Best Ecu for Sequential Twin Turbos?

[WankelAddict]

Hi guys, I have a stockish 1993 fd it has induction and exhaust, but apart from that stock from what I see. I am lead to beleive that one can get around 350 rwhp from a stock engine and turbos with supporting mods (rad, intercooler, colder grade plugs, coil packs, fuel pump). I am also lead to beleive that aftermarket ECUs don't support sequential twin turbos. From experience could you please tell me which ecu is best for this? And if not what is the best path forward?

 

[initialDean]

Apexi Power FC is the only one afaik

 

[Sturneyrx7]

Haltech can do twins, and I believe a link can.

Apexi is the classic, go to twins ecu. Has done many people a grand job with no issues.

That said, the tech in an apexi is a little dated now when compared to more modern ecu’s like the haltech or link.

 

[welshkid]

I've got a haltech 2500 with rx7 PNP adapter. Ran everything on the twins aside from one or two of the emissions solenoids (this was fine though as I'd already ditched them when doing the simplified sequential rats nest)

 

[jdmr_neil]

Ran 1.2bar on a apexi pfc at around 400bhp on sequential twins for many years.

 

[SchuKingR]

Haltech can do twins, and I believe a link can.

Apexi is the classic, go to twins ecu. Has done many people a grand job with no issues.

That said, the tech in an apexi is a little dated now when compared to more modern ecu’s like the haltech or link.

Link can't p&p.
It can as a Xtreme or Fury, but you need a lot of DIY to make it work right. There is no example for twins in the Link basemaps

 

[Jake_rorx7]

Between the Apexi and the Haltech for twins I'd choose Haltech any day, but the downside is price of course. The Apexi unit is cheaper, but its old and has meh protection features imo. I might be wrong but I also think it doesnt have wideband closed loop fuelling support, the boost control is meh...
That said, I am running an apexi on my current build with no issues, but... I really want a Haltech if someone buys my MX5.

 

[Alfie6128]

I will be running mine on 99spec twins with apexi, mapped by @Stu Rotortorque , don't really see myself needing more than the apexi gives currently.

 

[mattdavies]

Between the Apexi and the Haltech for twins I'd choose Haltech any day, but the downside is price of course. The Apexi unit is cheaper, but its old and has meh protection features imo. I might be wrong but I also think it doesnt have wideband closed loop fuelling support, the boost control is meh...
That said, I am running an apexi on my current build with no issues, but... I really want a Haltech if someone buys my MX5.

I agree with this, when discussing it the justification for me is that if the Haltech catches an issue with the engine and saves me a rebuild/ more damage then its worth the cost.

 

[Jake_rorx7]

I agree with this, when discussing it the justification for me is that if the Haltech catches an issue with the engine and saves me a rebuild/ more damage then its worth the cost.

Oh certainly, I think the best solution is to combine with a drive by wire throttle body to make a proper limp home mode for completely 'out of spec' scenarios. As well as the regular protections and adjustments before it gets to that point.

 

[Ferrox117]

I will also bring running apexi on standard twins once it gets down to @Stu Rotortorque & jay to get mapped, but at the same time only limited by the cost of the haltech, as Jake says would be nice to have some safety features incase something disasterous happens, believe there’s also a lot more room for sensors and control when it comes to tuning?

 

[jdmr_neil]

Ime as long as its mapped properly ( and as everyone is waiting for stu and jay its going to be) then you don't really have much to worry about running an Apexi on twins. Regular maintenance is the most important thing you can do to really drive your twins fd hard.

Personally I'd always recommend water injection for any fd on twins.

As for boost control the apexi handled 1.2bar sequentially in mine no problem. I did use the seperate Apexi solenoid but any mac solenoid would do.

Haltech and link and all of the modern ecu will for sure be better when combined with all the modern electronics but for a 40yr old solenoid set up im not so sure its worth the extra coin.

 

[Jake_rorx7]

Ime as long as its mapped properly ( and as everyone is waiting for stu and jay its going to be) then you don't really have much to worry about running an Apexi on twins. Regular maintenance is the most important thing you can do to really drive your twins fd hard.

I do agree for 99.99% of the time, the tune quality is more important than the ECU hardware. Its just to guard against mechanical failures really. For example, my stock engine failed because of a stuck closed high-load injector. I like to think, if I had a wideband, and it was tied into the ECU control, it could see that the fuelling is being trimmed too far out, and cut power in time to save the engine. You could then go and look in the ECU for fault conditions, maybe find the trim is way off, replace the injector... save an engine. I could have just a wideband (with gauge) by itself and visually monitor it, but you'd rarely be able to lift off fast enough to prevent anything devastating.

Haltech and link and all of the modern ecu will for sure be better when combined with all the modern electronics but for a 40yr old solenoid set up im not so sure its worth the extra coin.

a 40year old solenoid pack is why I'd want the extra protection

So it really is this "well its technically better in this rare edge case scenario, but 99% of the time you wont notice the difference" sort of deal. Unless you have some race setup and need the better input/outputs.