COBB Tuning Blog

COBB Tuning is excited to announce another update of the MAZDASPEED AccessTUNER software, continuing to enhance features and functionality. This release includes several new tables that enhance tuning control, as well as addresses a few known bugs from previous releases. Read on to learn how COBB Tuning is working to keep the AccessPORT and AccessTUNER engine management solution at the forefront of MAZDASPEED tuning.

New Tables
These new tables give additional control of the ECU to both professional and enthusiast tuners.

Engine

• Volumetric Efficiency (VE)(BETA) – This table lets the user fine-tune the efficiency settings of the engine away from OEM volumetric efficiency defaults. Now changes in engine hardware, headwork and manifolds that alter the efficiency of the engine can be accounted for in fueling and load calculations.

Ignition

• Ign Global Max (BETA) – This table sets the maximum allowed ignition timing the ECU can attain.

Knock

• Knock Retard – Max Allowed Global (BETA) – Based on community requests, this new table sets the maximum amount of knock induced ignition retardation allowed by the ECU, based on RPM range. This will enable higher knock retard values for additional engine protection.

Wastegate

• WG Duty Baro Error Comp (Fine)(Load Based) – As another community request, this new table is the alternate to “Load Dynamics” and is referenced when “WG Duty Throttle Close Baro Threshold” is exceeded. Similar to “Boost Error Compensation”. This allows for true Load Tuning of the boost control system.

Tuning Guide
The tuning guide has been updated to version 2.11 to include updated table descriptions. Click here to download the new MAZDASPEED AccessTUNER Tuning Guide.

Bug Fixes
As with all complex software, bugs are discovered post release. These are the bug fixes addressed in this release:

• Removed extra toggle for “Use Abs. Load Target Table (Boost Control)”.
  (2006-07 MS6, 07-09 MS3)
• Boost Based Gear compensation tables are shifted back to the correct location.
  (2009 MS3)
• Ignition tables now show correct increments to 2.00 Load.
  (2010-2012 MS3)
• Idle table fix – Added missing table row.
  (2010-2012 MS3)
• “Boost Baro Comp” now re-labeled as “WG Duty Throttle Close Baro Threshold (Load Based)” to reflect the properties of the table with Boost Throttle close table.
  (all)
• “Load Dynamics” now re-labeled as “WG Duty Load Dynamics (Fine) (Load Based)” to clarify toggle’s influence on table. Table has been moved into the “WG Duty Dynamics” folder.
  (all)
• “WG Duty Boost Error Comp” now re-labeled as “(Fine) (Boost Based)” to clarify which tables are affected by toggle.
  (all)

Acquiring AccessTUNER Update
Existing AccessTUNER users can update their existing software to the latest version following these Step-By-Step Software Update Instructions. If you do not have AccessTUNER Race, fill out the AccessTUNER Race Request Form to receive a download link.

No Comments »

COBB Tuning is excited to share the news that CP-E has chosen the AccessPORT as their primary tuning solution for MAZDASPEED and BMW platforms. CP-E MAZDASPEED and BMW customers will now be able to acquire the most powerful and easiest to use handheld ECU flashing device, the AccessPORT, direct from CP-E. In addition, CP-E joins the extensive network of COBB Pro-Tuners, using our AccessTUNER Pro tuning software for custom dyno tuning services as well as creating their own line-up of CP-E Off-The-Shelf maps to complement their performance products.

More information regarding this announcement is available on CP-E’s Blog.

No Comments »

Over on the Mazdaspeedforums.org message board, username doubleflusher has taken his 2009 MS3 to over 500 horsepower using pump gas, meth injection, a FP HTA3582R, and AccessPORT tuning. The car is pushing over 30 psi and ran an 11.91 @ 122.48 at Atco Raceway. Head on over to the forums to check out this impressive power and visit COBBtuning.com to learn more about the AccessPORT!

4 Comments »

Take a ride with us as we show you what the COBB Tuning Gen 1 Mazdaspeed turbo-back exhaust sounds like inside and outside of the car. This downpipe and cat-back exhaust combination is great way to add power and make you car sound great! Visit COBBtuning.com for more information or call 866-922-3059.

2 Comments »

Anthony (superskaterxes at mazdaspeedforums.org) took his Mazdaspeed6, COBB Tuning AccessPORT, and ATP GT3076R turbo to an 11.6 second 1/4 mile time at 119 MPH to become the first Mazdaspeed6 owner in the US to break the 12.00 second barrier. This stock motor MS6 used a 30% E85 gas blend with a Labonte methanol injection kit spraying 100% meth. The stock wheels are painted green and the car weighed in at the track at 3655 lbs. with a gutted interior and driver. Using AccessTUNER Race and the AccessPORT, Anthony was able to dial in the tune to run this very impressive time. Congratulations again to Anthony and his 11 second Mazdaspeed6!

