Electromotive TEC-II?

[Mazda Ebrahimi]

David Gould wrote:
> 
> Perhaps this is not truly diy, but...
> 
> I autocross a 1.8 liter Mazda Miata. I am allowed by the rules I run under
> to replace the entire intake and exhaust systems, but not to modify the
> engine internals. Some of the other competative cars (Miatas, RX7s, CRXs) are
> using the Electromotive TEC-II system to control fuel and ignition. I have
> looked at the Electromotive manuals and it looks like a reasonable system to
> me, but I am not an expert and have little to compare it too.
> 
> Since this car is both a race car and a daily driver in CA, I will have to
> face the smog check every two years. It looks like the simplist solution
> would be to replace the original system, get the smog cert, and put the
> Electomotive back on every two years. Bummer.
> 
> Given all of the above, is the Electromotive a reasonable system? I am vaguely
> aware that there are others (Motec etc) out there, but am under the impression
> that they cost quite a bit more. Is there another system I should look at?
> 
> Is there anything especially good or bad about the Electromotive?
> 
> I noticed in the manual that it does not have some of the frills that the
> stock system has like idle control adjusted for electrical loads, EGR control,
> purge canister control. Do I need all this stuff? I suspect not, except for
> the purge control. How do I do the canister purge without the stock ecu?
> 
> Will there be drivability problems with the Electromotive? What about weather
> and altitude changes? Again, the stock ECU looks more sophisticated, but then
> cars ran on carburators (a french word meaning 'don't mess with it') which
> were even less sophisticated than the Electromotive.
> 
> Any experience with Electromotive as far as reliablity of the system? Do they
> support the product and handle repairs etc well?
> 
> Any special gotchas or neat hints for this application?
> 
> Thanks for any and all advice.
> 
> -dg
> 
> David Gould                   dg at illustra.com                    510.869.6383
> Informix Software (formerly Illustra)  1111 Broadway #2000  Oakland, CA 94607
>  - A child of five could understand this!  Fetch me a child of five.


Another one you may want to check is Haltech.  I had a bad experience with Electromotive 
when I was in college.  We had problems reading RPM at cranking speed.  Needless to say 
it caused a lot of dead batteries and damaged starters!  But that was six years ago.  
Since then I have talked to several people who have used the system with no problems.

Regarding idle control and canister purge, a good option is to leave the factory 
electronics intact, and let the factory system control these functions, while you use a 
simple aftermarket system like electromotive to control the fuel.  The only problem is 
that the "check engine" light will come on.  If this was a domestic car, I could sell 
you all the "fixes" you need to prevent the light from comming on.  But since it's an 
import, you may have to put up with it, and clear codes and reconnect the factory system 
before your inspection!

Best Regards