Digging your content. I recently got my wife’s 90 Carat running and driving after a nice 9 year nap. She got jealous because I’m having a 912 motor built for my 66 splitty. Everytime I get in and drive either of them after a pause, I always say out loud to no one listening, “I should drive this car more often!” Looks like I have another Vanagon project to add to my list!!!
Australian Syncros came factory with this mapping! This is literally a chip to mimic the additional horsepower you already have, so instead….. imagine how much crappier life would be with 10 less horsepower stock! That’s what we all got!
& I thought mine was bad enough I would hate to have 10hp less. Thank you for that. It’s not the top end speed it’s mainly the take off from traffic lights that I hate. People in normal cars are impatient.
Swapping in the new 4-hole injectors and 1.35 ratio rockers will give a huge boost. Of course then Mansi Speed's new fuel + ignition setup is the hot setup.
@@TheBarefootForge I'm not sure you understand what Marco uses. These injectors are top quality and make a big difference in the middle and upper powerband. Afraid of improved technology? 🤷
@@karloskelly I don't wish to discuss any particular makers of aftermarket/modern injectors, I've used them all and installed LOTS of them, there's a pile of them on my bench not being used for a reason. I do not believe the technology is improved, and I have personally seen significant reductions in reliability across multiple vehicles and sets of injectors. Different strokes for different folks though- I'm glad you've found something that you're happy with, and I'm glad you're finding it's a big difference in your application! When were the stock injectors last professionally rebuilt and flow matched before you swapped to the newer ones?
As I have said before...don't own a bus, or a vw at all. Not a mechanic. But...I do find you totally entertaining. And who knows, I might learn something useful one day! My husband is always amazed at the different things I watch on RUclips! Have a great day 😀! From Montgomery al 🙏 ❤️
That's a much nicer ECU than the '88. The electronics is shielded in metal, the '88 was not. They updated the processor form factor and most likely the processor. I had a stall issue where the engine would immediately die. And then work again. It was the Hall Sender. There is another condition that will stall the engine: when you are engine braking in a manual vehicle the ECU (this is an '88) will stall the engine to save gas after 30-60 seconds. I discovered this on a downhill I would power brake on. If I power braked the entire hill the engine would stop running. If I gave it throttle it would reset the condition. That was a head scratcher for a while.
Awesome video! I have a 1990 with that a D code ecu, I’m definitely going to look into this. I have the same intermittent stall issue, I changed the idle air control valve and it stopped the stall issue but idles at 1800-2000rpm. Had anyone seen this before? Thanks for the awesome content!
You could have a problem with the idle control unit or any of the connections between the ICU and the idle air control valve Does disconnecting the idle air control valve while the Vans running have a noticeable change?
Hey thanks for responding, yes, when I unplug it the engine dies. Since then the engine caught fire. After repairing and replacing all melted parts the ecu wouldn’t run the fuel pump. I also found some wires within the main harness in the engine bay that were all corroded and brittle. After replacing the ecu and all bad wiring the engine is running great, I still have to take it for a long ride to confirm that the stalling issue is resolved. Vanagons are always an adventure weather your in the driver seat or underneath. Keep em running, good to see people out there rescuing vans and keeping them on the road!
I don’t know that all Australian ecus had this tune, or even all Australian D codes. You’d have to do some research and determine which model chipset this is based on then take all your D codes apart to see if they’re that chipset. Idk. That’s a lot of work.
You changed fuel map perameters, a variable that affects ignition timing. Plus, Techtonics says to do it. Could very likely affect your idle. Make sure to reset idle after as well. @@TheBarefootForge
@@Qsandbank but you’re not changing the static timing of the distributor, so “how” even would you reset it, since it’s set based on max advance? I’ve chipped two dozen vanagons and never reset the timing, so simply put- you’re wrong here. Timing is set based on the maximum obtainable physical advance of the distributor relative to the physical pulley on the engine, the ability to dynamically change within that range- which is ecu controlled, has no effect on the way the engine should already be timed before chipping it.
Just a thought. Why bother getting a new socketed ECU when it is a reasonably simple job to use a low wattage soldering iron and solder sucker to de-solder the existing chip and install a DIP socket. Then you could happily switch EPROM chips whenever the mood strikes you.
Completely different Engine dude. The AAZ is a Turbodiesel from a Golf3 and was never put in a Bus by the factory. ask the Golf community for tuning the AAZ
Nice job! One question please, the coding of the ECU is related to the immobilizer or is it indipendent? If my vehicle doesn't have an immo do I have to code/decode it anyway? Thank you in advance
@@TheBarefootForge Good to know, found some used ECUs on line, they sell them coded or uncoded (+100$). So now I know I don't need the decode. Thank you!
