Accessport vs Tactrix

What do you guys think?

 

I am tired of using my old laptop, don't feel like installing anything onto my newer laptop.

 

I want to get a ap v3 just for sheer simplicity.

 

Can the accessport do everything the tactrix and laptop can do? Are there any drawbacks to the accessport?

 

I want something simple and fast. Laptop is getting annoying, its just big, has to boot, has to be powered. Its just cumbersome to me now.

700 bucks though.... hmmm

I’ve tried both and would go ap any day of the week. But with that being said, I’m not a computer person. It took me a long time to figure out how to get tactrix to work and I still don’t fully get it but the access tuner race was simple and easy to navigate. Tactrix is cheaper and if you are decent with configuring is probably the economical way to go. For me the ap is worth the money for simplicity. Easy to tune, easy to datalog and easy to monitor comprehensive live data without a laptop

I already own the tactrix, and its already setup with the laptop I have, its old, but works , not sure about the battery, I even have a cigarette lighter laptop charger. The laptop is just slow, has to boot, I have to set it up manuever all the wires, place it somewhere I can see and not kill myself while driving. .... But for 700 bucks I can buy I nice new laptop or an awesome refurbished one..... I'm really good with tech, so the nerd in me is like why spend 700 on the ap, when I can buy a new laptop and do a bunch of other stuff with it, including most of the important stuff the ap can do. I am just trying to see if I should switch to the ap.

IMO, it sounds like you might be better off with the tactrix. My only argument really is just the simplicity of the ap and how it just works. From what I have managed to understand with opensource is that it does just about everything the ap does and maybe even more except without the convenience of a handheld unit. Hopefully someone with a better knowledge can give you a better bias

just ordered a new battery for the laptop for 30 bucks.... so now it can hold a charge I hope.

What's your plan for tuning? Ask your tuner if they prefer open source or AP.

covid... can't get a hold of them

covid... can't get a hold of them

I thought you had a tune scheduled already?

I spoke to my tuner before covid, haven't since. Also had the big setback when I had to pull the motor again, disassemble down to long block , pulled the head on drivers side, sent it back to machine shop, they told me head was cracked, fixed it got it back, had to install it all over again.... put me back a month or two. Edited August 14, 2020 by Tehnation

I'm currently in the same boat as you are. I wasn't very impressed with my most recent tune (done open source at a shop), and due to my current location being far from a reputable tuner, I will be going e-tune.

 

I tried to sell myself on the AP and justify the money, but I can't. You can find the tactrix cable online for $170, then add $250-$300 for a protune in there and you're looking at $500 with tax included. AP is going to be close to $1k with a protune and tax.

 

I'd rather save $500 and sacrifice the convenience factor. As for logging, I'm using a VAGCOM at the moment plus btssm on my phone ($25 total) for the convenience factor. If i need more in depth log, then I can bring the laptop out. But btssm works well to monitor the overall health of the car.

 

So is $500 a reasonable price to pay for convenience that can be achieved another route? In my mind, no.

sigh... when you put it like that.... i'll wait for my battery, i'm already invested in the tactrix setup. I also have a bluetooth obd already, so I just need to buy the app. And the laptop is old, small and cheap enough to keep in the car so if its broken, stolen or lost, I wouldn't really care, has all the old software, works with everything.... just needs a good cleaning out, and delete all the crap that it can't handle anymore. Its an old dell latitude xt2 touchscreen... its not actually that bad, old os, windows vista or xp, and a bunch of bloatware. I thought about upgrading os and hd to sdd and windows 10 but, everything works and keeps its value low. Edited August 14, 2020 by Tehnation

Note there are features that require waaaaay more DIY technical knowhow with opensource tunes because they're not supported by default. Flex fuel, flat foot shifting, fuel pressure compensation, launch control, tables necessary to run bigger injectors properly, etc. All that stuff is included w/ Cobb. Edited August 14, 2020 by awfulwaffle

If you have multiple Subarus, Tactrix. And once you get up and running, it's the same, but cheaper with the Tactrix. If I were you I would switch to a SSD just for faster boot time, and clean out everything but Romraider and ECUflash. Once you have a good tune, you don't need to touch it, except for little touch-ups every now and then. On my WRX (JDM ecu/Tactrix), I didn't touch it for roughly 5 years, and then had to adjust it when I moved to the other side of the country and didn't have access to 93 octane anymore, and didn't touch it for the last 3 years since. On my OBXT, it's up and running, and I haven't touched that tune in a year or so.

 

The only advantage I see to the AP is that it is a smaller unit, so you could keep it in the glove box. But assuming you're happy with the tune, you wouldn't be taking it out very often, so that's moot. As far as real time logging, I like the gauge feature that the Romraider Logger has. You can make the virtual gauges as big as you want, and monitor them as you drive if you're diagnosing something. Those gauges on a laptop monitor would be much easier to read than on a little AP screen. If you didn't tune your cars yourself, you would be bound by the preference of the E-tuner as a lot of them refuse to E-tune open source.

I agree with lilredwagon, once your car is tuned, your only ever going to use the AP or Tactrix for little things like to clear engine codes. Your bluetooth adapter can do that with your phone.

Also, any pro tuner you hire for the job will be able to install a launch control / flat foot shift patch into your rom for tactrix.

