ECUflash/ Tactrix cable newb thread
Sep 29, 2010, 06:02 AM
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ECUflash/ Tactrix cable newb thread
Ok, so i have been doing alot and alot of searching and studing about ECUflash/ Evoscan/ and the tactrix cable for flashing the ECU. I wanted to make a thread that will hopefully answer not only questions i may have but for other newbs in the future, that would like to tune there cars using the tactrix cable. Here is what i know so far. The tactrix cable is a device that is used to flash the ecu. It connects to the OBD2 connector under the dash, and to your computer USB port so you can logg, view, and modify the cars ECU. In order to use the tactrix cable, you need logging software such as ECUflash, Mitsulogger, or Evoscan. I know its the best thing out there for tuning our cars.
Here are some questions that i have that are prob very simple answers, i just learn in a different way and in order for me to fully understand something i need to ask alot of questions.
1.) I have downloaded ECUflash or Evoscan. Can i simply plug in my tactrix cable to the PC and begin to logg/ flash the ECU? Or is there a certain set up process that needs to be done first?
2.) What is a ROM? Im pretty sure the rom is just the ecu image right?
3.) Whats are definition files, how are these used, whats there intent?
4.) Is there a limit to how many times i can flash my lancer ECU?
5.) What are the risks of using the tactrix cable? ie; Ecu freezes, locks, etc.
Little bit more involved questions;
1.) Maps? these are simply the way the ECU lay's out figures correct?
2.) For injector scaling, is there a certain mathamatical equation in order to come up with the lentency numbers? For example, i know the scaling part is generally 15-20% of the injector size, like 370cc would be scalled to 296 or so to start... you logg the fuel trims to get within -5/+5 as close to zero as possible, but how do you come up with the lentency numbers?
3.) For begginer tunners like myself, after learning to scale the injectors, whats the next step? Is there a certain easyer way to do it? From reading and research is seems like you want to first logg knocksum and get rid of as much knock as possible by adjusting the timing. Then you want to work on ARF to achive a 11.5 ARF while in boost right? Is this the ideal way of tuning?
Thanks guys! Hopefully more questions will arise and this thread can be a quick referance for other people as well that have any questions about the tactrix cable
Here are some questions that i have that are prob very simple answers, i just learn in a different way and in order for me to fully understand something i need to ask alot of questions.
1.) I have downloaded ECUflash or Evoscan. Can i simply plug in my tactrix cable to the PC and begin to logg/ flash the ECU? Or is there a certain set up process that needs to be done first?
2.) What is a ROM? Im pretty sure the rom is just the ecu image right?
3.) Whats are definition files, how are these used, whats there intent?
4.) Is there a limit to how many times i can flash my lancer ECU?
5.) What are the risks of using the tactrix cable? ie; Ecu freezes, locks, etc.
Little bit more involved questions;
1.) Maps? these are simply the way the ECU lay's out figures correct?
2.) For injector scaling, is there a certain mathamatical equation in order to come up with the lentency numbers? For example, i know the scaling part is generally 15-20% of the injector size, like 370cc would be scalled to 296 or so to start... you logg the fuel trims to get within -5/+5 as close to zero as possible, but how do you come up with the lentency numbers?
3.) For begginer tunners like myself, after learning to scale the injectors, whats the next step? Is there a certain easyer way to do it? From reading and research is seems like you want to first logg knocksum and get rid of as much knock as possible by adjusting the timing. Then you want to work on ARF to achive a 11.5 ARF while in boost right? Is this the ideal way of tuning?
Thanks guys! Hopefully more questions will arise and this thread can be a quick referance for other people as well that have any questions about the tactrix cable
Last edited by Mitsu.kid.02; Sep 29, 2010 at 06:12 AM.
