Getting closer........

[AintQik]

Ok Jim, I gotta tell ya. I've been routing for you from day one. However it appears you are fighting a losing battle. You have been without a car for way too long. Throw all that crap out and start over. See if you can get it to run with another system. Might be costly, but at some point its time to throw in the towel.

Unless this has become a personal vendetta.

I for one am going to stay away frmo Asshell if I can.

[John Wright]

Ok Jim, I gotta tell ya. I've been routing for you from day one.

His first call to them was noted in post#46....Wow...that DFI system has been nothing but an uphill battle for sure.

[Jim Nilsen]

As for me I am NOT buying multi thousand dollar FI setups.
Jim you can buy a Megasquirt from DIYautotune.com, it is pretty much compatable with just about ANY electronic FI part, Ford EDIS, GM DIS GM HEI, MSD distributor and for a HELL OF A LOT LESS.
figure a MS-II V3.57(all assembled, newer board with surface mount technology) for $411 for ECU (still need harness connectors and such but heck if your patient (as you have the patience of a saint on the DFI *****) and dexterity and smarts you can buy it apart and buy a kit for like $250 and solder it together your self.
you can actually buy for like $88 a jimstim, simulator to test with, it can be mated to wideband O2 sensors setup, etc.
looks like harness is $50-$65 , Relay board is $88,,,
So:
Megasquirt II V3.57 black $411
Harness $88
Relay board $88
Wiring bundle if needed $40
HMMM total to start $627
Idiots charge, extra parts
And such ADD another $1000(this is for "if we need it parts")
much less aggravation factor online open source forums for issues and you dont have to deal with a very complicated design like the DFI and it would be CHEAP for a a little over $1600.
considering the hassle the DFI is .
Honestly the injectors and all sensors must have specs you can program into the Megasquirt( I am assuming) and not have to change mujch of anything. it can and will control spark if you need a small cap distributor I have an older GM HD (ie MSD) distributor, lock the advance and let Megasquirt control it and use the MSD 6 box.
anyone having issues.
heck you can even use the GPIO board to run electronic transmissions if needed.
also look here and check links to forums:http://www.bgsoflex.com/megasquirt.html

Thanks for that info, I just might go that route if the ASSHELL doesn't work the next time out.

[Jim Nilsen]

Ok Jim, I gotta tell ya. I've been routing for you from day one. However it appears you are fighting a losing battle. You have been without a car for way too long. Throw all that crap out and start over. See if you can get it to run with another system. Might be costly, but at some point its time to throw in the towel.

Unless this has become a personal vendetta.

I for one am going to stay away frmo Asshell if I can.

Thanks for routing for me, it has made a difference to know that.

I have been told I have the patience of Jobe and also a stubborn Norwegian,lol. I have had to make things work with what I have so much in my life that I have learned going to something new isn't always the thing to do. The one thing that continuing on has done for me in my life is that I always get smarter and education is expensive no matter how you get it.

The other thing about the gen 7 is that it really does have the control I would like to have in my future to tune the car. I also am able to tune it myself and understand the basics now. Learning a new system is not what I desire. If things had gone exactly like I had planned I would not know what to do now if I broke on the side of the road someday. All systems have their problems sooner or later and that is what scares me about a new system. Look at all of the new untried things I have on my car and you will see successes and failures. If anyone can get a bad part it is me and it has nothing to do with my ability or choices it is just bad luck, others get the same parts and never have a problem. I can get them delivered bad and have to go through the hassle. It just happens.

The engine builder has BS3 systems and he isn't quite sure he likes it better than the gen 7, the Thruster is a different story altogether because it is not as functional as the gen 7 .

I actually have 2,400+ miles on my car now believe it or not and it might not be all really the most enjoyable miles but it is a lot more than some people put on their car in many years of having them. I have been to Road America and learned a lot and from that experience I have learned that the way we all want to play is very expensive and building a car and the problems associated with just that are less money.

I have talked to enough people that have been through the battle and won the war that it has always given me enough hope to keep going. When these units finally get right and work they are very good units.

Who else do you guys know that can give you all the education you could ever ask for about all this and post it up for all to see,lol. It's like a public service,LOL. The code 66 is up on Google now as it sends people here, you would think it would send you to the Accel website but NO it sends you here. I bet there are more people who will find out about PT.com than ever before,lol.

