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Location:
Perth
Registered:
April 2005
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megasquirt ecu
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Sat, 27 August 2005 12:42
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Has anyone got anything BAD to say about megasquirt?
Thanks
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Location:
Kita-Ku, Sapporo, Japan
Registered:
January 2003
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Sat, 27 August 2005 15:08
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well, it does everything it claims to do reliably, as long as you can do basic soldering ok.
it's simple to set up, and the tuning software is some of the easiest around to use.
it also has the biggest online community to back you up if you have any dramas.. as well as being open source and freely upgradeable.....
and it's cheap.. but basically.. it does what it says.
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Location:
Victoria
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Sun, 28 August 2005 10:43
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| corbet01 wrote on Sat, 27 August 2005 22:42 |
Has anyone got anything BAD to say about megasquirt?
Thanks
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errr.. you cant walk into a "tuner shop" and hand over a wad of cash, for them to install and tune it
i think thats about it
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Location:
brisbane
Registered:
December 2004
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
February 2003
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Sun, 28 August 2005 11:11
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berad: there's guys in the states and europe running all kinds of hipo machines as race cars, daily drivers, street racers, etc... MS isn't just for the bottom end of town.
there's everything from drag harley's to RX8 track turbos and beyond. Growing numbers of euro (bmw in particular) cars being adapted as well
see here for more info.
a lot of them are either slowly tuning their own machines, or are finding competant dyno shops willing to learn something new.
others: would you spend wads of cash at a tuning shop because they 'know' a certain flavour of ECU or because they understand the fundamentals of EFI systems and how to tune for difference kinds of engine demands.
If was to pay anyone money to tune a car, it would be because they're an expert in engine management systems, not because they've done a two day (and probably overpriced) course in tuning some particular brand of software and can remember 25% of the simple tuning tricks the trainer showed them with the proprietary software.
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Location:
Kita-Ku, Sapporo, Japan
Registered:
January 2003
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Sun, 28 August 2005 11:11
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| berad wrote on Sun, 28 August 2005 20:47 |
theres ppl on tha forum that will put it together and do u an engine specific engine loom also for a relatively cheap, a few mates have it the only problem they have is finding people to tune it so they do it not hard when your only playing with 180hp but its when u start to push everything a little harder i woudlnt want to be tuning my 500hp engine 
although most tuning software is very similar alot of places wont touch it
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LOL, the thing with MS is that you do it yourself... why would you hire someone to tune it for you when it is so straightforward?
as this is or a 5K, i would have no hesitation recommending MS for it.. that said there are ppl with 400-500hp audi 5cyl turbo motors, and there was a guy with landspeed car with 600hp hayabusa motor using it....
aaanyway. 5K, i've done it for 4K. it's easy, and i have a map that will likely be 90% fine for you...
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Location:
brisbane
Registered:
December 2004
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Location:
Kita-Ku, Sapporo, Japan
Registered:
January 2003
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Sun, 28 August 2005 11:38
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granted.... i was kind assuming from the question that they have learnt a bit already...
MS is DIY, and you learn lots 
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Location:
brisbane
Registered:
December 2004
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Sun, 28 August 2005 11:41
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indeed seeing what theyve done if i had my time again id go ms alot of addons and extra features at your fingertips without having to send the ecu away for a month and gettin charged 500 bucks, and my ecu chooses not to give info to the laptop 80% of the time and that pisses me off so i cant change my settings lol
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Location:
Tamworth
Registered:
August 2004
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Mon, 29 August 2005 10:13
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oldcorollas. Do u think ur Map would suit a fairly tough 2.2l 18rg?
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Location:
Kita-Ku, Sapporo, Japan
Registered:
January 2003
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Mon, 29 August 2005 10:27
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| jeffro RA28 wrote on Mon, 29 August 2005 20:13 |
oldcorollas. Do u think ur Map would suit a fairly tough 2.2l 18rg?
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possibly... my map turned out relatively simple, as the VE of my motor doesn't change too much with revs once the cam comes on.. the idle was fairly easy to work out... whatever made it nice 
only issue i had was only having 15kpa vacuum at idle whereas most cars have 40-60kpa vacuum i think..
if you put in your injector size, the actual map should be a reasonable starting point i think...
i'll see if i can make some kind of image to put up...
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Location:
Tamworth
Registered:
August 2004
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Mon, 29 August 2005 10:57
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That would be very helpfull.
ATM i am just looking at the possibilities. I am still building the motor. I have a very limited knowledge of EFI but hope to learn alot more about it whilst building the engine. We have 2 x engine dyno's at my work so ill have plenty of info to work with.
I am very familiar with mechanical injection but not Electtrical.
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
February 2003
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Mon, 29 August 2005 11:16
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there's also an 18RGUE in an RA40 in tasmania - its owner (used to?) frequent these forums.
cheers,
Charles
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Location:
Perth, WA
Registered:
February 2003
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Mon, 29 August 2005 11:27
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Corbet,
I'm pretty keen to give this a go on my AE86 4AGTE. At the moment it has a Wolf 3D V2, and though it runs fine I'm certain I can get more out of the car with a better quality ECU - this way I can do it cheaply and learn heaps.
