Flash vs Fuel Tuners
Important!
If you own a turbo SxS, please note I'm only discussing the benefits of flashes and tuners on naturally aspirated motors because with a turbo only a flash should ever be considered.
Overview
When it comes to fuel tuners (aka fuel controllers), these simple tools plug into your fuel injectors and read the information being sent to the injector. Following the rules in their programming and settings the fuel tuner adjust the instructions for the fuel injector to add more or less fuel. Because these tuners offer a very limited amount of fuel settings, they're often used by casual riders that are adding an exhaust or compensating for the factory lean condition that some OEM's have built into their ECU's for emissions purposes. For more experienced riders that have knowledge of tuning an engine and particularly those with access to diganostics and a dyno, these tuners are really limiting and can't really be considered a viable option for their needs.
The ECU flash is a complete rewriting of the code in the ECU that allows for much more adjustability to everything the ECU controls. This includes fuel but also can be used to adjust (or remove) torque limiters, rev limiters, speed limiters, advance or retard ignition timing, override safety mechanisms, and more. In the world of turbo-charged side-by-sides (UTV), they allow a complete control over the boost and behavior of the turbo charger. This can create huge increases in power (at least as far as your engine is physically able to withstand) and has therefore become a very popular modification for UTV's like the Can-Am X3 and Polaris RZR Turbo.
Why Flash or Tune At All?
Most modern ATV's are programmed to run on the lean side to pass stricter emissions standards set by California and this causes your exhaust to run hot (hotter exhaust gases burn off more emissions). By adding fuel (richer mixture), your engine will run cooler.
When you add an aftermarket exhaust to your machine, there's more air flowing through the motor (assuming your air filter is in good condition) and this causes more air into the motor. More air causes a hotter burn in the cylinder(s) and therefore even hotter exhaust gases. Adding an aftermarket exhaust (particularly on Can-Am ATV's) pretty much requires more fuel to be delivered to compensate the lean condition. The side effect being that you'll also gain horsepower. How much? Well, that's a huge debate, but typically adding fuel will add about 3-5% more ponies by default and properly tuned (using a dyno or at least an AFR gauge) you can expect 4-7% more.
 |
ECU Flash
The biggest benefit of an ecu flash is the number of parameters that can be changed on your machine. A tuner like the RJWC fuel tuner by Dobeck Performance can only add (and sometimes remove) fuel, and even a more advanced tuner like the PowerCommander 5 by DynoJet can add and remove fuel and on some models give the added benefit of advancing or retarding ignition timing. The ECU flash can create the feeling of more power just by changing the fuel delivery curve to a more aggressive response (i.e. less thumb movement delivers more fuel earlier). This is great for riders who play in the mud and want their machine to react quickly to being launched into the skeg.
An ECU flash also allows for some safety overrides, like say, that annoying reverse speed limiter when you're trying to back out of a deep mud hole. They remove or reduce the torque limiters (aka axle saver) to give you more instant torque when you're turning big tires in deep mud. But keep in mind that these safeties are put in place sometimes for rider safety, but also to prevent failure in your motor or transmission.
One of the common features that ECU flashers want is control over the RPM and speed limiters. From the factory, these limits are set to very reasonable and in some cases limits that are too safe for many riders. For example, a 1000cc Can-Am ATV has a stock RPM limiter of around 8000 RPM, but many feel a properly tuned version of this motor is developing its maximum power around 8200 RPM, so a limit of 8300-8500 RPM is reasonable and the motor seems, by all accounts, to handle this easily. Mud racers are notorious for pushing limits and many are pushing this motor to 9000 RPM without major motor work.
 |
Which Should I Choose?
This decision, until the creation of the PowerVision 3 from Dynojet was a pretty easy one...but more on that in a minute.
There are the main factors most considered when making the call:
- Is your ATV still under warranty?
- Are you frustrated by the lower top speed of your Polaris Sportsman High Lifter/Can-Am XMR? (caused by a lower final gear ratio)
- Is heat your main concern and do you want to make sure the motor stays within the factory prescribed limits?
- Ease of install and setup
- What is your budget?
1. Warranty Considerations
OEM's will not typically warranty a motor that's been flashed because the safety limits could have been removed and pushed the motor beyond it's intended limits. (Always check with your dealer about warranty considerations before installing any aftermarket parts.) However, a fuel tuner isn't such an unknown quantity and, frankly, is very easy to remove if you need to. A flash, even tho you can put the machine back to stock can leave behind evidence and may require you to send your ECU in to the service to have it flashed back to stock. If you're still under warranty, a tuner is the safer option here. Be sure not to flash a machine till you've checked with your dealer. If you blow up a motor that's been flashed (whether the fault of manufacturing or not), you could be out of pocket thousands of dollars replacing a motor that's still under warranty.
Verdict: Fuel Tuner
2. Top-Speed/Speed Limiter Concerns
Only the ECU flash will help you overcome your concerns here. You can raise your limits to pretty much any point you want, and most ECU flashes have increased, but safe limits are still programmed into them.
Verdict: ECU Flash
3. Heat
Both the ECU flash and the tuner will add fuel to your motor.
Verdict: Either
4. Ease of Install/Setup
Basic fuel tuners are typically the easiest to set up as they don't require a computer, software, or anything like that. The RJWC fuel tuners sold by Dirty Life require about 30 minutes of your time from beginning to end. The installation is as finding a home for the fuel tuner, then un-clipping the OEM harness from fuel injectors and plugging it into the fuel tuner harness, then plugging the fuel tuner harness back into the injector. The final step is to run the ground wire to your battery.
PowerCommander 5 requires the same steps as a basic fuel tuner but also requires you to download a file onto the unit from your computer through a USB cable.
ECU Flashes (with PowerVision 3) requires you to download a file onto the unit through a USB cable, but then you plug into the service port on your machine and flash it. Once the flash is complete, you can remove the PV3 programmer.
ECU Flashes (without PowerVision 3) require you to take your machine to the shop or to send your ECU to the shop for flashing. This can leave you without a machine for several days or even weeks depending on each individual situation.
Verdict: Basic Fuel Tuner or ECU Flash with PV3
5. Price Concerns
Until recently the cost of tuning a machine and flashing a machine were similar with some flashes costing considerably more than a tuner. This gave tuners a clear leg-up on flashing. However, with DynoJet's release of the PowerVision 3, the gap has been entirely closed and the advantage has swung to the flash now. A PowerVision 3 licence from Dirty Life is about 30% less than the cost of a fuel tuner. The initial buy-in to obtain the programmer and your first licence is higher, but you can program multiple ATV's with one programmer (plus a licence for each machine).
Verdict: PowerVision 3
 |
Wrapping Up
The decision for a flash or tune will be based on each individual's situation. Some will just want to cool their motors, while others are looking to eek out every last horsepower their machine has available. Everyone has a different goal and different plans for their machine.
At Dirty Life, we always work with you to help you make the best decision and we'll support you after the sale to make sure your completely happy with the direction you've gone.
