ITA 240SX ECU Tuning

[DavidM]

This is a follow-on to a thread I started over at RRAX about fuel pressure. I've started looking at ways to pull data from the ECU and eventually do some tuning. The stock 89-90 240SX ECU does not have Consult code and thus you can't really pull data from it easily. I have found a few ways to do this without having to hack in a standalone computer and wanted to see if any folks in the IT community have used any of these and experiences.

- One way is to get a U12 ECU from a 90-92 Stanza that used the KA24E motor. This ECU had Consult capability so you can pull data from it just like any other Consult ECU. The gotcha is that the Stanza ROM stored some of the data in different places so you can't just drop in a 240SX ROM. You gotta start burning your own ROMs or use a ROM emulator.

- NisTune type 1 board. This looks pretty cool and combines a ROM emulator and Consult functionality into one. You connect to it via USB cable and can do realtime tuning with it.

Anybody done anything like this? I know Neal Harrison is using a modified SR20DE ECU in his car (don't know if you still lurk here Neal), but haven't heard of anybody else doing something similar. Doing something like this seems much easier than splicing in a standalone management system. Yeah, a stand alone may be more flexible, but you can probably do 90% of the stuff with the stock ECU or other Nissan ECU.

David

[CRallo]

Nothing to contribute, but I'm very interested in the topic!

[Matt93SE]

Nistune is very popular with the turbo KA guys and some of the NA builds. cheap and easy to tune. Remember that link I sent you a while back? go post there. A couple guys on there do quite a bit of ECU tuning with Nistune and others.

[erlrich]

I've been thinking about going with the NIStune setup for a while now; for <$500 you get pretty close to the same capability as you would with an AEM or similar unit (at 3x the cost), and it's much more user friendly (as near as I can tell) than the Megasquirt. At the same time, I really wonder if I'm going to be able to find that much more power than what I'm getting from the JWT tuned ECU. I mean, there's only so much you can do with the (nearly) stock KA motor.

[Matt93SE]

Very true. the thing with the JWT is that it's not tuned/optimized for YOUR setup and basically just adds more fuel and timing. not a whole lot of changes, and they run a bit rich. usually around 12.5:1 AFR. lean it out a tad and you can make a few more hp as long as the engine is healthy.
here's a dyno pull on my old Maxima with a JWT ECU: http://blehmco.com/pics/car/dyno_1_sm.jpg

The JWT makes a lot of assumptions about your tune and just goes for a little more power with nice stability. there's several HP to be gained by tuning an ECU to your engine..

[MMiskoe]

Not quite on target, but I have a NISTUNE for my '87 300zx. I assume it is similar, but not likely exact.

As far as how it worked and results, I never did anything with it. I headed down the road, got it all put together then jobs and therefore money prioritys changed. By the time I could go back to it, my mind had wandered and the car is for sale.

It was obvious though that there was potential there if you had a day or so to spend doing dyno pulls. It seemed as though the basic maps that it came with were not very well set up for my car. I had a JWT ECU that ran way better than the NISTUNE w/ no tuning (it ran, but not well). Also it looked like the NISTUNE system had some fairly large steps between map points, but I am no expert, perhaps they are fine.

[DavidM]

At this point I just want to be able to log data to see what is going on. My plan is to copy the JWT ROM and use it with whatever system I put in. You can get just the Nistune Type 1 board for $200 and that's the direction I think I'm going to go. I think that would allow me to run Consult software to log data. I could get the actual Nistune software later on if I wanted. There's a shop here in Atl listed as a Nistune tuner and I'll give them a call to see what they can do as far as tuning goes.

David

[CCARVER]

At this point I just want to be able to log data to see what is going on. My plan is to copy the JWT ROM and use it with whatever system I put in. You can get just the Nistune Type 1 board for $200 and that's the direction I think I'm going to go. I think that would allow me to run Consult software to log data. I could get the actual Nistune software later on if I wanted. There's a shop here in Atl listed as a Nistune tuner and I'll give them a call to see what they can do as far as tuning goes.

David

That is the route I plan to go as well.
I am currently running the JWT on the DOHC in my car. And I can tell from A/F readings that there is plenty of room for improvement.
Nistune on order for me.
Carver

[Tristan Smith]

At this point I just want to be able to log data to see what is going on. My plan is to copy the JWT ROM and use it with whatever system I put in. You can get just the Nistune Type 1 board for $200 and that's the direction I think I'm going to go. I think that would allow me to run Consult software to log data. I could get the actual Nistune software later on if I wanted. There's a shop here in Atl listed as a Nistune tuner and I'll give them a call to see what they can do as far as tuning goes.

David

David, did you ever do any follow up on this? Who is tuner shop by the way? I am thinking of doing this with the ZX.

[DavidM]

Haven't had time - been doing stuff around the house. Probably not going to happen till the off season after the ARRC. Lethal Injection Motorsport is listed as a workshop on the Nistune website.

Lethal Injection Motorsports (Workshop)
205a Tidwell Dr
Alpharetta, GA. 30004
Contact Derek on 770-343-9969
lethalmotorsports [at] gmail.com

[racer240sx]

David I think nistune is the only way to go. I have it in my 240. Your ECU has a type 1 board. I would call or email Autovaughn Performance and talk to them about your car. They work with Johnathan at Beans Diesel Performance in Murfreesboro. They put my car on the chassis dyno and tuned my ECU. Believe me it is worth the expense. I detenated one engine and broke some rings.
[email protected]
Call: (615) 796-6234

[Prince Makaha]

You can log a wideband or any other sensor that uses industry standard 0-5v signaling with your nistune software using this 8 channel data acquisition usb hub.

Also....the nistune software allows you to tune the ecu as if it were a modern obd ecu.

Here's a thread on it.

http://forum.nistune.com/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=1279

[CRallo]

Now that is just cool! Good info guys, I'll be looking into this over the winter for sure! My JWT isn't cutting it :/

[erlrich]

FWIW - you guys know that JWT will re-tune your ECU based on upgrades you make to the motor, right? Not that it will be as good as dyno-tuned ECU, but I'll bet they can add a few more ponies to the mix over their 'standard' tune.

[Matt93SE]

The only problem is it's $100 per re-tune from JWT and it generally takes MONTHS to get a tune from them... Then it's still not as good as one you could get with a Nistune and an hour of dyno tuning.

I lost faith in JWT quite a while ago. If you live in Cali, they're great. If you get on the 'regular Joe' status list, then you get a whole lotta frustration from them.