The beginning of the end for ECU tuning?

[Jeff V.]

ZR1s are starting production in the next week or two. One of the guys on the forum has his 'engine build experience' scheduled for this week.

[ChargerX3]

[quote=""Jeff V.""]Once I get my truck running, I'm done messing with this crap. It was fun while it lasted.[/quote]

You suck.

[mjannusch]

It won’t turn into a shitstorm because the Corvette guys have no clue what you are talking about, and the level of effort required to crack it.

[DCIV]

Surprised it didn’t get more traffic already. Prob because it goes over most people’s heads, a lot think there will always be a way, another isn’t afraid to throw money at it, and the ones that do know don’t want to ruin their businesses.


Coop

[mjannusch]

My prediction is that standalones will get more sophisticated and be patched in parallel to the stock ECUs, but intercept all the critical engine signals (fuel injection, ignition timing, etc.) to provide full control over the critical parameters but leave the stock ECU to do the rest of the work and make the other systems in the car continue working. The days of just flashing a stock ECU will be over, but serious tuners will work around it as much as they can.

[Hannibalzero]

[quote=""mjannusch""]My prediction is that standalones will get more sophisticated and be patched in parallel to the stock ECUs, but intercept all the critical engine signals[/quote]

And then manufacturers will start encrypting the signal from sensor to ECU (and charge 10x for sensor replacement).

[Jeff V.]

They're already starting CANbus authentication, and the ECUs are getting much better at doing sanity checks on sensor signals.

It'll be interesting to see if anyone gets anywhere with the ZR1. The new Camaro ZL1 may have the same limitations.

[mjannusch]

At some point they've just got to say enough is enough and just detect if the vehicle has been tampered with and void the warranty if it has. That's basically where GM is right now, and I can't say I disagree with that policy. If I throw a supercharger on my Corvette, I expect the powertrain warranty to be void.

[Jeff V.]

I don't disagree with it at all. It just bothers me that there's no option to unlock the ECM in exchange for giving up your powertrain warranty.

But we can thank all the people who wanted "stealth tunes" and all that shit. I nearly got into it with a DiabloSport rep over faking CVN checksums.

There is absolutely NO legitimate use for that function. It's only there to assist in commission of warranty fraud. Now we're paying the price.

I don't even give a damn about the engine stuff at this point. I just want to tinker with the Linux based infotainment system. But that thing is locked down by multiple layers of RSA signatures and checksums. It's ridiculous.

[mjannusch]

I agree. The tuner software folks should be making NO effort to hide what they are doing. Let the ECU flag that it has been flashed, and don't give any options to do otherwise. Otherwise their market is going to be gone in a "flash". Diablo tunes suck anyways.

I do like the idea of allowing the dealership to turn off the ECU protection in exchange for voiding the powertrain warranty. That seems like a fair trade.

[Chris GTO TT]

The problem is auto manufacturers are trying to claim their code is proprietary and should only be able to be read by them. It's similar to what John Deere has done where basically only a John Deere dealer can fully repair their newer tractors. It's really screwing over independent shops.

[Jeff V.]

That's really more about diagnostics. People are mad that they're either not providing sufficient info at all, or they're locking the tools and documentation behind expensive paywalls.

GM actually isn't too bad in this regard. Their stuff is reasonably affordable. I need to make some updates to my Corvette thread.

[tabasco122]

revisited this thread since i had it bookmarked. Looks like more people are agreeing with you, though there are still the idiots who dont understand.

[Jeff V.]

The ZR1 is apparently locked down. There's already one or two shops who have outright given up on getting into it.

There was a rumor some security research company had found away into the L5P diesel ECM, but that hasn't been confirmed. Even if they did find a method, it's possible it won't be practical for commercial use.

[tabasco122]

I smell lawsuits over this. On the indysrt side if they can't get in, or if by a miricale they do, gm.

[aaronatstate]

I’m betting they day after the ZR1 comes out, GMs special tuning software for the ZR1 comes out, for the low low price of $1999

[Jeff V.]

The ZR1 has been out for a couple months now. No tunes from anyone, including GM.

[aaronatstate]

[quote=""Jeff V.""]The ZR1 has been out for a couple months now. No tunes from anyone, including GM.[/quote]

Oh damn, I got it confused with the mid engined Vette :d oh:

[Jeff V.]

Google "Chrysler uconnect hack" and that should tell you everything you need to know about Chrysler's views on security in an increasingly networked world.