Archive for category: Knowledge Base

Article & Research by Jamie Mattson, with edits by Jason Bolger.

Introduction

In the quest to be able to adjust parameters in the EB ED EF EL V8 BTR 4 Speed auto transmission, and to simplify engine conversions in 6 cylinder E-Series and XG/XH vehicles to V8 EFI Windsors without pulling the vehicle into a million pieces to fit a V8 loom, our friend Jamie has devised an ingenious way to run the Windsor V8 using a 6 Cylinder ECU in “MAFless” speed density mode to control both the engine and transmission, allowing full control over engine and trans via a J3 Chip.

Jamie spent a considerable amount of time finding the parameters in the code, and this How To guide has been written to explain how it’s done.

Benefits

• Full control of the Auto transmission via J3 Chip
• Removal of the MAF sensor
• Retain factory A/C & dash wiring (when doing V8 Conversions)
• Passenger side HEGO spot can be used for a Wideband sensor
• Thermofan control (EL ECU Only)

Pros/Cons/Gotchas

This conversion works pretty smoothly, but you should keep the following in mind if you want to give it a go.

• This conversion requires a 60pin 6 Cylinder ECU such as that from an EBII, ED or EL Falcon (eg. 1xxx, 2xxx, 3xxx, 6xxx). EF 6 Cylinder ECUs are not suitable due to being coilpack.
• You will need the following parts from a 6 cylinder vehicle to suit the donor loom:
  • MAP Sensor
  • Ignition Coil
  • Idle Speed Controller
• You will need a J3 Chip to remap the PCM for the V8 engine
• You will also need a V8 cluster, or the tacho will read incorrectly (higher than actual).
• Only the drivers (R/H) side HEGO is used so the passengers side is redundant.
• EL donor vehicles may have a large Square plug instead of the round and 4 pin plugs. As long as your donor engine loom matches the ECU loom, this will be fine. EL ECUs will also work on an EB-ED loom.

Wiring Loom Changes

There are a number of changes required to get the 6 Cylinder engine loom working on the V8 engine.

First up the injector wiring needs 2 extra injector plugs added (one to each bank).

Several wires need modifying:

• Extend coil red/green wire
• Shorten coil pink wire on resistor to firewall side
• Extend tacho pink/blue wire
• Extend oil pressure switch wire
• Extend intake air sensor wire
• Extend Starter pilot wire
• On body loom, extend coolant sensor wires (add approximately 350mm)

List of wire lengths from round engine loom plug on 6 cyl donor loom:

• Strip covering tape and corrugated tube from the donor loom until about 100mm from round plug .
• Starter red wire plug to plug 850mm.
• Injector wires from 1 to 4 are feed to new right hand side ( brown = odd number green = even number cylinders) (inj8=400mm. inj7=500mm. inj6=600mm. inj5=700mm.)
• Injectors 6 and 5 should reach also add extensions or pig tails for new injectors one from each bank remembering brown = new injector 1. Green = new injector 2. Red power. (inj4=330mm. inj3=430mm. inj2=550mm. inj1=650mm.)
• Idle speed control loops back or is 550mm.
• TPS existing wires should be about 600mm. The 6 cyl connector will need to be adapted to the V8 TPS, splice on the V8 loom connector if you have one.
• Intake air sensor wires 650mm.
• Oil pressure switch wire 1050mm.
• Coil plug and resistor extend red/green and pink/blue to resistor(tacho wire) 750mm.
• Shorten pink on resistor that has the single white plug (can just loop it in the loom but better to shorten it so it reaches the matching plug on TFI/BODY loom)
• Grey wire with ring terminal will be long enough and attach to intake bolt.
• Coolant sensor will need extending on TFI/BODY loom by approx. 350mm.
• Distributor may be required to be re positioned so the TFI plug points towards the left hand head lamp.

When happy with the fitment, tape and fit corrugated split tube to protect the loom from damage.

If you would prefer to buy a completed loom ready to plug in to convert a 6 cylinder Falcon to V8, see EA EB ED EL XG XH Falcon Windsor V8 6 Cylinder ECU Conversion Loom.

