O ok. I called them a while back and I think Doug was the guy I talked to and all he wanted was to get me to buy a swap and blah blah. But thanks man

 

why did the first engine blow up?
if the engine failed due to something about the set up, just swapping parts around isn't going to fix your problem...
Why would you take a Nissan to a Honda shop and expect them to be able to do anything to fix it?
What was wrong with it when you took it to the shop?
What did they fix, and how did they fix it?
If it has a SAFC on it now, it shouldn't be "tuned" why are you needing to get it tuned again? you said the previous owner had it tuned once already...

don't need a standalone unless you're really into messing with settings yourself.... getting a rom tune done at z fever, by martin is as good as it gets in the grand scheme of things. unless you some how managed to figure out something about tuning that martin hasn't been able to figure out through all of his years of doing this, then you're not going to get any better results than he can actually tuning your ecu.
and there is a reason why you see those swaps.
They work. They make power. The parts are there. They are cost effective. They get the results and they last. The people that build things "just" to be "different" just end up with a pile of parts bolted into a chassis, that don't make much power, and a price tag that continues to grow because the reliability just isn't there.
Can you boost a SOHC, yes.
Can you make good power with a SOHC, yes.
will it cost more than pretty much every other swap? Yes.
Is it worth it... not really, especially when you consider how cheap a DOHC engine is, and easy that swap is.
this

i don't think you quite understand the way it works.
the SAFC is more of a general ball park way to tune your set up. See, what it does is intercepts the signal the Mass air flow sensor is sending to the ECU and changes it to something else. Usually, it tells the ECU that there is more air coming into the engine than there really us. The ECU sees the new signal, thinks there is more air, and therefore, dumps more fuel.
You use a wideband o2 sensor as your tuning "tool" This shows you your air to fuel ratio. You adjust the SAFC so that you maintain a safe AFR.
The thing is, the SAFC isn't super exact. Sure, many of the new ones have several different tuning points that are tied to engine speed, but you can't adjust it for every rpm, for every load, for every speed , etc. You just get it close.
In many cases, close is close enough. There are lots of people that are rolling around with just a SAFC tune and that's it. It isn't all that bad as long as you can keep that AFR within a safe range.
The down side is that you usually have to tune it rich so that you stay on the safe side throughout the rpm range, and under all loads. And if anything major changes, like, decreased load at high speed, then the ECU isn't going to properly compensate and you might end up bumping the AFR into the red zone, which could result in engine damage.
So again, they can get you close, but not perfect.
When you take your car in and actually get on the Dyno and get your ECU itself tuned, they are actually changing the programing in the ECU so that it knows exactly the amount of air coming in and exactly the amount of fuel it now needs for the current set up. The fuel maps get changed so that the ECU knows exactly what to do and when to do it. The timing maps can also be adjusted to a much more precise point as well so that your spark timing is exactly where it should be all of the time as well. Getting the ECU tuned is a much more exact process. Usually takes several runs on the dyno and lots of little tweaks. Someone experienced like Martin at Zfever will be able to make most of those adjustments with just a few dyno runs. He's been there, and done that. He'll be able to customize the fuel maps to get exactly what you want. The most power. The most fuel mileage. the best balance of both. He'll be able to squeeze every bit of power out of your engine as safely possible.
Beyond the exactness, and the increased level of engine safety, another big difference between the two methods is the actual power produced.
A SAFC might make 255 whp, and backfire on downshifts, smoke on heavy acceleration, get poor MPG, and have a rough idle.
A real tune could make 275 whp on the same set up, and run as if it was built that way from the factory. Maybe a pop on downshifts, with a smooth idle, smooth power curve and the best possible MPG.

my personal advice, if the engine is currently running and is generally healthy, then I would get my hands on a wideband o2 sensor and gauge. I would use that to monitor my AFRs, and adjust the SAFC as needed.
I wouldn't beat on it too much. I wouldn't expect too much out of it. I would just take it for what it is.
from there, I would make plans to "clean up" my set up. Good injectors, better intercooler, etc etc, And most importantly, getting a real tune.
If I was dead set on keeping the SOHC, then I would make sure that the supporting mods were above par.
Otherwise, I would get my hands on a DOHC engine, have it torn down and properly rebuilt, get that swapped in, boost that and get a real tune.

 

Well the original motor rings got fried. I went to them cause that's where it was taken to get tuned the first time. The original motor was pretty well on its way out and I guess the extra 100+ hp finished it off. What was wrong is it had a few Lil things causing it to idle like ass. Leaking from where injectors go into mani.,wires were cracked so they sodered new injector clips, fire ring was missing in WG, just a bunch of Lil things. I understand what your saying and all and thank you for your input. In the next few months ill figure out what route to go next. Ill do my best at getting my Afr's safe that way I can take it to Martin. Just don't think a rom tune is in the budget now with a kid on the way now. Lol so maybe he can tune it with the safc??? That is until I figure what route I want to take. Sorry my ADHD is kicking in and having a hard time responding to all of what u wrote.

 

Well called zfever talked to Doug and all he offered was a rom tune!! Don't really want to drop $500 or $4?? Into this when ill b swapping it out. He said that I could blow my motor and also cause the safc doesn't pull timing. So idk what to do now. I do have a msd digital multi-retard box wouldn't that b able to pull the timing out and the tune with the controller??? Idk maybe another place that will do the tune?? Thanks

 

Told you not to talk to doug. All he cares about is monies. He will tell you whatever just to make a few more dollars.

 

Well I told him I was told to talk to Martin but then he just went on asking questions and blah blah!! He seems kinda cocky?? Well should I just ask for Martin or just go up there??? Maybe give him a name from who refered me if that would help?? Again thanks

 

PM 180sx on here.