Brian D. Cain's Haltech E6K/Ser 4/5 FC3S Mazda Rx7 Personal Installation      Notes 4/5/2000 
--Updated 5/26/2000, including Jon Kwahk's addendums and troubleshooting issues, etc. 
--Updated 8/15/2000, adding wiring addendums and notes, wiring preferences, etc. 
--Updated 5/26/2001, adding BAC Valve wiring and t-shooting      
--Updated 7/19/2001, adding more BAC Valve notes and setup figures 
--Updated 10/23/2001, adding additional timing tips and CAS alignment methodology 
--Updated 12/9/2001, modified BAC Valve period setting


WHEN IN DOUBT, READ THE HALTECH MANUAL AND REFER TO THE WIRING DIAGRAM!


[Parts and Tools needed] (8/15/2000 addendums)
- Wiring tools (crimp tool, cutters/snips, etc.)
- Lots of 12AWG and 14AWG red/black stranded wiring
- Lots of 16AWG/18AWG wiring for switched trigger leads for relays
- Four rolls of electrical tape (to do a good job and wrap the entire harness)
- Female spade crimp connectours (16-22AWG, 10-22AWG, etc.)
  -- Always good to have a couple boxes of each
- Ring crimp connectours (16-22AWG and 10-22AWG)
- Proper tap for intake air and coolant temperature sensors
- Throttle Position Sensor Bracket (if not using a full-range unit)
  The Ser 5/GTX FC3S is exempt from this; The Ser 4 needs to use the Haltech TPS, however
- A few male spade connectors (for switched relay hookups into factory wiring harness plugs)
- Timing Gun (absolutely mandatory for later)
- Protective-plastic wiring loom (from automotive supply store)
- Bag of large zip ties
- Spare automotive fuse block (for wiring of accessories and additional, powered components if need be)
- Soldering gun and high-quality solder
- Two or three extra 12VDC, 30A standarde automotive relays
- Multimeter or voltmeter (~12VDC readouts atleast)





[Pre-Installation Notes] (8/15/2000 addendums)
- This installation caters to both flying lead and terminated harness types.
- Remove the intercooler and upper intake manifold/throttle body for flying lead and harness
installation.
- Don't freak out when you see the wiring harness.  It's alot easier than it looks.  Think
of it as installing a big radio head unit.  This installation takes several hours to two days so give yourself a weekend.
Pull the factory parts on a Friday evening and start the installation on the next Saturday.  Have a friend available just
in case.
- The tachometer and the windshield washer motor need to be rewired since we've removed
this portion of the harness when the Mazda EFI engine harness was removed.  The wiper motor
is a sinch; I believe it was four or five leads and I did it in about 10 minutes.  Just match their respective colours up
to what they are on the plug and splice them in.  The tachometer lead is explained below.
-- Update (5/26/00) -- I don't believe the tachometer lead has to be re-wired for the K unit.  I did this
on mine, but Jon Kwahk didn't have to on his and it works properly.  I suggest trying it w/o
wiring up, first.


[Removing factory EFI and related components]
- Remove Air flow meter
- Remove Pressure sensor (located near passenger shock tower)
- Remove N3xx ECU, engine wiring harness, and other associated wiring and ground straps
- Remove fuel pump resistor box near passenger headlight and wiring
- Cut wiring to the windshield wiper motor (I believe 8 blue-coloured leads)


[Intake Air Temp and Coolant Temp Sensors]
- Coolant Temperature Sensor needs to be plumbed UNDER the thermostat somewhere; anywhere.
- GM/Ford sensors, 3/8" NPT tap needed, I believe... tap in exact same location where factory sensors are;
seal w/ either Permatex gasket sealant or JBWeld
- Use the proper-sized and pitch tap.  It will make life easier.
- If using the factory pickup point for the coolant temperature sensor, the water pump
housing will need to be removed.  This may add several hours to the procedure because of
gasket maker/sealant time when re-installing.


