TBI Fuel Only

From Carb to EFI on just a fistful of dollars…

Updated 3/3/09 – Added dyno chart showing comparison of readings taken on old vs new dyno.

Objective of this Article

This article will walk you through the process of installing a MegaSquirt EFI system on a classic
carb’d vehicle attempting to go the least expensive route possible using junkyard parts and DIY
ingenuity. We’ll be using an MegaSquirt-II v3.57 ECU. We’re converting the car over to an EFI ‘fuel
only’ setup leaving control of the ignition in the hands of the old school distributor for now. We’ll take
control of ignition in a separate article, but like we recommend to first time EFIer’s, it’s easier to take
control of fuel first, then ignition. Fuel control is fairly easy and rewarding. After this taking control of
ignition isn’t that hard either and will continue the EMS (Engine Management System) learning
process and the rewards of using an EMS. That will come in part two.
We chose a 1977 Chevy Nova with a 350 small block as our subject, but the principles laid out here
can be used just the same on a big block Chevy, or a Ford, Dodge small or big block engine, inline
engine, a foreign motor… a motor is a motor is a motor. The only trick becomes finding a suitable
intake and/or TBI and/or TBI adapter. Or fabricating your own. For the more common engines, off
the shelf adapters and intakes abound. For owners of the more obscure stuff, well, you’re probably
a pretty good fabricator by now anyways eh?
Note that though this is one example of a Carb-to-EFI conversion using a MegaSquirt-II this system
can be used on just about any vehicle, using TBI or Multi-Port injection, even Central Port injection if
you so choose. We’ll be doing further articles (MPFI soon) but you’ll certainly find the MSExtra
Manuals an invaluable resource that our guides are meant to supplement and not replace.

Installing the Electronics

MegaSquirt ECU, Relay Board, and a couple sensors…

Mounting the ECU, Relay Board, and Fusebox

First things first. I found a good spot under the hood on the firewall for the Relay Board, and another
inside the cabin on the kick panel for the MegaSquirt. I chose very visible spots for both boxes, you
can be more stealthy of course though I had no reason to be ;). I physically mounted the two
boxes. Drilled a hole out in the firewall and passed the relay cable through using a grommet to
protect the cable. I had also installed a couple of Innovate TC-4’s in this car for individual cylinder
(all 8) EGT monitoring. That’s really only needed in full on race conditions or tuning a motor for such
conditions, or on R&D projects such as this car where I intend to swap several different EFI systems
on and measure the differences in individual cylinder air/fuel distribution.

Here’s a little video showing how to pass the relay cable through the firewall.
Notice the power wiring for the fuse block is already run behind this:

Wiring Main Power to the Fusebox

Next I installed a 70amp Main Power Relay and Fuse Block that I would be using to power all of the
engine management and datalogging goodies I had planned for this car. The fuse block gets a
10ga ground directly from the engine block (battery (-) would have been good too). It gets it’s 12v
feed via another 10ga wire directly to the Positive terminal of the battery with a 60a MAXI type fuse
right at the battery, then the 10ga wire is routed to and through the 70 amp relay so the entire fuse
block is switched 12v. I ran a trigger wire to the relay from the factory fuse block near the drivers
feet. There’s conveniently a spade terminal on the fuse block labeled ‘IGN’ that’s hot in crank and
run, just like I needed. You may not have this, but what’s important is that the Relay Board and
therefore the ECU/Fuel pump/Injectors, etc have power both when cranking, and when
running. Some circuits may be powered in one or the other but not both, you need both.
Click this image for a larger view
Note– This wiring above is really all additional to what is normally required. This is what we did to
support the additional goodies in this car, the two TC4 EGT amplifiers, the LC-1, and allowing a bit of
room to grow. Had we not needed the TC-4s or the ‘room to grow’, we would have done something
simpler.
Like this:

Click this image for a larger view

Here in this simplified approach, which is really all most will need, you see the Relay Board’s main
power is wired directly to battery 12v and Ground. The 12v Switched position for the relay board’s
power is run a switched 12v source that’s hot in accessory, crank and run positions of the
key. That’s important or you might not have power when cranking, so test it! If you’re not installing a
wideband yet, that’s it, you’re done with your power wiring. If you are, then the above shows simple
wideband wiring too. You ALWAYS want to ground your wideband (and any analog wideband
gauge) at the same point as your ECU to prevent what’s known as a ground offset which can effect
the accuracy of your readings. In this case that’s the battery where we’ve grounded the Relay
Board, so bring the ground back there. The 12v supply is less picky, but you’ve probably already
found a good switched source for 12v so as long as it can handle the load (maybe 5a) then you can
use it for your wideband too. Then final wire is the signal wire out from the wideband and back to
the MegaSquirt. This would be the brown wire on the LC-1, to the ‘o2’ terminal on the Relay Board.