I will agree that Cobb has one of the best solutions if your going to go e85 and want a flex fuel sensor installed.

So to answer your first 2 questions:

Can the accessport do everything the tactrix and laptop can do?

In regards to just tuning, yes. You will get a couple of extra features like being able to adjust your launch control and flat foot shift from the device itself while the car is running. I will also say its more user friendly to load in an etune to the accessport, flash it, data log, and send back to the tuner.

Are there any drawbacks to the accessport?

You cannot self tune without also taking a course online and paying, if I remember correctly, another $100 for said course. Once you pass the course they will give you access to access tuner race software. You then will still need a laptop

You will need to find a tuner that supports accessport.

Is this new? Access tuner race used to be free and didn’t require any course.

If your good with "tech" You should get a good laptop and then you'll be able to do more then just what a AP can do.

 

I don't think a AP can get on the forum here and post. Or search Google. Or order takeout for dinner.

Lol

LOL, yeah from what I have learned here over the years, the guys who are comfortable using Lap Tops should go that way.

 

I freak out when I have to use the AP.

I hope the tuner says they will do open source, they lead with accessport route, then when I asked if they can do open source.... crickets, still haven't heard back from them.

 

The problem for me is etuners don't really mess with my kind of setup, the stage 3 cams etc. so I need someone who does a dyno, and all these tuners like ap because they are unique to each car and I assume allows them to keep most of their knowledge/experience in house. Open source you can share with your friends, copy, edit. I'm not 100% sure but the ap makes it harder to steal apparently. But from my pirating background, I don't know how an ap can keep everything proprietary if its digital.

 

Couldn't someone just read off all the parameters from the AP and just copy them manually? If you have an AP , its so you can edit ecu stuff, so copying is possible, probably just not the same as copy and paste but I don't own one or never used one so I'm not sure about how the tuner hides what he did from the AP, if the user himself has access to all the ecu data.

I hope the tuner says they will do open source, they lead with accessport route, then when I asked if they can do open source.... crickets, still haven't heard back from them.

 

OpenECU Tuning Services

EFI Logics takes great pride in its proficiency on some of the most sophisticated and refined cars on the planet. We have the knowledge and the expertise to surgically upgrade your Subaru or EVO, unleashing it's inner beast, while not compromising its civility in day-to-day traffic. We don't "hack" your vehicle at EFI Logics, we enhance it.

 

 

 

 

 

Open Source Tuning

EFI Logics has many tools at it's disposal, one of which is OpenECU / RomRaider. OpenECU is a a simple free solution to tuning your Subaru or Mitsubishi, the services below are only for the custom tune and dyno time. EFI Logics is currently tuning Open Source as a last resort tuning method, we always suggest the purchase of an AccessPort for the reliability and usability of self diagnostic and datalogging.

 

Group tuning days are available and provide discounts based on the amount of vehicles calibrated on the same day, please contact us for more information

 

 

 

Currently, Open Source tuning is ONLY available for vehicles that are 2007 and older. We require an AccessPort for any vehicle that is newer than 2007! Vehicles are only provided with one flash, no additional maps are provided.

 

STi / WRX / EVO - Open Source Tune w/dyno

$600.00

Retune Price - must be within ONE YEAR of last tune

$350.00

*Additional fees will be applied if work or modifcations have to be completed while on the Dyno.

 

The problem for me is etuners don't really mess with my kind of setup, the stage 3 cams etc. so I need someone who does a dyno, and all these tuners like ap because they are unique to each car and I assume allows them to keep most of their knowledge/experience in house. Open source you can share with your friends, copy, edit. I'm not 100% sure but the ap makes it harder to steal apparently. But from my pirating background, I don't know how an ap can keep everything proprietary if its digital.

 

Couldn't someone just read off all the parameters from the AP and just copy them manually? If you have an AP , its so you can edit ecu stuff, so copying is possible, probably just not the same as copy and paste but I don't own one or never used one so I'm not sure about how the tuner hides what he did from the AP, if the user himself has access to all the ecu data.

Most Tuners don't like "open source" because most of the customers using it don't know how to use the lap Top and software so the Tuner has to spend time teaching, which is not time they get paid for. If they want to charge you for the customer for that time...I guess you can figure how that will go.

 

I know from time to time, Mike has showed me the data he's looking at, but I'm lost in all that. That's why I pay him. I trust him to give my cars the best tune he can and keep them safe and fun to drive.

 

My thing is, I can look at a mechanical problem, visualize what I need and know where to go to get what I need to get the issue fixed or a test set up at work to do what the Test Engineers want. It's differently a team effort at work. I was amazed at what they could come up with, they were amazed at how quickly I could get the set up ready.

Edited August 16, 2020 by Max Capacity

Looks like they want to get away from open source.... but i have an 05 so I feel like I was put on the "sh** I don't want to do pile".

 

Last resort? Require? Suggest?

 

Seems like the real pros are getting harder to find, and are getting replaced by automated, fly by night amateurs using cookie cutter software.

the thing is, its a dyno tune, they want 250 downpayment for the dyno, and that will get me a base tune to break in motor until I can get it to the dyno. These people don't do etunes, so its not like they have to teach anyone or care to teach anyone. They are close to you I think, Bethel, CT. Teaching people isn't their issue I don't think. It has to be something else.

I don't think any etuner will take on a job for a person looking for 400+awhp