All of the below article is moot now that all previous generations of the Powercommander have been replaced with the PCIII USB, but I will leave the information in tact for posterity

I have concluded that there are some definite advantages to the PCIIIr over the PCII.

1. No more of that hard starting, weak battery syndrome

2. Finer adjustment as the PCIIIr allows for 500rpm increments all the way to redline, whereas the PCII only goes to 6500 from there on it's every 1000 rpm

3. Much better connections, lessens the chances of a wire coming undone from the harness.

4. Much easier to tune, uses a mathematical formula for precise control of the air/fuel ratio's & all your fuel values can be changed from one sheet. Compatible with the automated dynojet sampling software that will basically build a map for you.

The only downside is that you will no longer be able to wire the soft-rev limiter mod into the Powercommander harness & instead will need to splice directly into the ECU wiring. There is also the issue that there still isn't alot of custom maps for the PCIIIr, but that will change in time.

Also keep in mind that the PCII has been discontinued & repair support for them will be greatly diminished in the near future.


Just for clarification (I get this question alot) aside from the points I made above the PCIIIr technically differs from the PCII by directly controlling the injector dwell time whereas the PCII fudges the sensor inputs to the ECU making the bike think it is at a higher or lower altitude at certain rpms/throttle positions (or making the ECU think the load on the motor is greater for adjustments on the MP table)

A few hints for installing the PCIIIr

This is just to give you some additional pointers that aren't exactly expressed in the instructions...
Not really anything new, but it might save you some time & aggravation

 

1. Plastic Velcro: available at Radio Shack 4pcs for a few bucks & it is super strong. Use it to stick the ECU to the undertray & the PCIIIr to the top of the ECU.

 

 

2. Route the wires along the inside of the subframe & for gawd sakes ground it to the frickin negative side of the battery just like the instructions say, cause the first person that e-mails me & says they are having PCIIIr problems when they haven't followed the instructions is going to get roasted in their flip-flops!

 

 

3. Make sure you tuck the wires under the tail end of the fuel tank in a way that keeps them from being pinched as the fuel tank is lowered. I suggest using several zip ties to hold them next to the rest of the bundled wires.

Do not route the wires along the outside of the tank! They will end up moving up under the tank & get pinched.

 

4. After connecting the Fi leads tuck the ignition lead under the outermost Fi connector to keep it from trying to lift up due to the tape binding.

 

 

5. Pay attention here. Remove the LEFT lower radiator mount bolt only (if you remove the top radiator mount bolt too the rad drops down & actually gets more in your way)

Route the ignition wires between the airbox & frame & let them drop down in the upper most corner of the frame closest to the airbox corner. You will have to grab the AAP sensor wire that attaches to the top of the airbox & gently move it out of the way to get a big enough hole to push the ignition wire connectors down through the opening. They will drop down right beside the fan motor.

With the lower rad mount loosened you will be able to slide your hand up to the black boot, hook a finger on one of the connectors & gently pull the proper connector out of the black boot. Even if you can't see up into the boot you still stand a 50/50 chance of getting the right connector (the red one) as there are only two sets of connectors in the boot.

Once you have them connected make sure the wires are folded back directly behind the boot & not off to the side where they might get tangled in the fan motor.

Black boot, red connectors directly above the horn on the 00-01 models
(the horn is not in the same place on the 02+ models
but the boot will still be behind the left radiator)

 

Custom PCIIIr maps

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