Wiring Power to the Relay Board

Next, power and ground were wired up to the relay board. This required the third and final hole in
the firewall that I drilled large enough for my EGT wiring an anything else I’d be passing through as
well, also using a grommet of course. The relay board was wired to the main fuse block’s ground
and 12v switched supply. I started with a 5amp fuse in this circuit, though I expect to have to
increase that. So that covers the ground for the Relay Board, and the Switched 12v for the Relay
Board. The final connection is the permanent 12v connection, this should go straight to the battery
12v post just on the ‘protected’ side of that 60A MAXI fuse. I did this by connecting it together with
the Main power input to the 70A Relay as can be seen in the above picture of the relay.

Getting a TACH Signal

Next I wired up the tach signal to Relay board from the distributor’s ‘TACH’ terminal. I used some of
our shielded wiring for this as there will be a ton of high voltage/current induced noise around the
distributor and wires and I wanted to avoid that if possible. This is a convenient pickup point on the
4-pin HEI distributors to grab a tach signal for a fuel only EMS installation, though you should try and
avoid direct contact of your tach wire with the plug wires. Crimp a spade terminal on the center
conductor of the shielded wire. Strip back the shielding from this end and cut it off so that it doesn’t
contact the crimp. Heat shrink this connection to protect it. Use split loom to cover the wire to
prevent direct contact, route it away from the plug wires as much as possible, and at the relay board
side, connect the center conductor to the TACH terminal, and connect the shielding to one of the
sensor return terminals to ground the shielding. You only want the shielding grounded on one end,
not both.

The following diagram I could have put in many places in this article, but I’ll go ahead and put it here
where I’m discussing the first of the wiring that would need to go back to the relay board from the
engine (tach signal). You’ll refer to this for all of the later components as well though, sensors,
injectors, IAC, etc. Everything you see here:

Note the above wiring diagram shows one difference from how I wired things up– this
shows how to use a 2-wire narrowband o2 sensor. I highly recommend a wideband o2
sensor such as the Innovate LC-1as when it comes to tuning time nothing else but a
wideband will do. Use the information in the ‘simplified power wiring’ diagram above for
wideband wiring.

MAP/Vacuum Signal to the ECU

Next I routed the MAP signal hose (vacuum line) to the MegaSquirt through a small hole drilled in
the firewall just next to where I passed the relay cable through. I connected this to the MegaSquirt
and made sure I had enough loose vacuum line in the engine compartment to reach the TBI’s
vacuum port I’d be using.

Should I play or should I go?

At this point, you can still drive the car around on the carb, but you can connect to your MegaSquirt
with the tuning software and see your RPM and manifold pressure. You can also datalog this if you
want and play with the software a bit just getting a feel for things. You don’t have much info yet as
you’ve only wired up two inputs, but it’s a start. Pretty cool eh?
 Wiring up the CLT Sensor
Ready for more? Install and wire in the CLT sensor. Many intake manifolds have a boss just in front
of the thermostat opening where they’re either already tapped, or where you can drill and tap them
for a CLT. The Coolant Sensors we offer use a 3/8″-NPT thread. Wire this back to the relay board’s
CLT and CLT RET terminals. You can’t wire this particular sensor backwards as it will work either
way, but if you run a black wire back on one side go ahead and run it to CLT RET to avoid
confusion, that is the ground side of the circuit.

Wideband Oxygen Sensor

Next install and calibrate your wideband o2 system. Though installing a dedicated wideband in the
car is optional, it’s highly recommended. We recommend and sell the Innovate Motorsports LC-1,
it’s affordable, easy to install if you can follow a few simple directions, easy to calibrate, and does a
great job. We use the common fuse block for power and ground, however if you’ve gone a simplified
path like many will and wired your relay board straight to the battery then you can wire your
wideband just like we did in the diagram above titled “Simple Relay Board Power Diagram with LC-
1”.

