Build it or Buy it (MS)

[Kershaw]

I've been seriously considering megasquirt for the last month as I've been trying to chase down this hiccup at 4k that I have. I messaged Blueapplesoda (he has responded to me several times) and whodwho (who has not yet) about buying a unit. This route seems simple, affordable, and the support they provide after the installation is easily worth the cost difference.

However, one thing bothers me. Not building it myself. After quite a bit of research and watching hours of youtube (evan's megasqurt build series + more) videos, it seems a bit daunting. I'm no stranger to soldering. However, some leds and a few resistors, repairing/jumping a relay, or some basic servos and controllers just seem so different from the complexity of a finished megasquirt. Then there's the issue that my car isn't running 100% now, throwing an engine management that is heaped together with big solder gobs, I just don't know if that's a great idea. But I don't think I'll be happy if I don't at least try, of course spending $500, failing, and then spending $800 on a built unit definitely would suck. On the flip side, this would be a great excuse to pick up a hakko 888d.

Please tell me I'm not crazy for thinking I can build this.

[TimeMachinE30]

Have them build it. You will get plenty of hands on tinkering with it all.. things you can do doesn't mean you should do... my E38 headliner re-wrap is an example. Yeah, it is OK but spending money to have an upholstery shop would have been better (someone to blame/reduce price for errors).

[nando]

Yeah, unless you really fancy electronics, a built kit makes sense especially since its tailored for the E30 already.

[Northern]

Did you pm whodwho or did you email him? From what I remember, he's fairly quick on the email replies

[Kershaw]

Yeah, I PM'd him. Maybe that's the issue.

Yeah, unless you really fancy electronics, a built kit makes sense especially since its tailored for the E30 already.

So are the diy kits. They all have step by step instructions. Solder x resister to z32 and z34, etc. The assembly doesn't look complicated, just extensive.

http://www.diyautotune.com/catalog/diypnp-bosch-55pin-unassembled-kit-p-385.html

That said, Blueapplesoda said he includes the variable TPS and the IAT an e30 needs, so it's definitely a more complete package.

[varg]

It's not hard to build one if you have experience with kits, I have built many MS units so it's fairly simple for me but even in the beginning it wasn't that bad. You just have to be sure to do your research, especially finding people's experiences building units that suit your needs, whether for the same car and engine or a similar one. There is a big advantage in going with a pre-built unit like whodwho's though, considering that they are self contained and elegant solutions. They make the process downright easy. When you approach a DIY project with no support like I did for my turbo M42 project, where no harness adapters or breakout boards exist, among other problems, it can get a little messy and laborious.

[nando]

the DIY kits are ok. I wouldn't say they were tailored to the E30 - they are just 55 pin Bosch kits which were used on tons of cars, not just E30s.

[Kershaw]

Maybe I buy this one since my car isn't running 100% anyway and build one for my e36 down the road... Not doing it myself just bothers me. But maybe that's why my e30 isn't running well. :rofl: