Profec B spec II install and review
 

Well, today turned out to be a pretty good day for the 7....I had a few things waiting to go on the car, and since the turbos were still hot after my drive to a friend's garage I decided to start on those first. After putting on new belts and installing my new tripoint AST, I was ready to work on the Profec B.

https://www.rx7club.com/forum/attach...postid=1830044

Reading through a few threads had me wondering how I should install the controller. According to this picture:
https://www.rx7club.com/forum/attach...&postid=952472
the Greddy manual says to use version 1. Others on the forum have used version 2 and swear by it.

I decided to go with version 1 first to see if it would work well for me.

The install went pretty smoothly...something interesting though, was that my hose had a pill in it! It was my understanding that some 94's and all 95's had the pills built into the nipple, but obviously this isn't the case for my car.

Anyway, after routing all the lines into the car, I checked to make sure the car was boosting ~7 psi with the controller off. Bingo, car showed just under 7 psi on my autometer boost guage AND the Greddy profec (chalk up 1 advantage over the older profec B...more to come later).

Now to tuning....this new Profec B was pretty damn easy to setup...the low and high boost levels are set by entering a duty cycle for the valve controller. For 10 psi, I set my low duty cycle to 53%. I didn't bother with the high setting, since I don't plan to go past 10 anyways, so I just left it at 0% (which would put me at 7 psi, as if the controller was off).

I left the gain at 10% (too high gives you spikes, to low has your boost trailing off).

Now a few additional features that make this new profec B worth considering over the old one:

Warning - you can set a warning psi level. One you reach this level the controller will beep and flash red to warn you.

Limiter - If you hit warning, this limiter will kick in and lower the duty cycle a certain percentage from your setting (99% will bring you back to 7 psi)

Peak - this will show your peak psi until you clear it. Very helpful while tuning.

Last Boost - EXTREMELY helpful while tuning...after you let off the accel for 3 secs it will flash the highest psi reached.

Over the course of tuning the boost controller today, it seemed that the boost controller consistently read 1 psi higher than the boost guage. Hrm...so maybe I've been running a little higher than i thought all this time? Definitely good to know.

Finally, after all the tuning was done, I've set up my car to boost a consistent 10-7-10 in all gears (1-4 anyway :) ), and all the way to redline. It certainly seems as if my car is faster now, since it boosts much quicker in the lower gears...my next step is to dyno the car and see what my air/fuel looks like. Although I don't expect any surprises, it's just a good thing to know.

With the old profec B selling for $320....it seems a no brainer to pay less for more in the profec B spec II. The spec II retains the simplicity of the original, yet it adds a bunch of great features. I bought mine off of a ebay link that I found in another thread....just search for 'profec' and you'll find it. I got mine for $307 shipped.

Comments?

do u have any pics of it mounted in your car....what color does it light up..

here you go...
 

https://www.rx7club.com/forum/attach...postid=1830125

https://www.rx7club.com/forum/attach...postid=1830156

you can see that the display is blue in the first pic.......it flashes red when you get a warning or hit the limiter.

pretty cool. :D

where did you order it from?

here
 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...tem=2417118020

there's only 2 left!

Shit man, I just bought the original profec B, i wish i knew this a month ago. Looks nice though...

sell it :D

Sounds cool...I did the version 2 with the Profec B and it works pretty damn nicely...I can predict boost in every gear. I decided to choose version 2 mainly becasue I threw out my pills when I installed the Home Depot Boost Controler...All working good till now.

wow...nice write up...the Profec B spec II looks just like Greddy's new turbo timer...but thanks for sharing the info...it'll come in handy in the future for me. :)

another thing: i'm not positive, but it seems like the controller won't let me go full boost until i'm warmed up a little. It makes no note of this 'feature' in the manual, so I'm not sure if I did something funky or what.

regardless, after a few minutes it stops messing with me so I guess it's a good thing. It's probably some sort of internal timer for the controller, since it doesn't take engine/water/oil temp into account or anything.

