urs1ne Posted August 26, 2008 Share Posted August 26, 2008 Well its finally time to get my car tuned! So I am getting it done by Bill at Crawford Performance/I-Speed USA in Oceanside, CA. I am getting it done the right way from the beginning so when its time to go from daily driver to weekend warrior I will already have the basics done. I am going to get the EasyECU license, dyno tuning, and get my TGBs (sp?) ported for maximum tuning potential down the road. My car has a CAI, and a catback but since its a daily driver I dont want to go with the downpipe just yet, at this stage I am more interested in smooth acceleration more than a few extra horsepower. Not to mention I would rather invest some in the suspension with maybe some swaybars and end links to keep it more balanced all around. ^ n00bs below this line Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boostjunkie Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 Why in God's name would you pay for an Ecutek license? It costs around $300, plus about the same for EasyECU in addition to the cost of your tune. That makes the total around $1000. For that, all you get is a locked out ECU that ties you to a small and shrinking network of tuner who still use Ecutek. Heck I can tune Ecutek and when someone asks me if they should go with Ecutek my answer is always: HELL NO! As the customer you get the same net results from Opensource flashing with no license cost and a much wider network of tuner who can tune/retune your car in the future. For the same money you can buy an Accessport and have a much easier to use handheld flashing device and the advantages of realtime tuning for your tuner. Ecutek has by far the worst integrated and last user friendly interface of any reflashing software I have used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lookslikeanevo Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 ^ he knows cus he had it Current:MY05 SWP wagon - 253/290 UP, AEM CAI, Invidia Q300, tuned@yimisport OLD: MY06 GRP - 274/314 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boostjunkie Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 ^ he knows cus he had it True. I indeed have an Ecutek license my cars' ECU. There was some point to it nearly 4 years ago, as Opensource tuning wasn't close to what it is today and an AP plus tune was over $1000. Without EasyECU (not available at the time) a professional Ecutek tune was around $700 so it made sense at the time. I'm going to remove the Ecutek license from my car anyways, and either do my base flash with an AP or with OS and have my UTEC take over things and run the car with speed density fueling when on boost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lookslikeanevo Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 whoa paul...^in engrish please ...lol Current:MY05 SWP wagon - 253/290 UP, AEM CAI, Invidia Q300, tuned@yimisport OLD: MY06 GRP - 274/314 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lookslikeanevo Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 to the op.. you actually have a lot of really good tuners here on the board..some have shop access some dont...but i have personal experience with 3 of them, jon, paul, and shammar... and can tell you that they are some of the most knowledgeable people i have ever talked to ...and all 3 at one time or another has worked on my car(whether they wanted to or not) and helped my build a beast out of it... heres an idea... drive to yimis do an open source tune for $300 plus $100 in gass, then you have $600 for an mr downpipe and sways which comes out to roughly ~$800-$900 installed on your car and tuned... sounds like you get more for your money and people that have been vouched for and people that work on subies all day everyday Current:MY05 SWP wagon - 253/290 UP, AEM CAI, Invidia Q300, tuned@yimisport OLD: MY06 GRP - 274/314 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urs1ne Posted August 27, 2008 Author Share Posted August 27, 2008 Its actually closer to $2k when its all said and done. Well my main reason for choosing the route I did is to work with Crawford. I have been in the local race scene for a long time racing a 600 horsepower track build racing Evo and most of the time Crawford comes out with a stock weight STi with less horsepower and beats us because of superior tuning and general race knowledge. I see this investment partially as getting in with them for the down the road potential of having their assistance once this becomes my weekend warrior. Not to mention they really know their shit when it comes to tuning, we even found a way to change the rpms of the shift light in "I" mode! Regardless, I am still a student of life and always willing to learn new things so I am definately going to do some research on the route you have suggested. ^ n00bs below this line Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legend Posted August 27, 2008 Share Posted August 27, 2008 Heck I can tune Ecutek and when someone asks me if they should go with Ecutek my answer is always: HELL NO! My sentiments exactly: HELL NO to Ecutek. I also speak from experience. I couldn't wait to get it off my ECU. I ate the license fee and I didn't care - as long as it was gone. Open source now, FYI. My '05 LGT My '07 Supercharged Shelby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urs1ne Posted August 27, 2008 Author Share Posted August 27, 2008 