IAT/MAT – now or later

You could go ahead and wire up an intake air temp sensor too if you want and keep playing around
with the software and datalogging, learning a bit about how the car ran on the carb before going any
further. Or for that matter I’ve had customers wire up our systems about this far along and use them
as datalogging systems only for longer terms, knowing some day they wanted to go EFI but happy to
just collect data for the time.
Here’s an easy way to add an MAT/IAT sensor to your stock carb-style air cleaner: (note: the
terms MAT and IAT are used interchangeably, meaning Manifold Air Temp, or Intake Air
Temp)

So now your MAT/IAT sensor just screws into the bottom of your otherwise stock looking carb-style
air cleaner. As it’s internally the same type of sensor as a CLT the wiring polarity doesn’t matter,
wire one side to the MAT terminal on the Relay Board, and the other side to the MAT Ret terminal on
the relay board. Again, if you choose black for one of the wires, it just makes sense to use that on
the return side.
 So now what?
At this point, you’re able to datalog all, or nearly all (if you didn’t install the IAT yet), of the inputs
required for EFI to function on your car. Again, drive it this way it is for a bit if you’d like and get
used to the computer interface and datalogging tools, or just dive into the next section and go EFI!

Installing the TBI System

Finding the TBI bits
Remember our goal here is cheap and as easy as possible. So I hit up the junkyard, found a 1992
GMC 2500 Van with VIN ‘K’ indicating it had a 350 in it, and grabbed the TBI system including the air
cleaner, injectors, and a couple feet of the fuel hardlines. Also make sure to get several inches of all
wiring and all connectors. Make sure you get the mounting bolts. Cost me $33-34 total. Here’s
what I got for that:

Preparing and installing the TBI

I then slapped a TBI adapter plate on my Torker II intake Manifold and bolted the TBI to it. I found
the stock mounting bolts were a touch too long. I could have either cut them shorter, or used
washers, so I sortof used washers. I found some nuts in my spare jar that were just big enough to
slip over the bolts and act as thick washers. Works like a champ ;). Lastly I cut both fuel lines down
short leaving just enough that I could clamp the feed and return onto them. Check your o-rings and
if they’re in bad shape then replace them (parts store), mine weren’t perfect but were holding
together, and they’ve been fine though I may grab some replacements next time I visit the parts
store. Make sure you de-burr that fuel line so it won’t damage the hose you clamp to it later nor
release any loose metal in the lines at a later date.

Throttle Linkage
So now I’ve got my the TBI bolted up to the manifold, I’ll go ahead and work out my throttle/kickdown
linkage before I wire it up. I re-used the stock carb linkage from the Quadrajet, but had to build a
spacer to move it back just a bit. The pics below show me holding the throttle wide open with the
cable in the WOT position as well, I then measured the difference in the hookup versus hole
alignment and made a spacer to move it back that far. Easy enough right?

Fuel Injector Wiring

Next, wire up the injectors. Run 12v Power to each of the injectors on one side, I chose the White
and Red wires for this. You can actually crimp these together to a single larger gauge (14-16ga)
wire and run that back to one of the ‘Injector 12v’ Terminals on the Relay Board. Then wire the Blue
wire up to the INJ1 terminal, and the Green wire up to the INJ2 terminal, both on the Relay Board.

True, if you look closely above there’s only one injector wire run back to the relay board in that
picture. OK you caught me with a bad picture. Here’s another pic further along in the process
where you can see both run back, one to INJ1 (Blue) and the other to INJ2 (Green). You can also
see the Injector 12v wire run back to the relay board here.

Throttle Position Sensor Wiring

Next, wire up the 3-pin Throttle Position Sensor connector on the TBI to the Relay Board. This is
simple.

• Grey wire goes to VREF terminal on the Relay Board.

• Blue wire goes to TPS terminal on the Relay Board.
• Black wire goes to TPS RET terminal on the Relay Board.
*You’ll need to calibrate your TPS in the tuning software later. We’ll go over that but I
figured I’d mention it here.

Installing and Wiring the IAT/MAT Sensor (if you didn’t

already)
Here are a couple of ideas for installing an IAT sensor in a GM TBI system:

First option> In the stock GM TBI collar with the stock GM TBI Air cleaner/snorkel. Very clean
appearance, hides the TBI system well, breathes fairly good but not as good as putting one of the
other two cleaners (below) on top of the collar. In my case it didn’t quite clear my hood so I tried
something else.

Second option> Alternately, you can put the IAT sensor right into the bottom of a carb style air
cleaner like so. Then you can set it directly on top of the TBI without the collar, BUT, you will likely
loose some top end power without the collar in there. You will gain in the ‘stock-carb-like-
appearance-factor’ as the carb-style air cleaner will practically hide the TBI system when sitting that
low. But you might suffer a bit in airflow at high RPM. See the next section ‘What to use for an air
cleaner?’ for more info.

