ECU Tuning as per "Down Under"

[Brax Sisco]

I'm responding to this little bit:

>   OH MY GOD!  This is BIG!  Why hasn't there been more response on this
> today?!

>   We're no longer tied down to JWT!  :)  This is all the hardware, software
> and theory!  Where do I buy the add-on board?  Damn - used to have an EPROM
> burner & reader @ previous job.  Anyone selling cheap ones?

Wow, now digital electronics and EE are my thing.  I burned an EPROM and
made a working Atari 800 cartridge in the late 80's.  The game was lame,
but it ran.

When I first got my JWT ECU (yes, I bought one), I immediately took it
apart to see what was done. As many may have seen, it's some jumpers and
a small daugherboard with a PROM/EPROM (don't remember exactly, you can
tell an EPROM by the "sticker", or part number, it was a quick look.)

At the time, it was "like" OK, dudes know Nissan ECU code, have good
rep., SE-R list and some Roffe guy says buy it.  So I did.  And no so
far problems with my JWT modded ECU.

BUT --  Do you know how easy it is to download/grab the contents of a
PROM/EPROM?  Real easy, with the right equipment.  If Australia dude has
located where in the ROM the maps/tables are located, and what they
mean, then I (or anyone else) can EASILY retrieve the "map" table (a
series of numbers, in an array) from the JWT ECU, or any that have been
modified for Turbo, etc.. and compare them.  It's not even difficult.

But then you get into the Roffe, err, Ethics questions.  "If they spent
X dollars on the Dyno getting Y results, shouldn't we pay Z + X * Y?"

That question makes me wonder.  I BOUGHT the damn thing, didn't I?  If I
can read data from it with an EPROM reader and clone it, do I owe JWT if
I make a clone?  What if I improve upon it?  What if I make it worse?  I
bought the thing,  didn't I?  What if I counted how many teeth the gears
have in my blender?  Somebody thought about that too, right?

My bottom line is if it can be done, it will be.  JWT ECU maps will soon
be "Read & Spread" and will probably be improved upon.  I don't doubt
that Jim & Clark @ JWT spent many hours on the dyno getting the best
results from SR20 tuning.  But what they send out is a box with a chip
added that has some wiring, but mostly contains numbers, an array, a
table, a "MAP."

What can I say..

 Brax Sisco
 '97 200sx w/ Stuff