Honestly I am really blown away by the responses, so what is it that makes you guys hate it so much? I was under the impression from my research that this was the best setup for a "race car" because it offered tunability (lol, not the fish) that was unmatched. I am looking to get it tuned once so I can just forget about it until it time for some real racing. And money isnt really a factor, after dealing with race cars for so long I am eager to spend whatever it takes to get the best of the best regardless of cost, if its too expensive I will just wait longer. But I do have a lot of fun with flashing other things in my life from routers to cell phones to motherboards so Im definately not beyond that idea. Are there any good threads I can read about what goes into it or what you guys suggest or maybe I can get a pm from someone that doesnt mind fielding a few questions? I postponed the tune for now so I can do some research. ^ n00bs below this line Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lookslikeanevo Posted August 28, 2008 Share Posted August 28, 2008 pm infamous1 and there is a thread here somewhere ... I'll look for it in a bit or I will direct intamous1 here Current:MY05 SWP wagon - 253/290 UP, AEM CAI, Invidia Q300, tuned@yimisport OLD: MY06 GRP - 274/314 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infamous1 Posted August 30, 2008 Share Posted August 30, 2008 Honestly I am really blown away by the responses, so what is it that makes you guys hate it so much? I was under the impression from my research that this was the best setup for a "race car" because it offered tunability (lol, not the fish) that was unmatched. I am looking to get it tuned once so I can just forget about it until it time for some real racing. And money isnt really a factor, after dealing with race cars for so long I am eager to spend whatever it takes to get the best of the best regardless of cost, if its too expensive I will just wait longer. But I do have a lot of fun with flashing other things in my life from routers to cell phones to motherboards so Im definately not beyond that idea. Are there any good threads I can read about what goes into it or what you guys suggest or maybe I can get a pm from someone that doesnt mind fielding a few questions? I postponed the tune for now so I can do some research. PM me if you'd like.... Most say stay away from ECUTek because it is essentially the same thing as the free opensource software however it locks your ECU so that only authorized dealers can modify it down the line. Your car being an 07 is a CANbus ECU which isn't supported by the opensource software yet due to the cable for flashing/reading the ECU has yet to be released. That being said to my knowledge "Easy ecu" isn't even an option as well for the CANbus vehicles due to the cable yet again not being widely available. Your only option at this time for tuning a 07+ LGT is the Cobb AccessPort. -Shamar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urs1ne Posted August 30, 2008 Author Share Posted August 30, 2008 I have actually been waiting over a year for them to be able to tune it. They got an 07 SpecB the same time I got my car and I was waiting for them to figure out how to tune their car before they did mine. A couple months ago they got it and since then they have done about 10 other 07's which is why I figured it was time for a tune. But the main thing I want isnt horsepower (well ok maybe a little) for me its more important to have perfectly smooth acceleration. I want to be able to step on the gas in any gear and any rpm and get acceleration with no hesitation. I think that makes more of a difference on the track than 25 extra horsepower. So it seems like the main issue with the ECUTek is that you need an authorized tuner to be able to tune the car, that it costs too much and you cant part it out like an Cobb AP if you sell the car? Aside from those factors is there any reason not to get ECUTek? ^ n00bs below this line Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infamous1 Posted August 30, 2008 Share Posted August 30, 2008 So it seems like the main issue with the ECUTek is that you need an authorized tuner to be able to tune the car, that it costs too much and you cant part it out like an Cobb AP if you sell the car? Aside from those factors is there any reason not to get ECUTek? No really that is it, seems they have also got their hands on the new cable as well. If your not concerned with any of the above by all means go for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boostsr20 Posted August 31, 2008 Share Posted August 31, 2008 Honestly I am really blown away by the responses, so what is it that makes you guys hate it so much? Its not that we hate it. Its just a waste of money when there is freeware that does the same thing. Like BJ mentioned, the network of support for ECUtek is getting smaller by the day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPLGT Posted September 1, 2008 Share Posted September 1, 2008 FYI I paid $700 to have an Ecutek Stage 1 tune. I wnet stage 2 and the Tuner ran into some issues. Appraently Ecutek had limited the max% of the WGDC and I was limited to the amount of power that could be extracted. I have an 06 and up until March (when I had my tune), there was no fix. 2005 there were no issues but 2006, there was. I ended up eating the Liscensing fee and buying a v2 AP which could