ATAG_Bliss
Sep-11-2012, 20:27
So in making preparations for the cobra to run on E85 (106 octane at the pump), I recently had to upgrade the fuel system. Went with a magnafuel 4301 continuous duty fuel pump, 120lb injectors (19lb's are stock to give you an idea), and an adacco 97mm digital MAF (mass air flow sensor). Fuel feed and returns were already braided -8's, so there was no need to upgrade the lines. This should meet the requirements of the 35% more fuel required to run E85 and should give me plenty of future proofing to get me well over 1200rwhp in the future. My goal is to have a pump gas car with 800rwhp and between buying $12/gallon race fuel and $3/gallon E85 at the pump, that will give me the same characteristics of race fuel, it's a no brainer.
In saying that I currently have an Anderson PMS tuner. That is a piggyback system (plugs into the factory ECM) w/display that allows you to tune virtually everything without the need to spend $500 at the dyno every time you need to change something. As long as it's EEC-IV (Ford's OB1 fuel injection), the sky is litterally the limit on what you can tune with for your EFI needs (big block / small block / blower / nitrous etc.) Just takes lots of patience. With that said, I've found that limit by trying to go E85. 120lb low impedance injectors require an injector driver to make them suckers move. The stock ECU is not up to the task - factory injectors are high impedance injectors, but getting a set of 120lb high impedance injectors is around $1500 compared to the low's for $300-$400. So wiring in an "AMP" for the injectors where you can set your peak/hold and injector stage fixes that for much less (obviously more work). So after all of that and trying to tune this thing, come to find out the PMS doesn't like anything more than a 96lb injector. I mean - I can tune it to go really fast, but drivability (aka driving around town) is awful/terrible. The PMS/factory ECU is just too damn slow (processor speed) to keep up with the calculations needed for that big injector. I might be able to get it, but it would take around 500 miles and literally 100's of hours of me on the laptop tuning while someone else is driving to get it street friendly.
With that said, I've really gone off the deep and and started to build my own engine management computer (ECM) There are a few guides online on getting the parts, where to solder, what pins do what etc., but in the end, this will be my own standalone system that can and will tune anything and everything I want with it. The manufacturer is called megasquirt. (Yes - the women must love it :D ) So here's some progress so far:
This is all the little modules, capacitors, boards, pins that I bought to assemble this EEC-IV setup (60 pin) It looks pretty intimidating, but it's really just time consuming to solder it all together.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4031/4366439197_58e827cec6.jpg
Within the kit comes a stim board (a simulator board) that basically simulates the rest of the cars wiring/sensors hooked up. This way as you build the main daughterboard you can test it after every solder/pin is put together to make sure everything is working right. The kit also comes with the tuning software that you can manipulate any way you like. Here's a few pics of my little soldering station (at work lol), how the progress is coming along, and the laptop hooked up to it. Thank the FSM that the thing didn't fry the first time I put power to it.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2631/4367186110_8895049f94_o.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4043/4367186476_d78ca385c4_b.jpg
You can see how the stim board connects on this on:
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4066/4367185960_57a6dac536.jpg
And here's the progress on the daughter board:
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4045/4366439545_4fef9d986f_b.jpg
Here's the final assembled product before putting the cover on - still testing with the laptop to ensure all the inputs work.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4039/4383238669_f8c63be0d2_b.jpg
Here's the stock Ford ECM:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2759/4383238547_ffed4bd627_b.jpg
And now here's what I've built to replace it. Notice the 8 big wires for the injectors - No need for injector driver anymore :)
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4010/4383998830_2b60e32fbe_b.jpg
And final piece (main board and daughter board), with cable. It's kinda neat you get to use the factory ECM cover so you can bolt it/hide it in the factory spot.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2769/4383237973_e8f7a1b6e8_b.jpg
This definitely wasn't one of the easiest things I've done, but wasn't that awful bad to accomplish. Had plenty of guides, reading material to make it happen. But the worst part, learning to tune with a new software, and getting it to run/calibrate together will be a whole 'nother can of worms. Once it's done though, this thing will be an utter beast on the street. One of the good things about building your own ECM, especially in this kit, is that you can pre wired signals for timing retarders, boost controllers, rpm activated switches, a 2,3,4,or 5 step typed controller (similar to an msd 2-3 step box/window switch). Not to mention the cool factor that this computer for your car is hand built :)
Anyhow, that's been my life the past month. Hopefully sometime in the next few weeks I'll have enough time to get it dialed in programmed enough to at least make it idle. Then the fun begins.
