I am going to put a 3.2l j-series engine into a baja bug. I was wondering if anyone knows of any companys that can reprogram the ecu to be a standalone unit. all it needs to run is the fuel injection, timing (vtec), altenator. the bare essentials.
any ideas????

 

Wouldnt it be more fun to get a small engine with a turbo into a baja bug?

 

I would look around at some sand rail/offroad buggy boards. I know there are quite a few of them running boosted J32s and I assume some of them are probably running full stand-alones.

I believe only one person attempted to run a full standalone (a Tec3) and they had some problems with it.

 

I forgot to mention, the stock ECU is not flashable.

The person who attempted to use it though didn't mention what was wrong with it though. It may very well work fine with your set-up due to the fact that it doesn't need to due everything it would have to on a car.

 

Can You fit a small block in there? An LS1/6 can be had for dirt cheap, and is light(aluminum) and can make tons of power while remaining effecient. Did i mention they are cheap?

 

I thought another option if you need to save space is the Northstar V-8 out of a caddy. they produce decent amount of power and fairly compact. look around in junkyards. look for one that's been rolled or hit in the rear end. buy the car pull the motor and tranny and sell back the body.

 

Good Choice as well, but once again, the wiring the thing wont be fun. The thing about the small blocks is that you can blow one and pick up a new one for the price of a used northstar or used honda motor. A brand new LS6 can be had for 3 grand. A carb'd small block can be had for around the same.

 

I want to go with the 60 degree v6 b/c of the weight factor and hp and torque factors. the engine is still going to out back. I have thought of going with a v8 they are to heavy. I can this v6 for $1G.

 

i also want to stay away from boosting the engine. keep it kinda simple.

 

Put it this way. There is a company that makes LS2 conversions for the Solstice and they say the car only gained 32lbs going from the 4cyl, to the all aluminum v-8. And the guys doing the LS1 RX-7 conversions are dropping weright after getting rid of teh rotary.

 

They gain about 10lbs, but thats negligable

Bigman has a good idea with a LS(X) motor. They are light and compact and will give you tons of power without going turbo. I have a feeling you will be disappointed with a NA J32A2 motor compared to a LS(X)

 

The sandrail buggy guys love the j32/35 motor. High HP and Torque in a small package. Here are some links for you, and I also have a low mileage 3.2L TypeS motor, here is the link to that as well. Have fun.


https://acurazine.com/forums/car-parts-sale-361/sale-2002-3-2l-cl-type-s-motor-334707/


http://www.funco-motorsports.com/acura_honda_v6.htm


http://www.cgperformance.com/


that'l get you started.

 

V8 is heavier than a V6. and the j32a is 60 degree V6 and the V8's I beleive are 90 degrees. and its just that much more weight bouncing around the in the desert. if anyone is interested in doing a standalone setup or a swap go to for more info www.swperformanceandfab.com . I am interested in performace parts if any. i do not want to go with boost.

 

I had forgotton about that web site, they have done some very good research into these motors. I wonder if they visit this site or any of the other honda sites. I seem to remember they had a different style website the last time I visited, it showed more parts available with prices as well as larger and more pictures to view. What kind of stand alone do they offer?

 

they reprogram the stock ecu to what you need it operate and they can redo the harness. other than that i am not sure. i have called a couple times they are helpful. i have not been to the actual store to see they have going on.

 

Wow, if they reprogram the stock ecu, then they are the first that I've heard doing that. Hondata won't even think about it. I'll have to inquire to see what the deal is.