@@stefanobuono7820 I still think there's something wrong or a miscommunication there- what website are you looking at? "D-Code" as described in this video is an ECU ending in the letter D, not in any way coded to the vehicle. In order to make this upgrade- you need a "D- Code" ECU. I have never seen any vanagon site selling a "coded" or "Uncoded" ECU, so post a link to what you're talking about so I can help clarify further.
So we're the D code ecu's put into specific versions of the vanagon or was it just a game of chance that you would be lucky enough to get one in a brand new van back then
No. The chip doesn’t exist, the ecu doesn’t have a chip socket, etc etc. So- no. But the aircooled vanagons can absolutely be the fastest ones when they run right! I had an 83 aircooled that was FASTTTTTTT. Fastest accelerating bus I’ve ever owned, and I have every different conversion.
No. The chip doesn’t exist, the ecu doesn’t have a chip socket, etc etc. So- no. But the aircooled vanagons can absolutely be the fastest ones when they run right! I had an 83 aircooled that was FASTTTTTTT. Fastest accelerating bus I’ve ever owned, and I have every different conversion.
Hi, i have a golf gti mk3 1992, with digifant 2, do you know how many km i must do, to complete autolearning process, and stabilize the ECU performance?
Sorry man, no idea. I don’t have any experience outside of vanagons, and that sounds like a profoundly different system, as digifant1 doesn’t learn anything.
I have an ‘86, I’m ok with long lead up to 65/70 ( on the flat, no headwind 😅), but I would love a little more power on the hills. The mountain roads are sometimes a little tough on the 2.1l . Do you think this will make a noticeable difference in power on the hills.
It’s going to help “some”, but only really if your engine is already performing at its peak. What are your compression numbers? When we’re your valves last adjusted? What are your leak down numbers? When did you last have the throttle position switches adjusted, the oxygen sensor replaced, the afm track cleaned or tweaked with a gas analyzer, the tune up parts replaced, the injectors cleaned/flow matched, or the timing set? ^those things, will all make the engine run properly, only then can the ecu tweak the settings.
@@TheBarefootForge HP doesn't add torque. Torque is your pickup. Also, I have an 1994 Audi S4. This has the famous 5 cylinder 20 valve engine that produced 227hp and 258 lbs of torque stock. 700 HP with the right chip and turbo.. I have a stage one chip. We added a socket to put in chips. I imagine the original ECU's may be able to do this. I also put in modern injectors and they do make a difference. Mnasi is using Bosch injectors. Reading Mansi all they did was make a new ECU with an electronic ignition. I'm surprised that someone else didn't do this before.
Digging your content. I recently got my wife’s 90 Carat running and driving after a nice 9 year nap. She got jealous because I’m having a 912 motor built for my 66 splitty. Everytime I get in and drive either of them after a pause, I always say out loud to no one listening, “I should drive this car more often!” Looks like I have another Vanagon project to add to my list!!!
Heck ya man- chip it! It makes it go zoom!
There’s a bunch of other “go fast” parts you can bolt on as well.
That's a nice van even without an extra 10 hp. Thanks for the video, even if it doesn't help me with my 1985.
Sadly- there is no simple power adder for the 1.9.
@@TheBarefootForge you can replace the 2E3 Carb wit a dual weber idf
Techtonics makes a lot of good vw stuff even outside of Vanagons.
Certainly!
Great video.
I live in Australia, & drive a 90 Syncro.
I wished I could get an extra 10hp.
It needs the extra when taking off from the traffic lights.
Australian Syncros came factory with this mapping! This is literally a chip to mimic the additional horsepower you already have, so instead….. imagine how much crappier life would be with 10 less horsepower stock! That’s what we all got!
& I thought mine was bad enough I would hate to have 10hp less.
Thank you for that.
It’s not the top end speed it’s mainly the take off from traffic lights that I hate.
People in normal cars are impatient.
Swapping in the new 4-hole injectors and 1.35 ratio rockers will give a huge boost. Of course then Mansi Speed's new fuel + ignition setup is the hot setup.
I'm not a fan of the aftermarket injectors, from A LOT of bad experiences. All i can say is, i'd be sure to carry your old ones with you....
@@TheBarefootForge I'm not sure you understand what Marco uses. These injectors are top quality and make a big difference in the middle and upper powerband. Afraid of improved technology? 🤷
@@karloskelly I don't wish to discuss any particular makers of aftermarket/modern injectors, I've used them all and installed LOTS of them, there's a pile of them on my bench not being used for a reason. I do not believe the technology is improved, and I have personally seen significant reductions in reliability across multiple vehicles and sets of injectors. Different strokes for different folks though- I'm glad you've found something that you're happy with, and I'm glad you're finding it's a big difference in your application!