overwrite the Ecutek program. If I was you, I would bag the Ecutek deal and have your tuner or one of these other highly regarded ones tune yours and save big $$. Just my opinion. Rehab is for quitters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urs1ne Posted September 2, 2008 Author Share Posted September 2, 2008 Ok, so if I go with the Cobb AP I dont need to buy or pay for anything else besides the AP correct? Unless I want it tuned professionally? Does this just flash one of the modes or all of them? (I/S/S#) ^ n00bs below this line Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HB Speed Posted September 2, 2008 Share Posted September 2, 2008 Ok, so if I go with the Cobb AP I dont need to buy or pay for anything else besides the AP correct? Unless I want it tuned professionally? Does this just flash one of the modes or all of them? (I/S/S#)All the Si drive does is change the throttle settings, and a little bit of boost (because its based off the throttle settings) We are close to you (orange county) feel free to give us a buzz and we can get you all set up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urs1ne Posted September 2, 2008 Author Share Posted September 2, 2008 All the Si drive does is change the throttle settings, and a little bit of boost (because its based off the throttle settings) We are close to you (orange county) feel free to give us a buzz and we can get you all set up So when I flash my car all 3 setting will be flashed accordingly with the new map and the S# will be the true map and the S and I modes will be the retarded cousins of it like they are now? Can I flash them all separately so I can get maximum MPG from I and maximum power from S# and have S and somewhere in between? ^ n00bs below this line Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HB Speed Posted September 2, 2008 Share Posted September 2, 2008 So when I flash my car all 3 setting will be flashed accordingly with the new map and the S# will be the true map and the S and I modes will be the retarded cousins of it like they are now? Can I flash them all separately so I can get maximum MPG from I and maximum power from S# and have S and somewhere in between? thats kind of how it works I limits throttle to about 50% open S will fully open but response is slower S# opens alot faster and sees WOT by about 85% pedal movement the only other thing affected by these tables are boost Stock: i= 9 psi S= 13 S# = 13 by 85% throttle A tuner can make your boost however you like off those maps provided they have a clue as to how they work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urs1ne Posted September 3, 2008 Author Share Posted September 3, 2008 Alright, as per the suggestions of the forum I think I have decided to go with the AP for now until I get all the other stuff done to my car then I can sell the AP (for most of my money back apparently) and do the full tuning then with accompanying parts. Thank you everyone for your suggestions and opinions, I honestly wouldnt in a million years have gone with Cobb if it wasnt for your high recommendations. Hopefully I am going to get one ordered this week. ^ n00bs below this line Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urs1ne Posted September 3, 2008 Author Share Posted September 3, 2008 Thank you HB Speed for the great customer service! I got my AP ordered through them today and should be up and running by this weekend! ^ n00bs below this line Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lookslikeanevo Posted September 3, 2008 Share Posted September 3, 2008 yeah the AP is a good way to go...why are you planning on dumping it already? plans for a full stand-alone? Current:MY05 SWP wagon - 253/290 UP, AEM CAI, Invidia Q300, tuned@yimisport OLD: MY06 GRP - 274/314 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urs1ne Posted September 3, 2008 Author Share Posted September 3, 2008 yeah the AP is a good way to go...why are you planning on dumping it already? plans for a full stand-alone? Like I have said before, I do many track events and know a few guys with Crawford/I-Speed so when it comes time to do some serious race tuning I will go with them because of past experience and their racing knowledge. Since this car will be my daily driver for at least another 6 months I would rather save the money and do a Stage1 tune for now and when the time/money comes do it right. Although, in reality, here is the math: Economic Stimulus Check = $600 Cobb AP = $700 In my eyes thats tuning for $100. Even I know thats a good deal, especially since tuning is always my favorite mod and this will be cheaper than my catback which I dont even like that much. ^ n00bs below this line Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urs1ne Posted September 10, 2008 Author Share Posted September 10, 2008 Ok, the AP is worth it ease and functionality. I was so stoked with the results that I bought a Perrin catted downpipe, stage 2 here I come! ^ n00bs below this line Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lookslikeanevo Posted September 10, 2008 Share Posted September 10, 2008 ^lol nice that how i felt when i got my AP v1 two years ago stage 2 parts came really soon after stage 1 Current:MY05 SWP wagon - 253/290 UP, AEM CAI, Invidia Q300, tuned@yimisport OLD: MY06 GRP - 274/314 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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