ECU choice: Link, AEM, Haltech, Ecumasters

Hello,

I'm a newbie in this area who never had a standalone ECU before. I did some reads and comparisons and at first sight looks like these units gonna suit my needs:

Link G4 Xtreme, AEM Infinity 506/508, Haltech Elite 2000, EMU Black.

Intention is to use it with VW VR6 12v 2.8L turbocharged engine equipped with:

Wideband lambda sensor,

1 or 2 knock sensors,

No variable valve timing,

IAT, CTS, most probably cable operated TB,

Single EGT,

6 "smart" coils,

6 injectors,

Standard crank positions sensor,

Cam position sensor,

Standalone Haldex controller (since car is AWD),

In the future I'll need dash display, fuel content analyzer so have considered these additional items and it would be nice ECU could integrate with.

Main concern being newbie in this area is which manufacturer ECU would be easiest to learn to work on. Which manufacturer software is most user friendly, etc. In addition for me it's important community, resource or reference exists I could rely on and learn from. Maybe manufacturers support system is a way to look for information sometimes.

My vote goes to Link. All the above ECU's can do what you want and even more.

You will find the Link help file and the community support awesome.

I would go also for the Link in this case. Or Maxxecu Race from Sweden.

Can't go wrong with any of those. If language is a barrier (though it doesn't look like it is) I always recommend people look in to what is predominantly used locally within their short list and lean heavily towards that.

Guys thanks for your replies and time!

English is not my mother tongue language for sure but it's not kind of barrier either. Location where I live ECUmaster EMU's are most common and most likely because of the lowest price. Nevertheless I'm a bit in doubt regarding EMU's as I heard there have been bugs on those which weren't sorted out easily and quickly meaning support is not that good maybe and price difference is not that big you should consider price as a main reason to buy EMU.

EMU comparing to others has only one tangible advantage against others. It supports their own Haldex controller thus I could save 700EUR on not buying standalone controller. Maybe Link's AEM's or Haltech's could control Haldex coupling as well ?

For Haldex you can have a look at the CANCHECKED CAN Bus display from Germany: www.canchecked.de.

I've ordered AEM Infinity 308 for the similar application (the only difference is that I have a 4cylinder engine). It was a cheapest big brand ECU with knock control, closed loop boost control and plentiful I/O. It does not have onboard wideband controller, so you will need a separate wideband (I am planning to use AEM's CAN based lambda). The only limitation is that it does not support VVTi and DBW. You will probably need to get a separate Haldex controller for 308. Also you will need to double check the crank pulley pattern since you can choose between factory predefined presets on Infinity unlike the Link and Haltech.

Thanks Сергей

AFAIK AEM can offer their wide-band solution if 308 has nothing embedded.

In my case for a comparison I choose AEM Infinity 506/508 models which can offer internal air/fuel controller.

Regarding Haldex, yes I will need to go to something standalone in case I choose Link/AEM/Haltech. Personally I'd prefer this one: http://www.vdveer-engineering.nl/index.php/en/products/haldex-controller

Sorry I did not get you what you mean talking about crank pulley pattern ? Do you mean crank trigger wheel ? In case of VW VR6 it's 60-2 type.

Yeah,

> AFAIK AEM can offer their wide-band solution if 308 has nothing embedded.

There is a CAN-based UEGO controller for 308/358. Also, any wideband controller with 0-5v output can be used.

> Do you mean crank trigger wheel ?

Yes, I was talking about crank trigger wheel pattern.