ive been researching alot and im wanting to add an aftermarket ecu to run more boost. ive got a 93 automatic with a intake and a full exhaust, but i have a manual boost controller keeping my boost down to 10 psi. i have read that i can run a aftermarket ecu out of a 5 speed in my car but i will lose the hold feature and the torque convertor will not work correctly. unless you get a 700.00 transmission controller.

my question is.. are any of you guys running these aftermarket ecu's and just deal with losing the hold feature. is it that big of a deal to you??
also i was wanting to order a stall convertor, but im curious to know what factor ecu control will play in that. any help will be appreciated.

 

the only thing that works well on the autos is the pfs purple box. its old but gets the job done. get it with the pink nine software. you will need to get it tuned on a dyno with a wide band for best results. but the auto trans will be your problem. it will only hold about 300-325 HP and not for long if you hammer on it all the time. I would just keep it at 10 psi with all the bolt ons. mine runs just fine and plenty of power.

Jeff

 

thanks. i found some pretty good threads since i posted this topic. i beleive im gonna hold off on the ecu and order a set of 4.3 gears, and just start getting the rest of the bolt ons.

 

Been there done that!

Auto`s are great... whoever said auto`s are not competitive really doesn`t know much.

I had the Peter Farrel Setup in my 93. from intercooler, fuel pump and ECU. It ran very well for 2-1/2 yrs @ 17psi. Dynoed 343 Rwhp. I have now moved on to bigger and better things for example, street port motor, 4.3 rear, single T66 turbo setup, Micro tech LT8S Ecu and still have the hold feature retained... which was a bitch to wire up.

Nevertheless, the car runs hard. Even cleaned up an evolution MR which took me by surprise because the ECU is not finally tuned.

Auto`s never looses boost pressure which is a plus but eliminate the torque converter upgrade, its not good for the street.


Good Luck!!

 

Micro tech LT8S Ecu and still have the hold feature retained... which was a bitch to wire up.

how did you get this to work?

Jeff

 

no problems thus far with my 93 auto and Apex Pfc. the hold light doesn't come on but i've not tried to use it.

 

Alot of research and development... also thanks to KDR Rotary.

 

I got a Pfc so I just deal with the no hold feature and flashing light

 

I'm running a 95 Auto (original owner) w/50K. I have a Power FC setup by dave over at KDR.
Other mods include:
Pettit TKT intake
HKS Downpipe
Bonez Mid
RB dual Tip
Koyo Rad
Blitz SMIC
99 twins
SRmotorsports power pulley setup
Greedy blowoff w/elbow and pipes
SARD fuel pump.
SARD 850 CC injectors
SARD high temp thermostat
Now my car hauls some serious *** and is my daily driver. Now thats not to mention that I have a SRT8 Jeep also as my daily driver so my FD doesn't see that many miles. Have approx. 52K since Dave at KDR rebuilt my motor. It's all about setting the car up properly.
Only issues with the Powers FC setup (as mentioned in other replies)is that the Hold indicator flashes on and off but have taken the bulb out from the meter gauge. The FC setup freed up lots of additional horses and works really really well with everything you see above.
Oh, that showing 16psi and I've yet to be back up to dave (KDR) for some tunning on the dyno.
Good luck....Dave S.

 

autos are great and all but i reckon you should chuck in a supra 5 speed and wiring loom so you can be prepared for future mods, and that way your ecu should run properly too

 

Andre is the MAN on the Microtech ECU! That is quite simply the only other way other than using the PFS box to keep the 'hold' feature, something I use all the time.

The PFS box with Pink 9 and a good street tune using a wideband 02, coupled with a Level 10 modified tranny would be a hard combo to beat.

 

A supra 5 speed? You drinking antifreeze?

 

i have the pfs and im considering selling it very soon

 

Haha no im not, but chucking in supra fivespeed manuals have been done and are fairly easy to do. ive seen this done in auz quite a fair few times way back in 1999. the 9 second quartermile rotary drag cars used to use these with either a ford nine inch or a toyota hilux diff combo, reason being because they were able to take the huge punishment dished out on them. but........

in order to fit these though you need to have an adaptor made up for you, along with a custom drive shaft, wiring loom, modification to the transmission tunnel, etc..... i reckon its a worthwhile upgrade rather than buying a crossmission gearbox or anything else expensive

 

hey I just picked up an AUTO FD and have been tryin to figure out what the hold feature does. Care to enlighten me?

Thanks, Adrien

 

locks the tranny into the lower gear. Look at the left side of the shifter panel and you'll see the gears that 'hold'....well, HOLDS you in. For example, in 'L', without hold the car will shift nearly immediately into 2nd gear. Move the lever up one and your are in third, move up to 'D' and you are in overdrive. With 'hold' on, you are in 1st whilst in 'L', in 2nd while in 'S', and in 3rd while in 'D'....and that is where you stay. A really COOL feature is that if it is slick outside, just put the car in 'D' and turn 'hold' on, and you have a VERY effective traction control.
Part of the issue with perceived poor performance of the automatic is that the tranny's ecu wants to get as good as mileage as possible, so it is always trying to shift up a gear, unless you are at half-throttle or more. Read the service manual and you can see the myriad of factors that control various shift points and all that good stuff. The point is, using the hold in the optimal way really, really changes the characteristics of the car, you can get near-manual performance out of it, with the only real noticeable difference being in the initial 'launch'.