Aftermarket Throttle controller for car

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Bee

732 posts

Ultimate Geek

#306747 18-Aug-2023 07:41

Im looking at getting a throttle controller for my car. Its supposed to make it a bit more responsive when pressing the throttle pedal.

Something like this :

https://idrivenz.co.nz/products/evc-idrive-throttle-controller-mazda-3-2003-2009bk

The videos and reviews make it seem all good, but just wondering if anyone here has any real life experience with these?

Doing your best is much more important than being the best.

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2807 posts

Uber Geek

#3117389 18-Aug-2023 07:56

Is this for use on public roads?

eracode

Smpl Mnmlst
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#3117393 18-Aug-2023 08:16

What effect would fitting this device have on your car insurance?

Sometimes I just sit and think. Other times I just sit.

Bee

732 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3117402 18-Aug-2023 08:45

They are fully legal. Website says so, will pass a WOF just fine.

Still looking for someone that has actually experienced using one on their car ...

Doing your best is much more important than being the best.

xpd

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#3117409 18-Aug-2023 09:04

Legality aside, what are you wanting from it ? From what I've read on that site, a lot of it is marketing hype, keywords to encourage you to buy.

Only time I've come across throttle controllers like that is in heavily modified vehicles, not stock vehicles.

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

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Bee

732 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3117414 18-Aug-2023 09:12

It is supposed to make throttle more responsive, I know the real problem is that my car is underpowered to what Im used to, but when cruising at 50 for example I have to push the pedal to the floor completely to get the car to go down a gear or two and accelerate, and then there is a lag time in this.

So throttle controllers seem to promise to change the throttle response so you dont have to press the pedal as much, and eliminate or reduce the lag in time that it takes for the car to respond.

Its not adding power or altering the ECU at all, but the theory still sounds good to me. For $300 its worth trying and seeing if it does what it promises, its a 2 minute install process so not difficult to uninstall...

Will probably buy one and report back how it goes.

Doing your best is much more important than being the best.

Bung

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#3117418 18-Aug-2023 09:24

Bee:
They are fully legal. Website says so, will pass a WOF just fine.

Lots of things are fully legal but don't pass the "Is the vehicle modified in any way?" question you probably got asked when you applied for insurance. It can be a bit unfair that the Insurance companies will cover driving like a prat but use things like modified vehicle to deny claims unless you can prove it had nothing to do with the accident (very difficult).

eracode

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#3117419 18-Aug-2023 09:24

Bee:

They are fully legal. Website says so, will pass a WOF just fine.

Sorry to hi-jack your thread but are you happy to take the seller's word on that?.

Might pass a WOF - but how are you going to respond if your insurance company asks, as they usually do, "is your car modified in any way?". I would have thought that anything that changes the car from the way it left the factory (particularly performance-wise) will affect the insurance premium. If you don't ask or tell your insurer first, you may get a nasty surprise if you have to make a claim.

Sometimes I just sit and think. Other times I just sit.

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xpd

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#3117424 18-Aug-2023 09:40

And being something in control of throttle, if something goes wrong and it gives you more power in the wrong situation..... obviously thats worst case scenario though :)

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

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shrub

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#3117426 18-Aug-2023 09:43

I use one on a diesel ute. They work as a cheap fix to correct input lag. Anyone that drives a diesel will know well.

What they do is interrupt the input position sensor and tell the computer the position is higher on the map.

A better solution is to get a dyno tune to change the maps to what you need.

Bee

732 posts

Ultimate Geek

#3117428 18-Aug-2023 09:44

eracode:

Bee:

They are fully legal. Website says so, will pass a WOF just fine.

Sorry to hi-jack your thread but are you happy to take the seller's word on that?.

Might pass a WOF - but what are you going to respond if your insurance company asks, as they usually do, "is your car modified in any way?". I would have thought that anything that changes the car from the way it left the factory (particularly performance-wise) will affect the insurance premium. If you don't ask or tell your insurer first, you may get a nasty surprise if you have to make a claim.

There is at least 2 different .co.nz sellers and they are sold at Repco also, so pretty sure its legal!
If neccessary I can take it off for a wof, when I take the sub out of the rear seats, the cars not insured anyways /sarcasm mode off

I am a very competent driver, so yes well aware that it could accelerate too much and able to deal with that :)

Its not giving the car any extra power, just changing the throttle response curve.

