A racecar needs to be precisely staged each time it makes a pass to guarantee consistency and help give the driver the best chance possible to win. You can approach the act of staging from several different angles, but if you have a car with a FuelTech ECU the job can be made easier. In this video, FuelTech’s Cameron Lohrmann walks through how to set up a FuelTech ECU’s staging control functionality.
FuelTech’s staging control is used as a bump box to help stage a car. This is a must-have when you’re trying to stage a turbocharged car to make sure you can build boost. It can also be used in other applications to provide a driver with a way to accurately control the staging process.
You need to collect a few things before you can start the wiring process with the FuelTech ECU; you’ll need the transbrake button of your choice, wire, and a relay. FuelTech recommends using its solid-state staging and brake control relay, along with its sealed relay holder. If you’re not sure how to wire the relay up, FuelTech provides a diagram in the video.
Once the transbrake is wired to the FuelTech ECU, it’s time to jump into the FTMANAGER software to start the configuration process. FuelTech has made it easy to find everything you need; in this case, you would just need to go to the Engine Settings tab, then Map options, and then select staging control. The FTMANAGER software will prompt you to select the button and output activation mode before you select the inputs you’ll be using for the transbrake. You’ll then go to the outputs screen to assign your transbrake output to the staging control relay. Then all you’ll need to do is set your staging intensity and frequency to finish the configuration.
The video from FuelTech goes into greater detail on how this process works and Lohrmann walks you through the configuration sequence.