The ECU is also still under warranty from the upgrade and I hope they uphold that. We will see what happens. The last time I almost spent a lot of money to get it to run and Accel came thru and made it right, I will give them the chance to do it again because money is money and I would rather use it to go to another event. There are lots of events compared to any other time in history. I wasn't planning on going to RTTH because of the distance but it may be on my adgenda before the end of the year if it has to be. I want to make an event that is covered by the magazines at least 2 times this year. I screwed myself out of blowing up at Road America at the optima event which would have been better than the F noBody event I went to. I got experience and some really great pics that I ws smart enough to buy all the pics on a disc instead of just a few select ones, best thing I did so far this year. Look at my avatar and it is proof that the car is no trailer queen and has the looks of a true PT car that can hang with the others. I never dreamed in my life I would ever have been there and who else has?

I also have to say that in perspective to what I am going through ,I am not the only one who has these problems and won't be the last. It is a learning experience for everyone and who knows? It may take to places I would never get to go in my future without the experiences.

Someone told me not to long ago that the EFI is not the biggest thing I have tackled and lived through and survived, cancer is and I am lucky to even be having a miserable time with all of this.

A bad day at the track is still more fun than a good day at work, you just get paid for it in money at work, you get paid in experience at the track.

Accel is going to have to try a lot harder to ever get around what has happened to me and the bad publicity it gives them. I on the other hand am going to perform a miracle and they don't happen too often unles you area survivor.

Maybe I should ask Accel if they want to sponsor me at the events? I have the material it might take to blackmail them into it,lol. They could use the advertising and it is a lot better than the abuse I am going to dish out where ever I go if they don't? Do they care? Probably not but I should probably ask don't ya think? Nothing to lose but words.

The future is unfolding in ways for me that even I don't know and why it is going the way it is may change my life for the better I keep hoping. If you guys aren't learning something from what I am doing it would be a total loss but I think you guys are going to at least have a bad example to keep you out of trouble and on the right path.

If the learning curve has you going in circles I guess you need to build a circle track car but that is not what I am here for.

[Dons67]

Thanks for routing for me, it has made a difference to know that.

I have been told I have the patience of Jobe ........

If the learning curve has you going in circles I guess you need to build a circle track car but that is not what I am here for.

Jim- Keep up the GREAT attitude !!!! - I've been following along for a while now and I've very impressed with the patience you've shown - I must admit that I DO agree with RJ and at some point it is time to call it and move into a different direction, you know what they say about doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result....

Don

[Jim Nilsen]

Thanks for the support and maybe things are looking up.

I have a thread at Lateral G that one of the Accel reps resonded to.
Here is a quote from that thread.

"Read all of the post ,sorry for your troubles. But I have to say some of your problems are not the fault of accel but of your tuner"

You can go to Lateral G and see the rest which basically states he wants me to contact him and he will help me. I like the idea of some real help with getting to the root of the problem.

So we will see how it goes and whether or not he has a solution and can get this resolved without blame or costing me a lot of $$$$.

I don't see how any part of a tune that was running the way it was could be the problem but we will see what he has to say?

He has a lot to explain before he is going to convince me that a tuner, especially since the ones who have helped me are considered some of the best other than myself. I was the one who had the final tune on it that everyone said sounded and felt real good before it went to code 66 and it was well stated in the thread from what I recall but maybe interpretation is different from the other side?

So there you have another turn in the road and lets see what happens? Maybe this time it will be a long and straight one that keeps going like the Energizer bunny.

[Jim Nilsen]

Just got done talking to Mark about my programs and other problems and he really does have the knowledge to make this better in the programming dept. I got to see a couple of programs that really are obviously better made than what I had. They raise the bar up to 6500 rpm where my other programs were only up to 5600 rpm. A big difference since I am going to 6400 redline.

The code 66 may actually have saved me from doing something bad to the new engine or it will have just made it give me a lot more power. Either way I will be better off in the long run even though it didn't seem like it.

There is still the parts problems to get squared away but I will have a much better start with his programs when I get up and running. The plug n play program that were made for my kit fell way short and noone could have ever known unless they had seen a better program.