Other Changes

Add the MAP Sensor (retain the 6 cylinder one in original position, and tee a vacuum supply from the fuel pressure regulator).

Set distributor timing as per 6 cylinder spec (ie. 10 degrees or 0 degrees depending on model).

Tune Changes

To get the 6 cylinder tune set up to run the V8 engine, you will need to make the following changes:

• Numcyls 8
• Injectors per bank (injout 3=6cyl 4=8cyl)
• Pips between output (1=6cyl. 2=8cyl)
• Pip per rev (6=6cyl 8=8cyl)
• Degrees per pip (120=6 cyl. 90=8 cyl)
• MHPFD (signature pip duty cycle 0.24=6cyl. 20=8cyl)
• Base measured displacement (basemd or CID)
• Spark upper clip  (50=6cyl. 43=8cyl)

Starting VE & spark tables will need some tweaking. A base start up tune for the V8 engine can be installed on a J3 Chip via a Stage 3 J3 Chip, or ordered directly from Jamie.

Other Options

If you are running an aftermarket ECU and wish to get full control of the BTR using a J3 Chip, Nathan has written up this excellent guide on how to wire in an ED ECU for standalone BTR Control only.

Conclusion

That’s it! If you’ve followed the guide correctly, your engine should be running off the 6 Cylinder ECU. You now have full control of the transmission, the ability to wire in thermofans (EL ECU Only), and full MAFless operation on a Windsor.

If you have any questions or suggestions about this guide please reach out.

A big Thank You to Jamie for his work in making this possible.

Windsor Parts

T.I. Performance stock a large range of Windsor parts on our shelves. From camshafts through timing sets, sensors and gaskets, we have you sorted. Browse our full range of Windsor parts here.

Fuel economy is increasingly an important aspect of motor vehicle ownership. From the sky-rocketing cost of fuel to environmental concerns, its never been more important to maximise your fuel economy.

In this article we’ll lay out some key tips to improve your fuel economy, and make your car go further on a tank of fuel.

General Vehicle Maintenance

Before we get to the engine itself, there are a number of general vehicle maintenance factors that can have an impact on fuel economy and fuel consumption.

Top tips:

• Your Oxygen Sensor plays a critical role in allowing the ECU to monitor unburnt fuel in the exhaust and trim the fuel map to get the most efficient Air:Fuel Ratio. If your O2 sensor is old, its response can be slow or non-existent and this will result in the car using the default safe and rich fuel map. Replacing your O2 sensor can have a huge improvement on economy. We have a range to suit many models in stock.
• Check that the engine warms up to the correct operating temperature. A stock or cold thermostat will leave the engine running cold, which puts the ECU into cold start enrichment and poor fuel economy. Replace your thermostat with the correct one for your model.
• Check your fuel pressure. Stock fuel pressure should be measured static (no vac ref), and for 6 Cyl engines should be:
  • 250kpa for EA-ED,
  • 270kpa for EF-FG NA,
  • 300kpa for EB-EL XR,
  • 350kpa for AU XR/VCT and
  • 400kpa for BA-FG Turbo.
    It is common with engine swaps to end up with the wrong reg for the ECU, which leads to excess fuel being injected and poor economy.
• Ensure your vehicles sensors are in good condition. Faulty readings from air flow sensors in the intake, temperature sensors for air or coolant can all trigger your car’s ECU to demand more fuel. We have a range of replacement sensors in stock for many models.
• Check your brakes after a highway drive. If the wheels are excessively hot, your brakes may be dragging and need an adjustment or rebuild.
• A vehicles weight plays a huge factor in fuel economy. The heavier the vehicle, the more effort required to get it up to speed and keep it there. Remove any unnecessary weight from the vehicle (eg. anything stored in the boot or backseat) and carefully consider any modifications that add excess weight. Common culprits are aftermarket bullbars or heavy car stereo sound systems.
• Efficient aerodynamics are important to achieving good highway fuel consumption figures. Open windows can create a large amount of drag, as can roof racks, bull bars, trailers etc. If you’re not using them, remove them from your vehicle.
• Tyres have a huge impact on fuel economy. Ensure they are inflated to the manufacturers specifications and are in good condition. Rolling resistance of tyres also plays a big part. Many 4WD enthusiasts replace their wheels and tyres with a package that is more effective for off-roading, but these changes can result in a much higher rolling resistance and a heavier wheel and tyre combo, both of which contribute to fuel use. Consider where you drive the most and what your needs really are (rather than looking cool at the local Woolies), and optimise your wheel and tyre combo.

