EFI Technology standalone?

[xjridingtough]

Who is running the efi tech. standalone on their car? Also who is tuning it and what type of cam tuning are you doing with this standalone? thanks

[Robert Puertas]

We've been running one in Randy's car for quite a while now.
First in normally aspirated mode and now with the SC.
Fred's turbo car also has one.

DRS here in SoCal has done all the tuning for us.
We've tried a couple different cams, and the EFI really lets you take advantage of those gains.
I've got a couple of ecus in stock if you're interested...

[GTsRasta]

Does it run parallel with the stock ECU?

[Randy Chase]

On my car, at least for now, the stock ECU runs the dash. As soon as install the aftermarket dash, I am taking out the stock ECU.

[mark.r]

Originally Posted by GTsRasta

Does it run parallel with the stock ECU?

To clarify, on '05 cars if runs in parallel with the stock ECU to run the dash. On '06/'07 cars it runs in parallel with the stock ECU running the dash and the throttle by wire. As Randy stated if you toss the dash you can toss stock ECU but then you have to be concerned with emissions. As far as the '06 (and later cars) there is some work being done to address the throttle by wire issue, meaning giving the EFI control of the throttle. I personally will never get ride of the stock ECU completely simply for the dash and emission reasons. As far as engine management the EFI controls everything.

[MikeW]

Originally Posted by mark.r

To clarify, on '05 cars if runs in parallel with the stock ECU to run the dash. On '06/'07 cars it runs in parallel with the stock ECU running the dash and the throttle by wire. As Randy stated if you toss the dash you can toss stock ECU but then you have to be concerned with emissions. As far as the '06 (and later cars) there is some work being done to address the throttle by wire issue, meaning giving the EFI control of the throttle. I personally will never get ride of the stock ECU completely simply for the dash and emission reasons. As far as engine management the EFI controls everything.

Mark, if I remember correctly, you had some idle issues being worked out. Something due to the throttle by wire? How did things work out?

[2-Y-CHROMOSOMES]

also to clarify "DRS ROCKS" and FF ie; john and casey developed the EFI with DRS. correct me if I am wrong Casey

[mark.r]

Originally Posted by MikeW

Mark, if I remember correctly, you had some idle issues being worked out. Something due to the throttle by wire? How did things work out?

That is correct Mike. As 2-Y noted above DRS has been good to work with and it is still a work in progress. I worked with Kris remotely to get a fairly stable tune. One that allows me to enjoy the car as best as I can until Kris finishes his R/D on one last component that will allow us to control the throttle as oppose to the Lotus ECU controlling it. So for now the car drives great, it idles much better but not as good as stock, but the most annoying issue that we have not been able to tune out is a bit of throttle lag from a dead standstill. That is more to do with us not dyno tuning since I never physically flew Kris here. I did the tuning myself with him talking me through it remotely. Once the last component is complete I am looking to have him fly out to install it and do a final dyno tune.

[MikeW]

Originally Posted by mark.r

That is correct Mike. As 2-Y noted above DRS has been good to work with and it is still a work in progress. I worked with Kris remotely to get a fairly stable tune. One that allows me to enjoy the car as best as I can until Kris finishes his R/D on one last component that will allow us to control the throttle as oppose to the Lotus ECU controlling it. So for now the car drives great, it idles much better but not as good as stock, but the most annoying issue that we have not been able to tune out is a bit of throttle lag from a dead standstill. That is more to do with us not dyno tuning since I never physically flew Kris here. I did the tuning myself with him talking me through it remotely. Once the last component is complete I am looking to have him fly out to install it and do a final dyno tune.

Thanks Mark. Nice to know someone is willing to fly out and help tune the car. I guess having your '06 as an early bird for the EFI will help the rest of us '06 owners who are patiently waiting for things to get debugged. Did you originally install the EFI yourself? Was there much cutting and splicing?

[mark.r]

Originally Posted by MikeW

Thanks Mark. Nice to know someone is willing to fly out and help tune the car. I guess having your '06 as an early bird for the EFI will help the rest of us '06 owners who are patiently waiting for things to get debugged. Did you originally install the EFI yourself? Was there much cutting and splicing?