Sep 29, 2010, 09:52 AM
#2
Ok, so i have been doing alot and alot of searching and studing about ECUflash/ Evoscan/ and the tactrix cable for flashing the ECU. I wanted to make a thread that will hopefully answer not only questions i may have but for other newbs in the future, that would like to tune there cars using the tactrix cable. Here is what i know so far. The tactrix cable is a device that is used to flash the ecu. It connects to the OBD2 connector under the dash, and to your computer USB port so you can logg, view, and modify the cars ECU. In order to use the tactrix cable, you need logging software such as ECUflash, Mitsulogger, or Evoscan. I know its the best thing out there for tuning our cars.
Here are some questions that i have that are prob very simple answers, i just learn in a different way and in order for me to fully understand something i need to ask alot of questions.
1.) I have downloaded ECUflash or Evoscan. Can i simply plug in my tactrix cable to the PC and begin to logg/ flash the ECU? Or is there a certain set up process that needs to be done first?Begin to log yes after selecting the items you wish to log. Flash no not until you download Senates definition files so you can view your ecu image on the computer.
2.) What is a ROM? Im pretty sure the rom is just the ecu image right?Correct
3.) Whats are definition files, how are these used, whats there intent?This the file someone has created that is used to break down the info retrieved from the ecu and put it on the ecu screen in a format we can decipher
4.) Is there a limit to how many times i can flash my lancer ECU?Contrary to popular belief no I have flashed my car thousands of times now.
5.) What are the risks of using the tactrix cable? ie; Ecu freezes, locks, etc.only risk really is not doing enough research and modifying your ecu before your ready and inputting wrong info causing engine failure
Little bit more involved questions;
1.) Maps? these are simply the way the ECU lay's out figures correct?Correct
2.) For injector scaling, is there a certain mathamatical equation in order to come up with the lentency numbers? For example, i know the scaling part is generally 15-20% of the injector size, like 370cc would be scalled to 296 or so to start... you logg the fuel trims to get within -5/+5 as close to zero as possible, but how do you come up with the lentency numbers?
3.) For begginer tunners like myself, after learning to scale the injectors, whats the next step? Is there a certain easyer way to do it? From reading and research is seems like you want to first logg knocksum and get rid of as much knock as possible by adjusting the timing. Then you want to work on ARF to achive a 11.5 ARF while in boost right? Is this the ideal way of tuning?
Thanks guys! Hopefully more questions will arise and this thread can be a quick referance for other people as well that have any questions about the tactrix cable
Here are some questions that i have that are prob very simple answers, i just learn in a different way and in order for me to fully understand something i need to ask alot of questions.
1.) I have downloaded ECUflash or Evoscan. Can i simply plug in my tactrix cable to the PC and begin to logg/ flash the ECU? Or is there a certain set up process that needs to be done first?Begin to log yes after selecting the items you wish to log. Flash no not until you download Senates definition files so you can view your ecu image on the computer.
2.) What is a ROM? Im pretty sure the rom is just the ecu image right?Correct
3.) Whats are definition files, how are these used, whats there intent?This the file someone has created that is used to break down the info retrieved from the ecu and put it on the ecu screen in a format we can decipher
4.) Is there a limit to how many times i can flash my lancer ECU?Contrary to popular belief no I have flashed my car thousands of times now.
5.) What are the risks of using the tactrix cable? ie; Ecu freezes, locks, etc.only risk really is not doing enough research and modifying your ecu before your ready and inputting wrong info causing engine failure
Little bit more involved questions;
1.) Maps? these are simply the way the ECU lay's out figures correct?Correct
2.) For injector scaling, is there a certain mathamatical equation in order to come up with the lentency numbers? For example, i know the scaling part is generally 15-20% of the injector size, like 370cc would be scalled to 296 or so to start... you logg the fuel trims to get within -5/+5 as close to zero as possible, but how do you come up with the lentency numbers?
3.) For begginer tunners like myself, after learning to scale the injectors, whats the next step? Is there a certain easyer way to do it? From reading and research is seems like you want to first logg knocksum and get rid of as much knock as possible by adjusting the timing. Then you want to work on ARF to achive a 11.5 ARF while in boost right? Is this the ideal way of tuning?
