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How to take and post datalogs on the forum

95K views 373 replies 71 participants last post by  IHTFP08  
#1 · (Edited)
There aren't too many datalogs posted on the forum and one of the reasons for this is that the forum doesn't have native support for hosting the .csv file type and people are a little reluctant to log.

Here's a quick crash course on how to log and how to share/post these to generate discussion. You don't need ATR to download, view, and share logs. With a modified car, it is always good to periodically take logs and make sure there are no issues. This is also an excellent way to check how the tune you are running performing with your fuel and modifications.

1. First of all, make sure you have the correct map loaded on your AP and that you've driven the car with that map and the usual fuel you use for a good 20-40 miles to allow fuel trims to settle.
2. Set the correct logging parameters in the AP. We created a short video on how to change logging parameters for the AP V3. This is the same for the Focus or any other platform supported by the COBB AP V3.


COBB has also posted a number of useful videos. This following one is for the AP V2


3. A basic set of parameters to log are these:

Accelerator Pedal Position (The throttle pedal position. This is not the same as the throttle plate since the car is drive by wire. This is just what the driver is doing with the pedal)
Actual AFR (Yes the car comes with a stock wideband O2!. This is the actual AFR. Lower numbers are richer, higher numbers are leaner)
Airflow Mass (The Focus ST uses speed density to estimate actual mass airflow using its pre and post throttle pressure sensors. It is a calculation based on a model, not a direct measurement like MAF based cars)
Boost Pressure Actual (Boost measured at the manifold)
Charge Air Temp. – (CAT) (This is the temperature measured AFTER the intercooler before the throttle body. If too high power will be reduced and it tells you if your intercooler is overworked)
Coolant Temperature (Important for the car to be warm when logging. ECU applies compensations based on coolant temperature)
Engine Speed (Engine RPM)
ETC Actual Angle (The throttle plate position angle)
Fuel Rail Pressure Actual (What pressure the injectors are seeing. This is important that it stays constant at WOT around 2100-2200psi)
Ignition Timing Corr. Cyl (1-4) (This is where the ECU pulls timing mostly due to knock. If you see large negative corrections you need to adjust the tune for the fuel you are using)
Ignition Timing (Cyl 1) (This is the amount of timing advance currently running after all reductions are applied)
Load Actual (Amount of load the engine is seeing. This is related to airflow and engine speed and is used in a lot of engine calculations)
WGDC Actual (Wastegate Duty Cycle - this is what controls your boost pressure)
STFT (Short Term Fuel Trim - these are quickly changing corrections to the fueling mixture based on the feedback from the wideband O2)
LTFT (Long Term Fuel Trim - these are learned correction factors based on feedback from the wideband O2)

A more advanced list is this:

- Accel Pedal Position
- Actual AFR
- Boost Pressure
- Charge Air Temp.
- Coolant Temp.
- ETC Angle Actual
- Engine RPM
- FRP Actual
- Ign Corr. Cyl1
- Ign Corr. Cyl2
- Ign Corr. Cyl3
- Ign Corr. Cyl4
- Ign Timing Cyl3
- LTFT
- Load Actual
- Oct Adj Ratio Lrn
- STFT
- WGDC Actual

A note on the parameters being logged. If you are logging all the ones in the advanced list make sure your display parameters are some of these. Adding additional display parameters that are not also logged will exceed the logging bandwidth for the AP and you will get an error to remove some parameters.

4. After setting the AP correctly, take the car to a safe, straight, long piece of road and set the AP to be ready to start logging. Get in 3rd gear or 4th gear and hold the RPMs steady at around 2500RPM.
5. Press the center button of the AP to start the log.
6. Floor the throttle and hold your foot down to redline.
7. Get off the throttle, slow down safely.
8. Stop the log by pressing the center button.

You can repeat steps 4-8 as many times as you like to take more logs.

Datalogs generated by the COBB AP are in the .csv format. This format is can be opened and viewed on your computer with a number of programs. The most popular are:
- Microsoft Excel
- Open Office
- You can upload these to your Google Drive and open them from there. Google Drive has built in support.

Using the AP Manager you can download these logs from your AP. Link to the AP manager below.

COBB Tuning - Ford Accessport V3

Now you want to share these. Simple stuff due to the number of cloud services available.

1. Get an account with Google Drive, Dropbox, etc. It's free and datalogs take very little space so you should have no problem hosing these. I will used Dropbox as an example.

https://www.dropbox.com/

2. Upload the log to your Public Folder on Dropbox.
3. Right click on the log and select -> Copy Public Link.

Paste that link in your thread on the forum like this:

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/48912771/Focus ST Logs/2013 Focus Stage 1 93 LT 20130108.csv

Here's something else fun to do to check your performance. If you take logs on a nice, flat, stretch of road you can use these logs to estimate the power your car is making using a tool called Virtual Dyno which is actually free. This is a lot cheaper and if you are consistent can be an excellent tool to see what changes to your tune and hardware are doing:

http://www.virtualdyno.net/

A Vdyno sample below:



Done! Happy Logging and Sharing!
 
#148 ·
You missed my point. My programming is how I earn a living partially. Most people here keep talking about how they want to share to help the community, etc. And to that I say if it was all about sharing, the people who are promoting all this sharing would be programming for free. And not just once or twice. All the time. So that isn't happening, is it?