[Throttle Position Sensor (TPS)]  (updated 10/23/2001)
- If using a Ser 5/GTX FC3S Throttle Position Sensor, ignore.  I do not have the wiring diagram for this
so it will have to be found independently.  Only one of the factory sensors is used since one is full-range and the
other is a 3-way unit.
- Is using a Ser 4/GTR FC3S, you must use the Haltech-supplied TPS.  Refer to wiring diagram for connector plug hookup.
You must either find or construct a bracket to the factory FC3S throttle body to mount the TPS.
Make _sure_ it is a strong and heavy-duty bracket made of thick aluminum, steel, or something else.  If it's weak, it
will cause throttle position pickup problems on the ECU and the engine will stutter alot under throttle transition.


[MAP Sensor]
- Use the existing vacuum line running to the factory Mazda EFI pressure sensor off of the upper intake manifold.
You may have to tee into one.  Mount the MAP sensor on the firewall w/ the orientation as such:
Connector plug vertical, ontop; vacuum line on bottom.
- Refer to E6x manual.

[Mounting the E6x ECU Unit]
- This is up for grabs.  I mounted mine in the very same spot the old Mazda N3xx ECU box
was. There are (4) screw holes in the outer shell casing that allow you to drill into anything and bolt it up.


[Main Wiring Loom/Flying Leads]  (8/15/00 addendums)
>Don't get nervous.  There are actually lots of leads that won't be used (several configurable output options, etc.);
I think I only used about 15 to 20 of the leads. The first sight of the main harness tends to intimidate people.
- Solder all connections if possible.  Electrically tape _all_ crimp and wire wrap
connectors/connections and don't allow for the possibility of arcing.  If you want to do a
clean job, wire in the extra fuse block for additional fuses (like the 4th one for ignition
if you re-wire power directly for the leading and trail packs), wrap the wiring looms in
the plastic, protective loom you can buy from any auto parts store, etc.   Use ring crimp
connectours for +12VDC battery terminal leads as well as chassis-mounted ground leads.
Mount all relays used facing down to prevent the possibility of internal contamination from
water overspray, rain, etc.  They _will_ fail this way.
- Even though some people don't do this, I went ahead and used the hole leftover in the
firewall where the old Mazda EFI engine wiring harness passed through into the engine
bay (bottom corner near passenger-side strut tower).   There are various holes towards
the center of the firewall that would make for a generally cleaner installation, but they
require the removal of the heater core/blower motor/air mix motor triplet.
- Run all these wires through the firewall and let them hang over the fender (or whatever
is comfortable for you).  Per the wiring diagram, separate all leads out and match them
up together for easier wiring later.  Find the location where the old ECU will be mounted later.
>[Flying Lead Harness] - "Rough draft" each respective wire/wiring pair or combination in place
of where it would go, cut for length, and then wire each sensor (or injector) plug on, one pair or set
at a time.
>[Terminated Harness]  - Lay each pre-cut pair and harness in its respective place.  Cut Haltech-supplied
connectours if re-using some factory ones, such as the CAS connectour for example.  After the install of
the terminated portion of the harness is done later, cut extra lengths out and re-splice to make it look
clean.  Be sure to route accordingly.
- Serial Cable - Leave this hanging out of the carpet area.  It will be the only thing "showing" in the cockpit.
Be sure to leave a good amount of length to hookup an external laptop or PC for configuration and MAP loading.


