Who do I call if I need an piggyback ECU made for an engine swap?

[mightyversa]

[mightyversa]

Fack my woman, shes gonna start walking everywhere now....HOLY CRAP AM I EVER JOKING, LMAO....I got 2 cars, my other is a 1998 Mercury Mystique LS, shes automatic with only 125,000 kilometers on it.

[Red Devil]

Like I was saying, it'll probably be easier to increase the displacement of the MR18 by .2 and then just get a piggyback, reflash or EMS to deal with all of the timing and fuel needs. The bore on both engines is the same, 84mm but the stroke is where the extra displacement comes from.

[mightyversa]

Goof point as well, but where is the extra 18 HP coming from? Not from just the extra displacement is it?

[alonsorules8]

Mightyversa,

I talked to my friends at Renault and they are not sure a clio 2.0L ecu module would be compatible with the Nissan 2.0L engine.

But I will continue to do research with them on it.

One thing is for sure, you will need the 6 speed manual transmission and that is a Renault transmission.

[mightyversa]

Good job man, I will keep that in mind. And actually, we are back where we started......ECU problems....so I guess maybe I should give some companies a call and see what they suggest?

[SuperTurbo]

Good job man, I will keep that in mind. And actually, we are back where we started......ECU problems....so I guess maybe I should give some companies a call and see what they suggest?

I think so...

Other than that, I am not sure will it be a good idea to run something non-nissan ECU (Like those Motec, Apex.....Those racing ECU) Those for sure you need to find a tuner to tune the car for you, but I really don't know how much will the whole package cost....

Or... you can try something called Open Source ECU (Ex. RomRaider, ECUflash and ecuExplorer) but.... seems like those are for Subaru cars only....

Right now I guess your best bet is to swap the engine, and see can you drive around with it first, if you make a MR20 work on a Versa, that means you got some kind of platform for other tuners to help you out, if not, no matter how crazy is the ECU program, your car still can't go to anywhere....

[alonsorules8]

or try and run a Sentra ecu with the mr20de engine. It might be the easiest plan besides reflashing the Versa ecu.

[SuperTurbo]

or try and run a Sentra ecu with the mr20de engine. It might be the easiest plan besides reflashing the Versa ecu.

But base on what they said, the harness is different tho, is it?

[Red Devil]

I think, as much as it pays to think ahead, most of this will come down to solving problems as they come. If he does a full blown swap, we don't know if the MR20 will just drop in. Remember, they are on 2 different platforms.

Thats roadblock 1 if he plans on a full blown swap. Engine fitment. We won't know until he has the engine and is trying to fit it into the Versa. Unless he can get someone to measure the distances on their Sentra and compare them to the distances on the Versa.

After that is solved he needs to get proper ECU work done. An MR18 ECU WILL NOT WORK with an MR20. While they are similair, we don't know if the fuel maps and timing are the same. I can almost guarantee you it won't be compatible.

[Bubs daddy]

Seems like a LOT of work. Just remember, nothing like this ever goes as planned so be ready for things not matching up, spending more money than originally planned and problems you'll encounter that you didn't consider. I also envision some welding and custom parts being made.

Also remember this will pretty much void any warranty so any issues and you'll be on your own.

Good luck with your project.

[Red Devil]

While in no way am I trying to discourage you, I just think the hassle will be too much. Like BD pointed out, your warranty will go down the toilet and you won't get much out of the swap.

Personally? Save the cash and sink it into the R33. Put the money towards some engine upgrades, wheel and tire upgrades and some other go fast bits for your R33. You'll get a lot more enjoyment from it and will have a car that yiou'll be able to resale fairly easily if need be. You'll want to keep the Versa as a DD so you can have your fun in the R33, thats what I do with my Versa and 240SX.

[mightyversa]

Ok, great points from everybody. Seems ive hit a dilemma. As much as I would LOVE to have the 197 engine in, maybe it sounds to far fetched? Maybe I am better off going with the MR20 and just checking things out. But who would be able to wire up a piggyback ECU to make the whole thing work?

[Red Devil]

You do realize the Clio's engine is the MR20 right?

[bigboo_VHB]

MR20DE

[mightyversa]

How could it be the MR20 when the engine code is F4R*830. I mean the 2 have different horsepower and torque curves?

[scar]

My versa is a six speed. I checked this out even before I got the car. The mr20 will fit and is plug and play with the six speed. I decited to wait for the warr. to end then I'm going a different direction.

Check out a nissan parts on line and check your part numbers and then you will know what to take off your 18 and put on the 20.

The sentra I think, does not come with the 4 speed auto, but this should not be a problem. Just use your converter and maybe the flexplate.

There should be enough range in your ecm to run the 20 just fine with no damage, prolly not even a cel.

Research, It's all out there if you really want it.

To me it's worth it for the 20 extra lbs of torque. should be good for a little better mpg too.

This is by far the cheapest and easiest way to gain 20 hp and 20 ft/lb torque.

If you go with the renault you are looking at a whole lot of work and $.

The direction I plan to go should land me around 50 mpg and a big jump in torque.

[Red Devil]

How could it be the MR20 when the engine code is F4R*830. I mean the 2 have different horsepower and torque curves?

What year are you talking about? The Clio III has the M4R engine. The M4R is Renault's naming for the MR.

[mightyversa]

I am talking about the 2007 Clio 197

[alonsorules8]

I just found out from Renault that the MR20DE and the M4R are indeed the same 2.0L engine from Renault and Nissan.

Now for the tricky part I think if you want the 197 hp that the Renaultsport Clio gets, you would have to ship your car to them in France to be properly tuned by Renault. Which IMHO is extremely expensive.

But as they always say if there a will there's a way.

P.S when you get done with your build and It a major success please do a write up tutorial on what you had to do for other V owners who are thinking of upgrading their V's motor.

[mightyversa]

SWEEEEEET. Now we are getting somewhere. How the fack will I get my hands on a Renault engine? How much would it cost and why would I have to send them my car? Wouldnt they be able to give me the directions?

The MR20 swap seems more realistic right now and keep the comments coming, I am serious about the swap guys, it might happen this summer or the next.

[Red Devil]

I just found out from Renault that the MR20DE and the M4R are indeed the same 2.0L engine from Renault and Nissan.

Really? It's not like I just said that 4 hours before you did or anything, DUH!.

MV, if it's the same engine as the MR20 you don't need to get an M4R, just get an MR20.
Modified by Red Devil at 11:00 AM 1/9/2009

[alonsorules8]

The shipping post was probably not very realistic on my part, sorry.

I'm not sure how to take the 2.0L mr20de engine from the stock 140hp here in the America's to the 197 hp that Renault has in the racing Clio's, and was thinking that their ecu was one of the reason for the added bump in hp.

[mightyversa]

Yeah, I mean if its the same engine, why does one have 197 HP verses one having only 140 HP? Something is definitely different about the 2.

[Red Devil]

Well if the one is from the Sport version it probably has a more aggressive tune. The MR20DE out of the Sentra and normal Clio are more tuned to fuel economy.

It seems fairly simple.

[mightyversa]

So I guess maybe it would sound far fetched to say that maybe you can tune the MR20 from 140 to 197 through whatever tuning method that the europeans used?

[justmerging]

This swap shouldn't even be considered at all. The swap would be a waste of time. The MR20 and MR18 blocks are exactly the same. The MR20 is just a stroked MR18. All you really need is the mr20 crank and rods. And even they bolt in place of the mr18 bits. And this increase in displacement will be read and understood by the ECU so no modifications need to be made.