No, I didn't do the install myself a local shop did it. I can unplug the EFI and plug in the Lotus ECU in less the 10 seconds so everything is still "intact" but I am sure there is some splicing so that both computers still work. I don't want to call it hacking because I could put the stock injectors back in and drive without getting into boost or lock open the wastegate and the car is virtually "non-turbo" at that point.

I don't want to come off like we were some super pioneers with the '06 car but as far as I know at the time of my install my car was the first '06 to be installed w/ the EFI outside of FF or DRS. They had done some prior to mine so Casey and Kris knew the in/outs of the '06 vs. '05 cars. Hindsight being what it is and me now knowing what I know I would have probably elected to send the car out west to them because the time it spent in the shop and the effort I spent personally working on it makes me wonder why I paid for certain aspects of my local install job since Kris work with me long after I got the car back from a 3 month lay up. Keep in mind, the '05 cars are running like butter since they are not DBW cars. The '06 and newer cars require very fine tuning and each is different from the one done prior. A LOT of the issues can be tuned out but it is a balance where you give a little, you take a little. For exmaple, some people may have excllent throttle response while others have an idle that "hunts" while sitting at a traffic light. The common factor is that while driving they all drive pretty damn well. It's kind of like Porsche and the GT3 Cup Car. They do very little tuning of the idle in that car and most will stall or change idle when you turn the steering wheel while sitting still. Why, because the car was made to race. Unfortunately we don't have that luxury and have to have a streetable car. That is what Kris is working on now. It has been frustrating at times but fortunately I have been able to talk to other EFI Exige owners (Exige 340 and Exige S) who have helped me to confirm that it was not my install that was an issue and that it is a DBW issue. Kris was able to confirm our findings our last tuning call. Kris will get it sorted for us DBW owners.

[xjridingtough]

on my friends car he is having issues with the valves crashing. First engine had more that stock piston to valve clearance and radial clearance. Intake valves only just crashed on one piston all other pistons were fine. That engine had a number of dyno pulls and some track time then crash... Next engine had more clearance than the first. It has 25dyno runs on it and some time around the parking lot. Crashed the intake valves again. It seems like the computer system has a glitch not keeping the intake cam in the right place. He is trying to bring the cams in pretty early. We have called some people that the system came from with little help. They all tell us that it can't happen but I have to 2zz paper weights.....

[mark.r]

Originally Posted by xjridingtough

on my friends car he is having issues with the valves crashing. First engine had more that stock piston to valve clearance and radial clearance. Intake valves only just crashed on one piston all other pistons were fine. That engine had a number of dyno pulls and some track time then crash... Next engine had more clearance than the first. It has 25dyno runs on it and some time around the parking lot. Crashed the intake valves again. It seems like the computer system has a glitch not keeping the intake cam in the right place. He is trying to bring the cams in pretty early. We have called some people that the system came from with little help. They all tell us that it can't happen but I have to 2zz paper weights.....

How does his situation relate to the EFI. More details please???

[MikeW]

mark.r thanks for the info. A "hunting idle" is not something I would tolerate well. My ZR1 likes to do that. You never know if it's a vacuum leak or what. I didn't realize that the EFI didn't control the throttle. Did it always lack the capability to do so, or did people just avoid using it that feature? If I remember correctly, there was some '06 idle problem with the Unichip as well.

[mark.r]

Originally Posted by MikeW

mark.r thanks for the info. A "hunting idle" is not something I would tolerate well. My ZR1 likes to do that. You never know if it's a vacuum leak or what. I didn't realize that the EFI didn't control the throttle. Did it always lack the capability to do so, or did people just avoid using it that feature? If I remember correctly, there was some '06 idle problem with the Unichip as well.

Vacuum leak . . . we originally thought that was the cause of some my throttle lag issues but we determined it was not by unplugging the EFI and plugging in the Lotus ECU. The car idle and rev'd near perfectly so we dertermined that it was not "hardware" or install related as far as hosing etc. go.

As for the EFI's capabilities, the EFI is an FIA spec piece of hardware it has numerous options for engine management, data logging, traction control, and even has pit lane limiter. I've been told that one of the FIA GT Lamborghini's (perhaps Reiter Engineering) uses a similar EFI unit. At any rate to answer your question, it definitely has the computation power and ability to control DBW. The problem (and Kris would be the best to explain this) is that an external driver was found to be the best solution to run the just the throttle portion. Heat build up was found to be an issue inside the main EFI unit apparently. At any rate it works as it is being used in a number of Audi's and some E46 M3's running in Grand Am Cup or Koni Challenge.

