. but you REALLY pay for it. plus i hear that to unlock all the featurs/extra features you need to pay extra.

it will mean spending more but my bet would be the new wolf v500. ordered one today for my gtr so should be here mid next week. www.wolfems.com for details.

about 1900 for the ecu and it's plug and play. can get universal ones though.

planning on doing a quick fiddle with the fc then a dyno run and then tune the wolf. execting similiar power but a whole lot smoother from the wolf. then you have all the other features it can do e.i. data logging, full race dash compatability etc.

[paulr33]

have a read of;

http://paulr33.skylinesaustralia.com/docs/...powerfc-faq.htm

particulary;

Model Information

12). Why buy a PowerFC? Aren't they discontinued????

http://paulr33.skylinesaustralia.com/docs/...erfc-faq.htm#81

[seraphyn_r33]

Thanks guys, help is much appreciated. Ive heard some pretty good things about the haltech range??

You also recommended one kisin, they are around the 1500 or so mark arent they?

[KISIN]

Thanks guys, help is much appreciated. Ive heard some pretty good things about the haltech range??

You also recommended one kisin, they are around the 1500 or so mark arent they?

Interceptor (piggy back) is under 1k new i think.

about ~1.5k for e8 which is real gd, or e11v2 top range about $2k.

+ installation/tune

I like it coz there r plenty tuners around and good support as its an aussie based product

[johnbarry88]

my thoughts are if its a 32 the ability of tuning the standard ecu is as good as a power fc. On the other hand if your willing to spend $1000-$1500 then why not just plug in a pfc and be on your way, Its easy as 123 and if you do upgrade other parts then the fc is easily tunabe, instead of buyin eproms all the time.

[sl33py]

If you reread the section about the Reytec all they say is things like "sounds like a has a lot of promise" and junk like that. They don't say enough detail about it. I think the REAL jap tuners are all using HKS FCON Pro (but only BD4s do it in AU I think). Also, they completely missed the EManage Ultimate, another ECU which is gaining some popularity here (it floats around on the first page of the Forced induction thread). They just had one or two sentences on the EManage Blue, which most here say is only good for a mildly modded Skyline at best. But the Ultimate is different. I was tossing up between the EManage (lack of experience with tuners) or the Haltech E11V2 (very capable but exy), but then I found a Power FC for *very* cheap.

I also went "hmmm" when I read about the "cons" they mention of the PFC, but have spoken to many ppl and read Paul's FAQ a few times now, and it's still a very good option. I figure even if it dies after a few years and can't be replaced, by that time one of the ECUs will have taken the lead and the choice will be easy again.

[kiwi32]

The new link range is supposed to be pretty good and they are well priced at 1200+gst nzd for the base model which will run a skyline no problems.

[STATUS]

i just bought the latest issue of Hot4s (im not a fan of hot4s but this issue had an article on ecu's)

it had reviews on a lot of brands for ecus. They spoke highly of this one called Link Engine Management which is based in NZ. They also said motec is really good and every one i have spoken to has said the same. I was just wondering if Motec ecu's are plug n play or do the yhave to be hard wired in???

hahaha the biggest cash for comment mag out

[STATUS]

If you reread the section about the Reytec all they say is things like "sounds like a has a lot of promise" and junk like that. They don't say enough detail about it. I think the REAL jap tuners are all using HKS FCON Pro (but only BD4s do it in AU I think). Also, they completely missed the EManage Ultimate, another ECU which is gaining some popularity here (it floats around on the first page of the Forced induction thread). They just had one or two sentences on the EManage Blue, which most here say is only good for a mildly modded Skyline at best. But the Ultimate is different. I was tossing up between the EManage (lack of experience with tuners) or the Haltech E11V2 (very capable but exy), but then I found a Power FC for *very* cheap.

I also went "hmmm" when I read about the "cons" they mention of the PFC, but have spoken to many ppl and read Paul's FAQ a few times now, and it's still a very good option. I figure even if it dies after a few years and can't be replaced, by that time one of the ECUs will have taken the lead and the choice will be easy again.

bd4's went ass up so it leave's very little FCON love in aus... it is killer gear but it is very complicated to unaware users.. they (HKS) are worried it will turn into the emanage situation where a good product is dragged down by poor installations and dodgy wiring.

[vinnie32GTS4]

hahaha the biggest cash for comment mag out

lol i know its terriblue...every car has ozzytyre mags and 99% r chromies which most times look gay lol

[Draconis]

So, besides a list of options, anyone has specifics on Autronic? I'm looking into that as a replacement for my stock ECU and Neo. Or do you think those two will be fine for 300rwhp in a rb20 with gtr injectors, plazmaman plenum, top mount mani and a t3/t4?

[sl33py]

The Autronic SM4 will do whatever you want, it's up there with Motec and Haltech if the tuner knows what they are doing. One of the peculiarities of the SM4 is that you need to get a custom trigger disc installed into your crank angle sensor (someone correct me if I'm wrong, I think that's the terminology). From my recent reading, it appears to be a very capable unit. Especially if your tuner can use the auto-tune feature. But again, a lot less people have experience with this than the Haltech, which is similarly priced and has very similar features.

Seriously, ECU is one of the times you DON'T want to try being different just for the sake of it. I know it's been said a bajillion times, but go with whatever your trusted mechanic/tuner likes to use.