Will automotive electronic modification of ECU affect engine life?

The original engine ECU settings will take into account the vehicle's exhaust emission indicators, fuel economy, durability and other issues, and are relatively conservative. For car owners who have certain power requirements, they can more accurately control the engine operation and improve power performance through reasonable ECU upgrades and modifications.

In recent years, the domestic modification market has gradually matured. Modifications to improve vehicle power performance are no longer just entry-level modifications involving basic intake, exhaust, ignition, etc. Modifications to achieve high-speed, high-horsepower naturally aspirated engines using turbines/superchargers or high compression ratios are no longer new.

Different from the carburetor era in the past, the general commander of the power unit of the car is now the engine ECU. No matter how perfect the hardware equipment of a car is, it cannot run without a qualified ECU. Modifying the ECU is to rewrite the conservative ECU program of the original factory through some means to achieve the purpose of improving the performance of a certain aspect of the engine. When modifying the ECU, everyone will encounter some problems more or less. Today, Xiaokuge sorted out some common problems and solutions to help everyone successfully modify the ECU.

01

Will fuel consumption increase after ECU upgrade?

ECU upgrade does not increase horsepower by injecting more fuel, but re-matches and adjusts the fuel supply and ignition curves. The computer makes the best match of air and fuel according to the relevant sensor signals, and controls the engine's valve lift and timing, as well as the start and stop time of supercharging to achieve the effect of increasing output horsepower. Most upgraded customers said that the car has become more powerful and more fuel-efficient than before, which feels great!

02

Will ECU optimization and upgrading harm the engine?

The optimization and upgrade of ECU is to fully utilize the car's more accurate calculations and accelerate the speed of ECU operation. After the ECU upgrade, it will only improve the engine's combustion efficiency, so it will not cause any harm to the engine. New cars can be upgraded during the running-in period.

03

Does an ECU upgrade require an engine rebuild?

There are many ECU modification methods on the market: one is to replace the chip or directly update the package program corresponding to a certain model written by professional engineers through testing; the other is to add external computer hardware and write and set the program as needed. Compared with the first software modification, the biggest advantage of the external computer is that it can be used to meet the needs, such as high-speed fuel supply and ignition time at any time. Its diverse functions make it the first choice for heavily modified cars.

There are not many modification shops that are capable of providing customers with customized computer programs. The main reason is that these modification shops cannot use professional instruments such as dynamometers to test and adjust the car like professional ECU manufacturers or professional racing teams do, but can only make adjustments during actual tests while "running and modifying" on the road.

04

Will modifying the ECU affect the engine life?

This must be a question that everyone is most concerned about. After ECU modification, we can get stronger power, but we are also worried about whether the engine can handle it. In fact, this problem is not difficult to solve. First of all, for modifications with little power improvement, the original engine structure and material design can fully withstand the increased power output. The output can be increased by precisely adjusting the air-fuel ratio and ignition timing. The requirements for oil quality will be higher. As long as you don't use low-quality gasoline and gasoline with insufficient octane, there will be no problem.

In addition, for cars that have been significantly tuned and modified, an additional cooling system is needed to help cool the engine. If the car is heavily modified, the engine liner must of course be strengthened (replaced). Therefore, durability is a relative issue and no absolute answer can be given.

05

Will there be computer failure after modifying the ECU? Will the anti-theft system lose its function? Will there be any problems with the annual inspection?

ECU modification is completely tailor-made. Engineers adjust each car one-on-one, so it does not affect the changes in the original car function settings. Modified ECU does not increase power by deceiving sensors or giving ECU wrong messages, so there will be no fault codes that cannot be eliminated when the original diagnostic computer detects, and the original car safety and anti-theft system will not be affected. In addition, even after the ECU is modified, the diagnosis of the original car using the 4S original diagnostic computer is exactly the same as the original car diagnosis, so it does not affect the original warranty, and there is no problem of failing the annual inspection.

06

Why is it that after the ECU of a turbocharged engine is upgraded, the power and torque increase is so much greater than that of a naturally aspirated engine?

In fact, this is not difficult to understand. The boost value of the turbocharger can be adjusted. The increase in the boost value will result in an increase in the intake density. The content of oxygen molecules will increase under the same volume. As long as the fuel supply and ignition parts are followed up, the horsepower will naturally increase significantly. However, compared with the naturally aspirated engine, the requirements for oil quality, temperature, etc. are more stringent and sensitive. Of course, high horsepower also requires higher strength for the engine hardware part.

07

To achieve the perfect power boost, precise tuning is crucial

As we all know, the modified ECU will adjust the parameters such as fuel supply, ignition timing and turbine pressure. The amount of fuel injection directly affects the air-fuel mixture ratio. Theoretically, the mixture ratio that allows the mixed oil and gas to burn most completely and fully is 14.7, but in actual situations, this mixture ratio is variable, so it is necessary for the computer to analyze and correct it in time. Ignition timing is the time to ignite the mixed oil and gas.

Theoretically, the ignition time is when the piston reaches the top to make the oil and gas burn completely, but in fact, the ignition time at high speed and low speed is different. Because it takes time for the mixed oil and gas to burn, the ignition time should be advanced at high speed to give it sufficient time to burn. The higher the turbo pressure value, the greater the horsepower output of the engine. The general pressure value is between 0.8-1.6Bar. Too high pressure will reduce the life of the engine or directly scrap it.

Upgrading the car ECU is definitely a big "learning". Everyone should choose according to their own needs. Remember that performance improvement has risks. Choosing reliable modification parts and reliable modification brands will reduce the risk relatively. Many times, the reason why the original car is relatively conservative and reliable is that this car is intended for the majority of people, not for a small number of people who like driving pleasure and are willing to tinker with it.