Power commander tips

I have a 1998 VFR with a K&N filter, Dyno Jet Power Commander, Micron oval slip on. I used the map set by Dyno Jet for this set up it made a big improvement in all gears above 4500 RPM but has really done nothing to the low end. Has anyone made a map for this set up that they are happy with?

 

I haven't been happy.  I have a 200 VFR with K&N and Two Brothers slop-on.  I didn't like the available maps and had a Dyna Jet approved shop do a custom map.  I found the PCM to be worthless.  Before I bought the PCM,  the techs at  Dyna Jet in Las Vegas told me I should not expect much performance inprovement with a stock bike. i.e. K&N filter and slip on.  However, they did say I should expect a smoother power band.  I took the PCM off the bike.  I didn't get any performance improvement and it wasn't any smoother.  I have my PCM II and custom map for sale.  $35 plus shipping. I bet if you have your bike put on a dyno the diffference with and without a PCM would be negligible. I should have flushed my money down the toilet.

 

On mine there is an improvement on the higher RPM for sure. Plus I got the thing on sale brand new for $145. One thing I know for sure is when I would be at high rpm and let off it would back fire bad it does not do that anymore with the power commmander and K&n airfilter installed.

 

Why don't you post your dyno results with and without the PCM.

 

Howdy,

I have the PCII on my 98. Unfortunately, I never did a base dyno run of the bike prior to installing a K&N and the 2Bros full system. However, I did have a baseline run before installing the PCII. If you would like to see the results, go to here. If you compare the graphs for my stock 01 to the PCII run on the 98, note that the torque curve has been significantly flattened. Also, the bike is making 50 ft-lbs or more from 7-11K rpm versus the 7-10K for the 01. I am quite happy with the results. Several friends have ridden the bike without knowing about the PCII and all of them noted the change and later asked me what I had done to the bike. I too got mine on sale for $145.

I have not installed one on the 01 VFR though. I am hesitant to mess with the O2 sensors. But the biggest reason is that I've better spent the money on upgrading the suspension!! That will help you go a lot faster than a cool pipe and a few more HP!!

Adios,

 

Where did you get your PC for $145? I live in Cali and can't find one that cheap.

 

K&N had a close out on the PCII models, $145 to your door.

 

Tourmeister.

      I went to the site  that you referenced.   I would like to see some results from a person that doesn't make a living from the bike industry.  The peeple who live off the bike industry always are pushing items, change, etc.   Spend, spend, spend.  

    I just ride bikes.  Over the years I have wasted lots of money on the lastest hot item.  I bought a PCM and spent money to get a good map.  I am very disappointed.  At least the techs at Dyna Jet in Las Vegas were honest.  They said that I shouldn't expect much perforamce increase with a stock bike with only a K&N and slip-on.  However, they were wrong about smoothing out the power band.  I was hoping to have avery smooth power band.

     As far as I am concerned I was fooled again by all the hype.  I knew better, I was just stupid.

     By the way, you are always on here promoting something or bike in general.  Don't you make your living from the bike industry? Aren't you associated with a tour company?

               

       

     

 

Howdy,

I only wish I could make a living off of bikes!!! I am a full time engineer. I do run a tour company, but that has yet to generate any net profit : Consider me more of a serious enthusiast. I have no affiliation at all with Power commander, Honda, or anyone else. I get no kick backs. I am a straight consumer like everyone else. Nonetheless, you are certainly still entitled to ignore my impressions of the PCII

The only thing I push is riding. I want to see as many people get out there and ride, enjoy their riding, enjoy messing with their bikes, and meeting new friends. I love to ride. If I can find a way to make a living actually riding, and not just talking about riding, I'm there! Who wouldn't be? :-/

It is true that I have mentioned rides that I set up for my touring company. However, if you go check out the rates I charge, you will soon realize that I charge just enough to cover my costs for doing the tour. I want to help others enjoy touring without gouging their pocketbooks. So I am not getting rich off this stuff. Quite often, I still organize rides and trips that are free of charge.

Sorry if you had a bad experience with the PCII. It was great for me. Everything I posted on my website about it is true. It has been on the bike for about 10K miles now and I still love it. No problems at all. I don't need a dyno chart to convince me that it made a definite improvement, I can feel it easy. So can my riding friends.

