New mod--Is it worth it?

[SergntMac]

Is this product worth 159 bucks? What do you think?

https://www.jegs.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?langId=-1&krypto=Rz76uq7FgzwqwYh3Vjw4wqQ x4S0Km5IWBuGcwcl9aluUve0RjYSDw AMmaFuY0%2bSstSO43IM4nYAL%0aKS r%2bjd%2bzkR6J7yC88mywqv030%2f wyCQrqlJpsoWINmrKrrF3INGbraOof y137rhyc%2b3YKOA4HDa9j%0a%2bHO FS8ug5nJTflL%2b9z1XuwvPDS9wyAQ dezmkITNJJKhUh%2fr%2fj8qq1FQWD lKOgRZu7ktmcwUqQWWx%0aIPgJrRLx 1qHEf04v0r1w6ni5w1pR4MTG0q8uhK SR%2bGyrzvyPPFodH9kJhT80HwMGiD vdeB8%3d&ddkey=OrderItemAdd

[Blackened300a]

If your engine is properly tuned I dont think you would need it. Im sure if your A/F was off so much to the point that it would detonate, The Check engine light would come on. I think thats focused towards the do-it yourself engine builder that dont have his engine under computer control.
$159 is a bit costly for what amounts to a microphone and a sound activated sensor

[TripleTransAm]

I'm thinking you're referring to a car other than the Marauder. Our cars already have knock sensor(s), 1 in 2003, 2 in 2004.

[metroplex]

Marauders and 03-up Panthers all have KS.

The 98-up Town Cars appear to have KS's as well.

[Agent M79]

Similar to what I was looking for HERE (http://www.mercurymarauder.net/forums/showthread.php?t=21762).

I was looking for a way to know when the knock sensors detected knock and to keep a counter or a log or something.

I occasionally hear 'noises' but I don't know if it is pinging or some other momentary clatter or what. I sure would like to know before I put a hole through the top of a piston or something.

[cyclone03]

Well like all tech. stuff it could be useful in the right hands.


To give you an example where it MIGHT help is a situation like I had when my car was tuned at MVII.
Justin told me my knock sensors where turned way up where they pulled timing very soon with no knock present.

So if a tune can adjust the sensors "ear" to retard the timing too soon I'm sure it could go the otherway and not pull timing when you need it to.

May let you know you got a bad tank of fuel or the internal engine temp is a little high for WOT.May also tip you off that your heading for a lean out at high RPM to.

Mac are you still playing with the tune on KB1?
If so it could be a good tool to help you get to the "edge" without taking the plunge.

[SergntMac]

Yes, I do like this mod, just wish it wasn't so pricey. It addresses several problems for me. I can't hear detonation, but Zack can pick it up a block away. I sometimes feel it when timing gets pulled in WOT, but other than that, I have no clue if it's so. Having a warning light in the cockpit would be helpful to me, may prevent some problems. You can get tuned by the greatest tuner in the world, but it's all dependent on the quality of the fuel at the moment. I'd like to have two, one for each bank, and I would expect this device to lead to a better tune, more focused tune, if one could tell the tuner when and where detonation occurs.

[Warpath]

I see at least two problems with it.

1) I took a couple of internal combustion engine courses for my degrees. The last one was for my masters. My professor stated that knock sensors are not 100% effective and are not fool proof. A knock creates a bell curve frequency response with a particular peak frequency. The sensors listen for this peak frequency. The peak is different from engine to engine. Also, preignition can occur without creating this peak frequency loud enough for the sensor to hear it. In other words, damage can occur without the sensor knowing about it.

2) There is a sensitivity adjustment with this particular model. You could turn the sensitivity was down to the point where damage occurs and it doesn't pick it up. Also, does the point where damage occurs overlap with the normal engine noise? In other words, where does damage occur and can you set the sensitivity high enough to catch it without creating false positive?

Personally, the best way to determine lean conditions is to monitor EGR on every cylinder or at least the cylinder which typically runs leanest. The second best method is an accurate wide-band A/F gauge.

My professor basically told us not to put complete faith in knock sensors. I trust his judgement.

[Ross]

OK, so our cars have knock sensors. What do they do? What if my sensor "senses" a knock? How does it tell me? There's not a warning light on the dash that says "Knocking".

[Fast4Door]

It would be nice to have some "user warning" when knock occurs, especially if your cal might be a little close to the edge. One problem I see is that a generic knock sensor placed in an arbitrary location may not be able to "hear" knock well enough to be an adequate warning.

As far as the sensors on your production engine are concerned, here is what typically happens:

During development of the engine/calibration, the knock sensors are "tuned" to the engine. The tuning is done by adjusting how the software interprets the knock sensor's signal.

The best way to measure the severity of knock in an engine is by measuring in-cylinder pressure in real time and analysing the results. Engines with in-cylinder pressure transducers are run on a dyno under knocking conditions. Ususally an individual cylinder is made to knock (verified using the pressure data) while the knock sensor output is monitored to see if it can hear that cylinder knocking. Using the human ear to listen for knock can be a problem, since it is a subjective measure.

Usually, many sensor locations are tested, in order to find the location (or locations) that hears all the cylinders the best. They also check that when the sensor hears something, it is in fact knocking combustion. The intention is that the sensor hears knock that is not severe enough for you to hear so the PCM can reduce timing before you hear anything.

In some packages, the sensor is ignored by the PCM above a certain RPM because it cannot tell the difference between knock and all the mechanical noise going on. Under those conditions, you have to be sure you calibration is OK.

Anyway, the point of my rambling is that the generic device may or may not provide the safety you are looking for. I don't know how you would verify it.

Just something to consider.

[cyclone03]

OK, so our cars have knock sensors. What do they do? What if my sensor "senses" a knock? How does it tell me? There's not a warning light on the dash that says "Knocking".


In our cars the timing is pulled back maybe too much at times so power could suffer,or not.