I have a CRX with a first gen B16 engine and PW0 ecu and my knowledge of OBD is very minimal. I know it stands for On Board Diagnostics and it has to do with emissions, but beyond that I'm pretty clueless.

I know there's a lot of people who convert from OBD0 to OBDI and others who convert from OBDII to OBDI, but I'm unsure why everyone does this. I've tried searching H-T for basic info on OBD, although I couldn't find anything because there's always the assumption that everyone knows what OBD is.


Do you upgrade to OBD1 for emissions reasons only or are there other reasons?

What are the other reasons and how will it affect performance?

Aside from the wiring harness from Blown90hatch, would I also need to upgrade the distributor, ECU and O2 sensor? (How much do you think all this will cost?)

TIA

 

I am also wondering this exact same thing. someone shed light.

 

the only reason i would convert a 4g to obd1 is if i was running a D16Z or D16Y. I dont think the single cam vtecs run worth **** with a 4g ecm.

 

The main reason to convert is tuning options. The obd-1 ecus take better to chipping and in general allow you to make more power. Dyno's before and after the conversion show a noticable difference.

 

This is exactly why people upgrade to OBD1

Hondata & AEM EMS

True power of Tuning a Honda



This is a friend of mines, Jim @ ProflowDesign.com this is installed on his 88 Crx DX w/ B16a

Jeff Frank

 

Thanks for the info, but I've never used Hondata or AEM products either. Could you go into more detail?

 

OBD1 is offerning a few differnt styles of Aftermarket ecus, Hondata which is a big favorite to most people, and the New AEM EMS. This systems are very similar to Full stand alone engine managment systems. They do basically the same things, but you do not have to cut the stock wiring harness..

I could write a 10 page report about what they do,
... So I will make it easier for me

http://www.hondata.com
http://www.aempower.com/ems.htm

And if you dont ever want to switch to OBD1, their is

http://www.zdyne.com

I personally run the Zdyne Gold SECU, its ok I guess.. But I would rather have something that supports datalogging and wideband 02 support.

Jeff

 

it's basically tunning. and ecu optoins.
if you have a B16a1 that can take a OBD-1 ecu than you have a verity of ecu choices(if you have the money for them)
also TUNNING is a huge factor when picking what type of ecu tunning/managemnt you want to have done.

I personally would convert to run OBD-1(using blownhatch)
as for pricing goes ask him how much it will all cost for OBD-1 componets(injectors, ecu, dizzzy, ect) he'll give you a good estiamate.

if you simply just want a B16a1 w/ the Pr3 or pwo than keep it obd-0, if you want to boost, or seroiusley want some more all-motor power than OBD-1 is for you.

 

as for hondata or AEM EMS i would go with hondata. why because it's simpler, more tunner, wayyyy cheaper, good customer service, and simply put it does the job for almost every motor. The highest hp i've seen with hondata is about 475 i think... and i think thats plenty of moneys worth for only $200-$400.

******DO search "hondata vs. AEM EMS" a crap lod of info.

IM "ImportReview" and check out "Importbuilders.com"
Jeff is the hondata tunner there and garentee that he will make more HP for you than anyother ecu mangt(mo-tech, AEM EMS, ect..) talk to him hes a good guy.

or talk with "Arturbo" he's the one who help make my decision on which to go with.

 

AEM EMS, isnt as popular for a few reasons, yes its way more difficult to use than hondata and its still somewhat new. But their technical support is amazing. I am sure in time people will see how the EMS is better.

The EMS is more of a standalone style system, **** I could wire up fuel injection on my Chevy 350 truck & get some Honda OBD1 ecu plugs, and I could run the AEM EMS on it..

Jeff Frank

 

You don't acutally have to convert to obd-1 to use the aem ems on your obd-0 car. The ems is versitile enough that it can be configured to run using the obd-0 dizzy. Please don't ask me the exact steps because I don't know ( I converted to obd-1 before the ems)

 

If I did this, does anyone know which Hondata ECU I'd want to use?

 

hondata dosen't make ecu's.... they use honda ecu's, p28 would be the cheapest one i would think...

 

My bad...I should've been more clear. Which ECU would be the best to use and if I sent it to Hondata, what would I need them to do?