[Wiring Injectors (4 or additional (5 and up))]
- Refer to the E6x manual or injector lead and harness hookups.
- There are a few pages in the E6K manual that describe the hookup.  When it refers to "injector driver" it is
referring to the INJ 1-4 lead (it's actually a ground lead that rapidly switches on and off that pulses each injector
and not the +12VDC switched power) hooked up to the injector plug.  On my particular setup, I use (4) 720cc/min injectors
in a Staged configuration (simulating the Mazda EFI setup by having two primary injectors and two secondary injectors).
The primaries, INJ 1 and 2, are alive all of the time and firing.  The secondaries, INJ 3 and 4 however, come alive at a
preset BAR (refer to Fuel Setup in software) setting.  I have mine setup to be staged when boost kicks in.  Duty cycles
are halved as all four injectors are then firing in uniformity.  The Mazda FC3S EFI system, in contrast, stages the
secondaries under two pre-existing conditions:  Throttle Position of around 25 to 30% (as best as I can tell) and up and
also an engine RPM of atleast ~3750RPM.
- From the fuse block under the 10A fuse, make sure one of the two leads coming out the bottom of the fuse block runs
to the 12AWG/13AWG RED (or PINK in my case) injector harness lead.  This lead splices into (4) GREY/PINK leads that parse
out for each injector driver.  When wiring these injectors up (INJ 1 - 4 on the wiring diagram), be sure to label the
injector connector plug so they're not mixed up.  I used a black magic marker to label '1', '2', etc. after they were wired.


[External Relay Hookups][E6K 3-Fuse Block][Flying Leads Wiring]  (8/15/00 addendums)
Fuse Block:
- Per the picture, I mounted the fuse block perpendicular to the main FC3S fuse block
alongside the strut tower.  Some people mount it inside the cockpit above where the old
Mazda N3xx ECU would've been but I chose here for easier wiring of the power leads and such.

Main E6x Power, Ground, Fuel Pump, Aux, and Switched +12VDC and flying leads:  (8/15/00 addendums)
- Refer to the wiring diagram.
- Refer below for fuel pump leads' wiring.
- For the grey, switched +12VDC flying lead, refer below.
- For the FC3S, the green Auxiliary flying lead is not needed.
- Wire the thick, black ground lead directly to the -12VDC battery terminal. (you may
want to add additional ground straps from the battery to the chassis and engine w/ 10AWG
or 12AWG leads.)
- Mount main injector/ECU power relay.
- Wire on ring crimp connectours for all battery-terminal mounted flying leads.

Powering ignitors/coil pairs:
- I used a 30A/12VDC automotive relay (using a good switched lead) along with the
20A fuse in the 3-fuse E6x fuse holder for the ignitor/coil pairs.  I bypassed the
factory power wiring and ran my own w/ its own fuse.  It works well.  I used 12AWG
for the job.  Refer to the wiring diagram for the relay for proper hookup.
- I mounted the relay next to the main fuse block (per picture) -> Ground this relay onto
chassis or firewall.


Fuel Pump Relay and wiring:  (8/15/00 addendums)
- I deviated from this portion of the wiring diagram because I already had my own fuel
pump wiring (12AWG from battery, to a cockpit switch, to the pump directly) wired in.
You can do what I did and add in a 3rd external relay for this or use the Haltech-supplied leads
and internal relay(s).
To install the correct way:
>[Terminated Harness]  - Locate and mount the pre-made harness for the fuel pump.  It's coloured w/
a grey switched +12VDC lead, black ground lead, and a pair of 12AWG orange fuel pump leads.
>[Flying Lead Harness] - You'll have to wire the switched (grey) +12VDC switched and ground leads for the
fuel pump relay, as well as the two large 12AWG orange flying leads labeled 'Fuel Pump 1 and 1A' in the
E6K wiring diagram.
- One of the orange fuel pump flying leads leads all the way back to the fuel pump.  Even though the E6K manual
refers to two different types of wiring diagrams, I prefer to switch the power lead on and leave the ground constant.
In this case, this fuel pump lead will hook directly to the pump's +12VDC source while the pump's ground will be
ground directly to the chassis.
- The other orange fuel pump flying lead will need a ring crimp connectour on it and needs to be wired directly to the
+12VDC terminal on the battery.
- The wiring hookup winds up as such:
  - +12VDC battery terminal (fuel pump ring crimp connected-lead) -> fuse block -> fuel pump relay -> fuel pump +12VDC lead


[Providing Switched Power for power relays]  (Updated 10/23/2001)
On the Ser 4/GTR FC3S:
6-lead plug near the driver's side; all female; white (AAS harness)
- the bottom center (black or blue w/ red stripe)
On the main ignition harness near the main ignition relay near the trailing ignitor pack, there is a 2-lead white
  conncetour plug.  The thin-gaged (18AWG) black with white striped and red notched lead can be spliced into.

