ECUTEK ProEcu For BMW B58/2020+ A90 Supra Discussion

geert.bieseman

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Currently it is not worth to switch to ecutek if you are having a custom tune flashed via MHD.
But over time once they have a full release, there will be a lot more options to play with.

From my point of view, I would be interested in for example the multiple maps (different horsepower, response,...)
My tuner was subscribed for the bèta release as well regarding the Supra... but once he heard what was only possible in bèta, he said he would not participate in it any longer and wait for the full release (as even in bèta, it ain't cheap for the tuners to be allowed to work with the bèta software)
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Twisted Tuning

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Was the official Ecutek released yet? I thought its still in Beta stage.
I don't think Ecutek has been officially released yet...Master Tuners are still on beta...

I'm waiting until Ecutek officially releases with Racerom included and then will taking my Supra to an Ecutek Master Tuner for a dyno tune followed by a few street tune refinements...Personally, I've never been a fan of OTS tunes...

i would not be so focused on "BETA" terminology in reference to Ecutek. The flashing and etc work. I havent had any issues on my car or customer cars. The Beta was mainly to see if there are any flashing issues or logging anomolies. If i were you i'd be more worried about making the decision of letting someone tune your car that really doesn't know what they are doing rather than the software platform itself being in BETA.

You don't have to take your car anyway. I speak for me...i can tune your car remotely on the dyno or the street. I just send you the programming kit. Which will also allow you to read codes, monitor and log, and etc. with your phone via bluetooth.



What’s the cost of ECUTEK as a whole? Like if I wanted to purchase everything and get my car running tomorrow...

if I buy BM3, it’s $595 with base tune and license.

MHD seems to be the same as BM3, maybe a little less.

Ecutek is a whole new can of worms... it looks like around $700 for just the hardware and license, then another $400 for a tune since it doesn’t come with anything OTS? Even more for wireless adaptor to use with my phone.

Ecutek may indeed be a more open system, but for most of us guys BM3 and MHD seem to be a better option because of the base tune availability and being able to use it instantly and not schedule a tune. Until Ecutek adds race rom it doesn’t seem like the way to go.

Evo tuning was so much better. The programs were free and so was tephramod (aside from on the X). So we had to buy a tactrix cable and contact a tuner. It was $550 or so total, which is comparable to the $550 for accessport, BM3, etc. On top of this there was no BS locked maps or anything like that and you could always edit your map when changing hardware.

TLDR: Ecutek seems like a very expensive alternative, and without racerom present it doesn’t seem worth the additional costs and lost practicality. No wireless or phone support, (without spending MORE money for adaptors) no OTS maps to get you going and the option to protune later.

Twisted, you’re the only person with hands on time with all 3 of these. I’m hoping you’ve got some insight that will prove me wrong. I’ve been looking in and out at these alternatives and MHD is where I would be going -if- they had iPhone support. Ecutek would be where I was going -if- it was comparably priced and came with OTS options. I’m left with BM3 as my only practical option and frankly, I haven’t been thrilled with the issues that are popping up for the users.

With all this said, stage 2 tunes look dang good at the time. Should someone with no intentions of ever going past downpipe and tune even consider Ecutek over the other options?
I’ve read numerous similar responses, including that one. No one, including Ecutek, can guarantee we will get racerom ever, muchless any time soon.

So my question remains..... Without racerom and maybes, what makes ecutek worth double the cost of MHD and BM3? And what benefit would someone with downpipe only and no plans for further mods get from ecutek over the other options?

Not knocking the product at all, but it seems like as of now there are no benefits to using it over the others, especially considering the cost.

Nonetheless, I plan to go ecutek or MHD. I am just trying to find a good reason to go ecutek over MHD.
Ecutek programming kit (wired/bluetooth) plus the flash license is $710 through me. and custom map support is $400 when bundled with that instead separate being $450. there is no extra fee for adapters. However, Bootmod, you need to buy the wifi agent to be able to use mobile device on top of the $600 license to be wireless, or just use the laptop, but still need to buy an ENET cable. MHD the wifi adapter is $69 bucks from me.

No there are no Ecutek provided OTS maps. But i've been thinking of offering OTS maps on Ecutek. So if all you're after is a basic OTS map, then MHD may be the way to go. Unless a tuner offers OTS maps, which i may on Ecutek. My business model is Custom tuning, but times change and it seems 90% of people only want a basic generic tune. So i may start offering that.


Like i said above, the Advantages on these platforms are going to go to the platform with the Custom code. Ecutek and MHD are the only ones known for this. So in that, owners will be fine with either of those two when its comes to the highest probability of custom coding and features happening. IE- flex fuel, map switching, and a bunch of other stuff.

Iphone support on MHD is here, they just need to make the release, we been using and testing th iOS appd for MHD for months.


Currently it is not worth to switch to ecutek if you are having a custom tune flashed via MHD.
But over time once they have a full release, there will be a lot more options to play with.