That is easy to understand, I hope.

I've made my point. Anyone who says that still don't get it isn't being honest with themself. Carry on. :)
 
#162 ·
Lol, how did a "how to take datalogs" thread turn into a bunch of bickering and what is free and what isn't. Datalogs are free to take and COBB will never remove this functionality. It is integral to making the AP the great diagnostics tool it is.

People that want to share the logs and discuss are free to do so if they want - no one's going to stop that. This ****'s gotta stop about trade secrets and making a living etc. A tune is not going to be copied via datalogs. My experience is that ff you're a professional, honest, and are good at what you do, people will come to you for your expertise. That can never be replicated or "stolen" via a datalog. Been doing this long enough to know that.

The entire point of technical threads is to generate discussion, interest, and gain knowledge - heck even have fun. If someone is not comfortable being part of these threads then just don't participate and life becomes very simple.
 
#167 ·
Because there is a hidden post quota. Once it's reached, some assclown has to insult you or your car, tell you you're wasting time trying to learn something, or preach to you about buying something. Then the big dogs come in to argue about something not even on topic of that thread, then the post count resets until some technical progress is reached, then the **** starts all over. Welcome to the 2014 FST.org :)
 
#171 ·
I think a possible issue here is that most of the people on this forum still think that a datalog = a map or that you can somehow take a log and reverse engineer it. lol

It's been mentioned before; that's not really possible. I guess I'm more used to threads where a person gets tuned by a particular tuner and posts a multitude of logs to not only demonstrate the pride they have in what's been accomplished and to validate the old "it feels great!" bull**** you constantly see. It's nice to be able to quantify the butt dyno with actual data and for other members to compare those logs to their own. The usual response is "wow, that's a great log - everything looks perfect". People are absolutely happy to share and to let others admire the results.

Around here people act like you are going to steal their favorite toy if they show anything. Hell, when I was being tuned I had a thread that I updated every revision with at least two or three logs to show my progress. Those types of threads are quite common on MSF. The only thing my tuner ever told me was to please not share the actual maps, although I was free to change things like throttle mappings and LC if I wished. I guess I just don't understand the fear people have of logging or sharing those logs for the ST, I really don't.
 
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#172 ·
Why don't you start by showing a log? I'm about to post some, but it's freaking cold around here.
 
#183 ·
It's not reflecting real world if I do a pull in -30 temp. The C.A.T. won't get high very much.
 
#198 ·
E85 is 85 percent Ethanol and 15% gasoline E30 is an assumed blend of E85 and regular E10 fuel, a ratio of 3 gallons of E85 to 9 gallons of E10 gasoline is about an ethanol blend of 28.75% or near enough to being E30.

Ethanol it self has a raw blending octane value of around 100 on the AKI scale, however once it's blended into E85 the octane rating does drop towards the mid to upper 90s, or just slightly higher than E10 93 AKI octane fuel.

If you tune to take advantage of the cooling affect of the Ethanol and change the entire combustion strategy it can make more power, but Ethanol is inherently less efficient due to the lower energy density and more of it being required to go the same distance.
 
#203 · (Edited)
Glad to see the thread is back on topic. As you can see it can evolve into other things. Fighting it out is good but exposing what your tune is doing for your car is what this thread is about. It's not about stealing ingredients. As already stated many times, you just can't with just logs. It's more of how good it tastes. lol .. anyways maybe later it will open up other dicussions, such as the E85 like it is now (edit- or did just for a sec but I took too long to type this out). Further down the road, it will be tuning for WMI, etc. For now it's just the basics and I think that's all this forum can handle at this time lol

In all honesty, Alex and Justin are good hearted and extremely knowledgeable when it comes to tuning DI engines. Even (way) more so than the super hero on this site. They are not here to put him or his work down (or anyones for that matter). They rather put their minds together (when needed) to resolve certain issues/etc. You guys can go to whom ever you want though. Just know that these two (Alex and Freek) are here to inform, educate, expose the facts/truth. Rader and Duster are very knowledgeable as well btw. Yes, at the end they are here to showcase their work. Proof is in the pudding and more of that for THIS platform will be available soon. Right now, with how this crowd is, they need to take baby steps (informing/educating/exposing). So keep your eyes open. These two are offering a more advanced type of tuning than what is used to here (and that's why it's not free). One that also has a greater personal communication/feedback/trouble shooting involvement. It's a real cool experience. I highly recommend it.

Sorry If I made this sound like a promotional bit lol... Didn't intend on it.lol
 
#205 ·
No you basically said that they will be gods gift to the focus ST and better than any gift before that. A little cocky don't you think? Considering the lack of tuning offered to this platform this far you think you can walk in and think your king **** like that LOL

Not to mention... Nvm I don't need to argue details of your post


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#214 ·
Yeah, it would be nice seeing these guys proving what they are screaming since 5 month.
 
#223 ·
Watching randy and justin go at it then 20 posts later they agree on something makes my head hurt

Can you guys just call each other and talk it out in the phone.

I'm having a hard time deciding on whether or not to shut the thread down
 
#228 · (Edited)
Tell you guys what, if the thread goes into questioning a tuners abilities again I will have your posting abilities restricted. Also if anyone engages in that topic, tuners included, they will also be muted.