On the Ser 5/GTX FC3S:
The 6-lead green test equipment plug;
- Use the top center female spaded of the six (there are actually only three in there)
- The top center one is referenced by the plug's small plastic flap above it
- This works great, too.


[Factory Ignitors/Coils Pairs Wiring]
- TAN coloured wires from both ignitors go to an IGN (switched) 12V+ source
  (splice into ignitor/coils power source; relayed; refer to my own powering method above)
- The PINK wires go to the appropriate trigger wires from the E6x:
- Leading Ignitor (PINK)   - LIGHT GREEN (IGN OUT) on E6K harness
- Trailing Ignitor (PINK)  - WHITE/BLACK (AUXOUT-1) on E6K harness
- Trailing Ignitor (WHITE) - GREEN/BLACK (BYPASS) on E6K harness
  This Bypass lead is called the "toggle" lead.  It's used by the E6K (not sure about
  A or S models) for toggling between the front and rear trailing coil.
- The YELLOW lead at the trail-pack is wired to the tachometer.
  (Update) - This is the yellow/green w/ red notch lead (thin gauge; perhaps 18 or 20AWG) in the CPU wiring
  harness just below the trail ignitor. Since it will be cut when installing the wiring for   the K, it will have
  to be re-spliced.  This requires that the trailing ignitor and coil pack be unbolted and lifted up for harness access.
  (Update 5/26/00) - Jon K was able to not modify any of this wiring and his tachometer still worked.  It
  may not have to be re-spliced.
- When I wired in the power and input leads for both factory ignitors, I re-used the factory
  Mazda white connecting plugs for easy quick-disconnect.  Each of those plugs houses
  the TAN and PINK leads on the factory ignitors.


[Aftermarket Ignitors/Coils Pairs Wiring (E6A/E6S models)]
I am generally unfamiliar with this setup, although I do know that two or three MSD6A/6AL or Bosche ignitors are used
for the E6S.  Refer to their wiring and power diagrams.


[Wiring the Mazda Crank Angle Sensor (CAS)]
- There are four wires there -- Red, White, Green, White/Black -> that come out
of the CAS.  I recommend using a CAS from a Ser 5/GTX since these leads are longer
and easier to splice into.  I had problems w/ the Ser 4 but it is possible to use it.
Update (5/26/00)
- Cut the 4-lead, white plug off of the CAS and re-splice in the 4-plug, black Haltech connector.
- Off of the E6K main harness, there's a shielded cable that contains four
wires -> White (or Yellow), Red, Green, and Black (or Blue).


Mazda CAS -> Haltech E6x Shielded Trigger Pickup harness hookup colour codes:
RED         -  White (or Yellow)		Trigger + (Purple on MSD 8509)  (trigger pair)
WHITE       -  Red				        Trigger - (Green on MSD 8509)
GREEN       -  Green				    Home + (Purple on MSD 8509)  (home pair)
White/black -  Black (or Blue)			Home - (Green on MSD 8509)


[Wiring (2) MSD 8509 Signal Stabilizers]
(for E6A/S or bypassing Internal Reluctors on E6K)

Haltech E6x Shielded Trigger Pickup harness -> MSD units colour codes:
WHITE (or YELLOW) - Trigger + (PURPLE)  ]
RED		          - Trigger - (GREEN)   ] - (Use one box for these Trigger inputs)
GREEN		      - Home + (PURPLE)     ]
BLACK		      - Home - (GREEN)      ] - (Use one box for these Home inputs)

MSD 8509 Trigger Box YELLOW  - WHITE on E6x trigger harness
MSD 8509 Home Box YELLOW     - GREEN on E6x trigger harness

- If NOT using internal reluctors and using the MSD boxes, only two of the four leads
in the trigger harness are used after those boxes. The Red and black leads are not used; just green and white (yellow
outputs spliced on MSD 8509's respectively).
- A note on the MSD 8509's:  It has been suggested that these boxes are susceptible to
chassis vibrations.  Mount in a vibration-free (inside the cockpit somewhere preferrably)
environment.