From my point of view, I would be interested in for example the multiple maps (different horsepower, response,...)
My tuner was subscribed for the bèta release as well regarding the Supra... but once he heard what was only possible in bèta, he said he would not participate in it any longer and wait for the full release (as even in bèta, it ain't cheap for the tuners to be allowed to work with the bèta software)

im not sure what you are talking about in regards to the beta. I've been on it since day one. And have tuned customer cars in house and remotely. Aint cheap? sure, they make you buy the software suite and programming kit. but thats a given, they aren't going to give away the software for free. I've been tuning with Ecutek for years. so wasn't much i needed other than than the purchase of the software suite. If your tuner expected to get the software for free, then i guess i can understand why they said it ain't cheap.
 

geert.bieseman

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im not sure what you are talking about in regards to the beta. I've been on it since day one. And have tuned customer cars in house and remotely. Aint cheap? sure, they make you buy the software suite and programming kit. but thats a given, they aren't going to give away the software for free. I've been tuning with Ecutek for years. so wasn't much i needed other than than the purchase of the software suite. If your tuner expected to get the software for free, then i guess i can understand why they said it ain't cheap.
It is not about ECUTEK in general because yes they are great (same as on my GTR I am running a Link G4+ ECU -> installed by same tuner).
My tuner has 20 years of experience with tuning mostly JDM cars (ECUTEK, Haltech, Link, AEM, Syvecs, SCT, COBB,...).

Yes he has a huge experience with ECUTEK. Just saying it with his words

What I meant is what the software is currently capable of in comparison with MHD & OTS maps.
Same for the tuners who want to obtain an extra license of ECUTEK, for the Supra... not worth the money at this point (its beta and they charge a lot of money to test the software for them... as it currently can not do all of the feature as a normal ECUTEK is able to do... so why bother)
 

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I'm still planning on waiting for Racerom along with official Ecutek release and very appreciative to all the willing first adopter / lab rat participants...:thumbsup:
 

geert.bieseman

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I'm still planning on waiting for Racerom along with official Ecutek release and very appreciative to all the willing first adopter / lab rat participants...:thumbsup:
I don't mind being a lab rat (actually my car is a lab rat when it comes to tuning/wheels/brakes).
What bothers me is that ECUTEK wants the whole license cost for it.

My daily job is being in IT. And there, beta testers first get the software for free.. so development can get a lot of bug-input and a wide-spread base-line for the finishing product. Based on the feedback of the testers, a discount (or sometimes even free version) is offered afterwards as a thanks to be beta-tester.
 

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I don't mind being a lab rat (actually my car is a lab rat when it comes to tuning/wheels/brakes).
What bothers me is that ECUTEK wants the whole license cost for it.

My daily job is being in IT. And there, beta testers first get the software for free.. so development can get a lot of bug-input and a wide-spread base-line for the finishing product. Based on the feedback of the testers, a discount (or sometimes even free version) is offered afterwards as a thanks to be beta-tester.
I be a engin-nurd too...And been there, did that, with being a lab rat / first adopter for other new cars I've owned which never really amounted to any real advantage over waiting for a more refined final version with additional features and less bugs to sort out...

Yup...At the very least those purchasing beta versions should be getting it at a reasonable discount....
 
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Abdulisraddd

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I just switched from bm3 ots 91/ e30 ots stage 2 to now having ECUTEK. I’m currently on a 91 tune ( waiting on my e50 tune ) So far so good ! Night and day . But I also don’t have experience with a custom tune with bm3
 

geert.bieseman

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I be a engin-nurd too...And been there, did that, with being a lab rat / first adopter for other new cars I've owned which never really amounted to any real advantage over waiting for a more refined final version with additional features and less bugs to sort out...

Yup...At the very least those purchasing beta versions should be getting it at a reasonable discount....
A big downside is indeed that it takes a lot of time.
I think last time I now have seen my car... was in begining of January (problems with the design of the fully-customized drop-in turbo).
At least the timing was "right" (now with the COVID-19 virus, all non-essentional drives are prohibited in Belgium)
 

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the main difference is cloud based versus not. Ecutek tech is dongle ID based which allows use anyway without internet. BM is cloud based so its heavily reliant on internet access.

Ecutek Has Racerom (once released) which generally includes factory ECU integration of Flex fuel, map switching and etc. Bootmod has none of that. MHD has flash options (similar to racerom once released).

On the surface all flashing platforms are editing the same map data. but where they go beyond the basic map data is where things get separated and etc. Ecutek and MHD are know for custom features not found in the Native code of the ECU. Bootmod is not. in the end, the custom features are whats going to set things apart.
Awesome, thank you. can they read/write on the fly like on a Haltech/Motec etc or do they require a power cycle?
 

