Im wondering if i should just sell the accessport and get my ecu reflashed... would i get more power out of reflashing vs. the accessport? I have my accessport at stage 2 91 oct. but i just recently added a helix flex upipe and i dont think the accessport is taking advantage of it.. I was wondering how much more power i could make out of a reflash.. And how much do they cost? Thanks guys

 

According to Cobb an uppipe is within the Access ECU technology to utilize. A reflash using the AP is the same as the Access ECU reflash cobb does. Also an uppipe ill not give you noticable power as in a nominal hp increase. It will allow you faster spool up and better low-end power which is not somethign you notice like a a higher peak hp. On my old WRX I installed a perrin upipe with my Cobb stage 2 setup and the car almost felt slower. It was an illusion because the power band became more leveled out so there was less of that surge at 3000-3500 rpm you get when the turbo is at full boost. I would bet money that you car is faster in 0-60 and all of that, you just have a smoother power band that doesnt give you that drstic pull all of a sudden. So what you should have is a good thing. The more you make your turbo behave like a N/A the better!

That being said if you really wanted to utilize every specific mod you make to its fullest I would reccomend ditching the AP and going over to Subaru Specialists for an ECUTEK reflash. With Nate or any of the other guys at SS you can have them tune your engine specifically to the mods youve made. The AP reflash is a moderate and general tune that "can" utilize other mods but was not designed specifically for like an ECUTEK tune would offer.

SO its all a matter of what you want to do. An AP reflash will work for most of the bolt-on mods you do and provide safe power while an ECUTEK tune will give you the most out of every mod. However, someone else should chime in and correct me if I'm wrong but with an ECUTEK reflash you would have to retune your engine with the addition of certain other mods. So there would be extra tuning time cost there and with an AP you could just download a new map, assuming a map exists for what your needs are. Hopefully more maps will appear in the future.

My .02

 

I have a COBB ECU right now and could purchase an AP for less than an ECUTek reflash would cost.

I'm going to Subaru Specialists and getting an ECUTek reflash done. Nate can use the ECUTek software to maximize the power from your car, not some test car that you've never seen. The gains may not be immediately noticeable, but you'll get better gains over the long run with ECUTek as you continue to modify your car.

 

Another option would be to wait for the Access Tuner to come out which will allow you or authorized tuners to do the same thing as ECUTEK programing. Also this is much debated but the AccessECU technology is supposed to be better and allow for a broader range of programming than the older ECUTEK programming. Again this is highly debateable and I dont know enough about either to say which is better. Many many many people use ECUTEK and swear by it with great results in power and safety at the same time. The same can be said about AccessECU, its just all depended on your needs and what you are looking to get out of your car.

 

more info about street tuner here.
http://www.wrxforum.com/cgi-bin/ulti...;f=12;t=000038

You'll have to upgrade your AP to use ST maps. Another option is to wait for the ProTuner software to come out. This will allow shops to make AP compatable custom tunes.

 

a dyno tuned reflash will make more power than a accessport off-the-shelf map because it's tuned for your car in your local climate. even just an hour on the dyno at Subaru Specialists is money very well spent.

the downside is that when you make changes to your setup significantly, you need to get re-tuned. is that really a downside? not necessarily. with the cobb AP, you're limited to one mod path. with reflashes, you can go any route you want. yes the cost is a bit higher for a ecutek reflash and additional tuning, but it is worth every cent.

as for tuning with additional mods being necessary with an ecutek reflash, that's not always the case... i had a vf34 and was dyno tuned around the factory downpipe. 192whp and 172lb-ft. had nate install a turboback exhaust but wasn't able to re-tune. when i got tuned a few weeks later, the old tune with the mods put down 213whp and 210lb-ft and ran very safe. he was able to get that up to 224whp and 225lb-ft with some further tuning.

 

Thanks for the info guys I think ill probably get a Ecutek reflash at subaru specialists