[In the E6x software]
- Go to ONLINE mode and load (ALT-F) the supplied base map.
FC3S Ignition/Coil Setup w/ CAS (Ignition Setup):
Spark Mode: Distributor (if using factory ignitors w/ the E6K unit)
Spark Mode: Direct Fire (if using MSD/Bosch aftermarket ignitors, bypassing factory ignitors)
Engine Type:  Rotary
Output Type:  Constant Charge; 4.5ms; Falling.
- Be careful with these setups.  I've experimented w/ setting the Output type to 'Constant Duty' with a 20% setting,
  but my trailing ignitor overheated.  This particular setting listed above seems to work the best.
- Calibrate the throttle position once you're online.


[Inserting/Stabbing CAS (Three methods)] (Updated 10/23/2001)

(Using the factory FC3S crank pulleys w/ red/yellow markers)
The HITman's method (preferred):
- Manually crank engine where 5ATDC yellow marker on pulley lines w/ timing marker
  on front cover
- W/ CAS cap off, insert w/ both trigger points approximately lined up w/ CAS's cap's
  screw holes (check picture from Matthew Leicher here)
- In E6x Ignition setup, set Trigger Angle to 70BTDC, Number of Teeth to 24, and Tooth
  Offset to 3.

Haltech USA's method:
- Remove front pulley and eccentric shaft hub (break 90ft/lb front eccentric shaft bolt)
  - Side note:  I've been told that the needle bearing on the front side of the thrust plate (on the eccentric shaft)
    may fall down (off the thrust spacer) once the front hub is cracked loose and removed.  It's been suggested that a
    second person depress the clutch while changing/moving the front hub.
- Manually crank engine where e-shaft's keyway is at 6o'clock
- Remove CAS cap
- Insert CAS w/ both triggers aligned exactly w/ pickup points at 9 and 3'oclock in the
  CAS respectively
- In E6x Ignition setup, set Trigger Angle to 90BTDC, Number of Teeth to 24, and Tooth
  Offset to 1.

"Stock" CAS line-up method:
- Manually crank engine where the 5ATDC yellow marker on the crank pulley lines up to the front cover's timing marker
- W/ the CAS cap removed, position the bottom gear's indention notch to the CAS's timing marker on the "north" (top) side
  and insert in the front cover, ensuring that it doesn't move around any.
- In the Ignition setup, set the Trigger Angle to 60BTDCs, Number of teeth to 24, and Tooth Offset to 11.

-- Update (5/26/00) (Using different crank pulleys/out of CAS adjustment room)
- If you're using an underdrive pulley set, or a different pulley set other than factory, do this:
Refer to either method for lining up pulley and inserting CAS, etc., but find a bonafide timing marker on
the pulley, like the TDC (0BTDC) marker on the pulley, as in the case of Jon K's underdrive crank pulley,
and set the lock timing around that degrees setting (in this specific case, '0' in the software).
- When adjusting the CAS during the timing light part of this, if you find that you've run out of adjustment
room to turn the CAS in either direction, in the Ignition Setup, adjust the Trigger Angle by 10 degrees in
either direction.  We had to do this on Jon K's setup when we timed it around his TDC marker/underdrive pulley.
We had to change it from 70BTDC to 60BTDC.  This gave us the leeway to adjust the CAS and get it zero'd out
properly.  Lowering the Trigger Angle value advances the base timing whilst raising that value retards base timing.  It will
be evident in the pitch changes the engine makes as it speeds up/slows down.

I like The HITman's method because it does not require removing the front hub and pulley
but it assumes the pulley and front hub pair are accurate, meaning the red/yellow 20/5ATDC
markers are EXACTLY accurate in reference to the keyway on the e-shaft.  Try this method first.
This method should work perfectly on the FC3S platform if the main crank pulley and front hub pair haven't
been changed or mixed up w/ another set.  This was the case with mine (two-engine swap two years ago) and
I had to change the pulley set.


