Haltech vs mega squirt
 

I'm looking in buying a stand alone for 88TII I've heard lots of good things and bad things on both products .From what I can see the difference is price , both units do the same job and they both need to be programed (a resistor or capasitor stays the same) please make me understand why I should pay more :Kill1:

What did you mean exactly? the Haltech is a tried and true system with plenty of history with the rotaries and many other applications. Its easy to use and has a good number of features, and depending on which system you get you will have more or less options.

I havent seen the Squirt up close, but from what i read and know about it its too much of a hassle, and the software isnt intuitive or as easy to work with like the Haltech.

The MS users here can probably help you out more on that. You might want to PM the MS gurus on that side of the forum. Personally, having used the "less expensive systems" from other companies, i can tell you that you do see the difference once you give them a try. But, the flip side is that techincally any system's true capabilites will shine or suck depending greatly on the person/individual/tuner who does the installation and programing.

Comparo's like this usually get no where.

Unless you're a tuning wiz for which you have no problem tuning both, you are not going to get a good comparison of both units.
You just cannot go down the columns of features and expect to get the "best" just by looking at that.

Both units are priced in different ranges, so that makes it more hard to do a good comparo.
You really can't compare them side-by-side.

I would suggest getting the unit that YOU CAN GET THE BEST TECHNICAL SUPPORT FOR.


-Ted

tunning
 

My question is money the answer that everyone gives me all the time is the same one you guys give me ,don't take this as an insult but yes the haltech has been around longer but they started somewhere ,I feel if you build your own don't you understand it a little better ,also like you said you have to be good to tune your own car, most people that have good or no good set ups still want to see (steve khan )so no matter what set up you have I understand and agree you need a good tunning it still comes down to the all mighty dollar .I see at the track many different kinds of set ups one day your on top of it and the next day your back at the drawing board .Iam going to buy a unit thats for sure I need some good arguments to choose the right one ,so don't be shy on your answers just be yourselfs and be exact .remember dinasours where around thousands of years but they still died out :Kill1:

Ah yes, technical support, i forgot about that one. The more tried and true a system is, the more likely it is to find support for it, no matter what brand it is.

If you want to spend just a little money on the cheapest system, you will have your work cut out for you, the learning curve is simply much grater. Since you are literally teaching your self how to use the system and its features.

This is really a "chicken and the egg" discussion, it never ends.

If you are really worried about saving money, buy a USED haltech. I got an E6K for only $500. Its a proven EMS that has a big userbase and lots of documented installs.

If you feel like building it all yourself and being the beta tester, build a megasquirt.

Also remember for the most part, the Haltech Harness will be in better shape, the MS reuses the old one, and it's almost impossible to work with.

That is a good deal. If he doesnt by into that let me know, I might consider taking that K off your hands, PM pics of it and the harness if you have it please. Thanks.

I've used both Haltech and Megasquirt but admittedly it was a much older version of Haltech. An obvious difference is their huge price gap. I personally built my MS so I do know it's features pretty well. I like the unit but I won't go so far as to say it's better than a Haltech. It isn't. From a tunability standpoint the Haltech has many more map points. This allows more precise finetuning which becomes increasingly more important when you run boost. The added map points are really benefit especially when you run higher boost levels. MS has a 12X12 map setup but some have upgraded to make theirs 16X16. I personally run mine in dual table mode so my primaries have a 12X12 table and my secondaries have their own 12X12 table. Their map points are not the same though so I in practice have more than 12X12.

MS and Haltech each have some good features that the other one doesn't. If you don't intend to use them, it doesn't really matter. The MS is an every expanding ecu. It's always being improved and added to. When a Haltech is improved, they make a new model and your slowly goes out of style and disappears. That's my biggest complaint about Haltech. It is an extremely capable unit though.

I am currently running an MS on my car and I love it. The MS software is probably the easiest ecu software I have ever used. It's very simple and user friendly. There is a big "but" to that though. You need to go through a small amount of hassel to load the software on your ecu and then figure out which .ini file to move into the software, which one to use, where to download it from, and where to put it. This isn't difficult but is kind of annoying. That's a minor issue that isn't too hard to figure out if you look at the msefi forum.

It's hard to compare these units because in some ways they are comparable and in other ways they aren't. Each has it's own advantages and disadvantages and each can work on your car just fine.

You can either build one or buy new one for $60. You do not need to use the existing harness. How much does a Haltech harness cost if you need a new one?

Go check out www.msefi.com. You don't get much better in the way of tech support than that place and you can always ask me for help if you need it. I wouldn't say either one has an advantage over the other when it comes to support. Both are good systems and both have equally good support.

