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Soon buying eng mang. LOCAL TUNER badmouthing HONDATA?!? What to do??

2K views 13 replies 9 participants last post by  TurboSi 
#1 ·
Hey guys, along with almost all of you guys here- I have a gsr turboed with the drag kit. I upgraded to a CM stage 3 and lighter flywheel (i believe 12-13 lbs.) A phantom grip LSD, and a therma 3" with no cat. I have not yet installed the new clutch/flywheel or LSD- im waiting untill thankgiving break. (HOME :) But anyway, Im planning on doing the built up block by import-builders.com probobly in the next year or so. Basically I want more boost. (like all of you here). Now the next big thing im purchasing for my baby is a type of engine managment unit. I have read up on Hondata thouroughly and have herd no bad things yet, and it seems everyone on this board loves it too. I was planning on getting the new s200 system, with the ECU change and possibly o2 meter (if i can get some $$) untill I was looking around locally to where I could get it tuned and had my first bad encounter. I found this "authorized AEM EMS" tuner over in Jersey, so i decided to e-mail him if he could do the hondata for me.. Here are the e-mails as followed:

"Hey Bruce,
I accidently stubled upon your site and I saw that you are an aouthorized AEM EMS tuner. You are not that far away from where I live (Newtown PA), so I figured I would email you and ask u a few questions. I personally think the AEM EMS is kinda ummm a piece of junk. I know one of my buddies was getting his turbo'd civic tuned and the damn AEM maps failed, advanced his ignition for a quick moment and BOOM, there goes his piston. Ive herd alot of bad things about the AEM when it comes to full out tuning. So im decinding to buy the Hondata engine managment system-- would you know how to tune the hondata? By the way i have a Turbo 98 acura integra
Thanks,
Ken"

REPLY:
"hi ken as far as we are concerned hondata is the junk we sent all our hondata back and i believe they are holding on by a thread anyway i have been tuning aem for a while and had no problems your friends problem could have been with the way the tuner set up the computer i would question the tune before the hardware of course that is my opinion hope to here from you soon be sure to try our new web sit www.brucesspeedfx.com thanks Bruce 973-664-0192"

What should I do? I was pretty convinced Hondata was the best bang for the buck. Now he says they are going out of buisness??? WTF? Help me decide on what to get S200 or AEM EMS? Oh by the way, heres a thought to much on.. if this AEM EMS is so damn good, how come Stephen Popodokalis (spelling) dosent run the AEM EMS on his AEM car??? lol
 
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#2 ·
how close are you to lancaster or harrisburg? i have a buddy who works at:
Modified Motorsports 717-545-4742
Harrisburg PA
motor swaps and turbo installation
full dyno service on site

his name is josh aka boosted3g. he knows his shit and drives a 10 sec teg. give him a call and make sure you tell him that i gave you his number. he knows me by my username......peace!
 
#7 ·
XLR8 GS-R said:

What should I do? I was pretty convinced Hondata was the best bang for the buck...Help me decide on what to get S200 or AEM EMS?
Dude, I'm in the same damn dingy as your arse! :D I recently went to a reputable tuner shop in Dallas to inquire about a Hondata unit (I want a EMS installed with my turbo-don't want to mess with no MSD ignition or VAFC or any of that) and they said the same thing as your guy did-go with AEM and funk Hondata. I had read all of the reviews and did the research as you did. I'm very impressed with the features of the new s200 unit and it looks better than the old Hondata units (the base unit includes more than the old Stage 2 did. I, personally, would get the full throttle shift, rev limiter, and, of couse, boost features ). I've heard the same rumors about the AEM system-very buggy, CELs not coming on when they should to warn of a problem, etc. If you look at the AEM board some people are having problems with it. If you try to approach it from an affordability stand point the AEM unit costs roughly $1299, not including the sensors you'll need, dyno tuning and install (if you can do it yourself then kudos to you). If you look at Hondata you have to buy the Hondata unit, OBD1 to OBD2b (for me at least) adapter harness, an OBD1 ECU (I would need one off of a Del Sol's B16 to keep my VTEC and Knock Sensor), and larger injectors plus tuning and install and you're looking at around $1400 or so (unless you can find these individual parts cheaper elsewhere). A little more pricy, but when you are investing this much time and money into a project of this magnitude, you would want something that works and gives you the most bang for buck and the Hondata system looks like the answer. The more you look at it, Hondata just looks better and better.
 