5 Comments »

Another popular product has made it back on our shelves! The COBB Tuning 2008-2010 WRX 5-Door Single-Tip 3″ Stainless Steel Catback Exhaust is in stock now. This is a perfect factory exhaust replacement engineered specifically to fit the unique rear bumper configuration of the 2008-2010 5-door Impreza WRX. Installation is easy, using all of the factory exhaust hanger locations.

The system is also designed to allow maximum ground clearance by tucking the 3” Stainless Steel piping up away from the ground, as much as possible. The 4“ polished tip sits perfectly in the OEM bumper cutout, yet is modest enough to not attract any unwanted visual attention. This catback exhaust has a deep tone that offers immediate audible satisfaction, yet still complies with California SAE sound requirements.

The unmatched exhaust note, easy installation, optimal performance, tasteful looks, and unparalleled durability make this a tough catback exhaust to beat! Pair it with the COBB 3” SS Downpipe for a complete Turbo Back Exhaust perfect for Stage2 power and performance!

Please note that a new stainless steel flex joint has been added to the mid-pipe, and is not pictured here. New product images will be available soon. For more information, please visit our website at COBBTuning.com or call us at 866-922-3059.

No Comments »

Building a racecar is easy: just throw in a roll cage, make sure you meet a few rules, and then throw it on the track. But your chances of finishing a race, let alone winning, are pretty slim. So what does it take to win races and to capture the Manufacturer’s Title in the ultra competitive Grand Am Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Series? We asked i-Moto Racing who did just that with a great season finale race at Mid-Ohio running COBB AccessPORT tuned Mazda Mazdaspeed3s.

The most important part of any racing series is adhering to the rules. Curt Jung, i-Moto Racing’s Engineer/Tuner said that the AccessPORT allows the team to “maximize power and economy as well as precisely control the boost to meet the technical regulations.” Not only did the AccessPORT provide the ability to stay within series specs, but it also provided consistent and reliable performance. By using the built-in datalogging features, Curt was able to log a wide variety of engine data and efficiently tune the engine to “run just like production the production Mazdaspeed3, except a lot faster while using less fuel!”

During the racing season, there are always ups, downs, and a few surprises in between. Curt’s biggest surprise while tuning all season? The AccessPORT “does everything as advertised. I was sure that I would find quirks with any aftermarket tuning product that attempts to modify such a sophisticated production engine management system, and I continue to be pleasantly surprised at how nicely this interface and tuning tool works.” Late in the race at Watkins Glen, the team was poised for a 1-2 podium finish, but a flat tire with minutes to go ruined what could have been a huge day. Season long reliability paid off though when the team fought hard to finish 1st and 3rd at the season ending Mid-Ohio race. The first win for a Mazdaspeed3 also happened to lock up the Manufacturer Title for Mazda!

So what does it take to win? It takes a great team of owners, managers, engineers, and drivers to pull together a reliable and powerful car that can run at the front of the pack every race weekend. Congratulations to i-Moto Racing on a great season in their AccessPORT tuned Mazdaspeed3s and to Mazda for capturing the Manufacturer Title for the 2011 Grand Am Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Series!

If you’d like to learn more about what the AccessPORT can do for you, just visit www.COBBtuning.com.

1 Comment »

10 years ago, Darius lined up his 2000 Ford Escort ZX2 with a shot of nitrous and some bolt-ons to pull a 14.37 at 96.9 MPH. Since then, he’s been hooked on drag racing with a variety of cars and recently ran a 12.42 at 109.4 MPH using only a 2011 Subaru STI Sedan with help from a COBB Downpipe, a COBB SF Intake and Airbox, and a COBB AccessPORT running off-the-shelf (OTS) Stage 2+SF mapping.

After setting the record for the fastest stock turbo, manual transmission diesel truck in his 2004 Chevy Silverado 2500HD Duramax Diesel, Darius decided a 2011 STI sedan was the perfect comprise of speed and comfort. He missed his old 2005 STi and couldn’t pass up a fast 4 door that featured Bluetooth, heated seats, and integrated iPod controls. To make his fast 4 door even faster, he opted for a few choice COBB parts. The AccessPORT with datalogging and preloaded maps for various modifications made tuning easy, the SF Intake added some power and sounded great, and the used COBB Downpipe mated up to the stock exhaust perfectly.

With just $1200 spent on modifications and some excellent driving, Darius was able to run a 12.42 at 109.44 MPH with a 1.686 60′ time. And to prove it was no fluke, he followed it up with a 12.44. Next season, Darius hopes a few more modifications, some custom tuning, and experimentation with the Launch Control and Flat Foot Shifting features built-in to the AccessPORT will get him down to the 11 second range.

If you’d like to learn more about the AccessPORT, the COBB SF Intake, the COBB Downpipe, or any of our other products, just visit www.COBBtuning.com.

1 Comment »

Welcome to the first episode of Ask COBB! This episode covers the ins-and-outs of Subaru AccessPORT Data Logging and analysis to determine the health of your car and your tune.

Be sure to select 1080p resolution and watch in full screen!

Remember that Off-The-Shelf Maps, including High Wastegate and Low Wastegate alternate maps can be downloaded from our AccessPORT Map Database at http://www.cobbtuning.com/subaruotsmaps. The Map Notes are downloadable from the same location and will give you a good understanding of map requirements, power output and target boost levels.

Let us know what you think!

No Comments »

A couple months ago, some friends and I were talking about running at the CO ProSolo in Colorado Springs, CO. Since Colorado Springs is around 870 miles from Austin, TX it seemed unlikely that I would be able to bring my 2006 COBB STU STI to the CO ProSolo but I really wanted to run the event. As luck would have it, a good friend and long time customer of COBB Tuning, Kevin Schultz, was kind enough to offer me a ride in his STU-prepped 2006 Evolution MR. Who could turn down a ride with the Dark Side? So with my ride secured and a weekend of fast cone-dodging on the way, I hopped on a plane to Colorado.

I arrived at the event Friday afternoon to practice starts and launches, and immediately noticed the start was on a decently steep incline. Stock EVO clutches are known to be weak, so this did not bode well for a clutch with some miles on it. Neither Kevin nor I had launched an EVO at a ProSolo and we had some experimenting to do between keeping the car from rolling out of the staging lights and learning how to launch.

Kevin was up first trying to slip the clutch at 6,000 RPM while manually holding the emergency brake up. This did not work so well as the clutch slipped leaving a cloud of smoke. A few more launch attempts didn’t work out well ending in a bog or burning clutch. With a hot clutch we decided to let it cool before I took my first try at launching the EVO.

Incoming weather cut the cooling time shorter that we would have liked. Being an STI guy we launch them hard and fast to get wheel-spin. The strategy going in was to get the EVO spinning wheels with as little as possible clutch slip. On my one and only attempt to launch, the clutch slipped but held around 5,000 RPM before gripping, no wheel spin. Further attempts to launch the car were only going to hurt it so we decided to call it a day.

Saturday morning I was to be the first driver of our pair out not knowing how to launch the car. I had no idea if we were going to limp the launches or be able to go hard. The first launch out of the gate was hard and fast getting some wheel spin. We were pulling 1.8-1.9 60-foot times up hill which was fantastic. Kevin’s EVO felt great for the first two runs until the tires warmed up and then started to get loose. It seemed the car was picking up a rear wheel, then spinning that wheel when attempting to throttle up. Even with the wheel lift, the morning session went well and I was sitting on top of the class.

For the afternoon session, Kevin and I decided to loosen the rear sway bar from full stiff to full soft to try and improve the handling. The afternoon session came and went with no improvement for me. The car was feeling better while still being a bit too loose for my taste. However, Kevin hopped into the car and ran some great times boosting him into second place.

Sunday morning was time for a little “strategizing.” After a bit of talking with other competitors and a course walk with Kevin, we come up with a strategy. Our plan is to tighten our lines to keep in the “line”. Our strategy works like a champ. Kevin and I both drop another 7-8 tenths keeping our 1-2 class finish in STU and I’m the 7th qualifier in the Super Challenge.

Sadly, Kevin missed the cut off for the Super Challenge yet was gracious enough to let me run his car even though he had a 600-mile solo drive back to Salt Lake City, UT. The first round of the Super Challenge put me up against a well prepped CSP Miata on cold race rubber.

The course is split into two tracks, with each competitor running both to achieve an overall best time, these runs are made “head-to-head” so that both cars are attacking mirrored tracks at the same time. After the first “right side” run I was up 8-tenths of a second so I decided to take it easy on the left side to play it safe to staying off the cones. It turned out I took it a little too easy as we were staring at each other coming around one of the final turns. I decided I needed to go all out and I ended up taking the win by 3-tenths of a second.

Round two put me up against an STS CRX. After the first right side, he was able to break out by two tenths and was able to build a 4-tenth advantage on me. On the left-side I felt like I was going faster than I think I had all weekend; then I blow a tight turn around. At the finish I’m another two tenths behind and the CRX who has broken out again! Either way, I was eliminated after the second round in the Super Challenge.

Even though I didn’t take the Super Challenge the great courses good people made for a fantastic weekend. Kevin and I will be making a few more changes to the car coming back for the Colorado National Tour at the end of the month. Many thanks go to Kevin for his graciousness in letting me beat on his AWD monster.

No Comments »