How far have you looked into this, as in do you know anyone else in Perth who's done it, doing it, or interested? Looking at the Oz part of the MS forum, I see there are some Perthites, but they seem to have Rover engined cars (V8's I imagine).
Also do you know any Dyno's in Perth that are willing to look at Megasquirt eqipped cars. Having said that, is it necessary to go to a Dyno? If you have a map that is basically right, can you not tune it on the road (drive around with someone tuning on a laptop in the passenger seat)?
I'm thinking I'll probably buy the Megasquirt kit in about a month's time, take my time putting it together and getting it tested before I attempt to put it on the car. Before I do that I'll also hook up with some other Perth people experienced with it to get some advice from them. Lastly, I will also document the whole thing and post it on a website somewhere.
[Updated on: Mon, 29 August 2005 11:27]
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Location:
Kita-Ku, Sapporo, Japan
Registered:
January 2003
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Mon, 29 August 2005 11:35
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i reckon.. since it is fuel only to start with.. if you could get dyno time with a wideband, you could easily do it yourself...
on the road you can tune all the cruise and mild accel parts of the map fairly easily. but for a boosted motor, it would be unsafe.
since tuning is just setting the grid points, then using arrows to put in more or less fuel, all you need is a rolling road for the loading, and you could tune it yourself easily, just by watching the wideband feedback..... in theory
on the road, when IRA11Y and i tuned mine, we got about 5% rich acrosss the board just by SOTP dyno...initially i had it much richer for safety...
unless of course you have a wideband lambda meter and some long steep hills
for a boosted motor also, i think timing is far more critical....
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Location:
Perth, WA
Registered:
February 2003
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Mon, 29 August 2005 12:01
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Fair enough - I'll need to pull my finger out and start talking to other locals about a suitable dyno.
And it seems worthwhile investing in a wideband meter set up.
So much to learn...
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Location:
Tamworth
Registered:
August 2004
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Mon, 29 August 2005 12:17
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sorry if this is a dumb question. What is wideband?
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
February 2003
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Mon, 29 August 2005 13:46
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start reading from here: <http://www.msefi.com/msinfo/manual/mwire.htm#ego>.
If it doesn't skip down to the right section - click on the "Oxygen Sensors" link at the top of the page.
In a nutshell, narrow band only good for identifying when the engine mixture is very close to stoich, wideband lets you accurately identify the mixture across the whole range (lean to rich).
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Location:
Finland
Registered:
November 2002
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Mon, 29 August 2005 13:57
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| Quote: |
Do u think ur Map would suit a fairly tough 2.2l 18rg?
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My friend is running MS in his +400hp 18R-GTE, so I'd say yes.
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Location:
Hobart
Registered:
June 2002
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Tue, 30 August 2005 03:22
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| thechuckster wrote on Mon, 29 August 2005 21:16 |
there's also an 18RGUE in an RA40 in tasmania - its owner (used to?) frequent these forums.
cheers,
Charles
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yerp... im still here.
my 18R-GE is still going strong on the megasquirt as well (being going for about 1.5years, done about 20000k's). now running megasquirt'n'spark-extra with VR sensor from 21R and jaycar HEI for VR senor conditioning and ignitor.
I have occasional misses which i think maybe be a problem with the jaycar signal conditioning for the VR sensor. I might get a megasquirt V3 board since it has VR sensor input on board, and an ignition driver.
You could use my fuel map as a starting point for a 2.2L 18rg. Its not hard to tune megasquirt on the road though. Especially for engines with fairly small horsepower. Just need good long hills with highway speed limits.
One of these days someone will write some auto-tuning code for the MSII using a wideband. Meaning you type in a table with your AFR's in it. Then drive around and it tunes your car to those AFRs. Currently extra has closed loop AFR targets, which is close but doesn't save the result. Presents some problems with maximum number writes to the onboard flash i think.
Cheers
Chris
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I supported Toymods
Location:
Adelaide
Registered:
July 2004
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Tue, 30 August 2005 04:58
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does anyone want to build one for a JZA70 1JZ loom?
will pay cash
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Location:
Victoria
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Tue, 30 August 2005 05:46
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I personally think paying someone to build, install and tune a megasquirt kinda defeats the purpose of the whole megasquirt idea
Megasquirt is aimed at the DIY types looking to learn how EFI works, and save some $$$ in the process. With the price of aftermarket ECU's these days like microtech, the money saved is negligible compared to paying someone to build one. for a 1jz, you will need hardware mods and custom circuits to drive the coils (and if 1jz is coil per plug, i doubt u will find enough outputs to drive the coils anyway) All the R & D that would go into building one up to suit a 1jz, paying someone for their time... its better to go aftermarket OR build one ur self. if u were to "downgrade" to a wasted spark setup it SHOULD be no problem to drive a 1jz (with aforemention hardware mods).
You might save money, but in the long run if you were to run into troubles, you will be left out in the cold with no support, other than the Megasquirt forums (which is PLENTY if ur the DIY type)
Megasquirt is worth it just to learn about what is happening under the hood, if you want to pay someone and forget about it. Buy something like a Microtech, they aint that dear anyway.
