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Thread: Anyone had their ECU flashed?

Created on: 10/21/25 03:22 PM

Replies: 80

Stratovarious


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Joined: 10/18/25

Posts: 419

Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/21/25 3:22 PM

Why did you have your ECU flashed;
What were you looking for?
How did it 'deliver' what did it do for
the bike, what did it get rid of, what did it add?

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Stratovarious


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Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/21/25 3:24 PM

.....Asking for a friend.

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HanksZX



Location: Augusta NJ

Joined: 09/15/12

Posts: 293

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/21/25 4:43 PM

Here's some reading for you.
I've known Ivan for many years and could go on and on, but there's a lot of info on his website.
Happy to answer your questions after you check his site out.
https://www.ivansperformanceproducts.com/index.htm
Hank



2013 ZX-14R...my "Bagger", 2007 Aprilia Tuono...sold, 2012 ZX-14R...sold, 2007 ZX-14..sold, 2000 Suzuki Bandit Intercooled Turbo, 287HP, 182 lbs tq...sold, 1997 Honda Blackbird Intercooled Turbo, 255HP, 155 lbs tq...sold

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chrly


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Joined: 07/10/15

Posts: 1400

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/21/25 4:57 PM

I had mine flashed soon after I added a brocks exhaust removed teh top speed limiter. We gained approx 10 hp with the flash and exhaust. Then next year we checked a Yoshimura SS against the Brocks Alien SS about 1 1/2 hp diff same day run On the Dyno sheet.
We also had added a PC5 ( IIRC) to be able to tune the exhausts.


* Last updated by: chrly on 10/21/2025 @ 4:58 PM *

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Stratovarious


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Joined: 10/18/25

Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/21/25 6:47 PM

''I had mine flashed soon after I added a brocks exhaust removed teh top speed limiter. We gained approx 10 hp with the flash and exhaust. Then next year we checked a Yoshimura SS against the Brocks Alien SS about 1 1/2 hp diff same day run On the Dyno sheet.
We also had added a PC5 ( IIRC) to be able to tune the exhausts.'' Chrly

I plan to add Delkevi 17'' or 13.5'' slip ons, probably nothing else
I don't think I need a pc or flash for one of these slip ons.
Do you have any advice on one of the sizes I mentioned
over the other?
--
I'm hoping to mitigate
or end the fuel drop offs
when I go to upshift (EU4,5 Emissions bs),
I can get a buttery smooth shift from 1st to second
if I shift at low rpm; 2k to 2.4k lol, or 5k on up,
but most of the time I prefer to shift
in the 3000 to 3500 range + -
especially for the lower gears, this gives me
enough torque to get ahead of traffic, without
becoming a spectacle when just trying 'blend in'.
--
I did some testing today and believe I see what they've done
to my bike to satisfy those emissions.
TEST;
If I throttle up to say 3 or 4 thousand rpm, pull the clutch in
and back off the throttle by a mere 1/2 mm , the fuel
drops to just about idle, ,
it won't let me finesse the throttle cuts, it
just wants to drop fuel flat out period.
---
So in summary, I can get smooth shifts, with high rpms
or super low rpms but not in between rpms due to the
fuel cuts at certain mid/low rpms.

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Stratovarious


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Joined: 10/18/25

Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/21/25 6:54 PM

HankZX,
Yeah, there is nothing but Praise on the internet
for Ivan, he would be my go-to for the flash.
Thanks for the link, looks like a lot of
boxes ticked, very logical philosophy.

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Stratovarious


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Joined: 10/18/25

Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/23/25 1:16 PM

Is an ecu flash the only way to cure the throttle drop off
when clutch lever is pulled in but throttle cable is
held steady?
I did a test today to confirm the issue;
At 3000rpm in 3rd I locked in the throttle and pulled
in the clutch the rpm jumped for to 100ms then
dropped off immediately by a few hundred rpm.
I repeated the test a few time, getting the same
results each time.
I need to fix this, is a flash the only sure cure,
and is it a sure cure?

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Rook


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Joined: 03/28/09

Posts: 21828

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/23/25 3:54 PM

Stratavarious, is your 14R an EU model? If so, you might need a flash from a tuner who has knowledge of restrictions that don't effect US models. Your test is pretty much exactly how I match engine/gearbox speed for downshifts. I've never had a problem with my 2024 not blipping high enough. ...of course the blip is just a fraction of a second but too but I think I'd have noticed if there was a throttle blip cut. I haven't tried it but I'm sure I could coast on the clutch and rev to my heart's content.