I think you have to be realistic about what you are expecting it to do for the bike. All it does is change the air fuel ratio at different engine speeds and throttle positions. You can only do so much by changing those variables. The basic engine characteristcs are fixed by the design of the engine. From the factory, the bikes are setup to run quite lean to meet emmisions standards. This makes the power curve screwy and cause the engines to run hotter. Enrichening the mixture at key points does indeed smooth out the power curve, improves throttle response and even makes the engine run cooler. My 98 VFR runs about 10-15 F cooler than my 01 VFR (no PCII).

As usual, your mileage may vary

Adios,

 

I have a 2000 mod with o2 eliminators and have discovered the following.I can,t get more than 320km out of a tank to empty.The pcII is mapped at 82-100 celcius.In the morning though it runs very spluttery at 4500-5000 and finally clearing by 5500rpm.This is when the bike temp is under 65 celcius, worst below 60 and gone by 65.This problem is very annoying when riding in winter and/or in the rain as the temp can drop to mid to low 50,s making it run like shit right in the rev range you use for cruising.I guess with the o2 sensors the bikes lean cruise mode must help keep the engine heat at the correct level.This rough running then causes the FI light to come on which is also annoying.I know an easy fix is to tape up part of the radiator but i shouldn,t have to ,its a fuel injected bike for goodness sake.I know the pcII can only be mapped with the o2 eliminators fitted but once its mapped i wonder if the o2 sensors could be refitted?It may cancel out the pcII effect on part throttle and cruise but the closed loop circuit shuts down beyond 20% throttle so the pcII,s effect would still remain on bigger throttle settings?

 

The PCII (stock base map) I installed in my stock '98 really cleaned up the low end and smoothed out the flat spot around 5k rpm, but it didn't make it feel any faster. Didn't seem to affect the mileage either though.

All in all--worth the meager $145 I paid K&N for it. The off-idle throttle response is much smoother now (think night and day) and it really helps me stay in control on low-speed corners. I used to get a sore wrist in low-speed driving as I attempted to turn the throttle the one-millionth of a revolution necessary to go from off-throttle to on without looking like a ham-fisted squid. No more worrying about doing unintentional burnouts at sandy intersections now...

=)

FWIW YMMV and all that,
Jake Harsha

 

Is there any real difference, other than FI maps, between the 49 state VFR and the California model?  I just got this PCII, and I have the CA zero map installed.  I was just wondering if Tourmeister's map would be better, of if there's some reason not to load it for the CA model?

After posting this, I found a site that said the CA map brought the CA bikes up about 2-3hp to 49 state specs.

Well, I finally rode it today with the CA map, and the FI light kept coming on under acceleration. I emailed Power Commander, and they sent me back a modified map to try. I'll try it this weekend. It looked like they had some invalid values in the AAP map. I read somewhere that 9 was the max value for that map on a VFR.

 

Howdy,

Just curious, have you tried my map? If so, how did it work?

Adios,

 

Hey Tourmaster, the modified map that PC sent me seems to be fine, so I'm staying with that. I haven't been able to put any mileage on it yet, but at least going back and forth to the doctor it runs OK. The pinging when I take off has pretty much gone away, too. I still may put in a -1 in the advance map at that point to try to get rid of it completely. I'm thinking the CA ECU must be mapped a lot differently from the 49 state model.

If anyone else with a '98 CA model needs the modified map, let me know by posting here.

 

I would like to get a copy of your map. I've recently purchased the PCII for my 99 CA model. I will have a Staintune slip on and K&N filter as well.

Hey Tourmeister, I'd like a copy of your map as well.

If you could email them to me, that would be much appreciated.

 

I'm still learning the use of this board. My email address is rmcobb@charter.net

Not sure why my name in the previous post didn't show up in Red, allowing someone to email me back. ??

 

Howdy,

Here is the link to my stuff:

http://www.sfriday.com/VFR800/pcii.htm

Adios,

 

Tourmeister and Hedgehog. I would like a copy of your maps if you don't mind. Thanks

 

Tourmeister and Hedgehog. I would like a copy of your maps if you don't mind. Thanks

Sorry for the double post. I had to put my email address.

 

Scott, Do You Know Chris Lang? Your Name Sounds Familiar. I Think My Brother Chris Knows You.
Troy.