Phill
Disclaimer: this is not direct stab at mr1jz, just a generic rant using mr 1jz as an example
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I supported Toymods
Location:
Adelaide
Registered:
July 2004
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Tue, 30 August 2005 05:55
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example noted gearb0x and in my defence ill try and do every bit of work on my car and I usually succeed...
wiring is the only thing I absolutley positively will not touch...
ive fucked it up too many times...
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Location:
sunny coast, qld
Registered:
October 2002
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Tue, 30 August 2005 06:02
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One day I would like to build a tube frame drag car, run a 1jz with absolute minimal wiring and a megasquirt. Maybe a couple of years down the track yet 
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
February 2003
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Tue, 30 August 2005 12:15
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in some ways, it would simplify the wiring on a 1J even further (than the already discrete stock setup):
relies on one crank trigger for timing
change to Wastespark (only 3 coil packs req)
change to 2 banks of 3 injectors (factory is 3 banks of 2)
You might find fine idle control a bit poorer with only two banks of injectors - but who cares about idle in a race car
v3 MS can run some Aux air valves (with stepper motors) for idle speed control but again, if it's a race car, those outputs could be put to better use (thermo fan control, shift light, boost control, etc)
The risk is that it's your handy work rather than a tuning shop's - but the lack of factory support gets replaced by a world-wide (and growing) forum of users.
Then again, do you want your engine management only understood by a select few? which you have to rely on to keep the car running?
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Location:
sunny coast, qld
Registered:
October 2002
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Tue, 30 August 2005 22:52
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Hmm, interesting Charles
Is the software that hard to learn? I am tuning my wolf myself and it is pretty self explanatory.
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
February 2003
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Location:
Tasmania
Registered:
May 2002
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Wed, 31 August 2005 13:40
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With the Megasquirt, is it posiable to use all stock Toyota sensors that are already on my 20 valve? Or do I have to change the sensors to generic GM and Bosche ones to make it work?
If I can keep all the Toyota sensors and not have to touch the motor, I am very keen to buy the megasquirt n spark kit. Can it read the 4A-GE distributor/crank angle sensor?
Does anyone in Australia sell the kit?
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Location:
Brisbane
Registered:
February 2003
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Wed, 31 August 2005 14:19
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| Jonny2TG wrote on Wed, 31 August 2005 23:40 |
With the Megasquirt, is it posiable to use all stock Toyota sensors that are already on my 20 valve? Or do I have to change the sensors to generic GM and Bosche ones to make it work?
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yes - you use a program to generate new tempreture lookup tables based on temp/resistance data of the toyota sensors
i'd say that a few people have already adapted MS to a 20V 4age - read thru the site and send some PMs to folks who've already converted - they might be quite willing to share data and tips
| Quote: |
If I can keep all the Toyota sensors and not have to touch the motor, I am very keen to buy the megasquirt n spark kit. Can it read the 4A-GE distributor/crank angle sensor?
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yes - there's someone in sydney who's already worked this out for 3sg(t)e motors plus folks in NZ and the US getting everything from 18RG to 7mgtes running MS-n-S.
the dizzi-versions of the 3sge use same pickups as 4age (24 tooth wheel and a 2 tooth wheel with 2 pickups on it) - so you can use their wiring experience to guide your decisions.
but, in a nutshell yes it can use the factory sensors, tho you have to do a reasonable amount of work (like build the kit, wire it up, configure it, tune it, etc)
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Does anyone in Australia sell the kit?
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no - but there might be one or two for sale on MSEFI.com or you could import a kit -
see here for a few ways to source a kit from the US
just dont forget it's a DIY kit - not a factory kit - so research, reading and learning are important steps to follow before, while and after you've built the kit.
cheers,
Charles.
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Location:
Hobart
Registered:
June 2002
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Thu, 01 September 2005 03:57
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Jonny,
I am using stock toyota coolant temp sensor. You just have to program the look up table. The data for lots of sensors is already available as well.
like thechuckster said i think there are people in the MSnS forum who have had success with the 4age dizzy/crank angle sensor.
Noone in australia sells the kit, but you can buy it from web sites in the US like www.diyautotune.com for a pretty fair price. This is where ill be getting my MS2 and V3 board from i think.
If you do go down the megasquirt road, i'll be keen to help you get it going.
Does the 20V have a single coil, or some kind of multi coil setup?
I'm keen for someone else in tassie to join the megasquirt wagon.
Cheers
Chris
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Location:
Perth
Registered:
April 2005
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Re: megasquirt ecu
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Thu, 01 September 2005 11:29
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Hi,
I have been looking into the MS because i am a student and can't afford much plus i like to do things myself as much as possible. I have a corolla AE92 GTI and a set of quads which i haope to put on it at some stage. Since i started this discussion my main bearings have failed and i am now with a different problem. MS is now on the back burner for a while. I am keen to build one though. I am reasonably new to Perth and am unsure of where to go myself for dyno tuning.
Thanks,
Ty
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