NewHilux.net

Yep good ol Axt

sounds interesting and keen to see what the outcome is. hope all goes well for you !

so after speaking with AXT they assured us that the ECU was all good and suggested we check the wiring, this afternoon we lined up the dyno and checked all the wiring, still no signal from the throttle position sensor showing on their tuning software. After checking with the multi-meter we confirmed that we were able to get a voltage reading all the way to the ECU plug but it still showed nothing on the tuning program.

Unsure if it was the tuning software or the ECU that was at fault we loaded a tune into the ECU to increase the fuel, a quick test run showed no movement at all in the air/fuel ratio. Another disappointing outcome.

Now 12 weeks since we stated with this "bolt on" kit and the list of set backs continues to grow, from the top of my head they include.

-Turbo arrived with damaged impeller
-Delays in dispatching the product in the indicated timeline repeatedly
-waste gate actuator hitting the block with the turbo in place
-There is supposed to be a bracket that holds the old VGT actuator in place so that it can remain plugged to the factory ECU, not too sure how long my zip ties will last while we wait for this.
-Software supplied to tune the ECU was marked as being suitable for windows 64 bit machine, this was not the case
-and now the ECU that does not register the throttle position sensor voltage

The Power Lab ECU for AXT Turbo


I do apologise for the rant, I started the thread so that others looking at this sort of modification might know what to expect in performance, reliability, towing ability and offroad performance. Bad day I guess

I feel ya pain mate nothing about building these trucks up is as simple as it seems even if it has been done before.

Can you give a brief run down on the power lab ecu? Is it similar to the hks unit in the way it works or is it a complete replacement?

Cheers Simon

ask for the money back and get a gturbo and hks or uni chip upgrade

I know exactly how you feel mate. I went through all this when I tried there "bolt on" kit on my old triton the only bit that bolted on was the new manifold. They Didn't want to know me when I tried to send it back. I tried calling them for weeks only to be told the boss was out or he'd get back to me, in the end I cut My losses . Are you far from there workshop ? May be worth taking it in so they can prove that it does work . Or so they can fix the issue so others aren't caught out .

The atx setup we are doing for a custmour we are upgrading fuel system and are running nitrous as well see this turbo should work then but as for u mate they should have not sold that size turbo for what u do I feel your pain. The hks will work fine on your truck with out all the bullshit call me at work and I can work somthing out for ya.

JUSTAUTOS wrote:The atx setup we are doing for a custmour we are upgrading fuel system and are running nitrous as well see this turbo should work then but as for u mate they should have not sold that size turbo for what u do I feel your pain. The hks will work fine on your truck with out all the bullshit call me at work and I can work somthing out for ya.

Turbo Yoda will sort it out mate

JUSTAUTOS wrote:The atx setup we are doing for a custmour we are upgrading fuel system and are running nitrous as well see this turbo should work then but as for u mate they should have not sold that size turbo for what u do I feel your pain. The hks will work fine on your truck with out all the bullshit call me at work and I can work somthing out for ya.

Thanks, I may well be looking for other options soon, that said I feel like I had to at least get this running now that it is bolted on.

AXT Turbo did get the replacement ECU sent down to me and rather quickly, unusual. We got it onto the dyno on Friday and were able to get it tuned, the guys are planning to get it back and sort the top end a little more sorted during the week.

We managed 160kw at the wheels, to be honest 160 feels good and I am quite happy at that. We are running a AFR of 13.5:1 down low to try and get reduce the lag, leans off to about 20:1 as the revs climb. The EGT does climb a bit quicker than I would like at that, towing and hills mean that I have to run a lower gear than normal to keep the EGT safe.

The biggest issue in my opinion with the large turbo is the cruising, due to the low boost levels it gets high EGT's and will easy see over 500c on small hill. While changing gears will cause it to drop, I really don't care for having to watch the EGT gauge all the time.

Until I figure what to do next I will enjoy driving it, and I have finally got it dirty, well only a little but I have a trip planned for next weekend and three months of wheeling to catch up on.

calis101 wrote:I feel ya pain mate nothing about building these trucks up is as simple as it seems even if it has been done before.

Can you give a brief run down on the power lab ecu? Is it similar to the hks unit in the way it works or is it a complete replacement?

Cheers Simon

Simon, I am not too well educated on these things so excuse my simple reply. It is not a full replacement rather just a "piggyback"style ecu, it alters the injector duration. When I say alters it can, increase the injector duration and is mapped against the RPM and throttle position sensor. Not too sure on the HKS unit or how it compares.

I know some of you are not going to take this recommendation seriously, but I don't recommend performance modules or chips for the 1KD-FTVs.
And don't play around with the boost either.
The reason for this is that the engine is already sitting at it's 90% capacity from factory.
This engine isn't like the 22R, as an example.
As far as maintenance strategy goes, this is a good recommendation as the pistons, or the shape of the pistons, are the weakest link.
If you are under warranty, if you want to fit a chip, just wait until you are out of warranty, is my advise.
A chip fitted means no warranty, it's that simple really.
The Roo.