I wish we had Roadtoad around more often because I'm pretty sure his bike needed Australia specific tuning to run at it's best after trying a US flash. OZrevhead and yannih might have some advice about this too.



08 MIDNIGHT SAPPHIRE BLUE ZX-14 Now Deceased, will be resurected 2024 ZX-14R bran friggin NEW!

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Stratovarious


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Joined: 10/18/25

Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/23/25 5:20 PM

Yes, so true, we can rev to our 'hearts desire' with clutch in,
though that is not the actual issue here, the issue is that
when I pull the clutch with throttle 'LOCKED',
the ecu goes EU batsht crazy on me and
drops off the cliff, a throttle isn't supposed to just
drop off when you pull a clutch in with throttle
in a locked position, it should rise
a little or a lot depending on the load just released
and never just drop out completely while you're
holding it steady.
As far as US EU, EU 4 AND 5 from everything I've read
effects both EU and US to some extent.
---
If you've ever talked with GSX S1000F owners,
it drives them nuts too, half
of them get ECU flashes right off the bat to get
rid of that horrible feature, though some of the
production runs seem to have been unaffected,
I chose the zx14r hoping that the emissions
ghost hadn't crept into it too.
---
And keep in mind, I'm talking about 3000rpm +-
in lower gears, this is a very specific issue,
as I mentioned in the op or meant to if not,
I can shift out of any gear at 5 or 6k + and
not need to deal with 'the' issue, for engineering/
physics issues I don't understand enough to explain,
but 1/2 the time in town,
I don't want to make an ass out of myself
to the cagers, 2k shifts are fine too, but they
are way to weak for acceleration, the 3 to 4 k range
is just about right for pulling away from a stop,
but a very annoying experience
since the ECU will not allow me to finesse the
throttle or even keep it where it's at between those
lower gear-shits in that rpm range.

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Rook


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Posts: 21828

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/23/25 7:37 PM

If by "locked" you mean you hold the throttle perfectly steady and pull the clutch lever, that's a technique I often use to downshift quickly. It works on my 2024 ZX-14R just as well as my 08 ZX-14 and my 08 Hayabusa. ...or are you talking about something else?



08 MIDNIGHT SAPPHIRE BLUE ZX-14 Now Deceased, will be resurected 2024 ZX-14R bran friggin NEW!

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Stratovarious


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Joined: 10/18/25

Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/24/25 3:31 AM

By 'locked' yes , holding the throttle steady
by simultaneously jamming my hand around the end weight or
up against the throttle cluster-housing.

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Rook


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Joined: 03/28/09

Posts: 21828

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/24/25 2:54 PM

I gotcha Stratovarious. I can tell you, I typically hold the throttle position and quickly grab the clutch lever to spin up a few hundred rpm and make a fast downshift, then release the clutch lever.



08 MIDNIGHT SAPPHIRE BLUE ZX-14 Now Deceased, will be resurected 2024 ZX-14R bran friggin NEW!

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Stratovarious


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Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/24/25 3:57 PM

Thanks,
Its the upshifting that is the killer, the downshifting
not so bad, like you, if I hold the throttle steady,
keeping a little pressure on the drive train,, then pull in
clutch, I can get some downshifts going pretty good,
but it's still so far from being right, the way
bikes used to behave.
I'll do a bunch of downshifts in the am and try to
identify what's going on there, but again my
OP which I may not have been clear,
is 100% about shifty' upshifts, in the 3k range,
where pulling in the clutch has the ecu emissions
feature kill the fuel, completely off , which
was never part of a motorcycle just a few years
ago, or car for that matter.

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Rook


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Joined: 03/28/09

Posts: 21828

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/25/25 8:09 AM

My 14R is over ten years newer than yours and I don't notice any such issues. I always release the throttle when shifting up. If you hold the throttle open and pull the clutch lever, the rpm should zing up....which is not necessary for upshifting but it should do it.



08 MIDNIGHT SAPPHIRE BLUE ZX-14 Now Deceased, will be resurected 2024 ZX-14R bran friggin NEW!

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Stratovarious


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Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/25/25 9:27 AM

Mine does not throttle up in the 3k range,
the fuel gets completely cut off if I do
or attempt to do
a 'normally' sync'd upshift,
there is no issue at about 4k and above rpm.

