UpRev ECU Dyno tune
 

I've posted this in the Canadian section because.... well I'm in Canada. And you folks not in my area may or may not care about my experience.

Firstly, here's what was done to the car. (Pretty basic, really.) Stillen short-ram intakes, HFC's, CBE. I had these installed two plus years ago before I took delivery of the car at the dealership. So, I had no baseline to compare the before & after. But, I realized that the car was running pretty rich with the improved air flow. (BTW, I did have a dyno run at another shop two months after I took delivery. Let's just say the numbers from that dyno were a bit "scewed".)

Now, to my day. I booked an appointment with LightSpeed Innovations in Red Deer, Alberta. I was looked after promptly when I arrived (after my 2.5 hour drive).

They began by exchanging one of the rear oxygen sensors with a wider band unit than the OEM sensor. Also, two knock sensors were hooked up to listen for any irregularities. Then we removed the wheels and proceeded to hook-up the chassis dyno.

Here's where the experience was very gratifying. Cam (the owner) was perfectly OK with me removing my own wheels. You see, I have kind of "special" wheels. And I am picky about who touches them. Cam made me feel at ease and encouraged me to do what I was comfortable with. So I was the one who removed and re-installed them after we were done.

We did the first dyno for our baseline run. The numbers were lower than I thought, but I believe more realistic than the first "scewed" numbers I got at the other company. Next, Cam plugged in the AFR settings from DJpathfinders' tune (since his car was very similar to mine). Big improvement!

Cam then "tweaked" those numbers a bit and we showed even more improvement. A final try at improving the AFR settings was attempted, but the numbers fell off. Cam then looked at the timing. A try at adjusting the timing was made, but the numbers again fell off.

So the third run was the best, and those numbers were entered. Cam then removed the rear oxygen sensor inputs to the ECU, moved the rev limiter up to 8300 rpms, removed the speed limiter, and removed some EVAP component inputs. And we were done!

Here's the improvement percentages over the baseline run;

HP improvement was 5% and max torque improved 5% over a wider range than the baseline.

Now, for those of you looking to see the charts and the numbers.... you won't. There have been too many arguements and flaming posts on these forums that I've seen to warrant me NOT posting the numbers.

Let's just say the car drives considerably better. I was always concerned with the lack of power around 3000 to 4500 rpms. It seemed the car had this "wall" that it came up against at that point in the power band. Probably because of the richness of the AFR at that point. Also the engine seems to be much smoother throughout the entire powerband. The lower end torque improvement is very noticable. In fact when Cam and I took our test drive afterwards, I mentioned that the improvement was "seat-in-your-pants" feel. In other words... it was instantly noticable. And I am very pleased that we cleaned up the AFR and now should not have to worry about the rear oxygen sensors throwing codes. Also that the rev limiter was moved up so as to not cut-off right when the engine is making maximum power.

For those of you still sitting on the fence about the UpRev tune (as I was), I would highly recommend one. Even if you have not done any mods. Just the fact that the AFR was cleaned up should be proof enough for you.

LightSpeed Innovations is a small "family" business. As one who operates this type of business, I can tell you that I was very pleased with the service and attention I was given. Any question I had was answered and explained completely. Their shop is modern and very clean. The staff also were very pleasant. It seemed that while I was there, I was their only and most important customer. I'm not sure company endorsemants are allowed on here, but for those of you considering this.... I hope this review helps you.

Footnote to the above review...

My reasoning for doing the ECU tune was NOT for the highest numbers attainable. It was to improve the efficiency of the engine through all of its range.

If I was looking for the highest totals.... I would have gone the nitrous route and probably blown the thing sky high :-)

Just tell us the numbers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cant count the amount of people who told me my numbers are inflated, but who cares. My UpRev tuner only raised my Rev Limter 100rpm's. But I have been thinking of having them raise it more. Did your tuner stress any concern with the hight rev limiter, I mean you went about 800 more?

Nice review! I am definitely going to take RoZy there. Just a matter of when... hmmmm.

Nice review 6MT. I'm glad you're satisfied with the results! Can you comment on NET change in HP and torque at peak, numerically (as opposed to percentage). As for final numbers...you're absolutely right, they mean nothing to anyone else's car. Your dyno runs and mine were done under different conditions so you can't properly compare them anyway. That's great that he could use my profile as a starting point. That should have cut down a bit of work to achieve your end results.

Thanks for the write up. :tup:

Yeah, this is my next "mod" also, i have about 4or 5 buddies that have all had there tuning done by Cam, and all are very happy.

4 or 5 370Z's? Or other vehicles?

The "NET" change is there. I can see it, but I rarely red-line the engine. What the big difference is, is the low-end torque. And starting off in 1st gear. Since the fuel has been cut back, the difference is noticable.

What is kind of cool is looking at the HP right at 7500 rpm. The plot takes a noticable upturn. How much more is there is anybody's guess. Maybe if one tried a run up to and above 8K (?). (I know I wouldn't have the balls for that, though.)

This is a different car. That's all I can say. The changes have made this a different car to drive. Much less "effort" to driving the manual gearbox than before. Since the engine does not "bog" down so much at low revs. So you don't have to "feather" or "modulate" the clutch and throttle as gently. AND, that change at the 3000 to 4500 mark is incredible. It's smoother and you can really feel it in the seat.

Nice review :tup:

I'm looking forward to when I get my dyno done at LightSpeed to compare my results to everyone elses :p But don't worry, I don't see and tell anyone but the original owner of the dyno. So far I've compared my stock dyno to a few "tuned" 370Z dynos and the difference is apparent.

It wouldn't surprise me that Cam compared my dyno info with yours Andy to show the differences. :tup:

Actually, no Lloyd. Cam only compared mine with Adel's. We also talked about the supercharged 370 that he did as well.

Weird...he compared mine with Lloyd's and said that his was running like a 4 cylinder. :stirthepot: Just kidding! :roflpuke2:

Ouch! :bowrofl:

Since it's not running at all at the moment ....... 4 cylinders would be a improvement

I'm interested in getting this guy onto the forum. I forget his name, but his Dad owns a tire shop on the southside.

others, a mix of WRX, STi's, SRT-4's and a Eclipes (older turbo)

Gotcha. I am getting a good feeling that Cam has been able to dial in our Z's with good results. I too am looking for torque improvements along with better power band smoothing. HP @ max RPM is useless for daily driving and irrelevant for most people.