#8 ·
MatT3T4 said:
I would personally go with AEM.
me too, theres not a thing nothing wrong with hondata, obvisouly the guy is pushing what he sells, but the options/what you can do with the AEM EMS is superior to hondata, price wise, if you take the full options package from hondata, it cost about as much as AEM...

I would also recommend the power FC, theres a few fast/high HP imports around here using that, it runs a little over $900
 
#9 ·
Which shop in Dallas did you go to? Check with Alamo in Arlington they sell Hondata. AEM, Motec. They tuned my hondata and I'm very happy with the job they did. We had a few problems and didn't get my car on dyno until after they closed and they stayed until after 11 to finish my car up.
 
#10 ·
Hybrid 901 said:
Which shop in Dallas did you go to? Check with Alamo in Arlington they sell Hondata. AEM, Motec. They tuned my hondata and I'm very happy with the job they did. We had a few problems and didn't get my car on dyno until after they closed and they stayed until after 11 to finish my car up.
I went to Jotec. I had the distinct feeling that while they are extremely reputable, they were just trying to push their wares on me. I think I will stick with Hondata and I'll be sure to give Alamo a call today--I got some questions about what else I will need for my setup. Thanks for the info.
 
#11 ·
Thanks for the help guys

Im just still so puzzled. I just got service and was talking to one of the mechs who mods hondas and he said F*** the AEM too, but then agan he also said dont go hondata either- he likes haltec. So i guess its everyones personall opinon (or what they own). But hondata has been around longer than the AEM unit has, and that gives me some confidence. Also, the drag features on he hondata would be great for consistant braket times :) I think i am going to save up a little more $$ and go with the hondata s200. I also need to get the adapter harness and all the rest. But i have a question that i believe hasnt been brought up about the hondata sytems yet.. If i wanted to have 2 maps for daily driving and full out racing (on weekends) is this possible? Like could i switch to my racing map, pump in some CAM2 (hehehe) and run say 17 pounds? Then after the races, switch to my daily beater maps and drive home comfortobly on like 9pounds? Or am i just limited to one program. Thanks again for all the help, and just curious- was any one at englishtown this past weekend? A few more records broken! And while we are on the subject of AEM--- Stephen P. did horrible!!!!
Thanks,
Ken
 
#12 ·
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but there is only one map for the Hondata (no switching between different ones). However, with Hondata supposedly, the 17lbs of boost that your pushing at the strip will be just fine on your ride on the street and the vehicle will perform like it came from the factory like that. As far as going with the Hondata unit, I gotta give props to Hybrid 901 for pointing me in the direction to Alamo Motorsports in Arlington, TX. They got really good deals on everything you need (OBD1 ECUs, Adapter Cables, Injectors, etc.) and they even offer 10% off on their Hondata ECUs (the system I want-the s200 with Boost-will run me 45 bucks less than what Hondata posts on their webpage). I also found that alot of the dealers on Hondata's page recommended the same thing: if you are boosting, just get the s200 and the Boost option and that's it. Alot of the tuners say people buy all of the extra features (i.e. full throttle shift, rev limiter, etc.) get them and don't even use them or don't use them enough to make them worth the cost. I ain't complainin': that's just more money in my pocket. :D
 
#13 ·
I think hondata is the best setup if you plan to make less than say 450whp. Which I plan to make at least that. When you stop by tell Larry ( the salesman) and Bryce ( owner) Josh from Memphis with the green hatch said whats up and sent you there.
 
#14 ·
I think everyone is looking at this the wrong way! There are pro's and con's to every unit. The best advice I can give you is find some one you feel you can trust to tune your car. Next go with whatever the tuner recommend's. Say for instance Haltech. I think, personally, it's a very out dated system, although Lance from Toyomoto hit's unbelievable times with it. When I asked him why Haltech he said "that is what I know best". I am running AEM and yes I have had some bad luck with it. My tuner Lawrence connley in Houston is a Speed Pro/Accel tuner and has a Camero that runs 6.5et on Speed Pro. When he first tried tuning the AEM he said I was better off going with Speed Pro. Now after messing with it he say's "the AEM does everything Speed Pro does and more, stick with it". When Accel, Speed Pro, Hondata, came out nobody just knew how to tune them. It took time, some more than others. I considered Hondata, although I didn't like the fact of having to burn chips over and over again. I am at a point right now where I might switch over to Accel. Accel is by far the most up to date system out there and is a true stand alone unit. The reason why I am mainly choosing Accel (maybe) is because that's what Lawrence recommends, and he feels it's more up to date.
Like I said find a tuner and go with what ever he recommend's.
Good luck!
 
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