Doing your best is much more important than being the best.

Senecio

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#3117430 18-Aug-2023 09:46

After market throttle controllers first started to get traction in the 4WD scene. There, they were first introduced to allow greater modulation (ie. retard the throttle response) to give more control when crawling through/over obstacles. Then the advance throttle response was brought in later to make turbo diesels feel a little peppier on the road.

All it does is intercept and remap the throttle so when you depress the pedal to ~30% the engine thinks the pedal is at 50% for example.

I wouldn't recommend one for a road going petrol car. There's just no point. Just press the pedal further and save yourself the $300.

xpd

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#3117509 18-Aug-2023 11:28

Take it its an auto ? How long have you been driving it ?

If so, I find a lack of power/response comes down to learning how the car acts. I had a 1500cc Wingroad, sold it to my FIL, and he complained it was gutless and how did I ever drive it on the motorway as he couldnt get it past 80k. I took him out in it and got it to 130k on the m/way without blinking an eye - just came down to the fact I had learnt its sweet spots for getting acceleration and power without it thrashing the engine.

Do the same thing with our 2010 Premacy - I can get that thing up to 100k from a standing start pretty quick as I've learnt its sweet spot is around 3700RPM in any gear.

Gavin / xpd / FastRaccoon / Geek of Coastguard New Zealand

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frankv

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#3117623 18-Aug-2023 13:56

I'm dubious. Presumably when you move the throttle by x it will send x*[some factor] to the ECU, plus maybe with some filtering to change subsequent values. So it needs to know what format the throttle messages are (or if it's analogue, the range that the ECU expects). Maybe there's a standard for that?

But the clever automotive engineers at Mazda/Toyota/wherever have spent some time figuring out the optimal ECU settings, including throttle response. Admittedly, this will be for the average driver and the average engine. As soon as you make a change, you'll be moving to a sub-optimal configuration. So, you'll maybe get better throttle response, but you'll also lose something, because if better throttle response was possible without losing anything, the car company would have used that setting. What you'll lose is unknown... probably fuel consumption, I guess. But maybe also idle speed or maximum power or maybe when you're passing a truck the ECU will say the throttle input is erroneous and switch to limp-home mode.

I'd also question the price of the device... you could buy the equivalent hardware for $10 or less. Maybe go shopping for open source throttle response improvers.

bigreddog

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#3117629 18-Aug-2023 14:05

The concept behind all of this is nothing new. It's exactly what Skoda (and VW, Cupra, Audi and probably many others) do with their "Sport" and "Eco" functions using the software that the throttle-by-wire allows them to do.

There is no more or less power than from factory, you just get more flexibility in how the power is delivered. For example (numbers made up, but you get the idea):

Normal mode
25% throttle pedal = 25% throttle recognised
50% throttle pedal = 50% throttle recognised
75% throttle pedal = 75% throttle recognised

Sport mode
25% throttle pedal = 60% throttle recognised
50% throttle pedal = 80% throttle recognised
75% throttle pedal = 90% throttle recognised

Normal mode
25% throttle pedal = 15% throttle recognised
50% throttle pedal = 30% throttle recognised
75% throttle pedal = 60% throttle recognised

I've used these type of modules in Utes (Mazda BT50 and Rangers) when towing heavy loads and it's really useful to still get the expected response from the vehicle when you put your foot down. Is it any different to just applying a bit more effort with the right foot? Probably not, but it's a gadget, don't we all love a gadget?

[edit: gramma]

tweake

2391 posts

Uber Geek

#3117690 18-Aug-2023 16:24

just remember that most cars have throttle controller built into the ecu. some makes/models even have it adjustable.

there is a few other tricks that aftermarket throttle controllers can do such as you press 30% it goes to 100% then drops is back to 30%. a lot of cars will turn off things like egr (emmisions), aircon etc at 100%.

however be careful. my old ute used to have 95% at 50% input (factory, its actually in the maps). sounds good but when your cruising up a passing lane at 50% throttle passing a truck, then notice end of lanes is coming up so you boot it but nothing happens because you where actually at 95% already. really nasty trap you have to watch for.

i drove a mitsi triton and has terrible throttle responce. throttle does almost nothing then suddenly it wakes up and takes off. its like its in granddad mode, then you hit boy racer mode. that could be fixed by a throttle controller.

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