New ECU add-on boards available - Form an orderly queue!

[awaken101]

Hi Ron,

Saw your last post about availability, are there any FED 1499's left? Would love to grab one ASAP if available. Thanks!

[RonR]

You're not too late gents.

The Mk2 boards are all spoken for, but I still have a few Mk1 boards and chips that I can build up.

Please PM me with your requirements.

[awaken101]

Thanks for reaching out Ron! Can't wait to get it installed!

[happylarry007]

Hi I would like to purchase one of the upgrades (Everest) Please,
little confused where I find the number of my present chip all I can find is 014 89388 AB9045B Do these make any sense ? oddly on the chip in the Memcal it has a handwritten sticker which says "Elan Mar 2000" The car is 1991?

[muley]

Hi Ron,

PM sent. Couldn't follow the list, maybe I'm


32. 1499 Everest (converting an SE to closed loop)

Regards

[RonR]

Larry - I think you may have a '9930' prom, introduced to improve the range of CO Pot adjustment for emissions. We would need to confirm this so I can program the correct Everest version.

Muley - Yes I can get a board to you by Xmas, PM on it's way....



So...
There have been orders via Email and PM which didn't make it onto the list, meaning as of now all chips for Mk1 & Mk2 boards are spoken for unless someone drops out.

Mk3 boards coming soon....

[padeee]

Hi Ron,
It appears that I'm too late. I've been struggling to lower the CO on a 1992 non-catalyst Turbo SE. I checked all of the usual possible causes, tuning, sensors etc. and eventually read some posts about the revised 9930 prom. My car has a sealed ecu case and is marked 9929. It is currently "open loop" but I would add a lambda sensor if necessary (plug is on the valence). I'm not currently interested in achieving a power increase, just lowering the CO enough to pass my National Car Test (below 3.5% at idle). My questions are, do I definitely need to go "closed loop" to get there? and which or whether, can you supply me with whatever board, chip and map that I'll need? And if not, when do you think you'll be back in stock?
Much appreciated
Paddy

[RonR]

Hi Paddy,

Was the O2 reading taken with the engine nice & hot? I usually let the car idle until fans on before going for an MOT, it helps.

Did you use the method in the engine management manual, adjusting the CO Pot while using an exhaust gas analyser?
If that didn't get you below 3.5% then the 9930 will give you more adjustment range on the Pot. Lotus released this prom for exactly this purpose, so it SHOULD work.

The 1499 closed loop conversion should take the O2 readings much lower, but without a catalytic converter in the chain it wouldn't be as low as with one.

Over the next week or so I'm going to experiment with my spare MemCal to see if I can erase and re-program its original chip with a new prom image (after 32 years in a car it may or may not work!).
If it's a success I can offer to re-program your existing 9929 to 9930.

[padeee]

Hi Paddy,

Was the O2 reading taken with the engine nice & hot? I usually let the car idle until fans on before going for an MOT, it helps.

Did you use the method in the engine management manual, adjusting the CO Pot while using an exhaust gas analyser?
If that didn't get you below 3.5% then the 9930 will give you more adjustment range on the Pot. Lotus released this prom for exactly this purpose, so it SHOULD work.

The 1499 closed loop conversion should take the O2 readings much lower, but without a catalytic converter in the chain it wouldn't be as low as with one.

Over the next week or so I'm going to experiment with my spare MemCal to see if I can erase and re-program its original chip with a new prom image (after 32 years in a car it may or may not work!).
If it's a success I can offer to re-program your existing 9929 to 9930.

Thanks Ron, unfortunately over here in Ireland we don't have any control over the test conditions bar the strategic placement of a €50 note I have checked it myself with the fan cutting in and it is very high (around 5%). I also set the CO Pot at it's leanest setting 270 Ohms, I've even taken the injectors out and checked the spray formation. This car has only 20K miles since new and I just can't find anything wrong with it! Hopefully your Tech can sort it, it seems to be the next logical step.

[dapinky]

I have a thought, which is probably no use at all, but I will mention it just so someone who understands how it works can tell me it's stupid........

...... the CO pot has a fairly limited 'range' - is the 'best' emissions figure obtained somewhere in the middle of the range, or at one end? Wherever it is, does this position equate to the 'best' driving experience?

ie, is the whole thing a bit of a compromise???

So, my thought process is this - can the OE pot be replaced with an aftermarket preset pot with a bigger range (or completely different range, except they all tend to go from 0 to whatever Ohms), or even with a fixed-value resistor to give lower emission values?

I understand that this is a very agricultural way to get to an arbitrary number, and the the electronics *should* be able to do it for us - but would it work????

[Tuga2112]

So, my thought process is this - can the OE pot be replaced with an aftermarket preset pot with a bigger range (or completely different range, except they all tend to go from 0 to whatever Ohms), or even with a fixed-value resistor to give lower emission values?