When were the stock injectors last professionally rebuilt and flow matched before you swapped to the newer ones?
by design they flow better and atomize the fuel better, new for new
As I have said before...don't own a bus, or a vw at all. Not a mechanic. But...I do find you totally entertaining. And who knows, I might learn something useful one day! My husband is always amazed at the different things I watch on RUclips! Have a great day 😀! From Montgomery al 🙏 ❤️
Thanks janese! I’m glad I can entertain!
It’s only a matter of time before you end up with a vanagon!
This was the same process I used when I upgraded and overclocked my Pentium 133 chip back in 1996
Heck ya! It’s the go fast juice!
That's a much nicer ECU than the '88. The electronics is shielded in metal, the '88 was not. They updated the processor form factor and most likely the processor. I had a stall issue where the engine would immediately die. And then work again. It was the Hall Sender. There is another condition that will stall the engine: when you are engine braking in a manual vehicle the ECU (this is an '88) will stall the engine to save gas after 30-60 seconds. I discovered this on a downhill I would power brake on. If I power braked the entire hill the engine would stop running. If I gave it throttle it would reset the condition. That was a head scratcher for a while.
Sounds like a throttle position switch issue.
Throttle position switch adjustment may help the hesitation
That and closing down the CO bypass screw on the air flow meter.
You definitely need a properly adjusted tps!
It’s always all about the TPS reports.
Awesome video! I have a 1990 with that a D code ecu, I’m definitely going to look into this. I have the same intermittent stall issue, I changed the idle air control valve and it stopped the stall issue but idles at 1800-2000rpm. Had anyone seen this before? Thanks for the awesome content!
You could have a problem with the idle control unit or any of the connections between the ICU and the idle air control valve
Does disconnecting the idle air control valve while the Vans running have a noticeable change?
Hey thanks for responding, yes, when I unplug it the engine dies. Since then the engine caught fire. After repairing and replacing all melted parts the ecu wouldn’t run the fuel pump. I also found some wires within the main harness in the engine bay that were all corroded and brittle. After replacing the ecu and all bad wiring the engine is running great, I still have to take it for a long ride to confirm that the stalling issue is resolved. Vanagons are always an adventure weather your in the driver seat or underneath. Keep em running, good to see people out there rescuing vans and keeping them on the road!
I'll have to check my wrecks, may be able to sell the Ecus for more than I paid for the vans. I'm in Australia 🇦🇺
I don’t know that all Australian ecus had this tune, or even all Australian D codes. You’d have to do some research and determine which model chipset this is based on then take all your D codes apart to see if they’re that chipset. Idk. That’s a lot of work.
Time for an update…???!!!
Inquiring minds wanna know! 😃
Not much to update- it adds power and drive ability. Seriously feels great, easy upgrade to a 2.1!
Excellent we own a1985
And drive it everywhere and yepper! Sometimes it's a little quirky 🤪 but totally cool 😎 I keep it tuned. He ha 268,000 and 98000 on the rebuild
You have to reset ignition timing after.
Why?
You changed fuel map perameters, a variable that affects ignition timing. Plus, Techtonics says to do it. Could very likely affect your idle. Make sure to reset idle after as well. @@TheBarefootForge
@@Qsandbank but you’re not changing the static timing of the distributor, so “how” even would you reset it, since it’s set based on max advance?
I’ve chipped two dozen vanagons and never reset the timing, so simply put- you’re wrong here.
Timing is set based on the maximum obtainable physical advance of the distributor relative to the physical pulley on the engine, the ability to dynamically change within that range- which is ecu controlled, has no effect on the way the engine should already be timed before chipping it.
Just a thought.
Why bother getting a new socketed ECU when it is a reasonably simple job to use a low wattage soldering iron and solder sucker to de-solder the existing chip and install a DIP socket. Then you could happily switch EPROM chips whenever the mood strikes you.
Mainly because I’ve never heard of anyone actually doing that. I’m not saying it can’t be done, but it’s far easier to just get a D code ecu.
@@TheBarefootForge We did it on my 1994 Audi S4.
Dam I saw this and was excited, but I have a 85 😂
There’s a similar ecu that only existed in Europe that will help with your digijet!
Great video.
Work in a1992 MK3 GTI 8V?
Thank you
I have absolutely no idea. Do you think it will work on a 2001 Volvo xc70?
