thinking about using ms

bigbach007 · Post by **bigbach007** » Wed Jan 25, 2012 12:18 pm

Hello all. I'm coming to a close on a turbo build on a 2011 aveo 1.6 ecotec. I am starting to search for some engine management and several people on the aveo forums have suggested ms. I've never tuned a car before and I was hoping for some thoughts and advice on what controllers may work best and any things I should try and look for. I'll need something to control my fuel air mixture obviously but I may also need to be able to tweak engine timing. The timing changes should be minimal as I'm only running around 6 lbs. of boost. Again, I'm a total rookie here so any and all help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Matt Cramer · Post by **Matt Cramer** » Thu Jan 26, 2012 5:09 am

Fuel and ignition can both be set up, one way or another - is there anything else you'd need the ECU to control? What sort of trigger wheel does it use on the crankshaft position sensor? That's one of the biggest questions for timing control (unless you want to put a Ford style crank trigger on there and use EDIS).

bigbach007 · Post by **bigbach007** » Thu Jan 26, 2012 6:26 am

Honestly I don't know what sort of trigger there is off the crank. I few guys told me about using the Ford setup. Can you explain a little more about how that works and how you integrate that? As far as other things to control, I suppose I would need to control gauges and fans and things like that. My car is a standard transmission so I don't need to worry about transmission control or anything like that. I wish I knew more about the intricacies of my stock ecu setup but I'm sure i'll learn much more in the coming weeks.

Matt Cramer · Post by **Matt Cramer** » Fri Jan 27, 2012 7:07 am

bigbach007 wrote:Honestly I don't know what sort of trigger there is off the crank. I few guys told me about using the Ford setup. Can you explain a little more about how that works and how you integrate that?

Using EDIS with Bowling & Grippo's standard code is covered here:

http://www.megamanual.com/ms2/EDIS.htm

As far as other things to control, I suppose I would need to control gauges and fans and things like that. My car is a standard transmission so I don't need to worry about transmission control or anything like that. I wish I knew more about the intricacies of my stock ecu setup but I'm sure i'll learn much more in the coming weeks.

You'll need to determine what all the "things like that" are - it often helps to make a list of what capabilities you need, then find a MS system to match.

bigbach007 · Post by **bigbach007** » Fri Jan 27, 2012 9:39 am

Ok Matt. Thanks for the info. I'll make a list of necessary systems that i'll need to run. Honestly I can't think of much more than gauges, fans, fuel injectors, fuel pump, and spark timing. The only other thing that may be problematic is my car has cruise control which I've never even turned on but I suppose I may want to keep it hooked up just because.

So let's say I buy a controller, what's my next step? Like what is the interface like? I'm a controls engineer and I program PLCs for a living so that's kind of how I picture the ms controller to be. I'm guessing you just map the inputs and outputs to whatever signals you want on the car but then how do you actually tell it to change the outputs based on the inputs? I'm sorry if this seems like a dumb question but that is the part that I just really have no idea about.

Thanks

8974Ollie · Post by **8974Ollie** » Mon Jan 30, 2012 6:01 am

There is a section in the manual titled configuring MegaSquirt II. and tuning MegaSquirt II.
In the Configuring MegaSquirt II Enter the parameters for your engine. The basic tune should get the engine running at idle.
The Tuning MegaSquirt II tells how to get the engine tuned.

bigbach007 · Post by **bigbach007** » Mon Jan 30, 2012 7:21 am

Ok Ollie. Thanks! That should be all i need then i guess. Would you guys recommend buying a pre assembled unit or building one?

trakkies · Post by **trakkies** » Mon Jan 30, 2012 9:14 am

bigbach007 wrote:Ok Ollie. Thanks! That should be all i need then i guess. Would you guys recommend buying a pre assembled unit or building one?

Depends on your skills. If you've assembled other electronic kits in the past with success you should have no problems with an MS one. The labelling of the bits and the instructions are as good as you'll find anywhere. But allow a couple of short days to do it - don't rush.
I'd recommend building it - if you can - because it will help understand how it works.

bigbach007 · Post by **bigbach007** » Tue Jan 31, 2012 7:01 am

I don't mean to seem like I'm not hard core but I think I'm just going to buy one of the preassembled units just because I'm sure whoever builds it will have better soldering skills than I do and I'm sure it will hold up better in the long run. I think that just looking it over for a little while will suffice to understand how it works. I mean maybe I'm wrong about that but I'd rather pay the extra to know that I have a reliable unit.

I'm going to keep trying to read more about it but i'll probably order one this month.

trakkies · Post by **trakkies** » Tue Jan 31, 2012 8:31 am

If you're not certain of your soldering skills I'd definitely recommend buying a ready made one.

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