[Setting Timing w/ Crank Angle Sensor] (Added/Modified 10/23/2001)
- After the CAS has been inserted and the timing/trigger configuration set, w/ the engine idling (hopefully), go to
ONLINE mode, CTRL-G Ignition Setup, and switch the Lock Timing to ON.  Using the stock crank pulley, set the
Timing Lock Degrees to 5ATDC (-5 is the value to type in here).
From here, adjust the CAS w/ a timing gun (connected to either leading plug wire) until the marker meets _exactly_ w/ the
5ATDC yellow marker.  This is imperative.  Set the timing before doing ANY tuning or it will be a waste of time.  Once the
CAS is set, lock the 10mm locking nut in-place and re-verify w/ the timing gun again.  At this point, it may be necessary
to run the datalogger for a good few seconds to verify that there are no apparent engine RPM trigger pickup problems while
it's idling.  They'll be quite evident.
- Extra note:  I have had problems setting the timing with poor L1/L2 leading spark pickup which led to many hours of
head-scratching, wiring checking and double-checking (and in some cases re-wiring), main harness inspection, and the like.
Another way to set the timing on the stock pulleys is to clip the timing gun's inductive pickup on T1, or the front
rotor trailing plug wire.  With the timing lock on, the E6S/E6K defaults the trail-split timing to a hard 15 degrees split.
Checking in the Engine Data page, the Advance will be set to -5BTDC and the Trail Advance will be at -20BTDC.  To set
timing this way with the stock pulley, set the Timing Lock Degrees to -5 and adjust the CAS until the front cover timing
marker lines up exactly with the 20ATDC (red/orange colour) mark on the pulley.  This will compensate for the 15 degree
leading/trailing split for using the T1 as a pickup and will inadvertently zero the timing out.  Once it's set, lock
the CAS down.


[Configuring Output Options (CTRL-O Options Menu)]


- Construct a wiring harness with these two leads:  Switched +12VDC, fused, as well as one of the PWM outputs.  The
BAC valve is to be wired up directly; no need to use a relay (infact, I think it'd kill one).  First off, the idle
needs to be set per the throttle body; atleast within a few hundred RPM range of desired target.  The BAC valve is
used not as the primary source of idle but rather for trimming idle (such as in situations where the electrical
system is loaded and idle drops, etc.).  The plumbing for the BAC valve is standard except for the input:  You can
stick a filter on the end of the small, input pipe if desired.  The valve will be a little loud as a result.  In the
software, configure the PWM output selected to be 'Enabled' with a period setting of 21ms. (Update 12/9/2001:  I was
originally using a period value of around 33ms but through some discussions on the list I've experimented with it
because the BAC valve was very loud during operation.  A setting of 21 still retains functionality but loses the
chattering noise.  I'm not sure what the factory ECU operated the unit at but this seems to work best.)
Back in the Output Options under 'Idle Speed Control', set the Idle speed control to Disabled.
(7/19/2001 Updates)
- After some studying of this w/ Arturo, it turns out that the 5 bottom values in the Idle Speed Control configuration actually
do work with the factory BAC valve.  They are, with brief explanation, as follows:
() Cold Temperature Limit -> The water temperature at which the cold start function values cease and switch to hot values
() Cold/Hot Minimum Position % -> The lowest percentage the valve will remain open before targetting idle speed off-throttle
() Cold/Hot Opening Position % -> The percentage the valve will open when the ECU detects 0% on the TPS (during decceleration, etc.)
   from a previous condition of on-throttle
The trick in setting these up, for both hot and cold, is to do the following:
- Ensure the TPS is properly calibrated.
- Warm the engine up to operating temperature.
- Set the throttle body to idle near the desired RPM by modifying the throttle stop screw position on the top butterfly.  This
may take some trying over and over to get right.
- In the Idle Speed Control, set desired RPM to something very low, such as 500rpm.
- Adjusting the Hot Minimum Position, with the engine idling, start it at 50% and then work its way down (I recommend in
decrements of 5%) until it's very close to desired engine RPM; perhaps just a little below.  The closer this value, the less
the BAC valve will have to work to sustain and trim a good, solid idle.
- With that set, adjust Target Idle Speed to desired engine RPM.
- Adjust the Hot Opening Position to 50%.  Throttle the engine to, say, 4kRPM and watch the decceleration of the engine
speed as it reaches nearby Target Idle Speed.  Lower this value and repeat the process until it deccelerates smoothly
to Target Idle speed without any hiccups in idle recovery and the like.
- Repeat the process for cold start values as well.
It took me about 30 minutes of playing around with this to get it to where I liked it.  The values I use on my current MAP are:
Cold Temp Limit of 100F, Cold Minimum and Opening Positions of 90%, Hot Minimum Position of 22%, and Hot Opening Position of 37%.