Engine Management and Tuning

A vehicles tune is also an integral aspect to achieving good fuel economy. 

If your car is standard and in good condition, small fuel economy gains can still be made through modifying the tune, especially when running high octane fuels such as 98, E85 or LPG.

If you’ve modified your engine in any way, a good quality tune is critical not only to the safety and performance of your engine but also your fuel economy. A tune whether via a J3 Chip or more advanced engine management like our range of Haltech Aftermarket ECUs products is essential for getting the best results from your engine.

Our J3 Chip opens up access to stock EEC parameters such as:

• Fuel Stabilised Table which sets the AFR target by load/RPM
• MFA / Lean Cruise Mode Fuel Multiplier Table which controls what AFR the EEC targets when in cruise mode
• MPG / Lean Cruise Mode and Normal Mode Spark Table which controls what ignition timing the EEC will use in cruise and normal mode
• MINPW scaler which controls the lowest allowable pulse width the EEC will command. Use 0 to enable decel injector shut off
• And many more!

While its impressive to see high peak kilowatt dyno numbers, getting your tuner to focus on driveability will pay off in the long run. This means spending more time on the low load areas of the map optimising fuel and spark where your engine will spend the most time while driving. Efficient air/fuel ratios and optimal ignition advance under low load, cruise, and all the way through the rev range can the achieved with a good tune, and this will maximise fuel economy as well as power.

For more information about achieving a good fuel economy tune, contact us.

Driving style and conditions

Frequently, the biggest variable in a vehicles fuel economy is driving style. Having a heavy right foot can be fun at times, and many of us enjoy listening to our engines hit redline, this will burn fuel more quickly than smooth driving. The smoother you drive, the better your fuel consumption results will be.

Gearing is also important – typically automatic transmissions will select an appropriate ratio , but if you are driving a manual, make sure you’re in the right gear for the speed and conditions and don’t rev your car too high unnecessarily.  

Traffic conditions also play a large part in achieving fuel economy. Short trips and start-stop driving in heavy traffic are both bad for achieving fuel economy and minimising litres per kilometre. 

Top tips:

• Monitor your fuel economy. Lots of modern vehicles have live fuel economy readouts and if your’s doesn’t, you can measure fuel economy with the odometer and how many litres of fuel you’ve added when filling up. Having awareness of how your driving style effects fuel economy is the first step to changing your driving behaviour to be more frugal.
• Try to drive as smoothly as possible. Accelerate slowly, anticipate traffic movements & coast to a stop and generally try to minimise jerky throttle applications.
• Try to minimise short trips – modern vehicles will often have a ‘cold start enrichment’ function which burns more fuel to quickly heat up the catalytic converter to reduce emissions.
• Try to avoid driving in heavy or stop-start traffic. Your vehicle will use a lot more fuel moving off from a stop as compared to maintaining a consistent speed.
• Don’t let your car idle for excessive amounts of time.

Summary

This article demonstrates that good fuel economy does not just come from the Engine or ECU. Having a vehicle in good working condition overall will get the best possible economy. Happy driving!

How do you tell if you have an EL Falcon with a Hybrid AU engine? Know what that means? In this knowledge base article, we explain how to identify a Hybrid head and also which parts work with which engines. Read more

When converting an FG Falcon to run on a Turbo PCM, you will see DTCs from the PCM as the calibration on the ABS unit differs between models.

This guide covers how to reprogram the ABS module to suit the Turbo PCM using Forscan. You must have an Extended Licence, which can be registered for free from Forscan.org.

You’ll also need an OBD2 scan tool — Click here for a low cost VGate Scan Tool that will work with Forscan or for a Tactrix cable that will work with Forscan and PCMTec click here.

Credit to Nigel from CAN Solutions for this guide.