Apexi Power Fc Vs Greddy Emanage Ultimate

[gabzr34]

Hi all,

Im looking at buying a piggy back ecu for my N/A r34.

After research i saw that Apexi power fc and Greddy emanage ultimate were the best, could i just get some more info and opinions.

cheers

[MissR34]

apexi power fc isnt a piggy back ECU.....its a stand alone ecu..........unlike the greddy emanage which is a piggy back ecu

guess it comes down to how much u want to spend...

power fc's are becoming rarer for the 34's cause they arent being made anymore.....so u can pay up to $1500 for one......and no they dont make power fc's for n/a's u have to use the turbo ecu and yes it does work cause i have a r34 gtt power fc in my r34 n/a

so on top of that u then need to allow maybe 500-600 for tuning in off the power fc.....

i cant say anything in regards with the greddy emanage cause ive never used one....

but yeah i guess in the end in comes down to how much u have to spend on it all....out of either of them my tuner always told me if i can get my hands on a power fc to do that.....if i couldnt then go to the emanage.

[gabzr34]

apexi power fc isnt a piggy back ECU.....its a stand alone ecu..........unlike the greddy emanage which is a piggy back ecu

guess it comes down to how much u want to spend...

power fc's are becoming rarer for the 34's cause they arent being made anymore.....so u can pay up to $1500 for one......and no they dont make power fc's for n/a's u have to use the turbo ecu and yes it does work cause i have a r34 gtt power fc in my r34 n/a

so on top of that u then need to allow maybe 500-600 for tuning in off the power fc.....

i cant say anything in regards with the greddy emanage cause ive never used one....

but yeah i guess in the end in comes down to how much u have to spend on it all....out of either of them my tuner always told me if i can get my hands on a power fc to do that.....if i couldnt then go to the emanage.

Thanks for the help mate, does anyone know anything else

[scags]

Thanks for the help mate, does anyone know anything else

I have an R34 GTT with an Emanage Ultimate. The choice was easier for me because I have an auto so a piggy-back computer is the easier option. I have an aftermwarket turbo installed so I needed an ECU to cater for the additional fuel needs.

I think the EMU is great. I have a lot of fun playing with the tune. I have a wideband O2 sensor to monitor AFRs.

[N-DAWG]

What mods have you done or are you planning to do to your N/A R34?

Don't forget the piggy back will cost more to install due to all the wiring that has to be done +tuning costs. You might get get the eManage Ultimate for around $900 then add costs of optional harnesses if required, $350 is pretty common for a piggy back install...getting close to the cost of a PowerFC?

Generally speaking, a standalone ECU like a PowerFC is the better way to go. If you have an auto though you're kinda stuck for options..

As Cara said it really depends on how much you want to spend, and also what you want to get out of your car. If you're only doing a CAI, Headers, Catback and just want to fine tune that, then a SAFC will be able to do that job. If you're looking at bigger mods like cams, port/polishing then start looking at the higher end of engine management. The factory ECU is quite capable with re-learning simple breathing mods.

The best thing you can do though, which is something I should have done, sit down with your mechanic and discuss your options, what you want to plan to do. Then from there you can work out what engine management you need (simple piggy back, or eManage Ultimate, or PowerFC) and it also helps if your tuner prefers the ECU that you get. Some tuners love the PowerFC but won't touch eManage, and vice versa. I had one workshop refuse to quote me on my turbo conversion, party cause of the nature of the conversion (high comp +turbo), but just as much because they don't like to use the eManage. They couldn't really give me a valid explanation as to why though... but certainly something to consider when choosing a tuner.

I would go for the eManage Ultimate if you have an auto. I went with eManage Blue myself, purely cause of the price I picked up the unit and harnesses for.

Edited February 9, 2009 by N-DAWG

[gabzr34]

What mods have you done or are you planning to do to your N/A R34?

Don't forget the piggy back will cost more to install due to all the wiring that has to be done +tuning costs. You might get get the eManage Ultimate for around $900 then add costs of optional harnesses if required, $350 is pretty common for a piggy back install...getting close to the cost of a PowerFC?

Generally speaking, a standalone ECU like a PowerFC is the better way to go. If you have an auto though you're kinda stuck for options..

As Cara said it really depends on how much you want to spend, and also what you want to get out of your car. If you're only doing a CAI, Headers, Catback and just want to fine tune that, then a SAFC will be able to do that job. If you're looking at bigger mods like cams, port/polishing then start looking at the higher end of engine management. The factory ECU is quite capable with re-learning simple breathing mods.

The best thing you can do though, which is something I should have done, sit down with your mechanic and discuss your options, what you want to plan to do. Then from there you can work out what engine management you need (simple piggy back, or eManage Ultimate, or PowerFC) and it also helps if your tuner prefers the ECU that you get. Some tuners love the PowerFC but won't touch eManage, and vice versa. I had one workshop refuse to quote me on my turbo conversion, party cause of the nature of the conversion (high comp +turbo), but just as much because they don't like to use the eManage. They couldn't really give me a valid explanation as to why though... but certainly something to consider when choosing a tuner.

I would go for the eManage Ultimate if you have an auto. I went with eManage Blue myself, purely cause of the price I picked up the unit and harnesses for.

Well i have done cat back and i am planning on doing cold air then looking at doing cams, coil pack and fuel

[N-DAWG]

You won't really need engine management till you do cams and internal engine work and change things like the fuel injectors.