I understand that this is a very agricultural way to get to an arbitrary number, and the the electronics *should* be able to do it for us - but would it work????

if its a pot in the literal technical electronics meaning of the word "potentiometer" it will have 3 wires. one for the reference ground, one for the high voltage value. and the last for the output voltage.
they come in many resistance ranges. and generally speaking the broader the range on which they operate, the harder it will be for you to set a very precise output voltage.
a resistor (or combination of) can give you the exact output that YOUR car can operate against (at one point in time). but it wouldnt be the ideal value for other cars.
i have considered this in the past. as a combination of 2 pots with different ranges can be used to genrate a very finely tuned output. as the one with the broader range can get you close to a "ideal" output and the second (in series) pot can be used to fine tune a little further the exact voltage output of the circuit.

now, with all the theory about potentiometers out of the way

the fact a software update was required to increase the pot "range" i suspect the outcome of some testing highlighted that the ECU reading of maximum (or minium) voltage sets the injectors timing up (or down) to a certain amount of miliseconds. and that limit. wasnt enough.

on other words. I suspect when you reached the fully open (or closed) output of the pot. you are not limited by the electrical signal coming out of the pot. you actually are limited to the what the data tables set the "safe" limits of operation to be.

and as others said. changing to closed loop is the way forward. the cost can be easily offset by the worries at the time of the MOT and you get better fuel consumption while no one has recorded noticing a difference in the power output. and if yout really worried about loving power. making it an everest closed loop is definitely going to increase the output.


personally i have ran my car in open and closed loop everest settings, and never noticed the difference.

[RonR]

EDIT: Senior Moment time I'm afraid..... Just checked the wiring diagrams and the WIKI, and the CO pot isn't wired as a 'potential divider' like other sensors, it's wired as a variable resistor with a 270 Ohm fixed resistor in series to limit the current draw on the reference supply. So even with the CO Pot at it's minimum you'll still see a resistance of 270 Ohms.

How it works in the prom code:
The ECU doesn't use the CO Pot voltage directly, there's a table of 'multiplier' values which vary with RPM, the result of voltage x multiplier is a 1-Byte value used in other calculations.
The first entry in the table, the one covering Idle speed is the one entry changed between 9929 and 9930 proms, so the same CO Pot voltage can produce different Idle fuelling values in the 2 proms. That's why the CO Pot needs to be adjusted when changing from 9929 to 9930.

The 1499 closed loop prom doesn't use this mechanism at all, it uses the O2 sensor readings instead. There's also a fall-back calculation if the O2 sensor fails, which I haven't looked at.

[RonR]

Hi Paddy,
Your 270 Ohm reading is the lowest resistance possible, as the CO Pot has a 270 Ohm fixed resistor in series with it (From the WIKI Backup HERE). The resistor is there to limit the current taken from the ECU's reference supply, so I wouldn't go changing it!

[padeee]

Hi Paddy,
Your 270 Ohm reading is the lowest resistance possible, as the CO Pot has a 270 Ohm fixed resistor in series with it (From the WIKI Backup HERE). The resistor is there to limit the current taken from the ECU's reference supply, so I wouldn't go changing it!

Got it Ron. I connected a meter to it and watched the entire range over the 20 (or so) turns until it "bottomed out" at 270ohms. It was actually already fully lean when I got to it.

[padeee]

Hi Ron,
Just wondering if you had a chance to experiment?
I broke the seal on the ECU and took a look inside. I presume it's this blue cartridge that I'll need to send to you?

[RonR]

Hi Paddy,

I made an adapter to plug the Memcal into my Eprom programmer. It was able to read the Memcal contents, but unfortunately the programmer can't write to the particular chip used in the Memcal. I may be able to make a modification to allow it to be written, but it may take some time to make the alterations.

However, I may have a solution: One of the guys I have been holding a board for hasn't been in contact since September despite emails etc, so I'm going to say he's dropped out. I could re-program this board to 9930 and 1499, so you could have either open or closed loop.

[padeee]

Hi Paddy,

I made an adapter to plug the Memcal into my Eprom programmer. It was able to read the Memcal contents, but unfortunately the programmer can't write to the particular chip used in the Memcal. I may be able to make a modification to allow it to be written, but it may take some time to make the alterations.

However, I may have a solution: One of the guys I have been holding a board for hasn't been in contact since September despite emails etc, so I'm going to say he's dropped out. I could re-program this board to 9930 and 1499, so you could have either open or closed loop.

Sounds good! PM sent

[RonR]

Hi I would like to purchase one of the upgrades (Everest) Please,

Does anyone know 'Happy Larry'? I've left PMs and Emails for him but haven't had a reply since his original post.....

[Elite501]

Hi RonR,

Are the Everest closed loop chip still available?

[Elite501]

Hi
How do I get hold of Ron to find out if an upgrade Everest chips are available?
Thanks