I installed my new gear from Innovate Motorsports yesterday. I got a
wideband HO2S and controller (LC-1), their Aux-box (LMA-3), and their
AFR gauge (XD-1). I chose the LMA-3 over the LM-1 because you can data
log through it (with a beta firmware update) and it's got analog
inputs plus a built in pressure transducer and an accelerometer. I also
chose to replace my driver's side NB with the WB unit and use the
controller's simulated NB output to feed the PCM.

The hardest part was figuring out what I needed to eliminate the NB
sensor altogether. The Ford EEC-V, with four wire O2 sensors, performs
a heater test at least once every drive cycle so I couldn't just drop
the sensor completely. Some folks simply hang the old sensor under the
car and leave it connected. I really didn't want do this, for no
specific reason other than those things get kind of hot. It turns out
that about a 12 Ohm, 15 Watt, power resistor is enough to fool the PCM.
My plan was to use the connector from a spare NBO2 sensor (thanks Bill)
and wire the resistor in to the heater lines. I also wanted to wire the
simulated NB signal into the connector and then just plug this package
in where the OEM sensor connects. Nice and clean and no cutting PCM
wires.

It was all going really well until I realized that the power resistors
I have on my bench are 120 Ohm, not 12 Ohm. These are not something
Radio Shack carries and Electronic Parts is closed on the weekends. So
I punted and ran to Checker and got a tail light socket and an 1156
bulb: around 20 Watts of power dissipation and about the right
resistance when heated. The only thing is that it blinks under the car
when PCM hits the circuit.

I got the package built, integrated it with the LC-1's analog output,
and installed it. I got everything else installed as well except that I
didn't realize that the LMA-3 needs to be mounted horizontally
(within 3 dgrees) in order to use the accelerometer. It's got to be
protected from the environment as well and I never did find a good spot
in the front of my car. I may have to mount it under the rear seat but
I moved on and just won't log g's for now.

Most everything is working just fine right now but there are some
problems. The Logworks 2.01 software from Innovate does display and log
real time data form the patched LMA-3 but it crashes when I try to
modify the displays. I'm working on this issue.

The other issue is that the Predator is showing that the simulated
output isn't working. When I log the O2S21 signal it's somewhere
between 0 and 0.1 volts and it should be between 0 and 1.0 volts. I
either muffed my wiring or a broke the LC-1.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Anyone getting the LC-1 needs to pay special attention
to the analog outputs. They have no short circuit protection at all:
this is positively confirmed by Innovate. So, touching an analog output
wire to a ground while the unit is powered will fry the DAC for that
output. It's possible that while I was setting it all up on my test
bench I accidentally did this. I wasn't paying attention and I
didn't learn this little gem until later during troubleshooting.

I tested the second analog output and it's OK so I have a backup,
it's just a pain to rewire what I've already done if that's the
problem. I have to rework the package to get rid of the light bulb
anyway, so it's not really a big deal, other than the annoyance.
Meanwhile, the PCM is going to throw some sensor switching codes
periodically until I get it fixed.

Otherwise the setup is working great. The WB monitoring is cool and the
gauge is super cool. Innovate really did an outstanding job making all
this stuff modular and simple to string together. They use a serial
protocol bus to communicate between the units and the cables connecting
them use 2.5mm stereo plugs. It's a pretty slick setup and it was
really easy to put together and program.

I played around a bit today and this is a sweet setup. It's going to
be cool once I get the glitches worked through :).

Dan
2003 Cobra convertible
With some stuff and things