For the cost of the engine management +tuning, I would look at finishing the exhaust and CAI and coilpacks first. Save the engine management for when you "need" it.

Look at getting extractors, Coby Extractors from PartsCo in NZ, or DKNE Extractors in Australia (can't really comment on either myself, but Coby's have delivered well for other SAU members, and some have had good experiences with DKNE). You'll be best to get them HPC coated which makes them pricey, but you won't corrode them wiht heat wrap. Might as well upgrade to a hi-flow cat (particularly if you've still got the compliance cat), then get the air intake sorted. Don't just rip out the box and throw in a pod unless you plan to box it up and run a cold air feed. If not, you'll be better off with a K&N Panel filter.

Coilpacks are a simple replacement, no special tuning required for that.

Btw..What size catback do you have? 2.5"? 3"? You'll be getting a lot more air in and out of the engine with upgrading the cams, you want to make sure the exhaust is going to flow adequately with the new cams, though this depends also on whether you want more power down low, or top end power. Without doing internal engine work, a 2.5" system will give you more low down/mid range power, whereas a 3" will give you more top end power in the high rev range.

Remember Fuel + Air + Spark = Power. There's no need for bigger injectors and hi flow fuel pump unless your getting more air in and out of the engine than the R34 GT injectors/pump can supply. Changing the injectors and pump will require retuning, and is isn't going to net you any performance gains unless it's being used, so save this for when you do the cams etc.. that's if you need them. When you do need them, R34 GTT injectors make good budget upgrades for the R34 NEO (R32 and R33 won't fit in factory form, nor will GTR injectors)

Basically, to summarise it in the order that I would look at:

Catback, Extractors & Hi Flow Cat, CAI.

Reset the ECU for it to relearn the changes and adjust.

Then look at port polishing, raising compression, bigger cams, adjustable cam gears etc... (all that can easily add up to big dollars and don't expect huge gains for your $$$) THEN you will NEED something like the eManage or PowerFC. Even at that point you MAY not need to upgrade the fuel system (someone please confirm this, as I'm not entirely sure with this level of modification on an N/A). Of course if you plan on running NOS then you will need bigger injectors (probably aftermarket) and aftermarket injectors are not cheap.

I know that I've diverted a bit from the topic of Power FC vs the eManage Ultimate, but from what you're saying I just felt like there were a number of other things to be looking at before spending out on engine management and tuning when there isn't really any need for it with the mods you've done, and still a lot more that can be done before it's really needed, or at least before a high end engine management system is needed.

My advice is to use that sort of money to get more power out of it first by removing all the other restrictions that exist.

[r33cruiser]

power fc.

do NOT get the EMU.

from personal experience the emu isnt worth the price autobarn sell them for.

once hooked up, me and my mechanic couldnt get it to run normally. the bitch was backfiring, missing etc.

although the emu looks good with its launch control etc, but really...when are u going to use it.

in the end i found out the hard way that although the pfc is OOOLD, it is a tried and proven technology. furthermore, no one here in qld can tune the damn buggers (emu's). Godzilla motorsport said they ''may'' be able to do it. but would need the car for a week!!!

pls dont get an emu.

Edited February 10, 2009 by r33cruiser

[scags]

r33cruiser is right about the cost, the EMU was not cheap

plus, as he said not many tuners like to tune it (which is a valid reason not to get it).

For me, I find it awesome because I am technical person and love to play with it. I record drives almost daily on my laptop via USB 2, analyse the graphs it records and adjust the tune each night. I find it easy and fun.

My last tune on the dyno (by my mechanic) yielded 323rwhp @12-14psi (sorry I am turbo)

With the EMU I can maintain a pretty consistent desired AFR and I can modify ignition timing.

If I was manual I probably would have tried to source a PowerFC - I've heard so much positive info about them, however they are hard to find these days.

The SAFC is cheap, and looks good, but doesn't allow tuning of ignition timing (which is where the best gains can be found). I have a friend with one on a Honda and he is happy with it (so simple we wired it ourselves)

After getting my EMU, the NisTune chip came out which my mechanic has been promoting since. It may be another option for you.

I wouldn't say don't get the EMU, but I would agree it is not the cheapest option and requires some patience to get setup and get results.

I also agree with the above posts that money would be better spent on other mods first. I only needed the EMU because I have heaps more airflow since upgarding the turbo.

Edited February 10, 2009 by scags

[dori34]

it really depends on your budget and the tuner.

some prefer emanage as its easier to tune & vice versa.

for your application, a emanage will be fine (even a emanage blue which is half price of emu)

if you want more info on emanage, google up "status tuning" theyre in vic but they love the emanage blue & ultimates and they'll tell you how good the emanage really is (alot of ppl under rate it)

[N-DAWG]

Like Dori said, even the eManage Blue will be fine for N/A...hey I'm using it for my turbo conversion! Look around to try pick one up at a good price... I got mine for $320 posted (private sale, but unused) and the optional harnesses worked out around $70AUD each from Japan through Perfrectrun.

Also check out this site that Dori sent me before: www.etuner.com.au

[dori34]

^ etuner is a legend! he does alot of work on soarercentral (his coming up to syd in a few weeks) and his gonna be doing my car! very helpful bloke, knows his shiet about emanage and has had good review & results !!

if you are in vic, definately pay him a visit.

since u got the pfc already, might as well whack that in, otherwise sell it for cash, buy a cheap emanage blue lol