can somebody please compare the diy wideband o2 and the wideband that innovate motorsports has to offer.
Compare in terms of price, accuracy, ease of use and whatever else you can think of

I ask because I tried 3 times to make a diywb , now the innovate motorsports product look pretty good

 

sure the IM WB works. the DIY is tempermental. the IM WB uses a 30 dollar bosch lsu4 which is being used in current production vehicles. the DIY WB use a $180 sensor thats hardly ever in stock anymore.

so even though you save up front munch just one sensor and the IM WB is the better unit hands down.

just my thoughts and i ordered one for that reason.

 

My thoughts are completely opposite of funsticks but his prices are right. Tempermental? Where, how, you must have been using the crap techedge is selling because mine has been nothing but bliss. I have 2 actually, and both are working great with amazing results in our formula SAE competition. 1st out of 140+ schools in the acceleration event, 2nd place high hp (n/a engines), and an amazing burnout that is probably still there (60 donuts was the count, see posted video in new thread.
So yeah, the DIY is a great tool BUT, we had datalogging and a very nice dyno. On my car I have lockers which has a wideband input and other 0-5 volt inputs. Don't get me wrong, the other unit is really nice too. If the DIY isn't working for you and you've given it your best shot then it's a no brainer.

 

im not dissing the diy WB band its been prone to assembly trouble. calibration problems etc. the list was full of this exact type of stuff. i built mine it worked but i didnt feel like engineering up a super complex display when for $350 dollars i could have a used WB o2 controller and a new sensor. i did that over 2 yrs ago when i started using hondata. then i saw this new lsu4 bosch setup from innovatvie ( who mind you is not the only kid on the block offering a wb o2 using the lsu4 ) and i said great. sooner or later then gonna discontinue that damn lh1h1 sensor. so get readdy for it. only one car used it and its 10 yrs is almost up.

 

That "old" sensor is actually better in many cases than the "new", no doubt better than a narrowband and only a few dollars more. Can't go wrong with the price but again, the diyer version is still cheaper even with the more expensive sensor....

 

Yep, lots of assembly problems, last I figured it worked out to less then .5%. There is no DIY item that is perfect, but that low of number would tend to indicate, it's all but error proof, IMO.

Yep, those cars are 10 years old now, and the 2004 Hondas are again using a WB, thou not a plug and play very similiar. Not to mention Motec FAST Accel Holley are still accomodating if not actually using them. Then we have the serious lab equipment that costs millions, like the Horiba, and they still use them.

Super Complex, ya a couple bargraph displays, I guess are super complex to some folks.

I've had the DIY WB in my cars/truck for 3 years now, and only manged to kill one with an error on my part. The second one's also crossed 10K miles in use now. And the first one was the grand-daddy to the DIY effort and was used in developing the heater controller and clinically abused.

In the 3 years that I've been running them, I've also put some money aside and bought a couple spares. Hmm, maybe a little planning is all that's necessary.

And check the history on the other Bosch WB sensor. They were cheap at first too, and now are over $200. The Honda sensor was under a $90 for years.

 

I've assembled almost a dozen diy-wb boards, half a dozen of Bruce Roe's displays, harnesses, etc without a single problem.

All in all both really fall into the basic assembly side. Nothing but thru hole parts. Simple electronics and soldering skills help.

Then again, I'm an electronics technician and slightly biased...

BW

 

as i siad im not knock the DIY wB. im only pointing out its shortfals. the assembly errors and problems are well higher then .05 % btw. if from the bacth ive seen people use its closer to 35% based on the polling ive done. there nothing wrong with the desing of the DIY WB. its just aquring a display DIy Wb pcb Parts sensor etc cost close to $300. i can get a new unit from innovatvie motorsports for $350 less shipping and i plug it in and it works. the only thing the DIY WB doesnt account for is time. sorry i dont have enough as it is.

just my thoughts.

 

man you need to either take remedial typing or get spell check...

oh.. Grumpy quoted .5% (which I agree is probably a bit low), not .05%.



BW

 

I agree it would be neat to build you own, bragging rights to say the least. Mine worked for about 10 minutes. I should have hurry and put it in a case to protect it. I dont know what happend but in free air it would read less than 4 volts. How about calibration and the sample rate of the diy compared to the innovate motorsport. In the long run can the innovate maintain its calibration better?

Thanks for all of your input

 

im pretty sure that the innovatvie unit uses some sort of micro controller to adjust it for free air etc. thats why its self calabrating. also the lsu4 sensor is as accurate as the lh1h1 as far as i can tell. ive run them side by side. and to be honest the lsu4 has a faster response time with less transient delay.

 

There is no sample rate on the DIY, it reads constantly, the only sampling rate is in the display. For the average AFR it's fine. If you want to pick out a particular cylinder you can run out of sensor resolution.

If you want lab grade stuff, then you need to buy lab grade instruments. And they start at $25,000.

In oem useage they both have to pass the EPA, 50,000 mile service life, certification.

 

Think Ill go ahead and buy a innovate wideband. Anybody want to buy a l1h1 sensor for cheap. It has about 10 minutes of use and the connector is cut off the end,
We should start a groupbuy on the innovate motorsport Wb
looking around Ive noticed they are offering a price break at 10 units or more.

 

If the connector is cut off the end it may be basically useless, IMO, the connector has a calibration resistor in it, with out it I don't think the DYI WB will work it will give false readings because it cant account for the lenth of wire you are useing and the variation due to wire resistance!

 

I am also 50/50 on these 2 WB sensors. The DIY project would be fun, cheaper, and give yourself some sense of pride. Might take some extra time getting it working, but the price is right. Since I am electrically skilled, this WAS the way I was headed.

But after looking at the IM unit, it does look enticing. Yea kind of pricey, but maybe that will come down in time. When you actually look at what you get, it might be worth the 349. All cables, sensor, exhaust bung/plug, AND PC software!! Supposedly can log 44 minutes of data, then download to PC later. Not just the WB data either.

So....maybe I'm not 50/50 on this afterall.

 

(quote)If the connector is cut off the end it may be basically useless, IMO, the connector has a calibration resistor in it, with out it I don't think the DYI WB will work it will give false readings because it cant account for the lenth of wire you are useing and the variation due to wire resistance!(quote)

So even if i solder the end back on its useless?

 

No it's not that critical that the lenght of lead wire matters that much. I've use 10' lenghts without problems.
Of the cal resistors I've seen they were all in the 3-5K ohm range as I recall, a couple ohms for lead wire isn't going to make that big of difference, and we're getting back to the if you want a lab grade devise then that's what you want to get.

 

Down in price?.
That would be a first, from what I've seen WB manufacturers do. And I'll bet the sensor prices climb way up, in a few years.

 

Can the IM WB O2 voltage be tapped into the ecm for data logging from the ALDL using Craigs software? Or can that only be done with the DIY WB?

 

Big Mods.
I just picked up the IM W/B a few weeks ago. It has a output for 0-5v and 0-1v. I have not tried to hook this up to the ecm yet for diacom to log. If anyone has please post.
Over all very nice unit. The future remote display and RPM/Map input will great a great addition.

Dennis

 

Thanks for the good news. It sounds it will work for ALDL data logging using the code modification. I'll just save my money instead of buying the $25 aux cable... unless someone can think of a compelling reason to get it.