Sorry Claudio, I was trying to say I bought my E6K for that. I'm getting ready to install this one in the wife's TII. I was just giving the example that you can get really good deals on Haltechs if you look.

Its not really beta any more, there are many rotary owners running MS's with no problem. The thing I like most about it is how I can add to it if I want, such as I can build a traction control to add on to it if I want ($15 in parts), but I most likely will only use it for MPH/MPG monitoring.
The MS does not have to use the stock harness. I used a spare stock harness I had laying around for the clips, and built the rest of it off of the supplied DB-37 connector. Total cost: $35 for the harness.

I am biased towards the MS, and I have never used a Haltech, so I am not sure what all it offers.

Some of the other things the MS offers are: megaview digital dash (text readout of current values), a new prototype graphical display, 12x12 spark/fuel tables, table switching, Launch control, 3 stage shift light, fan control, nitrous control, kock input/correction, dual EGO input/correction, water injection control, and some others. Just keep in mind, you may not be able to run all of these at the same time, and most will require a little more circuitry design.

Depends on the harness you buy, the latest flying lead harnesses that come with the built in relay connections and fuseblock are around 250-300 bucks, and if you want a terminated one it shoots around 450, plus cost of the injector harness.

Thats what I Want to hear
 

thanks for your input guy's, I really like the different ideas you gave me so far keep em comeing .The reason I'm looking for a stand alone is I built an 88TII from the ground up I used three cars to do it ,under the hood I have t04 turbo on a hks manifold ,racing beat exaust,fuel cut deffencer,tubox boost control two stage,fuel regulator,hks external waste gate,tubox blow off valve ,front intercooler, and the (piece de resistance)I have two extra injectors ,the little box in my car says injector driver it comes from england it's called an er617 I can inject water or fuel with it .Does anybody know if the haltech could replace this box (run six injectors)or can the megasquirt do the job :bigthumb:

That's the problem...
If all you're worried about is how much something costs, you're not necessarily getting the best for your application; you're trying to get the most for your money.

Remember, performance is usually inversely proportional to how much you pay or how much something costs...

I think you already made up your mind, and you're wasting our time in here even talking about Haltechs.


-Ted

how many cars in any type of competition use a megasquirt? NONE!!! why? because they are shit.. remember, you get what you pay for when it comes to standalones

This is a really funny statement coming from the person who is constantly telling people to go with the absolute cheapest option when it comes to making power through forced induction.

I wouldn't go so far as to say it's shit. That's not true. It's definitely not something I'd use on a true dedicated race car though. those cars have much higher budgets and needs. If it were a race car we were talking about I wouldn't use a Haltech either. There's really only one choice when you truly need the best and that's Motec. It's not to say Haltech sucks. It doesn't. Megasquirt does it's job quite well assuming you are realistic about what you are installing it on and are using it for. It's not the best unit for each setup but then again neither is a Haltech. The worst ecu in my opinion at least from a user friendly standpoint is the Microtech. Those things are a pain in the ass.

This is not a pissing contest
 

No my mind is not made up yet and I need to understand what my unit can or can't do and save money .For those who think this is pissing contest this is not and those who think I'm wasting there time try to give me some real pointers and advice and if you can't then don't say anything .I'am looking for positive advice before I spend my money I worked hard for .I don't whant to race professionaly I want a good unit that is reliable and I understand .I don't want to pay for just a name, I also have to find someone local(Ottawa,Canada) that can tune the unit I will buy .So if anyone knows something please let me know :icon_tup:

Have you ever heard if Parish's 10 second truck? Heres a vid of it: http://turbotruck.toolbarnracing.com/KRP.wmv

Definitely not shit, and there are many cars around here running a megasquirt thanks to Dieselgeek (who installed Jim's unit)

thanks papiogxl
 

now thats what I'm talking about thanks for that vid I will look in to that megasquirt a little more.Don't get me wrong I don't hate my country but it's a pain in the a#$^^ when you have buy your parts out of Canada why we don't have good parts I don't know shi$&^*^.Keep on giving me more you guys I also have lots of reading to do thanks again :icon_tup:

Looks like you've answered your own question. Go to your local tuner, and buy what he can install, tune, and support for you. It likely won't be MS, as it's target market is the diy crowd. Most shops would pull their hair out trying to keep up with the rapid development, and myriad of different software, firmware, and hardware configurations. No 1-800 number to dial if it quits working either. On the other hand, it's a dream for the automotive hobbyist, as it has a rich feature set, loads of on-line tech support, and is very low cost in kit form.

hey renns
 

thanks for your reply do you know anyone in Ottawa that can tune and has good stand alones that won't cost an arm or a leg its not easy to trust once you've been burned :wallbash:

Stop accusing people of shit you can't back up.


-Ted