senor honda

What does the Cobb Accessport do for your particular car?

Is there a site we can go to to read about it?

okimar

It's a multifunctional device, but it allows individuals to custom tune based on just about every possible configuration...

Here's a link:

FAQ: What does an Access Port do exactly?

senor honda

This is what I found:
[h=3]What does an Access Port do exactly?[/h] If you have been reading about Cobb’s Access Port, or engine management for that matter, you have probably come across the term “Re-Flash”.
There is a computer in your car that is in control of all of the engine’s running parameters, and it is constantly monitoring information from a number of different sensors to make sure that your engine is operating at its peak performance. The term “Re-Flash” refers to going in and changing some of the parameters that your cars’ computer is using with the goal of improving your engines’ performance.
Simply put, the Access Port plugs into your OBDII Port (which your car all ready has), and is able to communicate with your cars’ computer and give it a new set of parameters. The Access Port can change things like Ignition Timing, Fueling Curves, Boost Curves, etc., and by doing do, it will allow your motor to produce more power. Once it up-loads these new parameters to the cars computer of ECU, they are saved so they will remain there until you choose to change them.
This process of up-loading new parameters is called “Re-Flashing” your ECU.
One interesting thing about Cobb’s Access Port, which is unique, is that it can do two different kinds of “Re-Flashes”.
The first is called installing a “Base Map”. If you think of your cars’ ECU in terms of your home computer, it is actually similar in that it has something equivalent to hard-drive memory, and RAM memory. When you install a “Base Map” (as you will have to when you install your Access Port for the first time), all of the new parameters will be saved to the ECU’s hard-drive. That means that they will remain there until you choose to change them, or remove them, even if you re-set the ECU, or the system loses power, etc.
The other type of Re-Flash is called a “Real-Time Map”. This Re-Flash is not saved to your ECU’s hard-drive, but is rather saved to your ECU’s RAM. This kind of Re-Flash goes much quicker than a Base Map, but it is not as permanent. Because it is only saved in the RAM, if you re-set your ECU, or the system loses power, the Re-Flash will be lost. For this reason, it is better to use this for a Re-Flash that you won’t need permanently such as a “Valet Mode” Map.
So if all you are doing is changing the running parameters of your engine, how much power can this really make?
Well, the answer to this is a lot.
Cobb has posted Dyno Charts of their Stage 1 maps, and in virtually every case, a car can gain a substantial amount of power just from a re-flash of the ECU. For instance, here is their Dyno-Chart of a Stock 2.0 Liter WRX compared to the same car with thier Stage 1 Map on it:

The other thing to keep in mind though is that the Access Port will also give you the ability to load a MAP that goes with other parts you put on your car, such as a Turbo-Back Exhaust. If you compare the Dyno-Charts of Cobb’s stage 1 to their Stage 2 (which includes the addition of a full Turbo-Back exhaust with a corresponding Re-Flash), you can see that there is a definite difference in power. However, if you were just to put on the Exhaust alone, you wouldn’t realize nearly as much of an increase because you haven’t changed your engine’s running parameters to go along with your new exhaust.
Jon Cooley


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Can the Cobb Access Port re-flash the ECU back to stock parameters?

Posted by: Adam | December 20, 2007 at 08:05 AM


will an access port put stress on the stock turbo or any other parts for that matter? mess with any warrenty?

Posted by: Jake Ryan | February 12, 2008 at 04:50 PM


I will be buying a cobb access port in the future for my 06 sti, and would like to know if I can install that myself. I am a new subaru owner so I dont know what are the steps to take. Also will I need anything else other than the access port for it to work?

Posted by: Moises Ramirez | February 15, 2008 at 07:40 PM


Yes, you should be able to install the Access Port yourself. I would recommend reading Cobb's manual, and see what you think after that. Here is a link to that on Cobb's site:
cobbforums.com
Also, the Access Port comes with everything you would need to install it, and has maps for both a Stage 1 and Stage 2 car.

Posted by: J. Cooley | February 18, 2008 at 08:42 AM

senor honda

Cobb probably won't tell us if the "access port" is a fancy name for an adapter.

The new airbox and muffler delete may not affect the car's tune by a radical amount, unless there are sensors somewhere looking for a specific number.

Example: adding a turbo to some cars causes the rear exhaust sensor on some cars to get a reading that there is more air coming out than is going in. One solution for some cars is to start adding resistors in the rear wire until the sensor gets happy again.

One reason I like carburetors, and I don't have a computer running anything, and I have no sensors.

I would install the parts you ordered and see if you detect that the car is running differently. Their last sentence sorta says that.
If not satisfied,

Plan B:
I would also look for a dyno shop and ask about dyno tuning. Most dyno shops plug a laptop into your car and set fuel air, etc for several sets of tune. and, if it's your computer, you can change things on your own car,
picking the tune that you want to run at the moment.

An experienced dyno shop may have a good idea and maybe programs they paid for to set up your car and many others as a package they bought as a cost of doing business.

okimar

I appreciate your input on this.

I'm not an expert, but the only sensor for the air in that I can imagine would be the Mass Air Flow Sensor and I don't think there are any sensors behind the rear axel at the point where the muffler delete pipes attach to the Y shaped exhaust pipe splitter.

....Therefore, does everyone agree that I can most likely avoid the cost of having it tuned, as finicky as these EJ motors are rumored to be, there wouldn't be any quantifiable benefit or risk?

senor honda

I'm not promising anything.

If you were to install the parts which you bought, ...... to see if there was any noticeable difference.
I don't think your motor will blow apart. A LeMans car might need a more precise tune than any street car, and even if that LeMans car was running REALLY bad, it would not blow apart.

If the rear sensor (if it has one) is forward of the muffler delete pipes, whether the delete pipes
are there or not may be irrelevant.

In my humble opinion, the Ingen Evolution air box probably will not be enough of a change
and will not increase the amount of air flowing into the engine that it would blow the engine apart.

I suspect that when mechanics are working on your type car at the dealership, that sometimes they may have the air filter completely removed with no negative consequences.

With some cars, minor changes are adjusted for by the anti-knock sensor and computer making tiny adjustments to the tune of the car. It's possible the airbox will have no effect at all, whether it is there or not.

But I'm not promising anything, just giving opinions.
If you don't go to a dyno guy for answers related to tuning, You might also start searching for a forum related to your specific car, to see if anyone else has your concerns.

When you go further, let us know what happened, so that we all get smarter.

okimar

Thank you for your input and it sounds right to me.

I'm still recovering from a serious surgery at the VA hospital last Friday, so hopefully I'll be able to talk again and network locally soon.

Take care and thanks again.

bodyjohn

its great man! can you provide more details as i am interested?