I am getting ready to be a brand new Evo IX MR owner (picking up the car tomorrow, 7/12) and just had a few questions regarding tuning. I come from a '19 civic SI where all I had to do was purchase a device called a K-Tuner, hook it up to my OBDII port, run a USB cable from the device to my laptop, and then I could flash the ECU with a base map/canned tune or a custom tune from my tuner. Is is relatively the same with the Evo IX?
I've been doing a little bit of research and is the tactrix openport device still the go-to? (https://www.tactrix.com/index.php?op...ed=1&Itemid=53)
Can I hook up directly from that device to a laptop in order to load a tune? Is this the device a tuner would use to custom tune it? I keep hearing the term "ROM file" being thrown around, is this the file you load for a tune?
Are there any other things I need? I've been seeing a program called ECUFlash a bunch and was wondering if that is the software used for the tactrix?
I'll probably be looking into flex fuel soon after I pick up the car and was wondering if there are base maps that I could load or do I just wait until I can get a custom tune to run any type of ethanol? Or do I even need a tune at all to start running ethanol?
I've also seen a bit of conflicting information regarding whether or not the OEM ECU can be used to run flex fuel. I've seen where people say it can, and then others that say you should run a standalone ECU for it. For the civic, I could just open up my K-Tuner, click a checkbox for "flex fuel" and I was off and running (assuming I had the right tune for it). Would it generally work the same way here, or is there something else I am missing?
Sorry for all the random questions, but I'm completely new to the platform and just eager to learn. I am certain I will be posting here a lot more as I start to do more with the car.
tactrix, yes. you need another plug to write to the ECU
check out your new car first while reading up here on evoms. I think you'll need bigger injectors/pump to run 100% E85
Tactrix is definitely still the go to, with stock ECU. Using ECUFlash to read and write and EVOScan to log parameters.
It is a very similar process, plug in Tactrix, open software, load tune, and write to ECU, however there is a little more learning curve with the software compared to Hondata and K-tuner, I also came from Hondata and the opens source software is a little less user friendly, but once you get the hang of it, it's not so bad especially for the $$. Also, there are no OTS maps using open source.
Also, compared to Honda, Evos need a tune for basically anything you do, exhaust, intake, etc. You will definitely need a tune if going e85 (look into Tephra Mod to run flex). What a lot of folks do is stack parts then install them all at once and get tuned for it, so they don't have to keep retuning.
Tactrix is definitely still the go to, with stock ECU. Using ECUFlash to read and write and EVOScan to log parameters.
It is a very similar process, plug in Tactrix, open software, load tune, and write to ECU, however there is a little more learning curve with the software compared to Hondata and K-tuner, I also came from Hondata and the opens source software is a little less user friendly, but once you get the hang of it, it's not so bad especially for the $$. Also, there are no OTS maps using open source.
Also, compared to Honda, Evos need a tune for basically anything you do, exhaust, intake, etc. You will definitely need a tune if going e85 (look into Tephra Mod to run flex). What a lot of folks do is stack parts then install them all at once and get tuned for it, so they don't have to keep retuning.
Thanks for the reply! Okay that's going to take some getting used to for gathering up parts and installing them all at once. I always did one mod at a time w/ my civic so I always knew if I encountered issues later on then I knew exactly where to look.
The guy I am buying it from said that there were a few mods already on the car when he bought it:
Front Mount Intercooler
Injen Intake and Intercooler Piping
Buschur Fuel Rail
Fuel Lab Fuel Pressure Regulator
Hallman Manual Boost Controller
But he said to his knowledge that there was no tune ever put on it. But I'm thinking w/ the fuel rail & pressure regulator (along w/ the others) that this guy had to have it tuned at some point. I'm flying out tomorrow to get it and driving it back home (~500 miles) so I should get a good feel for the car on the way back.
He also mentioned a CEL error due that he thinks is due to the fuel pressure regulator, but I'll have to dig deeper into that when I can actually pull the specific code w/ the OBDII.
tactrix, yes. you need another plug to write to the ECU
check out your new car first while reading up here on evoms. I think you'll need bigger injectors/pump to run 100% E85
Can you elaborate on
Quote: You need another plug to write to the ECU
?
