I know you have seen all the wonderful "piggy-back" computer
add on's. You know the one's that I am talking about. The Honda guys
have them, the DSM (Diamond Star Motors) guys love them, and we don't
have them. There is not one single aftermarket computer available
specifically for the Saturn PCM. The JET PCM upgrade looked promising,
but independent dyno testing revealed no substantial horsepower or
torque gains.
Until now most Saturn Enthusiasts were either stuck with the stock
PCM fuel maps or resorted to trashing the entire stock system in
favor of a full race engine management system. We at Saturnspeed
decided that this is a totally unacceptable situation.
We began to research the aftermarket fuel computers currently
available for the import community. Many of these systems were either
"chip" upgrades that required a new e-prom in the vehicles
computer (Saturns don't use removable e-proms). The majority of
the other systems we looked at were application specific. This means
that they were designed for one make and model. Attempting to install
one of these on a totally different vehicle could be disastrous.
Just when we were about to give up our feeble search we came across
a very reputable DSM Tuner. This tuner shops website outlined the
installation of an A'PEXi "Super AFC" in a Mitsubishi
Eclipse/ Eagle Talon. This article piqued our interest. We quickly
gave A'PEX Integration a call. After bombarding them with questions
about the "Super AFC" they informed us that they would
have to have anything approved by the Branch Manager. Our contact
at A'PEXi was extremely helpful, but explained that due to liability
they could not sponsor the experiment. This is something that is
thoroughly understandable in this day and age.
After the initial setback we still had enough faith that they
project would work. We dug deep down into our rather shallow capital
and came up with just enough pocket fuzz and lint to purchase a
"Super AFC".
This is one high tech gadget. Basically it allows you to alter
the stock fuel curve at eight user defined RPM's, then it fills
in the space in between your points. The Super AFC accomplishes
this feat by filtering the voltage from the stock MAP sensor, then
sending the "modified" signal to the PCM. Using this method
you can modify the fuel curve by +/- 50%. This basically means that
you can add fuel until your injectors reach 100% duty cycle, or
subtract fuel until you blow your motor. This is the reason that
A'PEXi stresses that this system should only be installed and tuned
by an authorized dealer. This is no "all show" deal. This
is a real tuning tool.
We installed our "Super AFC" in about two hours. The
toughest part was deciding where to stick it to the dash. This is
such a cool looking box that it is quite easy to become distracted
by it. We settled on mounting it right above the A/C vents in the
center of the dash. This allow it to be out of the way of the radio
and A/C controls, but still close enough to view in "Monitor"
mode. Not only does the "Super AFC" allow you to tune
the fuel curve, it will also allow you to monitor up to four engine
functions.
We will be including a detailed install article later this month.
We will be including photos, wiring diagrams, as well as settings
that will get you started without nuking a motor. |