Per my street setup, I have had success with these settings:
RPM setting of 1700rpm, throttle position of 33%, Cycles of 5, rich and lean limit percentages of 17%
(these are strictly dependant upon the MAP settings at the desired ranges), Voltage of 401mV (single wire, standard
O2 sensors)


[Personal Troubleshooting] (Updated 10/23/2001)
Below are listed symptoms with troubleshooting tips or solutions.
Symptom:
"The E6x software never goes into ONLINE mode; It says, 'RECONNECT'"
- This is probably power related.  I originally forgot to ground my main ECU and injector
harness power relay on this one.  Verify that the switched lead being used is good.
Verify good battery voltage.  Verify the ground.  Verify the 3A fuse in the fuse block.
- This could also be COM port related on the PC being used.  Ensure it is configured properly and is connected to the
Haltech.

"When I crank the engine over, it doesn't start."  (Updated 10/23/2001)
- This happened to me and it was a trigger pickup problem.  Even though I verified, and
re-verified, the injector power hookup and 10A fuse, it turned out to be a problem w/
the trigger wires being backwards on two of the leads on the CAS.  Verify all four leads
are wired correctly (if using Internal Reluctors in Ignition Setup) or that the
wiring for the MSD 8509 Signal Stabilizers are wired properly (using Hall Effect setup).
An improper wiring of the trigger harness to trigger output hardware results in an inactive tachometer and Engine RPM
reading.
- Extra note: Although it is assumedly unlikely, it may be beneficial to open the main wiring loom connectour plug
(on the ECU side) and verify the pin-out for the (4) trigger harness inputs:
  - Pin 6 = Yellow, Pin 7 = Red, Pin 12 = Blue, and Pin 13 = Green.  Each of these leads is 20AWG.
- Verify that the ECU is indeed getting power.  Use the CTRL+E Engine Data Page (when
online) to see if the ECU is indeed powered and getting sensor inputs.
- Check to see if the Duty Cycle and Injector Time (ms) values are not 0% and 0.000
respectively.  If they are registering nothing, there is a trigger pickup problem.
- Verify the Ignition Setup trigger setting.   I got stuck with this when I let somebody else modify my first base map.
He had switched the pickup style from Internal Reluctor to Hall Effect while I was still using the IR to t-shoot a problem.

"The engine runs badly and won't idle."  (Updated 10/23/2001)
- Timing is either not configured properly or is not timed correctly.  Re-time and verify settings.
- Fuel starvation or over-fuelling; Improper Fuel setup "Staged, Sequential, Multipoint", etc.
- Trailing plug wires may be backwards.  It will knock and ping greatly.
- No power (or ignition signal) to leading coil pack, reducing spark by ~90% in the combustion chambers.

