One of the most common questions I hear when it comes to standalone ECUs is, "which is the best ECU for my car?" Often the assumption is that the most expensive ECU on the market must be the best, however, there's a lot more than price to consider.
In this article: Enlisting a professional tuner | Tuning your own ECU
To start with every ECU has its own characteristics, quirks, and shortcuts which take time to learn and getting the best results in a reasonable time frame really depends on familiarity with the product, and how user-friendly the ECU is for you or your chosen tuner.
Enlisting a professional tuner
If you take a top of the line engine management system that you might expect to find in the high-end professional motorsport, a Bosch Motorsport or Life Racing unit for example, and give this to a local tuner that has no previous experience with them or their software you'll likely find that they will take a lot longer, be more expensive and potentially not be able to give you as good a tune as they would with the much cheaper ECU package that they're familiar and used to dealing with.
Sure, if you want to put the time into learning the Bosch ECU and have specific needs for its functionality then its potential five figure price tag might start to make sense, but for most of us in the streetcar or semi-professional motorsport market, it won't translate into additional performance or results.
The point to take away from this is if you're going to be relying on a professional tuner to do your tuning work, you're going to be best to choose a brand that they are intimately familiar with. Likewise, it also makes a lot of sense to make your ECU purchase from the tuner who will be doing the job. At worst, it might cost you a few more dollars at the time of purchase, but I guarantee it will save you money in the long run, and you'll also have a tuner who is invested in the success of your project.
Tuning your own ECU
Now let's consider the situation where you're going to be doing the tuning yourself, and perhaps you don't have any experience with any ECU brands and software. In this case, we have a little more to consider.
First, you need to start out by deciding exactly what you need. Some of your considerations will be:
- Number of injectors and coils required
- Inputs and outputs required
- Special features you need i.e. Launch control, Flex Fuel etc
- Your budget
The ECU is only one part of the expense of a well thought out, installed and tuned EFI system so you don't want to blow your entire budget this single aspect.
Once you have your list of features and a budget to work with, you can see what products fit the bill. It's likely you'll find a few different manufacturers offering seemingly comparable options that still tick all your boxes, so there are a couple more considerations that will help you narrow down the choice. When you're installing and tuning any brand of ECU, you'll almost certainly require some level of tech support.
It's always great when you can get real-time support when you need it, and if the ECU manufacturer is on the other side of the world it’s realistic to expect delays before you can get help while you wait for time zones to align.
While it's not always possible, if you are lucky, you can get local support for your ECU through the manufacturer or their local representative.
It's also always worth talking to those running the brands of ECU that have made your shortlist and getting the pros and cons first-hand from those with actual experience. This can help you make a fully informed decision and ensure you get the best results possible from your budget.
Lastly, having the right fundamental knowledge to get the job done is essential. Though in some cases it is possible to learn through mentors and other local tuners, by far the quickest route is through courses like HPA's EFI Tuning Fundamentals or something similar.
HPA's members only forum is the perfect place to get feedback from tuners actually using the products and our free lessons are the perfect place for you to start to learn how to EFI tune yourself.
Need some more help on selecting the right ECU for your application? Take a look at our members-only webinar on the topic here for some professional advice.