Talktheroo wrote:I know some of you are not going to take this recommendation seriously, but I don't recommend performance modules or chips for the 1KD-FTVs.
And don't play around with the boost either.
The reason for this is that the engine is already sitting at it's 90% capacity from factory.
This engine isn't like the 22R, as an example.
As far as maintenance strategy goes, this is a good recommendation as the pistons, or the shape of the pistons, are the weakest link.
If you are under warranty, if you want to fit a chip, just wait until you are out of warranty, is my advise.
A chip fitted means no warranty, it's that simple really.
The Roo.

everyone to there own. yes the chip avoids warranty straight away cuz u changing factory settings but for the 90% capacity i would be a bit iffy on the guys over in Thailand have run 55psi daily for over a year.

55psi, I am not even going to comment on that figure.
Like I said, the 1KD-FTV is not a 22R engine, which you could do a lot to.
You could turn the 22R into a racing engine, but not the 1KD-FTV.
With the warranty thing, as long as you are educated on these matters, well it's your rig at the end of the day to do what you want.
Just don't expect Toyota Service to pick up the tab, that's all.
1KD-FTV blocks are expensive. Short and long engines.
Over fuelling leads to damage of the pistons with a normal delivery system.
Check out the photos of the pistons (Boxhead's posts) on this link :
viewtopic.php?f=81&t=524&start=260
The Roo.

not trying to start a argument but that could of been caused by the egts being to high from the person running to high of a tune. the injectors could of faulty to as u stated in the post as well. hopefully when we are looking for power we are doin the proper preventive maintenance and checking injector feed back values and have egt gauges to watch the temps

I have retired from arguments. I did that over on Prado Point.
This is what I would recommend to get the best out of this engine.
Aftermarket front mounted intercooler.
3" high flow exhaust system with a Taipan XP dump pipe.
Aftermarket alloy radiator like the Desert Cooler brand, or something like that.
The aftermarket alloy radiators are usually double the core size of the Denso radiators.
That's it, well, at least with the genuine pistons still in the block, anyway.
Note, the pistons can crack like that, just with the standard delivery system, if you don't keep an eye out on those injectors. Namely, the injector feedback values.
More then likely, that piston in the photo, the injector solenoid failed and held up the needle allowing fuel to just pour into the cylinder.
It could have been that the injector feedback value was right out of range, but that's been a big explosion to do that amount of damage.
The point I am trying to make here, is that the standard pistons will not take to much aftermarket playing around with the fuel delivery system.
They are the weakest link in the block because of the shape of the top of the pistons.
Good looking Hilux, a white knight, beautiful.
The Roo.

Some very interesting reading on both sides of the story here fella's.

What about running a different piston? If so, what would be recommended and would you change anything else while your at it?

maybe ceramic coat the piston so it can handle more heat

[/quote]
everyone to there own. yes the chip avoids warranty straight away cuz u changing factory settings but for the 90% capacity i would be a bit iffy on the guys over in Thailand have run 55psi daily for over a year.[/quote]

I would take what the guys are saying in Thailand and Indonesia with a grain of salt - or just proceed with caution.

While it's interesting reading what these guys are doing I'm sure you would like your truck to be reliable and last.

Some of the threads from Thailand are quoting massive torque and power figures from dyno's I have never heard of.

Also they are quoting 1000 + NW of torque on a rolling Dyno which is rubbish as you are driving through a force multiplier - ie gearbox, diff and wheels.

True torque can only be truly measured on an engine Dyno not a rolling Dyno.

Just be carful that's all or it could cost you a lot of money.

Cheers

TTR wrote:Some very interesting reading on both sides of the story here fella's.

What about running a different piston? If so, what would be recommended and would you change anything else while your at it?

The guys above are just simply saying to proceed with caution that’s all. Even the 1GR-FE to the new 1GR-FE Dual VVTI Toyota has lightened the pistons to achieve better fuel economy.

Of course you can change to much stronger pistons in the 1KD if want but good power gains can be achieved without going to these extremes.

But the more boost and power you run the more critical it is to have a quality ECU and quality tunning. I cannot emphasize this enough – you can destroy the strongest built engines otherwise.

The point raised about being careful with “Chips” and “Piggy Backs” is a very valid one.
Some of these products contain very poor quality circuit boards and poor wiring. Plus most of them have not been individually tested on the make and model of vehicle or for that matter changes the individual has made.

The HKS F-Con that JUSTAUTOS is running is one of the few “Piggy Backs” I can say is quality. Absolutely everything I have ever purchased from HKS fitted and worked as advertised.

But if you are still using your vehicle to go far out bush or everyday for trade you cannot beat the standard ECU tune and reliability – just something I think the guys above were saying to think about.

Yes, GS, nothing wrong with the standard ECM.
The Roo.