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Rook


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Posts: 21828

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/26/25 11:20 AM

That's peculiar. It sounds like the issue I mentioned earlier where my Gen1 seemed to have no fuel at very small throttle openings at low rpm shifting from first to second gear.



08 MIDNIGHT SAPPHIRE BLUE ZX-14 Now Deceased, will be resurected 2024 ZX-14R bran friggin NEW!

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Stratovarious


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Joined: 10/18/25

Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
10/26/25 1:54 PM

Yeah, 1st to 2nd is butter if I 'shit' at 1500 to about 1800 or so...
same for 2nd to third, but then you're not really going anywhere at
those rpms.
---
I just got back from taking the Goldwing out for it's 'walk',
then took the 14r out for a bit, I ran a couple of gears up
to 7k for the first time, seems there is a massive torque drop
at around 6k, and not much excitement to 7k , where then
backed off, too busy to look at the speedo.
--
I did several more shifting runs from 1st to 2d,
shifting around 36k to 38k rpm, still seems like the ticket
for those gears, and maybe 3rd.
As a side note, I'm sure you've seen these 'Emissions' influenced
shift points from the manual, very similar to my GW;

14R; 9 15 21 27 34
GW ; 12 19 25 31
No one goes by these I'm sure, there's no point in it
I think it is just part of how they smooze EU , and US
emissions, ''see look, they shift very low and barely
use any fuel'' :smi
I wish they'd have made shift points a mile or two slower
so they could have kept their greezy' fingers out of my ECU
:smi

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Stratovarious


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Joined: 10/18/25

Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
11/25/25 2:16 PM

One clearcut issue with my ECU related issue,
and why I'm thinking I eventually will get
mine flashed;

30mph in 3rd gear at 2500rpm or 3000rpm,
I forget the exact rpm.
This happens under several combinations,
but here is what occurs;
Just rolling along at 30 mph, pull in clutch
and the rpm almost immediately drops 300 rpm, when
it should in fact rise at least 2 or 3 hundred
rpm, let clutch back out and the rpm come back up
and previous speed is resumed.
Not that this right there is both lol, and disturbing,
as I say this happens over several diff combinations
of rpm, and gear, and sometimes it is different
depending on how I've been riding seconds before
the occurrences reminiscent but I'm sure not
intended, that it stores my riding habits.
There are cars and maybe bikes, that have that
feature built into the ICU's, I doubt ours has it
but it is a feature that has been engineered.
---
I have found a workaround, so the urgency getting
it flashed isn't quite there, but eventually I'll likely
go for the flash.

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Stratovarious


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Joined: 10/18/25

Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
11/27/25 6:16 PM

https://ivansperformanceproducts.com/12zx14.htm
From Ivan's site, issue #9 of 15 issues
addressed or fixed with an ECU Flash

9) Disable fuel cut - ie; Jerky throttle

Above is an additional citation, documenting
the issue that I as well as countless
others encounter with our sport bikes,
I call it 'throttle-dive' and
many riders call it a 'Jerky-throttle' , it is
written into many if not
most of our sport bike ECU's today.

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TimM



Joined: 11/26/25

Posts: 3

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
11/27/25 10:35 PM

I'm new to this forum, so please bear with me. I had my ECU flashed last week, haven't had a chance to try it out yet. Just wanted to touch base with others that have done the same.

Thanks,
TimM

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Rook


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Joined: 03/28/09

Posts: 21828

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
11/27/25 11:15 PM

Strat, the only problem I ever had with jerky throttle was with my Gen1. At very low rpm and throttle opened just a crack, it did nothing. If I held the throttle open for a few seconds, it would eventually respond. Usually I opened the throttle a bit more and got response. Then I would close it back down and it ran fine. The Gen2 I own doesn't seem to do this.

Hi Tim. who did you choose to flash your ECU? I'm going with Chris Moore. My 2024 runs good but I'm putting a full system on it and mainly, I just want it to run safely.



08 MIDNIGHT SAPPHIRE BLUE ZX-14 Now Deceased, will be resurected 2024 ZX-14R bran friggin NEW!

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Stratovarious


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Joined: 10/18/25

Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
11/28/25 3:01 AM

I'm new to this forum, so please bear with me. I had my ECU flashed last week, haven't had a chance to try it out yet. Just wanted to touch base with others that have done the same.

Thanks,
TimM


Welcome to the Forum, I'm pretty new here too,
but have learned a lot already, from some
very knowledgeable riders.
Looking forward to follow ups on your flash.
I probably should have gone with a 'full' exhaust
but opted for slipons for now.