I am starting to get my confidence back about the system and the direction I am going. My luck seems to be changing for the better and I feel relieved about some things that were worrying me.

I still have to get the parts worked out and get up and running but there is a ray of sunshine in the sky and at least one cloud formation seems to be lifting.

I will be working on the cosmetics of the car for the next week or so and let the engine problems rest for awhile. The car is going to be better when I get the interior and engine bay done and I have been putting it off because of the engine way too long.

I will sleep better tonight and tomorrow will be the start of finishing it all.

[MonzaRacer]

Honestly Jim I have priced and helped trouble shoot some FI systems in my life and for the record Accel has the worst reputation, bar none!
Not Even Fast or Big Squirt have this much trouble.Well Edelbrock stuff is kind of lame unless you want bolt on mild performance.
Now that said when it comes down to building FI systems I have swapped in,out,modded,and crossbred such stuff that its astounding, buddy has a truck with a Northstar in it and we used truck ecm and all I did was match injector ohm ratings, other than that pretty much all GM stuff inter relates on some basic scale. Reason a bazillion different models, why have more than say 4 temp sensors and all with either one or the other spec.
Hard to believe only issue he had was getting the factory ecm hacked to change knock sensors parameters fixed as once in a while it would throw a knock code.
Weird how well a 32valve 4.6Northstar will pull in a truck, very weird.
Honestly keep doing research so you have some reference and options if you have any more big issues, and if you check it out I think you might just get blown away, and with you actually setting up the tunes after getting familiar its actually fun tweaking. And you have literally hundreds if not thousands of tech helpers on the forums.
Oh and you can pick up a $50 laptop from ebay to tune it(ie less likely to be stolen as it would be like a 500mhz or so, this is what 3 friends have for tuning).
Oh and the really neat thing is building a MegaView and tada no laptop needed for minor adjustments.
But good luck.

[Jim Nilsen]

Honestly Jim I have priced and helped trouble shoot some FI systems in my life and for the record Accel has the worst reputation, bar none!
Not Even Fast or Big Squirt have this much trouble.Well Edelbrock stuff is kind of lame unless you want bolt on mild performance.
Now that said when it comes down to building FI systems I have swapped in,out,modded,and crossbred such stuff that its astounding, buddy has a truck with a Northstar in it and we used truck ecm and all I did was match injector ohm ratings, other than that pretty much all GM stuff inter relates on some basic scale. Reason a bazillion different models, why have more than say 4 temp sensors and all with either one or the other spec.
Hard to believe only issue he had was getting the factory ecm hacked to change knock sensors parameters fixed as once in a while it would throw a knock code.
Weird how well a 32valve 4.6Northstar will pull in a truck, very weird.
Honestly keep doing research so you have some reference and options if you have any more big issues, and if you check it out I think you might just get blown away, and with you actually setting up the tunes after getting familiar its actually fun tweaking. And you have literally hundreds if not thousands of tech helpers on the forums.
Oh and you can pick up a $50 laptop from ebay to tune it(ie less likely to be stolen as it would be like a 500mhz or so, this is what 3 friends have for tuning).
Oh and the really neat thing is building a MegaView and tada no laptop needed for minor adjustments.
But good luck.

Are you from the DARK SIDE ? LOL.

I feel like I am stuck between a convent and a massage parlor and all the women look good if you just look in their eyes only,LOL.

I really appreciate the alternative thoughts as it gives me something to chew on while I am chomping at the bit.

So much to do and so little time before the Motorstate and if I am lucky I may make the Midwest event just to spectate and let everyone see the car. I don't think I will try to participate and push the car that soon.

Now back to the show in progress !!

I really am commited ( did I say that in the right way.LOL) to the accel at the moment because of the time it would take me to change over. The packaging of a new system would take me a month to change and I really don't have that much time unless the Accel fails to work with the repaired ecu. I really am getting some good help now and I have to give it one last time to se if it all works out.

[Jim Nilsen]

Talked to Mark again yesterday and learned more in in the 1st 5 minutes that was very important to know about the programming than anyone else has told me about my programs.

There are a few very important questions that have to be answered or the tuner will not be able to get you the tune you need.