Apneablue, have you noticed this too?

Thanks for the pics very nice...

You can't reach full boost while cold because the double throttle is closed. It restricts airflow to the engine to prevent damage from overloading it while cold. It is extremely harmful to the engine to over-rev or overload the engine while it is cold, so don't do it ;).

Thanks for the input Nathan, but I may have been a little unclear....

I always warm up the car to at least 150 deg F water temps before going WOT. This usually happens in ~5 minutes or so of driving.

However, even after this warm up period the boost controller sometimes doesn't let me go WOT without flashing and beeping at me and limiting my boost (to a level that I put in), even though I haven't surpassed the warning psi. I'm wondering if perhaps the valve controller itself has an internal thermosensor that tells the controller when -it- thinks the car is warmed up.

Regardless, the controller eventually (after ~8-10 min) returns to normal operation. If this is an added feature of the controller, I haven't read about it anywhere. I'll send a note to Greddy and report back if this is the case.

:)

Nice post.
If only the display matched...
Do you find the blue display distracting at night?

Nice job i do agree the display should be red or orange.

Very nice. I think you've inspired me to swap out my profec for the spec II after I redeploy....

Nice write up Alien...

The blue isn't really distracting at all...

i think my picture might have made the blue brighter than what it is. Anyway, given that it's now my 2nd boost guage, it's easier to see than the one i have on my A-pillar.

Also, keep in mind I've got one of the Pioneer organic displays on my radio, so this little blue on my steering column is nothing :D

After talking to Greddy, they're not sure why the controller limits my boost after I start the car....I can stop it by cycling through the buttons on the boost controller (Lo -> Hi -> Lo) and then it works fine again. I found that I had forgotten to take one of the plastic caps off of the controller, so I did that and had to retune....i think my duty cycle is now set to ~37% for 10 psi boost, but here's the important thing: my gain is now set to 1%. Anything higher than that and I was spiking.

Anyway, I'll talk to Greddy again later today to see if they come up with anything....and if so I'll post it up here.

Oh, and for those of you who like to boost above stock levels, I believe this unit is capable of up to 43 psi :eek:

I hope that's a typo. The car should be FULLY warmed up before really getting on it -- at least 180 F. The double throttle plates do not open until 170 F and you will not get full boost below this temp.

I couldn't find this controller for sale anywhere but from that ebay source, nor could I find it on GReddy's site. I did find it on Trust's website, so I wonder if any other vendors will be carrying this soon or if this is one of those products that just stays in Japan. Reason being, I don't like buying things from eBay; I would rather go through RX7store etc.

well...that's true, but the weather here has been cold enough that I'd practically have to let the car heat soak before it'll see 180. A couple of months ago I seriously couldn't get the needle past 150.....maybe i need to block up the radiator or something during the winter.

Anyway, these days the needle on my guage stays pegged between the 150 mark and the 180 mark....which would mean it's 165, but I'll assume my POS autometer guage is off. :p:

i've mentioned this to Greddy....they say that it'll be up soon. FWIW I'm hesitant about ebay purchases too, but the guy I bought it from had a ton of good feedback so I went for it. He told me he has more, so let me know if you want his email and you can do it outside of Ebay.

this is true. I installed mine just the other day. Im gonna try the ver2 connecting to the pca since no one can tell me why it bad and every one ive talked to who has done it loves it and has hda no problems. ill post results
sean

alien what do you have your "start boost" set at?

