I have a 177 and a 190 ecu in front of me, is there anyway of telling which one is which? No part numbers on them.
Ive not mixed them up, just bought whats meant to be a 190 ecu and want to check it is before fitting it!
Usually, the “190” has “190” written on it by felt tip pen
Not aware of how you can tell the difference otherwise
its got green pen, says ACP?
I have my old 190 ECU in my hands and it has no pen marks!!!
Ser # begins with A082U.
Good luck!
Usually, the “190” has “190” written on it by felt tip pen
I have actually just noticed it has “285” written on the side in orange.
Usually, the “190” has “190” written on it by felt tip pen
I have actually just noticed it has “285” written on the side in orange.
haha, you wish.
Where is the serial number located? I know the part number is a 340R one but typically it doesnt have one on it
My ‘genuine’ orignal Lotus 190 ECU is sealed at both ends with silver seals, and each is also embossed with the serial number as well as ‘warantee invalid if removed’.
Perhaps the heavier one is the 190!
Is it a lot of hassle to try both and use the quicker one ?
JFK
The 190 upgrade includes a different cam pulley as well as the ECU. TBH performance is only improved at the very top end, therefore it’s only on track that any difference is apparent. Both the 177 & 190 factory maps are, to put it bluntly, crap - only way to get the VHPD running right is to get an Emerald & verniers, & get it properly mapped. If only I’d known that (Spring 2001) when I went for the bloody 190 upgrade as soon as my car was run in, but at the time I was concerned about invalidating the warranty!
The 190 upgrade involved exchanging your existing 177 ECU with the factory (via dealers). The original ECUs were reflashed at Lotus, who then wrote “190” on them with a felt tip pen, before sending them back! Therefore, comparing serial numbers is a waste of time.
Hmmm i see, suppose I can compare the pulleys, if they are the same it will be a 177, 6 degrees advanced will be 190.
I have my old 190 ECU in my hands and it has no pen marks!!!
So how do you know it’s a “190”? (Serious question, by the way, Pete)
I have my old 190 ECU in my hands and it has no pen marks!!!
No pen marks on mine either. It was flashed at Lotus USA.
Seems that differences are at the least “subtle”…
HP per � would seem to be in short supply on that mod ?
Anyhow … cheers Pesky for educating me (once again)
No wonder you went Honda !!
I have my old 190 ECU in my hands and it has no pen marks!!!
So how do you know it’s a “190”? (Serious question, by the way, Pete)
Serious question…
OK! Serious answer!
I have the original sales invoice and amongst other things lke the sports seats the first ‘owner’, Lotus UK Ltd, specified the 190 ‘upgrade’.
Funny though, before changing to an Emerald, it was rollered and produced 179 bhp! Dave Walker said that was not unusual for the supposed 190, and in many cases he had seen the ‘177’ only making in the mid 160’s bhp!
Totally agree with Rob that the ONLY way to go for some real benefit is the Emerald, verniers and the who lot properly adjusted and mapped. When I had this done, pre DVA work, the increase was a good 12 BHP which bought it up to 191 BHP.
On the road, I did not feel any real difference in power, but the difference in drivability and tractability was just amazing. Fuel enconomy too.
The extra 12 BHP from DVA work made it feel MUCH quicker on the road… it seems as those VHPD drivers and you N/A Honda chaps with over 200 BHP, this really lights up the entire driving experence.
As my Dad said to me when I was a wee lad , ‘if a job is worth doing, it is worth doing properly’… Seriously, based upon my experiences with my VHPD, I would say to any peep that dont bother with the Lotus 190 ‘upgrade’. Wait till the Emerald and Vernier route plus a ‘quick and dirty port’ from DVA is an option… it WILL be worth the wait!
BTW… is that ‘serious enough’!!!
HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO ALL
BTW… is that ‘serious enough’!!!
Don’t know… I fell asleep.
\
Totally agree with Rob that the ONLY way to go for some real benefit is the Emerald, verniers and the who lot properly adjusted and mapped. When I had this done, pre DVA work, the increase was a good 12 BHP which bought it up to 191 BHP.
Have to disagree. When my engine was dyno’d it madw 187bhp which is close enough to the 190 Lotus claimed.
Out of interest what did the Emerald and all associated items cost you for the12bhp?
My old edu has 190 written on it in pen but on the rollers it made 182 bhp.
Totally agree with Rob that the ONLY way to go for some real benefit is the Emerald, verniers and the who lot properly adjusted and mapped. When I had this done, pre DVA work, the increase was a good 12 BHP which bought it up to 191 BHP.
Have to disagree. When my engine was dyno’d it madw 187bhp which is close enough to the 190 Lotus claimed.
Out of interest what did the Emerald and all associated items cost you for the12bhp?
Steve (good to hear from you, bud)
As Pete said, it’s not just the “extra” power that is gained with the Emerald…the whole driving experience is vastly improved.
Personally, I don’t place any store in rr dyno power figures - very easy to manipulate, & unless it’s a before & after modification comparison, then pretty meaningless. The great thing about rr dyno runs is to get the mapping right, which can make a huge difference to the driveability/efiiciency/longetivity.
IIRC an Emerald/verniers/mapping session is going to cost in the region of �1K to �1.2K, but that was a few years ago.
I would strongly recommend anyone thinking of swapping ECUs to bag a ride in a K series powered Exige/Elise, fitted with an Emerald, then decide
Totally agree with Rob that the ONLY way to go for some real benefit is the Emerald, verniers and the who lot properly adjusted and mapped. When I had this done, pre DVA work, the increase was a good 12 BHP which bought it up to 191 BHP.
Have to disagree. When my engine was dyno’d it madw 187bhp which is close enough to the 190 Lotus claimed.
Out of interest what did the Emerald and all associated items cost you for the12bhp?
Happy Christmas Steve!
You obviously had a strong engine from the off! Lucky you!
When I expressed my dissappointment to Dave Walker after my standard ‘190’ only made 179 bhp, he said that he had seen a huge variation on power outputs on his rollers. Whilst agreeing that mine was on the low end, he had seen worse! and yep, some indeed made 190 straight out of the box too!
There is clearly a lot of variation here, including the interesting DVA’s observation that my MS head had more deeply recesed valves than others which somewhat limited what he could do with the CC work.
I guess those are the ones like yours as standard? and the worked up Lotusgray’s that now produce a very healthy 215++ with the Emerald/verniers/DVA work.
And yep, Pesky’s quote for the work is is bang on! Of course I was after more power! But the driveability is also worth every penny too! I dont even miss the ‘pops and bangs’!!!
I used to work at Longbridge (rover) many moons ago…
Knowing some of the workforce there it’s a wonder the engines ran at all !!!