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I’m surprised people here are ok with just getting a base tune or OTS map. I come from the GT-R world and none of us would take a flash like BM3 over custom tuning with Cobb or ECUTEK. In fact, most of us don’t use OTS maps with Cobb or ECUTEK either. There is too much HP left on the table with OTS maps. The only way to ensure we safely extract 700hp+ (crank) on a full bolt on E85 GT-R is with a custom tune. Plus you get flex fuel, rolling anti-lag, on the fly launch control adjustments, etc. Base/OTS tunes usually leave 40-50hp on the table. Maybe I’m missing something but given me experience with GT-Rs, I would jump to using ECUTEK in a heartbeat.
 

geert.bieseman

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I’m surprised people here are ok with just getting a base tune or OTS map. I come from the GT-R world and none of us would take a flash like BM3 over custom tuning with Cobb or ECUTEK. In fact, most of us don’t use OTS maps with Cobb or ECUTEK either. There is too much HP left on the table with OTS maps. The only way to ensure we safely extract 700hp+ (crank) on a full bolt on E85 GT-R is with a custom tune. Plus you get flex fuel, rolling anti-lag, on the fly launch control adjustments, etc. Base/OTS tunes usually leave 40-50hp on the table. Maybe I’m missing something but given me experience with GT-Rs, I would jump to using ECUTEK in a heartbeat.
You are indeed missing that not all of us are using the base OTS maps from MHD... but a customized one and only use MHD to flash the ECU:
  • The reason why (as far as I know), I still got the most horesepower in Europe on just a downpipe and a tune on 93 octane (520HP and 775NM at the engine) via MHD. To compare... stage 2 MHD flash is 470hp at the engine

I guess everybody here knows that once ECUTEK does their proper release and features, it is better than what MHD can offer (which is kinda normal). But for now... I am not going to switch.
 

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I’m surprised people here are ok with just getting a base tune or OTS map. I come from the GT-R world and none of us would take a flash like BM3 over custom tuning with Cobb or ECUTEK. In fact, most of us don’t use OTS maps with Cobb or ECUTEK either. There is too much HP left on the table with OTS maps. The only way to ensure we safely extract 700hp+ (crank) on a full bolt on E85 GT-R is with a custom tune. Plus you get flex fuel, rolling anti-lag, on the fly launch control adjustments, etc. Base/OTS tunes usually leave 40-50hp on the table. Maybe I’m missing something but given me experience with GT-Rs, I would jump to using ECUTEK in a heartbeat.
I come from Evos/Subaru’s and I agree, custom maps are always the way to go.

The issue that I have is that MHD is half the cost of Ecutek and has the same capability as of now with no guaranteed future features. I only used the MHD OTS tune as a reference to why I don’t understand ecutek pricing. Ecutek comes with less features as of now and does not come with any off the shelf map. Some times the OTS map can do some good if you’re scheduled 2 weeks out with a remote tuner or states away from a tuner for a tune and want to drive the car with a little extra power.

So to clear up your confusion, I had/have no intentions of permanently using any OTS tune, it was just for the benefit of using until the car is fully tuned.

Its very likely that I just bite the bullet and go with Ecutek, which reminds me that I wanted to ask...... Are future updates like racerom always free with Ecutek or do we have to pay for the big updates?
 

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I’m surprised people here are ok with just getting a base tune or OTS map. I come from the GT-R world and none of us would take a flash like BM3 over custom tuning with Cobb or ECUTEK. In fact, most of us don’t use OTS maps with Cobb or ECUTEK either. There is too much HP left on the table with OTS maps. The only way to ensure we safely extract 700hp+ (crank) on a full bolt on E85 GT-R is with a custom tune. Plus you get flex fuel, rolling anti-lag, on the fly launch control adjustments, etc. Base/OTS tunes usually leave 40-50hp on the table. Maybe I’m missing something but given me experience with GT-Rs, I would jump to using ECUTEK in a heartbeat.
I think you are seeing more casual users, if that is the correct term. I know when I finally go all in, I don’t need 500+ hp. Maybe when this is no longer my daily, but that is years away. If an OTS tune, intake, and catted downpipe get me to 400 hp, I’m happy. I daily mine, so adding new wheels and tires to truly take advantage of anything more than that will be a tremendous constant cost at the 20-30,000 miles a year I historically have put on a vehicle.

With all that said, when I plan to move forward, I’ll be reaching out to a few active on here who seem to be honest and know their shit for advice. You don’t know what you don’t know, and I know I don’t know.
 

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Anyone know if there is a way to tell if your ECU is locked besides trying to flash it?
 

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ecutek is by far the best platform out of the three. Beta is open for any tuner who can sell licenses. Also racerom for supra is #1 and I imagine once its goes public release it will be there. I have fbo with pure a800 on ecutek with 91 octane only currently and the car is a rocket. I will be posting dragy times and dyno on Tuesday. Ecutek is the best from the tuners perspective. More tables are being discovered daily and the community is dope. I've used all three platforms previously and am using ecutek on my f80. The only downside is there are no OTS maps but honestly I see that as the best thing about it since everyone is custom.
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