And finally, this should give you an idea of how big a 97mm MAF and filter is. This thing will take up every ounce of my inner fender on the passenger side.
http://img685.imageshack.us/img685/9633/mafg.jpg
Edit: Looks like I need to figure out how to make my digital camera save as one size lol. MAF is an iphone picture. Screw it.. doesn't matter :)
(http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/685/mafg.jpg/)
In saying that I currently have an Anderson PMS tuner. That is a piggyback system (plugs into the factory ECM) w/display that allows you to tune virtually everything without the need to spend $500 at the dyno every time you need to change something. As long as it's EEC-IV (Ford's OB1 fuel injection), the sky is litterally the limit on what you can tune with for your EFI needs (big block / small block / blower / nitrous etc.) Just takes lots of patience. With that said, I've found that limit by trying to go E85. 120lb low impedance injectors require an injector driver to make them suckers move. The stock ECU is not up to the task - factory injectors are high impedance injectors, but getting a set of 120lb high impedance injectors is around $1500 compared to the low's for $300-$400. So wiring in an "AMP" for the injectors where you can set your peak/hold and injector stage fixes that for much less (obviously more work). So after all of that and trying to tune this thing, come to find out the PMS doesn't like anything more than a 96lb injector. I mean - I can tune it to go really fast, but drivability (aka driving around town) is awful/terrible. The PMS/factory ECU is just too damn slow (processor speed) to keep up with the calculations needed for that big injector. I might be able to get it, but it would take around 500 miles and literally 100's of hours of me on the laptop tuning while someone else is driving to get it street friendly.
With that said, I've really gone off the deep and and started to build my own engine management computer (ECM) There are a few guides online on getting the parts, where to solder, what pins do what etc., but in the end, this will be my own standalone system that can and will tune anything and everything I want with it. The manufacturer is called megasquirt. (Yes - the women must love it :D ) So here's some progress so far:
This is all the little modules, capacitors, boards, pins that I bought to assemble this EEC-IV setup (60 pin) It looks pretty intimidating, but it's really just time consuming to solder it all together.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4031/4366439197_58e827cec6.jpg
Within the kit comes a stim board (a simulator board) that basically simulates the rest of the cars wiring/sensors hooked up. This way as you build the main daughterboard you can test it after every solder/pin is put together to make sure everything is working right. The kit also comes with the tuning software that you can manipulate any way you like. Here's a few pics of my little soldering station (at work lol), how the progress is coming along, and the laptop hooked up to it. Thank the FSM that the thing didn't fry the first time I put power to it.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2631/4367186110_8895049f94_o.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4043/4367186476_d78ca385c4_b.jpg
You can see how the stim board connects on this on:
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4066/4367185960_57a6dac536.jpg
And here's the progress on the daughter board:
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4045/4366439545_4fef9d986f_b.jpg
Here's the final assembled product before putting the cover on - still testing with the laptop to ensure all the inputs work.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4039/4383238669_f8c63be0d2_b.jpg
Here's the stock Ford ECM:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2759/4383238547_ffed4bd627_b.jpg
And now here's what I've built to replace it. Notice the 8 big wires for the injectors - No need for injector driver anymore :)
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4010/4383998830_2b60e32fbe_b.jpg
And final piece (main board and daughter board), with cable. It's kinda neat you get to use the factory ECM cover so you can bolt it/hide it in the factory spot.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2769/4383237973_e8f7a1b6e8_b.jpg
This definitely wasn't one of the easiest things I've done, but wasn't that awful bad to accomplish. Had plenty of guides, reading material to make it happen. But the worst part, learning to tune with a new software, and getting it to run/calibrate together will be a whole 'nother can of worms. Once it's done though, this thing will be an utter beast on the street. One of the good things about building your own ECM, especially in this kit, is that you can pre wired signals for timing retarders, boost controllers, rpm activated switches, a 2,3,4,or 5 step typed controller (similar to an msd 2-3 step box/window switch). Not to mention the cool factor that this computer for your car is hand built :)
Anyhow, that's been my life the past month. Hopefully sometime in the next few weeks I'll have enough time to get it dialed in programmed enough to at least make it idle. Then the fun begins.
And finally, this should give you an idea of how big a 97mm MAF and filter is. This thing will take up every ounce of my inner fender on the passenger side.
http://img685.imageshack.us/img685/9633/mafg.jpg
Edit: Looks like I need to figure out how to make my digital camera save as one size lol. MAF is an iphone picture. Screw it.. doesn't matter :)
(http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/685/mafg.jpg/)