Anyone Apexi Power FC'd a standard/BPU car?

As a lot of our cars are running a tad rich and with subtle mods here and there, I think a lot of our cars could benefit from this. Anyone done it and found good/bad results? Not to mention future-proofing.

As a lot of our cars are running a tad rich and with subtle mods here and there, I think a lot of our cars could benefit from this. Anyone done it and found good/bad results? Not to mention future-proofing.

Tad rich is alot better than a tad lean;)

I am looking at something similar to this... IE fueling and ECU before upgrading to single.

I am looking at something similar to this... IE fueling and ECU before upgrading to single.

Very sensible. Power FC is an excellent budget ecu for ealy manual MKIV's

Would the Apexi be a good option for the single, as the AEM is just so expensive...?

I think tlicense ran his stock car on an aftermarket ecu for a while ?

I am not sure how it would react to not hving to contol all the solenoids, has anone tried one?

A Motec is infinitely better, and although this will sound arrogant, if you can't afford a Motec you should realistically review whether you can afford to do a PROPER single conversion, as the ecu is intrinsic in its success as a package, and a relatively small part, price wise.

At the end of the day everyone works on a budget, and most people cannot afford to go MOTEC, so are you saying that just because we cant afford to that, that we shouldnt do it?

I am questioning whether a full AEM is actually required for a small single, seems more like overkill than anything else.

Yes price is also a factor...

I have a Apexi Power FC on a BPU early manual TT. What would you like to know?

The AEM was my second mod after the exhaust and its been fine for me, I used it on the stock sequential system and it worked really well.

At the end of the day everyone works on a budget, and most people cannot afford to go MOTEC, so are you saying that just because we cant afford to that, that we shouldnt do it?

 

I am questioning whether a full AEM is actually required for a small single, seems more like overkill than anything else.

 

Yes price is also a factor...

I am saying the minimum you need is a fully remappble ecu, and AFAIK the cheapest all round option is a PFC, *IF* you have a model that it's available for. (Early J-Spec manual). IMO single turbos on autos don't work well as the gearbox is mapped to expect torque at 1800 rpm, and has a torque convertor made for this as well, which no single that gives as much or more top end grunt than stock sequential twins will give. So, again IMO, above BPU you are better off buying a manual to mod.

I think I owe you an apology Chris, the Apexi is a replacement, isnt it?

Especially if this discussion was about the Fuel Controller.

I have a Apexi Power FC on a BPU early manual TT. What would you like to know?

How did it drive compared to stock ecu? Cruising/WOT.

Any change in MPG?

Any improvement in power? Either subjectively or objectively.

Any hidden problems encountered doing it to a "stock" car, ie stock twins?

Worth the cost vs benefit of doing it to a BPU car? (for example even if you didnt want to go single for a while).

Any other anecdotes.

You can probably get 20-30bhp extra on a mild BPU car and probably 10-20 extra on a stock one as well - if you adjust fuelling for AFR 12.0-12.5 under boost.

Still safely rich, but not excessively so (as the stock setup tends to be)

The extra power *is* noticeable and it runs smoother as well.

However if it is the only 'mod' I'd tend to steer clear and leave the car alone.

Why mess with the stock setup for no spectacular gains?

Tapping into ECU wires is not totally risk-free, is it? You'd be adding another layer of things that could go wrong.

How did it drive compared to stock ecu? Cruising/WOT.

Any change in MPG?

Any improvement in power? Either subjectively or objectively.

Any hidden problems encountered doing it to a "stock" car, ie stock twins?

Worth the cost vs benefit of doing it to a BPU car? (for example even if you didnt want to go single for a while).

Any other anecdotes.

Those questions I can't answer as she had it on when I got her. She does feel alot more responsive and the mpg averages to 25 but my average leans slightly to motorway driving. No problems fitting to a stock Supra though apart from getting it mapped properly. My car pulled 355rwhp at Thor at 1.1 bar and fuelling was fine. I would have upped the boost a bit more but the tubbies didn't seem to cope 80k on them.....

A good thing to get would be the hand commander as it gives so much useful access and information!

I am saying the minimum you need is a fully remappble ecu, and AFAIK the cheapest all round option is a PFC, *IF* you have a model that it's available for.

does the emanage not fall into this category? if not why not? I know it is piggy back not stand alone but I'm still unclear (excuse my ignorance on such things)

out of interest how much does the pfc setup typically cost anyway?

You can get the PFC for around £700 afaik and the tuning is £350 for the first time and £150 after at Thor

The stock ecu runs the cars mad rich to stop the cats melting at WOT and peak torque. With no cats you can safely pull fuel out and find another 30 or so BHP. You need to know what you are doing though, and need a "proper" ecu, not a signal fudger, to get the required resolution to pull fuel at the right load sites.

 

A Motec is infinitely better, and although this will sound arrogant, if you can't afford a Motec you should realistically review whether you can afford to do a PROPER single conversion, as the ecu is intrinsic in its success as a package, and a relatively small part, price wise.

yes your right Chris that does come across a tad arrogant:D

I am not sure how it would react to not hving to contol all the solenoids, has anone tried one?

 

It works perfectly either way, I've fitted/mapped plenty of std and single turbo Supra's with the PFC now, all of work a treat, never had any of them on the rollers to compare power figures though so cant comment on what the differences are. All I can say is that the PFC definately works well, very good value for money for a stand alone.

Having now used emanage blue, emanage ultimate and power FC on various cars now, i would say on a BPU or std car the most cost effective option is the emanage ultimate, and in my eyes although called a signal fudger, and something else to go wrong, (never had a problem myself other that a blip) but if it does go tits up, you can unplug it and still get home, unlike PFC,

as far as not having the same resolution, well in the departments that really count the deferents is minimal emanage maps are 16 X 16 and the PFC has 20 X 20 and at less than half price of the PFC, neither are that hard to map if you have the aptitude, and if you don't feel competent you take it to well known tuner.

Dont forget that the majority of the public will have to pay for the Emanage to be hard wired in, that plus the cost of the unit/wiring loom/pressure sensor and the cost difference isn't much. As the Apexi is a stand alone (no fudging going on) as well there is no contest between an emanage and a Power FC I my eyes. And I really cant understand why more people dont go for it!

Is there not an issue with it on auto's?

If there is, what about running it in a sort of piggyback configuration, but purely only inputs connected to the stock ecu, so that at least it sees the correct readings in order to change the autobox properly?

Then the powerFC controls the car in the same method as a manual

Dont forget that the majority of the public will have to pay for the Emanage to be hard wired in, that plus the cost of the unit/wiring loom/pressure sensor and the cost difference isn't much. As the Apexi is a stand alone (no fudging going on) as well there is no contest between an emanage and a Power FC I my eyes. And I really cant understand why more people dont go for it!

Very true about forgetting that not everybody can wire it in themselves, but in that case the PFC will need fitting (well plugging in etc) and at the very least you are probably going to want a hand controller, which will put the price up by another £250, and to achieve the same kind of interface with the PFC as with the emanage ( which includes its own software) the PFC doesn't! you would also need to invest in PFC Datalogit so it bumps the price up even more,

Just trying to look at economics as well as functionality:)