Thanks guys! Hopefully more questions will arise and this thread can be a quick referance for other people as well that have any questions about the tactrix cable
Sep 29, 2010, 03:53 PM
#4
1.) I have downloaded ECUflash or Evoscan. Can i simply plug in my tactrix cable to the PC and begin to logg/ flash the ECU? Or is there a certain set up process that needs to be done first? You need to also download the master definition list file for EcuFlash to be able to read your ECU's ROM.
2.) What is a ROM? Im pretty sure the rom is just the ecu image right? Yes.
3.) Whats are definition files, how are these used, whats there intent? Definition files are required to turn your ROM into something readable. If you looked at your ROM without a definition file you would just see 256K of hex values.
4.) Is there a limit to how many times i can flash my lancer ECU? Technically yes, but there is no exact amount. Like any memory chip used in numerous applications (flash drives, SSD drives, video game systems, cell phones, etc.) the memory in the ECU can only undergo so many write/erase cycles before they begin to fail. The average should be in the hundreds and shouldn't be cause for alarm. Worst case, you pick up another ECU and continue on.
5.) What are the risks of using the tactrix cable? ie; Ecu freezes, locks, etc. Bricked ECU, improper tune leading to a blown engine.
Little bit more involved questions;
1.) Maps? these are simply the way the ECU lay's out figures correct? Yes. These are the addresses in the ECU that are grouped together to form tables/maps.
2.) For injector scaling, is there a certain mathamatical equation in order to come up with the lentency numbers? For example, i know the scaling part is generally 15-20% of the injector size, like 370cc would be scalled to 296 or so to start... you logg the fuel trims to get within -5/+5 as close to zero as possible, but how do you come up with the lentency numbers? See here for tuning latencies: https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/5889337-post4.html
3.) For begginer tunners like myself, after learning to scale the injectors, whats the next step? Is there a certain easyer way to do it? From reading and research is seems like you want to first logg knocksum and get rid of as much knock as possible by adjusting the timing. Then you want to work on ARF to achive a 11.5 ARF while in boost right? Is this the ideal way of tuning? After you have your injectors dialed in for size and latency, figure out the target AFR you want to shoot for and make fuel adjustments accordingly. Lower values in the fuel tables mean more fuel in EcuFlash. If you are getting knock, pull back your timing.
Thanks guys! Hopefully more questions will arise and this thread can be a quick referance for other people as well that have any questions about the tactrix cable
2.) What is a ROM? Im pretty sure the rom is just the ecu image right? Yes.
3.) Whats are definition files, how are these used, whats there intent? Definition files are required to turn your ROM into something readable. If you looked at your ROM without a definition file you would just see 256K of hex values.
4.) Is there a limit to how many times i can flash my lancer ECU? Technically yes, but there is no exact amount. Like any memory chip used in numerous applications (flash drives, SSD drives, video game systems, cell phones, etc.) the memory in the ECU can only undergo so many write/erase cycles before they begin to fail. The average should be in the hundreds and shouldn't be cause for alarm. Worst case, you pick up another ECU and continue on.
5.) What are the risks of using the tactrix cable? ie; Ecu freezes, locks, etc. Bricked ECU, improper tune leading to a blown engine.
Little bit more involved questions;
1.) Maps? these are simply the way the ECU lay's out figures correct? Yes. These are the addresses in the ECU that are grouped together to form tables/maps.
2.) For injector scaling, is there a certain mathamatical equation in order to come up with the lentency numbers? For example, i know the scaling part is generally 15-20% of the injector size, like 370cc would be scalled to 296 or so to start... you logg the fuel trims to get within -5/+5 as close to zero as possible, but how do you come up with the lentency numbers? See here for tuning latencies: https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/5889337-post4.html
3.) For begginer tunners like myself, after learning to scale the injectors, whats the next step? Is there a certain easyer way to do it? From reading and research is seems like you want to first logg knocksum and get rid of as much knock as possible by adjusting the timing. Then you want to work on ARF to achive a 11.5 ARF while in boost right? Is this the ideal way of tuning? After you have your injectors dialed in for size and latency, figure out the target AFR you want to shoot for and make fuel adjustments accordingly. Lower values in the fuel tables mean more fuel in EcuFlash. If you are getting knock, pull back your timing.