Alien I just ordered mine, you should take some pictures of the install :)

I have one that's 2 months old if anyone is looking. Just PM me. Thanks!

i have the start boost at 7 psi

what is the purpose of the start boost function, im gettin cunfuzled with this thing. right now I have it on off so it will run 7 psi. I dont understand how to make it 10 psi, or how to read the psi levels your getting . im gettin weird menus.... haha

I have a Greddy E-01 and the start boost function keeps the wastegate completely closed until the boost passes the start value.

what about just opening it up and changing the blue and red? so that its usually red and warning is blue?

i have a PowerFC... and i bought the SPEC II version to install but was going to sell it (never installed).

is it more solid than the power FC? should i keep it?

will

very nice write up by the way!!!!!!!!

if i keep mine... i will definately benefit from this!!!!!!!!!!

Quick question, I noticed that there is 3 orifices on the solnenoid. I will be using the "com" and the "on" port, but do I have to plug the third? The instructions mention nothing about plugging any of the ports...

The manual does say to remove all the plugs, but I'm confused too.

Also, after I installed this, I seem to be having issues with my boost. I used version two. Something doesn't seem right. There's boost studdering and a weird non-smooth turbo sound. Any input? I'll be dianoising tomorrow.

Can we resurrect this thread?
 

I just installed my specII following version two of the write-up on my automatic 93. Installation was smooth and the unit is easy to work with. I am running stock exhaust and I think I may have made the vacuum line to the valve a bit longer than necessary. I also have no idea how to tune this thing whatsoever (I know how to operate it just don't know the correct settings). For one or more of the above reasons the car is slow as balls, mostly a horrible response. Tomorrow I will try 37% SET, 1% GAIN, and 7% GAIN SET (start boost). Hopefully it won't spike and I will get a good response. I got 11 psi with a 15% SET but my GAIN was higher than 1% (10-15%). I am also tempted to try a high start boost and low gain+medium boost because I really miss the stock primary turbo. Can somebody explain to me how this stupid thing works? Please tell me that when I put an aftermarket exhaust and shorten the vacum lines my good performance will come back! I also need to tune it right.... Thanks

one port is for stock wastegate the other is for a external so you plug the one you dont have and run the line like normal. 37% 7% 12 warning and 35 limit
i get 11 psi smooth. best pull i get at any speed. but i think it verys form car to car.

The manual says to unplug all caps from valve! Are you sure? Could this be my problem?

I have a 93 automatic with full exhaust and intake and I set up the Profec B Spec II according to version 2 (T turbo outlets and T actuators). It seems that the car is not as fast and especially not as responsive as it should be. Everything is in great shape mechanically. I spoke with a very experienced rotary specialist today and he says I should change my setup to Version 1, not to interfere with the prespool. He also said to set the GAIN very low. I am willing to try it since not only I want a more responsive and consistent boost but also he says that boost hitting a stopped secondary turbo could damage it. What do you think? Thanks.

If you set your START BOOST value close to your SET BOOST value, you will spool faster.

Yes I have the same question, are you supposed to plug up the port(s) on the solenoid that you do not use? What size is the plug????

should have a plug in it already from the factory just dont remove it

but il take a pic since it seem like you dont have them anymore

yes, unfortunately I bought this used, so I do not have any of the factory plugs. Also the unit did not come with the smal airfilter, I wonder if this will be a problem?

The plugs are not supposed to be in. The Profec will not work correctly without having the unused port open! This is stated in step #1 of installation, and also in example #1 of troubleshooting, in the instruction manual!

http://www.greddy.com/tech/PROFEC_B_SPEC2.pdf

That filter is a moisture filter that protects the head unit. The lack of it should not affect the performance.

yes you are correct. I guess it just didnt make sense to me that you would leave the unused port open. Thanks!

so performance wise its ok, but do you think I will risk damage to the head unit?BTW, thanks for your help!

I've seen people run them for years without any problems, but there is that element of risk. I quess I just want to be on the safe side. Im sure you can find a suitable filter at your local auto parts store for a couple of ducats.

ever since I installed the profec b spec 2 ive had horrible primary boost response.
Im thinking theres something not right with the profec installation.
I followed the instruction manual to a tee. I just cant see what the problem is.Ive tried and tried to find the issue with no luck.