A few things to consider before ordering a Autotune unit (AT)

PCV is very easy, especially if someone with same setup passes on their MAP to you! Easy install & easy to use!

The Autotune (AT) is a completely different animal:

1. quite complicated to install - lots of wiring etc etc (crap instructions) & stuffing the PCV & Autotune all under the seat is a mission in it's self!! Can be done though. AT has to be this close to the PCV !!



2. your stock 02 sensor bung thread is to small & the larger bung supplied with the AT will need welding in.

3. The new Bosch wide band 02 sensor is way bigger than the stock sensor & you will have trouble finding a good spot to weld the bung. Take your time working out a place not to exposed but away from airbox plastic. (will depend on your exhaust....FMF was tricky)

4. Small single cylinder bikes are hard to tune with Autotune at low revs....just not enough reliable gas from a 250 engine for the AT to sniff for accurate readings. It will eventually work but will take way longer to fine tune than a large cylinder engine!! The 331 or 351 will work better for this reason.

5. Expect to take a week to really get you head around setting AFR's & trimming MAPS with AT & maybe a month to get really good with the software.(If your only playing for a couple of hours at a time or at weekends etc). Your gonna be doing hundreds of KM's of steady revs test riding for you to eventually get to the fine tuning side of a quality homemade MAP. No detailed video tutorials on the AT unit anywhere on the net!!! that I could find.

6. The on/off isolator switch was not suggested in the instructions. The instructions recommend taking a power feed from the rear light loom (which I did), so then the AT comes on with the ignition. With my isolator switch I can now turn off the AT when I don't want it on! When the isolator is off I can use a water-proof switch on my handlebars to toggle between MAP1 & MAP2 on the PCV.

I've got a gentle cruising/traffic MAP on MAP1 with a leaner 14.3 air/fuel/ratio (AFR) & on MAP2 is a rich hooligan MAP at 13.1 AFR which can be switched on the fly.... My handlebar switch activates the Autotune unit when the AT is on, this is called the "learning mode" & recording your AFR levels throughout the rev range & records the throttle position percentage as well, for trimming your fuel MAP at a later date. The AT will suggest the trimming levels depending on what AFR levels you have told the AT you want! This is easier than it sounds btw.........when the AT unit is off, my handlebar switch can toggle between the two MAPS i created. Kinda cool eh.... Shame the AT has to be off for the Map switch to work but that's the way it was made!

If I get some time & motivation a Autotune video tutorial for beginners on Youtube maybe on the cards!!

It's a great piece of equipment & well worth the time/effort but don't expect to just plug n play. Took a lot of head scratching & way longer than expected to fit & get working/tuning successfully.

Good luck folks

 

Thanks for the information.
Now thanks to you I know well what I can expect from Autotune!

Installation of a button maps 1 and 2 on the handlebars is highly recommended. Not only because we have two different maps to use, but also to test and note the differences better. Totally recommended and simple.
Any switch on / off handlebar can serve.

 

I am really happy with the tuning ability of AutoTune, my bike has never run so strong.....crisp throttle & the front wheel is pulling off the ground in 1st & 2nd gear so easily & that's with street 14/39 gearing!! Nice smooth throttle for sitting in traffic of just cruising around now as well.

The bigger the engine the more gas there is to sniff (read) from the 02 sensor. Engines around the 250cc to 350cc are harder to tune, with less gas output to take a reliable 02 reading from.

A few tips for using AutoTune with a small cc engine.

When you first start using the AT configure the max & min enleanment & enrichment to 30%, then do 3 or 4 test rides & accept the trims for the MAP. This will produce some good & some not so good results for your MAP.

Then configure the max & min enleanment & enrichment to 20%, this will start fine tuning your MAP a little. Do another 3 or 4 test runs.

Then configure the max & min enleanment & enrichment to 15%, this is where you start to really get some good results, keep this setting for around 4 or 5 long runs. When your bike is starting to feel powerful & smooth, then configure the max & min enleanment 3% & enrichment to 7%. This is very fine tuning & the longer you leave the AT running at these setting the better & finer tuned your MAP will get.



Basically the smaller percentage the AutoTune is sampling at the better the fine tune is! 20 or 30% can produce errors of 20 to 30% on your MAP if you riding erratically or wrongly!

In a nutshell, try & ride like your on a dyno machine!! Smooth throttle, don't twist to hard & bog the engine down with to much fuel.....remember the AT unit is constantly sniffing your exhaust gas & trying to work out your best AFR (air fuel ratio).