So now the IAT just screws into the bottom of the otherwise stock looking carb-style air cleaner.

Third Option> So I’ve found I need the collar there. So I’m putting the IAT back in that GM TBI
Collar similar to Option 1, and under an air cleaner. Either a stock carb-style round air cleaner, or an
aftermarket low profile air cleaner for more hood clearance.
On our 77 Nova I was about 1/2″ short on hood clearance to fit the GM TBI air cleaner sitting on top
of this collar. I similarly didn’t have quite enough clearance for a 3″ tall round carb-style cleaner. So
since I didn’t want to go to a raised cowl hood, my final solution was a low profile aftermarket foam
filter. Cheap and easy, though sacrifices appearance a bit. If I was a bit more determined I could
have shortened that collar 1/2″ and used that 3″ carb style cleaner for the best of both world,
breathing and appearance.
Back to the original focus of this section, the IAT. When wiring the IAT/MAT sensor, it’s internally
the same type of sensor as a CLT so the wiring polarity doesn’t matter, wire one side to the MAT
terminal on the Relay Board, and the other side to the MAT Ret terminal on the relay board. Again,
if you choose black for one of the wires, it just makes sense to use that on the return side.

What to use for an air cleaner?

I found in dyno testing that you absolutely want to use the riser collar that comes with the TBI unit
under your air cleaner. It’s amazing the difference it makes if you pull this puppy out, and it’s a
difference most won’t like. This serves more purpose than just raising the filter up, but it also
straightens out the path of the airflow as it enters the throttle body. On our test car this was worth
only about 4-6whp up at the peak(around 4000rpm), but an amazing 40whp, yes four-zero wheel
horsepower near redline at 5300-5400rpm. The air just can’t enter the stock GM throttle body at a
right angle like that fast enough to keep up and it severely hinders the flow of the TBI unit without
this collar in place.
So what worked the best? Using the collar, with the stock carb-style air cleaner on top and paper
filter seemed to work the best, and provides the most carb-like appearance. However with the hood
clearance I was working with I’d have to find a seriously short filter to allow me to close the hood this
way. I tested both 3″ and 4″ tall filters on the dyno and saw no HP difference, though neither would
fit under my hood without surgery.
Pretty much identically following the hp/torque curve of the above was the Edlebrock low profile
foam filter. This is short enough to clear the hood, and breathes nearly as well as the tall paper
filters above. It may have averaged 1 whp less if that. IMO well worth solving the hood clearance
issues unless you like the idea of installing a cowl hood or cutting a hole for a scoop. This is the
route I ended up choosing.
The stock ‘black snorkel’ TBI air cleaner came in third– it breathes fairly good up until 5000rpm or so
and then fell off loosing horsepower rapidly. Still much better than the final option.
The last option, removing the collar from the TBI and sitting an air cleaner all the way down on the
TBI looks fairly carb-like stock, and around town, under 4000rpm will perform very good, but above
4000rpm it’s going to hinder performance significantly. HP/TQ fell way off from about 4000rpm all
the way to redline.

Now you need a Fuel System

 Installing and Wiring the Fuel Pump and Filters
I chose a location just in front of the fuel tank and above the wheel well. I first determined where I
wanted to place the pump based on easy inlet and outlet as well as mounting considerations, and
then I marked the stock hardline to cut a section out of it where I’d be patching the fuel pump in. I
then unbolted and removed the factory hardline from the fuel tank leading up towards the engine
bay, drained the fuel out of it, cleaned it off/out and cut it where I had it marked. Deburred it good
and then reinstalled the two pieces.

I drilled holes in the framerail for the mounting straps (yes you should use both straps, I only have
one on in the picture below). Then I bolted the fuel pump in place, attached a low pressure inlet line
to a AN-6 inlet fitting, (could have used a 3/8″ barb fitting but this just felt cleaner), and built a
stainless AN -6 line for the outlet (high pressure) side to attach it back to the factory fuel
hardline. The last step was to wire the ground connection for the fuel pump to a local chassis bolt
and the power connection for the fuel pump to the ‘FP’ terminal on the MegaSquirt Relay Board
under the hood. I chased the fuel line up to the engine compartment with this wire, covered it with
the smallest split loom I had, and zip tied it all up neatly.