"The engine barely throttles and sputters when I hit the gas."  (Updated 10/23/2001)
- The Accelerator/Throttle Pump INC and SUS values are either way too low or way too high.
- Verify the primary (if staged) injector(s) wiring.  I left one of the two leads on
one injector not pushed into the connecting plug once.  If need be, with the ignition powered on and the engine not
running, using an Ohm-meter on a 2000Ohm scale, measure the resistance across the +12VDC and GND leads of each injector
plug ensuring that they're all measuring 1 (Infinite) resistance.  If any other value appears, there may be a dead short
or short across the two somewhere in the harness (or ECU) causing an injector to stay at 100% duty cycle, wide open,
causing the engine to flood massively.
- The throttle position sensor may be flexing if the TPS bracket is too weak.  Check the
throttle position values in the engine data page while running.

(Update 5/26/00)
"Tachometer bounces around alot; the tach seems to be twice the value of the engine RPM in the Engine Data Page."
- Jon K and I ran into this at my house and sweat tears and blood over it for a few hours.  It turned out that he
had the Ignition Bypass/Toggle lead and the Trailing Ignition Output lead's wired backwards.  I can only imagine
the havoc this was wreaking in the combustion chamber as, presumably, only the T1 coil was firing twice the time.  This
explains the engine knock we got in the 5krpm to 6krpm range when he got up on it around 4psi.

"Boost doesn't build up high at all"
- Although this isn't directly related to the E6K, it indirectly is because of the way vacuum leaks work w/ the MAP-sensitive
system vs. the old airflow meter doohickey on the Mazda EFI system.  Jon K and I experienced this on his setup and
found a few vacuum leaks, especially two pressure leaks that were venting the boosted, pressurized air straight back out
to the atmosphere, even though the Engine Data Page and boost gauge both read "4psi".  On the old EFI system, vacuum leaks
would become evident in the intake plumbing because the air flow meter metered the mass air at the very beginning of the
plumbing chain, directly in front of the turbocharger/throttle body on the NA's, just _after_ the filter.  On the K,
however, we're switching to a MAP-sensitive system that is reading vacuum/pressure down towards the end of the intake
plumbing chain, making any vacuum (or pressure) leaks hard to track.  You'd have to literally see them happen (as was the
case w/ Jon w/ a large, intercooler hose that wasn't clamped on that continuously was blown off and sucked right back on)
or listen for them (high-pitched, constant "pssssh" noises).

[Personal Notes]
- Some people have reported that the Internal Reluctors used for Trigger and Home pickups
on the Mazda CAS don't work reliably on the E6K.  I originally went to the MSD 8509's for
trigger pickup believing I had a pickup problem.  Two days later I found that I had mis-set
the timing and it was 30 degrees too far advanced, causing the engine to knock and ping from mid to high RPM's.
I do believe the Internal Reluctors do work reliably even though I did use the MSD's.  Since it's less headache and
wiring, I suggest trying these first before using the MSD's.  The HITman has told me that the IR's work much better than
the older MSD's and they should be used 100% of the time.  I suggest anyone doing this configure and setup the E6K around
the IR's vs. the MSD's.
- Make sure to set the timing properly.  Use the Engine Data page as much as possible and data log everything when
  t-shooting.  The Engine Data page will let you know whether or not you're having any trigger pickup or sensor input
  problems.  You'll find just how cool this EFI system is once you're able to t-shoot stuff in 5 minutes vs. two months,
  27 emails, and 6 different email lists.
- Leave Closed Loop Control (the O2 Loop) disabled until the base vacuum portion of the fuel and ignition map is
  configured for good drivability.
- The E6K ver 6.03 software build has a known bug w/ the Closed Loop Control.  If using this software, upgrade to 6.04
  or later.  Otherwise, upon entering the selections menu for this option, the engine will die and _not_ restart.
  This silly bug caused me to be stranded for an hour and pay $20 for a local tow back home.
- Whatever you do, if this is being used on a forced induction (turbo/supercharged) platform, do _not_ get into any
  boost or go into wide open throttle until it is properly tuned on a chassis dyno w/ wide-band lambda O2 sensor.
- When in doubt, read the manual.  Good luck!


Brian D. Cain   briandcain@home.com  MSN bdc196@hotmail.com  AIM 'Symajhi'  ICQ# 1733105    10/23/2001

<back>