For those using the AEM sensor, is there really any difference between the two sensors other than material they are made out of.

The reason for asking is the brass sensor kit is half the price of the stainless steel one. The features with them appear to be the same besides that. What do you guys recommend?

 

dont know between the 2, i have the stainless one, but advice i got from 2 friends, do not mount it to the engine. mount it in an isolator to the firewall and run a line to the engine.

night and day difference, especially if you are using hard urethane/solid mounts.

 

Yeah, i know that already. This is going on my b13 Sentra SE-R, Did some major upgrades and finally going to an AEM standalone. The stock ignition, fuel lines and single pump could only take soo much (550whp) which is what i was making on the 60 trim i was running. Yeah i have solid mounts all the way around. Im gonna mount it on the firewall in a rubber clamp with a line.

I mean all the specs on them appear to be the same just the cost is less than half for the brass. haha. Not like i need a bling bling stainless one unless again there is a serious difference between the two.

 

Different as in what if u don't mind me asking ? More accurate boost readings ?

 

noise.....it ran richer/like ****, acted like a base tune.
remember you are chopping 5 volts up alot on a 5 bar. and vibration just made the car act stupid.

mounted it remotely, it was a completely different car. ran better, where it should.

 

yep engine vibration has a lot of affect on a map sensor. Being vibrations also create very rapid pressure changes thats why it affects it. Well if nobody has any complaints against the brass sensor, then i think thats what im going to get. No sense in spending over 2X on a SS one thats gonna be bolted to the firewall under the intake manifold.

 

i didnt know there was a choice. I alot of brass stuff is nickle plated.

 

I don't have any advice on the brass vs stainless sensor as I've always used the stainless one. But I always thread the map sensor straight into the manifold and I have never had a problem whether the car has solid mounts or not. I believe the problem you had must have been the location of the sensor in the manifold and not due to engine vibration.

 

Yeah ive known several people to have problems with threading it directly onto the manifold. I usually recommend not to to people ive dealt with. Funny its taken me this long to do my own standalone. Ive tuned several other peoples standalone and tuned my own chipped ecu. So should be fun to finally have my own. its almost ready too other than a couple things. Hope to get this done by January.

Thanks for the help, I think im just gonna do the brass one. If it shows to be a problem then ill switch but its still an AEM product so i wouldnt see why it wouldnt work well.

 

i think the stainless might be for those using it as exhaust back pressure. and brass for actual map

 

Yeah, im just gonna get the brass. I dont see why it wouldnt work the same. Thanks for the help.

 

we inquired about this as the last order we got for the sensors were the brass bodied units, I was told that at some point it will be the only one they will be carrying, not sure of the truth to this but I have used both and they both seem to performa and tune the same

 

^^^awesome, thanks man.

 

The body is in different materials for using the sensor on different processes. These sensors are NOT AEM made sensors. They are made by a much larger sensor company. For automotive use just select the body based on temperature it will be seeing. Everything else is the same. Last time I saw one of each cut open they still used the same transducer inside.

 

brass, i would never mount to the manifold, thats just asking for it to crack and break off.....

 

I have always mounted them on the manifold and never had a problem. Some cars Ive done have thousands of street miles on them with no problems whatsoever.
The sensors read the same. The stainless one will just resist heat and a harsher enviorment better.

 

Thanks guys. My Under hood temps stay pretty low with the vented good. Mezier electric water pump. 2 core radiator and flexalite. Exhaust dumps at the front of the bay so no heat coming up at the back from that. I think ill be fine with the brass mounted on the firewall. If it has problems then ill change it out but doesn't look like anyone has so yeah. Thanks again for the responses.

 

How are you guys "remote mounting" these things. I've seen a clamp type setup, but any other methods that look better?

 

^^^maybe installed on a vacuum block...

i have a question on using a 5bar map, does it affect idle quality? I think I have read somewhere that I can, please clarify?

i've used msd 3bar and now omni 4bar map(bolt on to tb),it's all good and all, but I want a remote mount map sensor if ever my plans push thru with the accufab TB. But, because of my 1st question, I'm thinking twice on using a 5bar map.

 

There are no ill effects on using a 5 or even 7 bar sensor unless the sensor itself is bad.

 

using a sensor larger than you need loses you resolution.

pick your sensor based on max psi your gonna run with some overhead. if you only run 14psi with no plans to run any higher, it is pointless to run a 5 bar, and even more stupid to run a 7 bar, you lose alot of resolution on your sensor. so with that loss of resolution, it is very possible your idle quality is affected.

 

^^^that's the answer im looking for "resolution"

yeah planning to run 40ish psi on the motor,if all goes well... and I hope it will...

 

Yeah, im gonna be running between 35-40psi max So thats why i chose the 5 bar. Like he said you want to chose the one closest to what your plans are. Gives you a much broader range from the sensor to aid in tuning.

Its like they say about torque wrenches. Pick your torque wrench to where your torque value your trying to apply falls in the middle of the torque wrenches range.

 

Sorry to bump this old thread.

For those who are logging fuel and oil pressure and back pressure,

Is it ok to use brass sensors from aem?

Any info would really help since the SS is almost 2x the price of brass.

 

If you look at the pressure to volt charts on AEM's site, there is a larger error deviation with the brass sensors than there are with the SS ones. Depending on your application, this can make a huge difference in getting accurate readings. Take that into account along with the heat the sensor will be seeing whererver it is located.