Vipec replacement ECU for Nissan Mitsubishi Mazda Toyota Subaru Honda

26 August 2008 · Staff

V88 Model ECU

ViPEC fuel injection management was developed for Ray Hall Turbo Pty Ltd to fill a gap in the market, for ECU that were reliable, powerful, easy to tune and having features that worked as they should. ViPEC is willing to listen to what the market wants, and is dedicated to giving customer excellent support.

ViPEC produces two engine management models, the V44 and V88. Also plugin ECU based on the V44 and V88 for Subaru, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Mazda and Toyota cars. All offer three dimensional mapping of fuel and ignition and are full sequential up to eight cylinder. Support for up to twelve cylinder wasted spark. Also a four channel twin capacitor CDI ignition.
ViPEC software has advanced tuning tools like QuickTune which enables hands free tuning with no input is required from the user other than running the engine through its various RPM and load sites. Features TuneAhead™ which tunes cell around the site being tuned.
Motorsport features like Antilag, Flatshift and Launch control are standard features on the V44, V88 and plugin ECU.
The V88 model has E-Throttle (Electronic Throttle Control). This was developed using automotive industry standards, and ensures accurate and safe throttle control.
Peak and hold injector drivers on the V88 are 10 amp. Both the peak Amps and hold Amps can be set separately in the software for optimum injector control.
Vipec replacement Plug-in ECU.
Nissan SR & RB Series, Mitsubishi – Mazda – Toyota – Subaru – Honda.
Vipec has produced replacement ECU boards and adaptors for the original ECU on Mitsubishi EVO 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 and 9. Subaru WRX 1995-96, 1997-98, 1999-00 and 2001-2007. Mazda MX5 and RX7. Toyota GT4 and MR2. Nissan SR and RB engines.

The original motherboard and connector are removed from the ECU case, and the ViPEC motherboard and connector, clips or screws into the case.
The original harness plugs in and the job is done, no wiring and all original sensors are used. External view of ECU case and connector is unchanged from its stock appearance.

Considerable gains in power across the complete RPM range can be achieved with these boards. Both road car and Group N rally car versions available.

Allows full control over fuel, ignition timing, boost pressure and all other engine functions. All boards have QuickTune software and optional Anti-lag.

All boards are supplied with base programs are available. Some final tuning will be required.

The engine management systems are well designed with special attention to resistance to interference from other engine components. Main processor is soldered to the ECU board and not in a socket. This ensures a high level of reliability. All models can be upgraded by downloading the latest firmware.

PLUG-IN ECU
NISSAN R32-R33 GTS
NISSAN R32-R34 GTR
INSTALLATION MANUAL BRIEFS

COMMUNICATING WITH THE ECU
Vi-PEC Tuning Software must be installed on a Windows based
laptop/notebook before any adjustments or tuning can be
performed. The latest version of Vi-PEC Tuning Software will be
required to tune your ECU and is freely available for download
from:
www. Vi-PEC.com
Vi-PEC VX ECU’s have on board USB support. Vi-PEC Tuning
Software Installation will also install the required USB driver
software. You MUST do a complete install of Vi-PEC Tuning
Software before connecting the ECU to the PC for the first
time.
After Vi-PEC Tuning Software installation, you will be able to
connect to the Vi-PEC ECU to the laptop to perform setup and
tuning work.
1. Connect the ECU to your laptop using a Vi-PEC VX ECU
USB Cable. If not supplied with the ECU, these can be
purchased from a Vi-PEC dealer. No other adapter or
cabling is required. Connect the cable to the connector
labelled USB (sometimes marked with an orange O’ring)
2. If this is the first time you have connect a VX USB ECU to
you laptop follow the driver installation instructions that
appear. When prompted if you want to install drivers
select ‘Continue Anyway’.
3. Start Vi-PEC Tuning Software by double clicking on the Vi-
PEC Tuning Software icon on the windows desktop.
4. Switch the key to the ON position. This will provide power
to the ECU.
Vi-PEC VX Nissan GTS-GTR Plug-In ECU Installation Manual © Vi-PEC 2008 Page 16

5. In Vi-PEC Tuning Software, under the ‘Options’ menu,
select ‘Connection’. The connection options dialogue will
open. Select the correct COM Port number from the drop
down list or select Auto for automatic com port detection.
6. Vi-PEC Tuning Software offers both mouse and keyboard
control. To establish a connection between the PC and
ECU using the mouse, click the ‘L’ icon located near the
top centre of the Vi-PEC Tuning Software screen.
Alternatively, press F3. The same process can be used to
disconnect. If a successful connection is established, Vi-
PEC Tuning Software will download settings from the
ECU, otherwise you will be warned that an error has
occurred.
7. Make sure the connection shows “ONLINE” in the top right
corner of Vi-PEC Tuning Software. The logo should also
be spinning in the top right corner.
8. To permanently STORE any changes made to the ECU
click on the ‘S’ icon near the top centre of the screen or
press F4. If this is not done before turning the ECU’s
power off all changes made will be lost.
If connection can not be established, contact one of the support
options given at the beginning of this manual.
Help on individual tuning functions is available through the
Vi-PEC Tuning Software on line help (Press F1, or right click
on any item and select ‘What’s This?’).