Note– the fuel pump location here is a bit on the high side. I tried and killed a different
manufacturer’s pump in this location, the Walbro has held up fine although I would recommend
mounting it lower as it’s close to the top of the fuel tank in this install. There just isn’t a great location
in front of the fuel tank and clear of the exhaust that I can see. But now that I’ve looked harder,
behind the fuel tank attached to the bottom of the trunk area is lower and would get a better gravity
feed of fuel and will be where I mount the new pump. (We’re using this car to test all sorts of bits,
next up, the SX Performance line of pumps)

Next I installed a small ‘pre pump’ fuel filter just at the outlet of the tank. (Yes this is
important.) Note this fuel pickup had a ‘sock’ strainer inside the tank, but it was old and worn and I
didn’t want to trust the life of my fuel pump (and potentially my engine) to it. A 60-100 micron
stainless filter just outside the tank and before the pump will do a fine job.
Then I installed a second ‘after pump’ 40 Micron fuel filter on the fuel feed line at a factory break in
the hard line where there was a worn out rubber line that needed to be replaced anyways (as it
wasn’t designed for EFI pressure), just under the passenger side door. The fuel filter had -8 AN
male fittings on either side, I used a pair -8 to 3/8″ barb fittings from a local hardware store plumbing
dept. to adapt this to 3/8″ barb and clamped it on the line with worm clamps.

Note this fuel filter is very small and not really intended for long term use without
servicing. Something along the lines of the SX Performance filters we’re now carrying would be
much better suited to this job. The SX Performance 10 micron paper filter anywhere after the pump
and before the injectors (before the TBI) will do the trick.

Completing the Fuel System

Now for the fuel return. This car being a 1977 has a very tempting vent tube coming back up from
the fuel tank to a charcoal canister under the hood. Resist temptation and don’t repurpose this as a
return line. On our test car there is an obstruction that does not allow adequate flow in this line and
it does not make a suitable return line. Besides that, it’s venting your fuel tank, and that’s a good
thing.
Instead, you’re going to want to add a return line to your fuel tank. Sounds like a pain, but at least in
our case it really wasn’t that bad. You’ll want to disconnect the fuel lines and drop the fuel
tank. Check out your tank and how much space you have to add a new return line, it doesn’t take
much. Remove the locking collar and pull the line assembly out of the tank. (Make sure to clean up
the top of the tank first to keep junk from dropping in.)
Now, you can either get a steel fitting and weld in a nipple, carefully making sure the entire
apparatus/lines are fuel free first. Or you can do what we did and simply drill a hole and thread in a
barb elbow. I ran up to the hardware store and grabbed a 90 degree barbed to pipe thread elbow
fitting and a couple pipe nuts. Found where I could center it so that I would still be able to spin the
nuts when it was in place. Center punched that spot, drilled it out, and threaded the elbow in place
using a bit of gasket maker to seal it up (just a tiny bit). Make sure to point the barbed nipple in the
direction you want your fuel return to come from taking into account obstructions when the tank is
remounts (probably safe to follow the other lines), leave room for a clamp on the hose, and make
sure you can get the locking ring back on to seal your tank back up. Reassemble the tank, attach
your lines including your new return line, clamp it down, and hang your tank back on your car. Don’t
forget to hookup your fuel level sender wiring!
Here’s a progression of images that tells the story pretty well. Like any of the pics in this article, you
can click on any of them for a closer look.

Note I did not use the rubber washer in those images, instead I used a bit of silicone gasket maker
on the threads/nuts, just a touch.

Back under the hood to finish the fuel system up– For the fuel feed I used stainless braided 3/8″
fuel line and slipped one end on the factory hardline and the other on the feed hardline on the back
of the TBI. Standard worm gear clamps hold it all in place preventing leaks.

What about a Fuel Regulator?

When using a factory GM TBI system the regulator is built right into the TBI unit itself. It’s almost too
easy ;).

Checking the Fuel System for leaks

At this point, everything is in place that is needed to fire the engine up. The fuel is plumbed. The
intake system is wired in and throttle linkage has been fabricated. It’s time to check for fuel
leaks. Have a properly rated (for fuel/chemical fires) fire extinguisher nearby for this just in case,
better safe than sorry. I key’d the power on to the ECU and could hear the fuel pump prime for 2
seconds and then shut off. Got out and looked in all of the obvious places for leaks, this includes
everywhere I’ve made a fuel connection (hose, filter, pump, TBI, etc). Look under the car for wet
spots that weren’t there before. Smell for fuel. I didn’t see anything obvious so next you can either
jumper the fuel pump relay on, or what may be easier than that is to just have someone turn the key
on/off several times letting it the pump prime for 2 seconds each time while you check for leaks
everywhere. I used the second method an in my case I did find a leak where the rubber hose I was
using for a return line slipped onto the TBI hardline. I didn’t have it clamped down tight enough, I
corrected that and then all was well. After the car is fired up I’ll check for leaks again.
 Fire in the Hole!

