Family reputation is just that. We are direct with Crower and have had a good relationship with them. I could name another big company that has a very good reputation that had a little issue but that is now fixed. We can only go by what we have heard on the 2JZ motors. We haven't built one of his stroker kits yet for the Supra but I have heard from good friends that it is very nice. If Sam is correct, which I have no reason not to believe, then hopefully they will fix these problems. We would not sell one of his stroker kits until we actually assembled one in house. Same with the AEBS. The AEBS had the same issue with the crank hitting the block but after that small issue j/k was fixed we have had good luck with it (knock on wood). I would not sell an AEBS stroker kit for other reasons, mainly the 6 months it took for us to get ours.

 

Does that include wideband and boost control? I am in no way knocking the Fcon. I haven't had the chance to mess with but guess I will have to look over Sharif's shoulder one of these days. I am just trying to compare apples to apples to find out which has more features. I know the Marelli will be more expensive because it is superior in the fact of what it can offer and the history it has come from.

 

I would bet that there is a real business opportunity in a good stroker kit that actually works and is available. (and doesn't make you sell a kidney to buy it)

Seems to be a good way to get more power without the problems of FI.

Is it reasonable to assume that power would go up proportionally?

287hp @ 3.5L = 82hp/liter
4.3L = 352hp

 

I believe it may have been a pre-production kit - but I guess only BC can comment on it directly. I think the production units have the other issues ironed out already.

As for the crank hitting the block - isn't that sort of par for the course with a stroker? Somewhere along the lines, the block will need to be machined when fitting a non factory crank with different stroke to it. Not uncommon on any other car I know where strokers are popular (Evo, Subaru, etc)

 

Thank god I didn't buy that

 

The problem we had with AEBS' crank hitting the block is that they assembled it not us

 

Z1performance this was not a pre-production kit .this kit was sold to a customer and paid for then drop shipped to us to install.now, I 'm not sure what is acceptable in your book as far clearancing a STROKER block .but definately this was not acceptable by our standard.
now this information is shard not bash the crower product what so ever .they have been around for a long time and had produced some good product .but us the professionals have a great responsibly from the manufacturer to the tuner shop not to release a product until it has been fully tested and proven.it is only fair to our customers .

 

We are not a machine shop - I was merely asking the question, since I'd assume machining is needed with any stroker kit

 

The FCON or Marelli are the only things that will provide the control and resolution on a very high boost motor. You dont NEED an FCON...you just need something very precise to tune it with.. such as the FCON.

 

what if you're not going to run crazy amounts of boost with it though?

or like the NA guys who just want the stroker kit by itself?

What about getting the ECU tuned by AAM or TS on the dyno?

 

correct me if I'm wrong I thought the f con is only ems with 32x32

 

The HKS Knock Amp includes a high quality A/F Gauge and ofcourse detects Knock, You can add the HKS EVC5 Boost controller for $580 retail which is one of the BEST EBC on the market today. Also the resolution on the HKS FCon is 32x32, what is the Marelli?. Don't know too much about the MM if it has map tracing, A/F Targeting, and some other nice features the FCon does have.

Both units are great, but the FCon is proven.

-George
GT Motorsports

 

I figure most guys running the stroker kits will want 15psi or more...hence the FCON.

I would never use a reflash on a forced induction car. Yes it can work, but the 8X8 resolution is really horrible, and you will quickly reach the limits of the stock MAF sensor.

 

yeah I'd jump on the Fcon if there was someone local who could tune it...

 

Hi George,

The Marelli resolution is currently set at 36x16 and 36x20 depending on the maps. I truly believe the Marelli boost controller will out perform the EBC. I will try and pull up the logs of target boost compared to actual boost. Basically, they can overlay each other with differences in the .1 psi and below. The MM does have map tracing, Flatshift, Drive By Wire, Variable Cam, Barometric Altitude Correction, Individual Cylinder Correction, A/F Targeting, Launch Control, Data Logging, and external display capability much like the Motec ADL (just a lot cheaper from what I remember). I also believe it is 2.5x faster than the Motec M400.

As far is proven, the Marelli has far more history than the FCon. I am currently running the Marelli on my 4.3L GT42R, completely stock head 350z. At 23psi (the turbo is still not in its efficiency range) I made 680 Dyno Dynamics numbers. With Variable Cam we picked up 60rwhp. I installed the Marelli on someone elses Greddy turbocharged car and made an extra 40rwhp over the UTEC with no Variable Cam adjustment.

Like I said, I am not too familiar with the Fcon so I would love to see some of its capabilities to compare the two. I have not found enough information on it. I do believe both are great units, I just have not heard a lot of people using either because the Fcon was not used on Supras (what I dealt with the most before the Z) and the Marelli has just been brought to the 350z world.

I hope Sharif can chime in and give some insight on the FCon as I know he stays up all night learning more and more. Sharif did not prefer the Marelli as it has too much control and capabilities

 

That is a key point that has been pointed out numerous times on this forum. While the extensive capabilities and functions of some standalones are simply amazing it can add a headache and cost to the tune.

Not everyone wants to deal with cold start up and some of the other issues that a standalone comes with. Granted that these are often not software issues but rather just pain in the neck issues that take attention prior to the main tuning of the engine for power.

 

Compensation tables, and other variables are dialed in one time, and the user never has to touch them again. This is part of a thorough tuning process...once its done..its done.

 

Let’s not be too quick to judge and write off manufacturers and engine builder that have made a positive and major impact in the motor sport arena, because of the opinion and bad experiences of others. At the end of the day just remember that it is your car & my car that we're placing on the line, and paying for it (pun not intended).

CP pistons make excellent products and I do not know Brian personally but I know he is a well respected engine builder in the industry. In fact Brian Crower does have some interesting stroker kit to be released into the market befor year.

G