Vi-PEC VX Nissan GTS-GTR Plug-In ECU Installation Manual © Vi-PEC 2008 Page 17

IGNITION CHANNEL SELECTION
The base model Nissan GTS-GTR VX Plug-In ECU has four
ignition drivers. This means that on a six cylinder engine the
ignition coils are run in a wasted spark configuration. For future
upgrade reasons Ignition 3 and Ignition 4 channels are joined
together.
It is essential to ensure that Ignition Channel 4 is not operating
otherwise its signal will effect Ignition Channel 3. Do this by
performing the following steps:
1. Connect a laptop/notebook PC to the ECU and connect to
the ECU using Vi-PEC Tuning Software.
2. Click on ‘Auxiliary Outputs – Ign’ in the configuration tree
Vi-PEC VX Nissan GTS-GTR Plug-In ECU Installation Manual © Vi-PEC 2008 Page 20
3. Select ‘Ignition Drive 4’.
4. Ensure that channels ‘Function’ is set to ‘Not Selected’.
5. Perform a ‘Store’ by clicking on the S button (top centre of
screen) or press F4.
INPUT AND OUTPUT SETUP
As the Vi-PEC VX Nissan GTS-GTR Plug-In ECU is designed to
run several models there are a few items that must be setup to
make the ECU specific to your model. This is due to the same
ECU header pin being used for different functions between
models.
Appendix A in the back of this manual gives a list of the functions
of each channel based on vehicle model.
It is the tuners responsibility to make sure that the following
channels are setup up correctly for the vehicle model the ECU is
fitted to:
● All Auxiliary Output Channels – Use the ‘Test On’ and
‘Test PWM’ (at 10 Hz) functions to test the wiring of
channels.
● Auxiliary Output – Fuel Channels 7 and 8 – Use the ‘Test
On’ and ‘Test PWM’ (at 10 Hz) functions to test the wiring
of channels.
● All Digital Inputs – Look at the Digital Inputs runtime
values (lower section of the Vi-PEC Tuning Software
screen) to confirm each channels operation.
● All Analog Volt Inputs – Look at the Analog Inputs runtime
values (lower section of the Vi-PEC Tuning Software
screen) to confirm each channels operation.
● All Temperature Inputs – Look at the Analog Inputs
Vi-PEC VX Nissan GTS-GTR Plug-In ECU Installation Manual © Vi-PEC 2008 Page 21

QuickTune Software with TuneAhead™

The QuickTune feature is available for the V44 and V88 model ECU’s.

The QuickTune will tune the engine with no input from the operator. The closed loop air fuel ratio table is used as the target air fuel ratio table for the QuickTune software. This table is setup with the required air fuel ratios at various RPM and Load points.

An exhaust gas analyzer or any other analyzer that provides a 0 to 5volt “corrected” output, is connected to any of the Analog inputs, this is used as the actual air fuel ratio input. As the engine is run through its various RPM and Load points the software will adjust the volumetric efficiency numbers in the main fuel table to achieve the target air fuel ratio.

At no time do you need to touch the keyboard on the Laptop.

After the tuning is complete the analyzer and 02 sensor is no longer needed. At any time after tuning is finished the values in the target closed loop table can be changed, and the engine will automatically run the new air fuel ratio, providing you do not make a change to the volumetric efficiency of the engine, e.g. fit a different camshaft, modify cylinder head etc…

If the engine is modified so the volumetric efficiency changes, then the analyzer and QuickTune software feature will be required again to re-tune the engine.

The QuickTune software is much faster then a good operator. It is not possible to manually tune as quick as the QuickTune . A typical engine will take less than 20 minutes to fully map on an engine dyno.

The accuracy of the QuickTune can be setup in the software from 0.5% to 5.0% accuracy. The default value is 2% accuracy, this is generally a lot more accuracy then most tuners manual tune engines.

Features TuneAhead™ which tunes cells around the site being tuned. This speed up tuning when surrounding cells have values that are not close.

You cannot directly connect a 02 sensor to the ECU to QuickTune.

Documentation on the setup and using the QuickTune feature. QuickTune.pdf

Overview
ViPEC QuickTune software provides rapid hands-free tuning of Engine Air/Fuel mixtures. This automated operation frees the engine tuner, allowing total concentration on safe engine/dyno operation. On road tuning of motor vehicles is even possible.

This software uses a complex combination of math, including statistics, trigonometry and fuzzy logic to intelligently adjust the fuel delivery tables. Initial tuning is rapid usually occurring within 1 second. High precision can be achieved by allowing the QuickTune to operate for an extended time at each engine operating point. The operator has control over the balance between tuning speed and accuracy. Accuracy is ultimately limited by the accuracy of the attached Air/Fuel ratio measurement equipment.

The program provides visual indication of the tune status. Automatic and manual storage of tune status allows the user to monitor the tuning progress even if undertaken in several sessions. Tuning usually proceeds 2 to 5 times faster than possible by manual means. Fuel savings of as much at 90% have been reported. The considerable savings in engine life are obvious.

This program also has elaborate diagnostics facilities and allows simultaneous operation of the ECU internal data logger and external P.C data logging.

More Information: http://www.vi-pec.com/index.html