Yea I will most certainly have to upgrade those. I have E85 readily available, but I like the idea of flex fuel in case I travel or I'm in a pinch and don't have access to E85.
From what I've read it sounds like the car is good to run full E85 without any issues. (Very different from my civic where I can only utilize up to 40% ethanol content before it becomes a waste).
Yea I will most certainly have to upgrade those. I have E85 readily available, but I like the idea of flex fuel in case I travel or I'm in a pinch and don't have access to E85.
From what I've read it sounds like the car is good to run full E85 without any issues. (Very different from my civic where I can only utilize up to 40% ethanol content before it becomes a waste).
The 2nd one is the one with the jack. without it you cant write to the ECU. Mine is just the white plug tip with a very short wire. normally they stay in the car so people might forget to take that out when selling used tactrix adapters https://stmtuned.com/products/tactri...hoCcjMQAvD_BwE
yeah 100% e85 is common, maybe 390-420hp with injector/pump upgrade. I have 93 and e85 maps that I can toggle with key & gas pedal. flex fuel would be nice but the one tuner I know locks the ECU.
I just carry 25gal of extra e85 when I race in areas without e85 for miles. It's not ideal for several 20min track sessions tho
The 2nd one is the one with the jack. without it you cant write to the ECU. Mine is just the white plug tip with a very short wire. normally they stay in the car so people might forget to take that out when selling used tactrix adapters https://stmtuned.com/products/tactri...hoCcjMQAvD_BwE
yeah 100% e85 is common, maybe 390-420hp with injector/pump upgrade. I have 93 and e85 maps that I can toggle with key & gas pedal. flex fuel would be nice but the one tuner I know locks the ECU.
I just carry 25gal of extra e85 when I race in areas without e85 for miles. It's not ideal for several 20min track sessions tho
Ahh I see. So I just to have make sure and get the openport 2.0 w/ the correct adapter? I'll probably order directly from tactrix because theirs is like $30 cheaper than the one STM sells.
Yea I haven't even started looking at tuners yet or how exactly I want to build out the car. I'm sure I'll go full FBO to start things out, but I definitely want to get flex fuel in there ASAP because of how much of a difference it makes. It really woke up my civic that's for sure. But I figured I could at least install the components and just run on normal 93 until I can some other parts and get it tuned.
Do you recommend getting a flex fuel kit or just getting the parts separately? I've seen a few people just order the parts themselves along with the ethanol content gauge and do it that way as a cheaper option, but wasn't sure if there were any advantages to buying a full kit.
Ahh I see. So I just to have make sure and get the openport 2.0 w/ the correct adapter? I'll probably order directly from tactrix because theirs is like $30 cheaper than the one STM sells.
Yea I haven't even started looking at tuners yet or how exactly I want to build out the car. I'm sure I'll go full FBO to start things out, but I definitely want to get flex fuel in there ASAP because of how much of a difference it makes. It really woke up my civic that's for sure. But I figured I could at least install the components and just run on normal 93 until I can some other parts and get it tuned.
Do you recommend getting a flex fuel kit or just getting the parts separately? I've seen a few people just order the parts themselves along with the ethanol content gauge and do it that way as a cheaper option, but wasn't sure if there were any advantages to buying a full kit.
From my understanding, flex fuel just allows you to run on different ethanol content. So if you were ever in a bind you could use 93 if you didn't have access to E85, but you could also run E85 and it would adjust everything based on the ethanol content reading.
From my understanding, flex fuel just allows you to run on different ethanol content. So if you were ever in a bind you could use 93 if you didn't have access to E85, but you could also run E85 and it would adjust everything based on the ethanol content reading.
yes 93oct/E15 ~360HP...E85 ~420HP , so just interpolate HP from ethanol content between 15% and 85%
if you want to drain/run to Empty the 93oct to fill with e85, you'll still have an certain amount of 93oct in the tank to dilute the e85