1: you have to know what rpm you are going to run up to.
2:you have to know the kpa range your cam is running in.

These 2 factors can make all the difference in how the main tables are setup and work for you. I was only programmed to 5600 rpm and run to 6400 rpm, big problem if the ve table is not set right before the cutoff of the tables.

If you know the kps range you can make the resolution of the tables work more smoothly.

I am going to hope all is well when I get the ecu back.

Things are looking up.

[AintQik]

Awesome. I've tuned a bunch with HP and to be honest I hate it. On some of the ECMs there are hidden tables working against you and lots of the adjustments are counter-intuitive. Plus there are so many people who THINK they know what they are doing. I know of one Corvette tuner who is like a god over in those forums and I know for a fact he is the direct cause of several motor and tranny failures. They run quick, but only for a few months lol. Lots and lots of information to wade through.

Thanks for sticking with it, you will in fact be a wealth of knowlege for others.

[Jim Nilsen]

It's been an interesting week and have finally made some progress that makes the car a lot better.

Went to fix the horn and turn signals and found a broken wire in the harness and went to replace it and the whole column had to come out and by the time I would have repaired it and what it was going to be when I got done I decided to put a Flaming River column in with tilt wheel. It fits nice and looks good too. I am on the fence about painting it but the 2 tone looks good enough.

I got some new inner fenders to make the front function better and get rid of the old crusty one I temporarily put in to keep things a bit cleaner for time I drove it.

The big news is that the ECU had a problem in the ignition part of the board and they are replacing the board at no cost for the board. The accel 6a box was found to be good and they told me it wasn't anything I did that could have caused the problem to the board. It should be here Monday or Tuesday so I can reinstall it.

I can't wait to drive the car again and finish the break in of the new engine. Still a few bugs to work out but it is going to be better for a lot longer I hope.

The weather is like summer now and the car shows are all happening and it will be fun to hear what people have to say about the car.

I just want to drive it !!!!!

[Motown 454]

I'm glad to hear they're taking care of it for you . I hope it goes in easy and you get to drive it soon.

[MonzaRacer]

DING DING DING AND HERE COMES ROUND 3,,,,,
Now hottie in tiny bikini walks through and waves a big number 3 card,,,,
And we certainly hope Jim has better luck THIS time with ASSHELL.
Wishin ya luck buddy!

[Jim Nilsen]

DING DING DING AND HERE COMES ROUND 3,,,,,
Now hottie in tiny bikini walks through and waves a big number 3 card,,,,
And we certainly hope Jim has better luck THIS time with ASSHELL.
Wishin ya luck buddy!

Ya gotta love having friends like you !!!!

[Jim Nilsen]

I just didn't like the gap in between the column and the gauge bezel so I made one and moved it up some. Here is a pic of it along with one that shows how much it got moved up. The paper is a pattern from the Flaming River bracket. It took me 5 hrs and no mistakes which isn't too bad for an $85 part. The next would be faster as always,lol.

[Jim Nilsen]

ROUND 3 and Jim is Back up and running again. So far it looks like I might have control of this round !!!!!! Stay tuned.

Just fired it up and let it get warm along with checking the timing and listening for noises. Seems to be good so far and it restarts good. Gotta put the passenger seat back in and the crossbar and then go for a drive.

It's back to tuning again to get the drivability back in it.

It should be better with the hood reinforced and the new front inner fenders to keep the air under control better.

Lots to do before the Motorstate gets here. Still up for debate as to go to the MMCC? Need someone to ride shotgun if I go.

[LSx_88_Ciera]

I call shotgun!!!
Have to stop and pick me up on your way though.

[Motown 454]

good luck on the first drive I hope it goes well.

[Jim Nilsen]

It's a beautiful day out and the drive was really good. The tune is going well and the drivability is very good for a start. The car rides much smoother as it gets more miles and settles in on the suspension. As long as it stays running and drives I am ready for just about anything now and am going to be a lot happier , I keep telling myself.
I learned a lot and that hopefullly will have taught me to respect everyone who still has a car to drive home in after a track day.

Now there are a few more things on the list to get done ,as long as the car keeps running they will stand a chance to get there,LOL.