I have 1990 caravelle cl with 1.9 aaz with out the turbo so would it work for me? Im from Finland
No. You don’t have an ecu at all.
Completely different Engine dude. The AAZ is a Turbodiesel from a Golf3 and was never put in a Bus by the factory. ask the Golf community for tuning the AAZ
Have you heard of the Vanagon Syndrome, I had it with my 87’ Westy. Would cut out and die randomly.
Absolutely, that can be quite annoying! Luckily, it's easy to fix.
@@TheBarefootForge do you have a fix video?
Nice job! One question please, the coding of the ECU is related to the immobilizer or is it indipendent? If my vehicle doesn't have an immo do I have to code/decode it anyway? Thank you in advance
No vanagon has an imobilizer, you can swap any digifant ecu with any other one- no programming required.
@@TheBarefootForge Good to know, found some used ECUs on line, they sell them coded or uncoded (+100$). So now I know I don't need the decode. Thank you!
@@stefanobuono7820 I still think there's something wrong or a miscommunication there- what website are you looking at?
"D-Code" as described in this video is an ECU ending in the letter D, not in any way coded to the vehicle. In order to make this upgrade- you need a "D- Code" ECU.
I have never seen any vanagon site selling a "coded" or "Uncoded" ECU, so post a link to what you're talking about so I can help clarify further.
So we're the D code ecu's put into specific versions of the vanagon or was it just a game of chance that you would be lucky enough to get one in a brand new van back then
1990 and 1991 models came with the later model (d code) ecu.
I wonder if you can chip a 1980 westy ECU? What are your thoughts?
No. The chip doesn’t exist, the ecu doesn’t have a chip socket, etc etc.
So- no.
But the aircooled vanagons can absolutely be the fastest ones when they run right! I had an 83 aircooled that was FASTTTTTTT. Fastest accelerating bus I’ve ever owned, and I have every different conversion.
No. The chip doesn’t exist, the ecu doesn’t have a chip socket, etc etc.
So- no.
But the aircooled vanagons can absolutely be the fastest ones when they run right! I had an 83 aircooled that was FASTTTTTTT. Fastest accelerating bus I’ve ever owned, and I have every different conversion.
I own an 87 2.1 waterboxer I Paid £350.00 for a spare ecu.
That feels a little high, but having a spare sure is nice! I just bought another D code for $200. They’re out there.
I’ve got a 2.3L GW engine that uses the 2.1L ecu. I’ve got a spare D code ECU, wonder if I should try this with our Vanagon 🧐
ABSOLUTELY! You’re going to truly love it!
Hi, i have a golf gti mk3 1992, with digifant 2, do you know how many km i must do, to complete autolearning process, and stabilize the ECU performance?
Sorry man, no idea. I don’t have any experience outside of vanagons, and that sounds like a profoundly different system, as digifant1 doesn’t learn anything.
Would the performance chip pass California emissions?
It won’t be detected by Cali, but will the exhaust gasses hit the spec? I don’t know. I would think it should.
I have an ‘86, I’m ok with long lead up to 65/70 ( on the flat, no headwind 😅), but I would love a little more power on the hills. The mountain roads are sometimes a little tough on the 2.1l . Do you think this will make a noticeable difference in power on the hills.
It’s going to help “some”, but only really if your engine is already performing at its peak. What are your compression numbers? When we’re your valves last adjusted? What are your leak down numbers? When did you last have the throttle position switches adjusted, the oxygen sensor replaced, the afm track cleaned or tweaked with a gas analyzer, the tune up parts replaced, the injectors cleaned/flow matched, or the timing set?
^those things, will all make the engine run properly, only then can the ecu tweak the settings.
@@TheBarefootForge HP doesn't add torque. Torque is your pickup. Also, I have an 1994 Audi S4. This has the famous 5 cylinder 20 valve engine that produced 227hp and 258 lbs of torque stock. 700 HP with the right chip and turbo.. I have a stage one chip. We added a socket to put in chips. I imagine the original ECU's may be able to do this. I also put in modern injectors and they do make a difference. Mnasi is using Bosch injectors.
Reading Mansi all they did was make a new ECU with an electronic ignition. I'm surprised that someone else didn't do this before.
Homie where are you finding these cheap ECUs
Where have you not been finding them?
Call Rocky Mountain westy or smallcar, both keep a pile- but they also list them on thesamba regularly.
@@TheBarefootForge thank you hopefully my Van will start now
Nice video. Question what is the engine code?
MV
@@TheBarefootForge thx
Dude, get a tripod for your camera, please
Thanks for the continued support, I’ll start a Patreon so you can contribute.