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A little over a week ago I quickly sent the ECU of my 2006 Yamaha FZ1 out to California to a little company called ECUnleashed.

For those of you who like to read the ending first … as a quick review of ECUnleashed I offer you this:
Website = ok/poor
Service = good enough
Product = bike saving (I’ll explain later)
Price = $100 more than I would comfortably pay, however, I paid it so maybe their pricing structure is good too

Why did I describe the product as “bike saving”? As you may or may not know, the 2006 Yamaha FZ1 was the first year with the Electronic Fuel Injected (EFI) engine. This was Yamaha’s first attempt and mapping the engine to correctly while still adhering to EPA emission standards. Let’s just say that they, Yamaha, got it wrong. They got it terribly wrong.

The throttle was incredibly “snatchy” on both roll off and roll on. This made the bike very untrustworthy in corners, not to mention uncomfortable at low speeds in traffic or around town.

I installed an Fuel Cut Eliminator (FCE) by Ivan’s and that helped but didn’t completely resolve the issue. The FCE made enough of a difference to help me keep the bike another season, but as I gained in rider sophistication I found it still lacking. I could still not really trust the bike to not slide the rear tire out from under me upon roll on in a corner.

If you have read this blog you are aware that I fancy a Triumph Daytona 675R and that I have even listed my current FZ1 for sale several times. Well, this is largely due to the above throttle problems. I began to notice it more and more. It was sucking the enjoyment out of riding, which isn’t easy to do and when done is a total downer.

I don’t remember the first place I came across an article or, more likely, a forum post which mentioned the ECUnleashed re-mapping service, but I was instantly intrigued as I was becoming desperate.

After reading several posts on the Yamaha FZ1 OA forum and doing some additional research I reached out to the ‘local’ Connecticut dealer. Well, let’s just say that I was quite underwhelmed by their response and level of service. They said they didn’t have a file for an FZ1 and made no offer or mention of obtaining one.

After that disappointing interaction, I reached out to ECUnleashed directly asking them which dealer had an FZ1 map to which I could send my ECU. After a week and a half of silence, I reached out to them again asking if they were still in business. That question got a much better response. After some back and forth, they instructed me to send it to them in California.

Even though I was waiting on their response to some of my questions, I sent my ECU off anyway as the forecast showed rain for the next week. All in all I only missed two days of great riding weather but it was torture all the same. ECUnleashed was kind enough to foot the bill for the expedited return shipping.

After receiving the package I spent the next fifteen minutes hooking it back up to the bike.

1. gathered tools
2. disconnected battery (may not be necessary)
3. connected ECU
4. connected battery
5. connected thing on top of the airbox
6. turned the key

After the longest 5 seconds of my recent past there were no error codes or warning lights, which meant it was time to proceed to the next stage.

1. tighten velocity stacks
2. replace airbox cover
3. start the bike

It started right up and idled nicely, and a bit higher than before the re-map (expected result). On to the final assembly stage.

1. tighten airbox cover
2. lower and tighten gas tank
3. tighten fairings
4. replace seats

After all that, I remembered that I neglected to replace a zip tie securing the dust flap. It is still in place but is not “secured” by the second zip tie. I’ll replace it the next time I open her up.

I felt like a kid on Christmas morning as I tried to pace myself while getting my gear on. After putting on all my gear I checked the tire pressure and proceeded down the driveway.

As soon as I left the driveway I could feel a significant difference, mostly reduced engine breaking, as I slowly drove past the neighborhood kids on their big wheels, the bike wasn’t fighting me like it normally is at slow speeds. Coming to the stop sign it was obvious that the engine braking had been dramatically reduced for the better.

It wouldn’t be until my first significant turn when I would be able to really tell if it had the desired effect. After my first turn I became outwardly excited and almost giddy as the throttle “snatch” did not raise it’s ugly head. I filled up the tank and was off into the Blue Hills hoping people wouldn’t get in front of me. I had one or two turns before catching up to a car. I was getting more excited with the smoothness of the throttle. I began to trust the bike more.

Advancing to my favorite little stretch I was able to ride a few more good fast turns. I have never had this much confidence in this bike.

ECUnleashed also claims to remove restrictions in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd gear and I can attest to this, but my main reason for buying the re-map was not for added power but for smoother controlled power, and after my short rider I am very pleased with the result.

I will be paying more attention in the coming weeks to give more detailed feedback. There is still significant engine breaking and a bit of an abrupt roll-on above 6k rpm, but that could be that no engine likes to rev that high without being fed a fair amount of gas.

Lastly, while on my ride, I came across another rider fully decked out head to toe in Ducati Corse gear riding a Ducati Corse 1198, with his buddy taking his photo. The photographer took a few of me as well, but it started to rain so I did not stop and inquire further. It would be fun to see how the photos turned out though, so if you happen to come across this post, drop me a line.

Thanks for reading and happy riding.

Let me start by saying “I am a believer!”. I took the bike out for the first time with the Ivan’s Performance Fuel Cut Eliminator installed and was rather pleased with the results.

Since I wasn’t going to be riding on the highway much I opted not to wear earplugs which automatically makes one’s experience more visceral. It was wonderful to hear the roar of the engine even through my stock exhaust.

I went on a variation of my standard short circuit and found myself gaining in confidence due to the increased smoothness and predictability of my throttle roll-ons mid corner. Before the bike was rather skittish and jerky when rolling on the throttle, especially above 5k rpm. This forced me to run in a higher gear in order to keep the revs low.

With the FCE installed I found that I could round a corner in any gear I wanted, at any rpm I wanted, and still have a smooth-as-butter roll-on post apex. Riding became much more fun because I felt I could push it more and lean it over more with increased safety. I wasn’t as worried about my rear end slipping out from under me.

The price is a bit steep ($200) but not by much and Ivan’s seem like good people to work with. Installation was easy enough if a bit tedious due to the number of screws involved. (see previous post)

I would highly recommend the Ivan’s Performance FCE to anyone who has a 2006 Yamaha FZ1. As the years went on, I think Yamaha got better at masking the effects of the mandated fuel cut. I’m happy I installed it and look forward to further confidence in my riding.

—UPDATE—
I reread Ivan’s page and he states that this will help any fuel injected FZ1 (years 2006-2010) and not only makes roll-ons smoother but increases mid range power. I suppose I may have felt a difference in mid range power but I can only attest to the smoothness of the roll-ons mid corner.