[EfiOz]

Originally Posted by mark.r

As for the EFI's capabilities, the EFI is an FIA spec piece of hardware it has numerous options for engine management, data logging, traction control, and even has pit lane limiter. I've been told that one of the FIA GT Lamborghini's (perhaps Reiter Engineering) uses a similar EFI unit. At any rate to answer your question, it definitely has the computation power and ability to control DBW. The problem (and Kris would be the best to explain this) is that an external driver was found to be the best solution to run the just the throttle portion. Heat build up was found to be an issue inside the main EFI unit apparently. At any rate it works as it is being used in a number of Audi's and some E46 M3's running in Grand Am Cup or Koni Challenge.

Just to confuse this issue, there are two EFI Technology's..........

The one you are refering to that produces the Race1.2 ECU is based in Torrance CA and is an offshoot of the original company based in Bologna, Italy.

The original EFI Technology is the company that produces the original Lotus ECU's (Including the 06 onwards Exige S) as well as the OE ECU's for Lamborghini. They have also had a lot to do with just about all of the Magneti Marelli Racing ECU's over the years.

Reiter uses the Euro12 system in the Murci GT1 car as do Judd, Mugen and a lot of other racing and OE companies.

The ECU that comes standard on the 06 on Exige S is known as a Euro4 in the aftermarket range. This is also used by JAS in Italy for the Honda Civic Type R rally homologation package.

I think I've made this as clear as mud.

[MikeW]

Originally Posted by EfiOz

Just to confuse this issue, there are two EFI Technology's..........

The one you are refering to that produces the Race1.2 ECU is based in Torrance CA and is an offshoot of the original company based in Bologna, Italy.

The original EFI Technology is the company that produces the original Lotus ECU's (Including the 06 onwards Exige S) as well as the OE ECU's for Lamborghini. They have also had a lot to do with just about all of the Magneti Marelli Racing ECU's over the years.

Reiter uses the Euro12 system in the Murci GT1 car as do Judd, Mugen and a lot of other racing and OE companies.

The ECU that comes standard on the 06 on Exige S is known as a Euro4 in the aftermarket range. This is also used by JAS in Italy for the Honda Civic Type R rally homologation package.

I think I've made this as clear as mud.

Perfectly clear. Now all we need is a Euro 4 vith T4e plugs so we can pull the stock ecu out and replace with a tuner friendly one.

[Lotus F1]

What about the Hydra? It's certainly cheaper and is plug and play connected, also works in parallel like the EFI unit.

[mark.r]

Originally Posted by EfiOz

Just to confuse this issue, there are two EFI Technology's..........

The one you are refering to that produces the Race1.2 ECU is based in Torrance CA and is an offshoot of the original company based in Bologna, Italy.

The original EFI Technology is the company that produces the original Lotus ECU's (Including the 06 onwards Exige S) as well as the OE ECU's for Lamborghini. They have also had a lot to do with just about all of the Magneti Marelli Racing ECU's over the years.

Reiter uses the Euro12 system in the Murci GT1 car as do Judd, Mugen and a lot of other racing and OE companies.

The ECU that comes standard on the 06 on Exige S is known as a Euro4 in the aftermarket range. This is also used by JAS in Italy for the Honda Civic Type R rally homologation package.

I think I've made this as clear as mud.

Good stuff. Tell me more, tell me more.

[MaineLotus]

Originally Posted by Lotus F1

What about the Hydra? It's certainly cheaper and is plug and play connected, also works in parallel like the EFI unit.

How's your car comming along? Did you go with Hydra, EFI or reflash?

[charliex]

I'm told its the same box as the euro4 but different internals, but the euro4 is more than capable of running the lotus and it has very similar specs..

The usa efi uses similar hardware (same processor) but different design and software.

The FIA GT Lambo uses an earlier euro unit , more like the 05, i'd posted a list of cars a while ago that used EFI tech, i probably just didn't make it clear it was the italian company.

http://www.elisetalk.com/forums/show...=38735&&page=2