Anybody regretted switching to EFI?

[Grover]

So I've started trying to pull together the parts for an EFI swap using the E30 318i set-up mated to a Megasquirt. I've gone to a couple of local BMW "salvage" shops trying to find some of the parts and at both places the guys have strongly discouraged me from doing the swap saying that I may well lose power versus my 38/38 as well as the fact that it is a massive amount of work. Has anybody gone through this process and then thought "why the hell did I just do that?" Thanks.

[Inka]

I have not regretted the switch for one second. I went from dual Weber 45s (that had been professionally dyno tuned) to Megasquirt with a 318i manifold and Mustang throttle body (for now) and the butt dyno says the amount of torque has increased greatly and the overall horsepower has not decreased at all. I suppose it was a lot of work but for me, that was most of the fun. Now I'm planning on doing GSXR 750 individual throttle bodies and Ford EDIS ignition. I suppose both will be a good deal of work, but I also suppose it will be a great deal of fun.

Are you switching from the 38/38 for performance reasons or because you want to tinker with EFI?

[Guest Anonymous]

No regrets at all! I have been really impressed with the megasquirt. Better torque, more top end, smoother drivability, and better gas mileage to boot. How can you lose? Don't listen to the nay-sayers, just do it! You'll love it.

David Kirchner

75 02 squirted for almost a year

[Zenon]

If I have a regret it is that I have made the car more likely to die suddenly, given the nature of electronics vs mechanical systems. Until that outright failure, though, it will work consitently better with far less attention so I think I come out ahead. So far, after 18 months or so, there has been no major unscheduled downtime other than a failed throttle body, which was really a freak occurance. All failures have been my mistakes, too - certainly nothing to be blamed on the Megasquirt hardware. My car is very zippy yet smooth, now more like a tii than any stock carbed '02. As a stand-alone mod I am not sure it would be worth it for most folks on a strict performance-gain vs effort rationale, but as a fun learning experience it was incredible.

YMMV, but I really dig it!

regards,

Zenon

[slash02]

If I have a regret it is that I have made the car more likely to die suddenly, given the nature of electronics vs mechanical systems. Until that outright failure, though, it will work consitently better with far less attention so I think I come out ahead. So far, after 18 months or so, there has been no major unscheduled downtime other than a failed throttle body, which was really a freak occurance. All failures have been my mistakes, too - certainly nothing to be blamed on the Megasquirt hardware. My car is very zippy yet smooth, now more like a tii than any stock carbed '02. As a stand-alone mod I am not sure it would be worth it for most folks on a strict performance-gain vs effort rationale, but as a fun learning experience it was incredible.

YMMV, but I really dig it!

regards,

Zenon

Zenon my thoughts exactly. Like some guys i know with 80s motronic BMWs, that carry a spare ECU on long trips, i'm thinking about getting a 2nd megasquirt for the same reason.

[TimMN]

(nt)