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Stratovarious


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Joined: 10/18/25

Posts: 419

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
11/28/25 3:21 AM

Strat, the only problem I ever had with jerky throttle was with my Gen1. At very low rpm and throttle opened just a crack, it did nothing. If I held the throttle open for a few seconds, it would eventually respond. Usually I opened the throttle a bit more and got response. Then I would close it back down and it ran fine. The Gen2 I own doesn't seem to do this.

Another issue I've become even more aware of is that
in corners when needing to smoothly modulate throttle
up or down there is a disturbing response time lag, its'
kind of comical cause this is throttle by cable, not
even wire, but on the other hand, the poor response
time imv equates to;
They should have just gone with 'by wire' and saved
some cable weight, cause the expected benefit of
cables is just not there. This is one of the issues
I believe they're able to 'fix' as well.
It's a shame that most of us are 1000's of miles
apart, a lot of riders swap bikes for an hour
so they can assess and compare characteristics
from one bike to another.
--
Speaking of 'by wire' that is one thing my
Electra Glide had, which had just a very tint
throttle-up time lag, but was so smooth in
every other way , up down, shifts all good.
--
That was a 2009. Gold Wing is cable, has a
hickup at 1400rpm, but the GW forums say
that they all have that hicup somewhere in
their rpm ranges, (not the same rpms from bike to bike)
and others point to throttle body issues,
that are supposedly common with the bike.
--
1400 for the Gold Wing is a good 'target' for
me to hit on 'lazy' or casual down shifting,
and is pretty annoying when it just won't
hold that rpm, as soon as ya hit 1400, it
starts oscillating, it'll drop to about
1100 rpm, race up to 1700 ad back down,
repeating the pattern for as long as
the throttle is held in that position,
to 1100 , back and forth, but will hold
if wanted, at about 1500 or 1600 just fine. under
load it will hang ok at 1400.
When the GW is under load though, 1400rpm is
not a problem.


* Last updated by: Stratovarious on 11/28/2025 @ 3:22 AM *

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Rook


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Joined: 03/28/09

Posts: 21828

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
11/28/25 4:18 PM

I probably should have gone with a 'full' exhaust
but opted for slipons for now.

Slipons are a good choice for maintaining visual symmetry and they're a lot easier to install. You get the sound plus a little more hp and as far as I know, it's safe to run the engine without remapping even with the newer bikes. I wouldn't be surprised if the newer bikes run a lot leaner than the ones from a few years ago though. You're still dropping a lot of weight with two aftermarket mufflers.

4-2-1 full systems are my choice. The price is usually not a lot different (might even be cheaper) than buying a left and right muffler, the weight reduction and power improvement is greater and drive chain maintenance becomes a lot easier. You can't beat the Brock's CT Meg for weight and power. An Akrapovic will be heavier, quieter and make a tad less power. .....kind of sad there isn't more competition in the world of aftermarket exhausts. I recently bought a Brock's CT Meg for my 14 and probably will buy the exact same pipe for my new busa because I know of no other pipe that matches it. What really turns my crank is "loud" and manufacturers we have access to in the US won't go all out on this unless it's a Harley. The Tsukigi CANNON full system I had on my Gen1 rivaled the loudest Harley.

I've recently noted the lack of change and diversity of aftermarket motorcycle parts. It's largely the same as it was sixteen years ago.



08 MIDNIGHT SAPPHIRE BLUE ZX-14 Now Deceased, will be resurected 2024 ZX-14R bran friggin NEW!

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Rook


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Joined: 03/28/09

Posts: 21828

RE: Anyone had their ECU flashed?
11/28/25 4:29 PM

Speaking of "newness" of aftermarket stuff, flashing is actually old news. It's the standard now like a power Commander was 15 years ago but we might just be edging into a new era of tuning, the aftermarket ECU. It's expensive but a MaxxECU is the latest thing and even that was happening 7-8 years ago. A flash is the best bet for set it and forget it but I don't think I'd go the old Dynojet way of the past if I were seriously into tuning and I'm not so sure I'd even bother with Woolich at this time. MaxxECU is fully developed now and it will be the future until something better comes along. ...LOL but my old Dynojet setup would still be lots of fun. Any way you go, the most important aspect is that your engine runs safely off the OEM. They all do that....and you can get risky and then they don't.



08 MIDNIGHT SAPPHIRE BLUE ZX-14 Now Deceased, will be resurected 2024 ZX-14R bran friggin NEW!

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