Thanks guys! Hopefully more questions will arise and this thread can be a quick referance for other people as well that have any questions about the tactrix cable
Oct 2, 2010, 11:45 AM
#6
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Got my tactrix cable in today! I installed ECUflash onto my comp. Selected something like "Mitsubishi vehicles 2003-2005 evo5-8" and hit "read from ECU" and this is what came up!!
[14:33:54.452] EcuFlash Version 1.42.2595
[14:33:54.452] OS Version Windows Vista
[14:33:54.452] Qt Version 4.5.0
[14:33:54.467] 56 memory models read.
[14:33:54.467] scanning for metadata models in C:/Program Files/OpenECU/EcuFlash/rommetadata
[14:33:55.107] 343 ROM metadata models scanned.
[14:33:55.107] checksum module "subarudbw" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] checksum module "mitsucan" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "wrx02" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "wrx04" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "sti04" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "sti05" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "mitsukernel" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "mitsukernelocp" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "mitsubootloader" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "shbootmode" loaded.
[14:33:55.122] flashing tool "shaudmode" loaded.
[14:33:55.122] flashing tool "subarucan" loaded.
[14:33:55.122] flashing tool "mitsucan" loaded.
[14:36:50.501] Using interface OpenPort 1.3 Universal TX28QLPm49cb74d5059701c88f3abb4ec70ec9889df33b38
[14:37:01.585] sending init sequence 1 (0001)
[14:37:04.877] sending init sequence 1 (0003)
[14:37:08.153] sending init sequence 1 (FFFF)
[14:37:10.899] no response to any known code
[14:37:10.899] interface close
What did i do wrong?
[14:33:54.452] EcuFlash Version 1.42.2595
[14:33:54.452] OS Version Windows Vista
[14:33:54.452] Qt Version 4.5.0
[14:33:54.467] 56 memory models read.
[14:33:54.467] scanning for metadata models in C:/Program Files/OpenECU/EcuFlash/rommetadata
[14:33:55.107] 343 ROM metadata models scanned.
[14:33:55.107] checksum module "subarudbw" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] checksum module "mitsucan" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "wrx02" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "wrx04" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "sti04" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "sti05" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "mitsukernel" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "mitsukernelocp" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "mitsubootloader" loaded.
[14:33:55.107] flashing tool "shbootmode" loaded.
[14:33:55.122] flashing tool "shaudmode" loaded.
[14:33:55.122] flashing tool "subarucan" loaded.
[14:33:55.122] flashing tool "mitsucan" loaded.
[14:36:50.501] Using interface OpenPort 1.3 Universal TX28QLPm49cb74d5059701c88f3abb4ec70ec9889df33b38
[14:37:01.585] sending init sequence 1 (0001)
[14:37:04.877] sending init sequence 1 (0003)
[14:37:08.153] sending init sequence 1 (FFFF)
[14:37:10.899] no response to any known code
[14:37:10.899] interface close
What did i do wrong?
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Oct 2, 2010, 02:30 PM
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I found a version older (1.29) i downloaded that, and still getting the same error message. Am i suppost to hook up the re-flash cable as well? I only plugged in the OBD2 port.
Oct 2, 2010, 04:58 PM
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Ok, it worked, ECUflash loaded up for me and i was all connected and i could read the ROM. They had an option for 2002 lancer OZ which was cool lol. So, can i log with ECUflash or do i need evo scan? If i can log with ECUflash do i leave both connectors (FLASH & OBD2) connected with the car running or is there a certain way i have to do things? Also where do i input the definition files? How do i load them?