The biggest problem with getting misleading MAP trim information is decelerating with the throttle still partially open....remember they don't decelerate on a dyno machine, it's all about smoothly going forward under different loads. The AutoTune is reading 0% (idle), 2, 5, 10, 20, 40, 60, 80 & 100% of your throttle position at all times!! Decelerating at high speeds with the throttle partially open sends very strange AFR readings from the 02 sensor. Set your 0% throttle position to a 0 AFR (this means the AT unit is ignoring any 0% throttle AFR readings), then set target AFR's from 2% to 100% TP....my best target AFR levels for me, are 13.1 up to 80% throttle & 12.9 AFR at 100% throttle position. btw the stronger & faster my fine tune gets, amazingly the better (lower) my fuel consumption is getting!!

So when slowing down on your bike either (1) coast with the clutch in, to a stop at 0% TP or (2) make sure your throttle is at 0% when decelerating into corners etc ....this will yeald the quickest & best fine tuned MAP results.

Hope this helps to speed up the fine tuning process for anyone using an AutoTune unit on small capacity (cc) bike.

 

Joel after you use the auto tune sensor is your map programed in the PCv? or do you need to use the auto tune sensor all the time? Can you save the map to your computer that you made with the auto tune?

 

Hey Yankee, yes you can save a MAP whenever you want. With the AutoTune turned on, after a good long ride with smooth throttle as described in my last post...I would plug my laptop into the PCV & have a look at the trim values the Autotune recommends, if i like the look of what it suggests then i accept the AFR trims onto the current MAP & save as a new MAP. I can load an older MAP anytime I want to check i'm getting more power & smoother throttle response.

These are my saved MAPS to date, all the MAPS we're good to ride with....it's just that they get better & better & now at a point where i'm very happy with the power. The 1st MAP on the 07/21/2012 was given to me by Bob in Indonesia with an almost identical bike to mine, it worked pretty well from the get go but now my latest MAP is way superior & tailored to my bike/climate/altitude/gasoline & riding style etc etc....Thx again Bob you supplied me with a great starting block MAP that just needed some fine tuning.




This is one of my previous MAPS & as you can see I don't let AutoTune touch my 0% (idle) throttle position. So heavy decelerating with 0% TP will not bugger up my AFR trim values. This shows the value of each individual fuel cell on my MAP.



To answer your question, yes you can leave the AutoTune switched on & it will continually adjust your MAP while your riding, this is handy for different atmospheric conditions or riding at different altitudes & even works for using different grades of gasoline (example 87 or 95 octane) will need a different AFR to get full power. If your staying at altitude then by all means save the MAP for the next time you ride at altitude.

Or when happy with your MAP just leave the AT switched off until you do something different to your engine (example, new exhaust or opening the air box etc).

This simple short tutorial youtube video taught me how easy it is to play/experiment with the AutoTune unit.

DISCLAIMER:
This technique may or may not be correct, as there is very very little in the way of instruction or online tutorials. There are no dynojet (PCV) facilities here to help me!! My only help has been Bob in Indonesia in some email correspondence, so the only way I know i'm doing it right is my bike runs very fast & smoothly......BE CAREFUL when tuning with the AutoTune as accepting AFR trims for your new MAP that are to LEAN could damage your engine. Before accepting trims from the AT unit, look at the minus (-) figures & if they look to high...DON"T accept them, cancel & start again with a smoother test ride.

 

I installed my PC v today. The install was simple and took about one hour. I did have to extend the ground wire to reach the battery terminal.

I would like to thank jeffward for the 250 map. Without it i would be lost to say the least. So how does it work? Well i only went for five minutes and it seems excellent. I can wheelie in first real easy with my 13/39. This was super hard before the PC v. Tomorrow i will go on the highway and do a video...

 

Sweet......some front wheel in the air action!! Give us a good video to watch Yankee

 

I think we all do our small contribution in awareness of the potential of this bike.
Not if we realize that we are the pioneers in injection modify settings for this bike in the world. Many will then evolve gradually, but the first steps are already taken.
JoelThailand work has been and is still incredible. Greatly simplifies the work for all who come after.
Right now the only injected bike is marketed in certain countries outside the United States, but I think sooner or later there will also be marketed injected. The carburetor is in the past. Aupa injection!

 

Well said Jeff. I have learned a lot, if not everything from guys like you, Joel and Marcelino ( missing in action ) Thanks to all the pioneers willing to experiment and post results with pictorial and dyno backup.

 

im having a big doubt, here in brazil we got the KLX 250 SF model with EFI year 2010, i came from kawi versys, so i miss that torque, for fix this im about to buy a Power Commander V but not enough bucks to get the new big bore kit (from B&B 351cc) so do you think that Power Commander will help in something even if i dont have the big bore kit?

* got only the PCV + map switch without autotune.
* In Brazil the gasoline in plenty a **** not so pure ...
* i heard about a API unlimited ECU, from Apitech is this better than PCV ?

Thanks lot