Preparing for the First Start

Use the MSExtra MS2 Manual to configure your MegaSquirt ECU for your engine. This will include
setting the ‘constants’ which are parameters that set the MegaSquirt up for the size engine you are
running the EMS on and the size and number of injectors are you using as well as the type (low or
high impedance). It’s important that you use the manual to configure your MegaSquirt, just follow it
through reading each section and setting one setting at a time. It really doesn’t take that long. Here
are a list of links for the most common setups:
MS1 Extra Manual – The tried and true MS1E firmware, tested and proven, with records to back it
up.
MS2 Standard Firmware Manual – This is base B&G code for the newer MS2 Hardware.
Skip down to the ‘Setting the General Parameters’ section. Before you start, on the ‘Fuel Set-
up>General’ screen set ECU Type to ‘1’ and click the Burn to ECU button. Then follow the docs.
MS2 Extra Manual – This is the latest ‘greatest’ firmware on the newest hardware. Full featured
code still under heavy development to add even more features and improve the current featureset.
In most cases it’s wise to configure your ECU while connected to it and with it powered up. The
reason for this is this will allow you to start with the base settings that are in the ECU as it ships to
you, instead of a completely blank slate, and it will make your job of configuration simpler. So power
up your car, connect to the ECU with the tuning software, and configure the settings in the
configuration sections of the manual for your hardware/firmware. You can also do this using a
stimulator to connect to your ECU is you prefer not to sit in the car while you configure the ECU.
What did we use? On this 77 Nova we have been running the MS2 Standard Firmware. It runs the
car beautifully, though I may move over to MS2E for the closed loop idle speed control. The base
MS2 code controls the idle motor just fine warming the engine up with the valve open and closing it
down as the engine warms up, but not in a closed loop fashion allowing me to target a specific idle
speed. MS2E will target a specific idle speed once warm keeping your idle right where you want it.

Final ‘Sanity Check’

Connect to your MegaSquirt ECU with the tuning software.

• Make sure the IAT and CLT readings look fairly accurate given the ambient
temperatures. Keep in mind heat soak from glaring sun if the car is exposed to the sun. If a
sensor is completely disconnected it will typically read -40*F.
• Make sure the throttle opens and closes with your application of the pedal. Go ahead and
calibrate the TPS sensor from the TOOLS menu if needed. This is simple, no tools
required. With the power on and engine off it will just take a reading while off throttle (while
off the throttle you click a button on your PC), and then take a reading at full throttle (while at
 full throttle you click a button on your PC). And then you close the tuning software, power
the car off and back on, open the tuning software, and the calibration is complete! It should
now go from 0-100% as you apply the throttle. If you can’t see the throttle readings on one
of the front gauges you can select ‘Realtime Display’ from the Tuning menu at the top of the
screen.
• Make sure your Engine MAP reading is reasonable. Sea Level is 100kpa so if you’re near
sea level 99-101 kpa would be normal, above sea level will be less than this. For instance in
Atlanta,GA elevation ~1000ft above sea level 95-97 kpa is pretty normal. In Wendover, Utah
(Bonneville, elevation 4227ft) ~84 kpa is normal. This reading depends on your elevation
and air density.
• If you find a problem with a sensor reading you should find the source of the problem, the
EMS will need the sensors reading properly in order to properly run your engine…

Time to Fire it Up!

If you’re running a fuel only TBI setup fairly similar to what I’ve outlined in this article and it’s wired
up right, you’ve got fuel pressure and the ignition system is still functioning properly (independently
of the EMS at this point), then firing the car up should not be a problem at all. Just as a test I tried
firing this 77 Nova up with the ECU completely misconfigured, I just left the base map on it which is
setup for a multiport EFI (8 injector) 408 small block. On my small block 350 with only 2 injectors,
the motor fired right up and started idling. A bit rough but it idled. I shut it down and quickly
configured the MegaSquirt for this engine. Care to watch the entire process?