- Stays plugged into the original Delphi ECM.
- Only edits tables the manufacturer left open.
- Custom boost > 8 psi typically falls outside the supported envelope.
- 2-stage nitrous, anti-lag, 4-stage launch — no.
- Ride-by-wire still runs Harley's closed logic.
- Per-cylinder knock with adaptive filtering — no.
Installation
Standalone, not piggyback.
Pistonix replaces your Harley's original ECU. Not a flasher, not a piggyback, not a box hanging off the Delphi ECM working within whatever it allows. It is the ECU.
Standalone vs. piggyback Piggyback (Power Vision, Fuelpak, TTS) Pistonix (standalone)
The difference that matters.
- Replaces the entire Delphi ECM. The original goes in a drawer.
- Total calibration — VE map, ignition, boost, AFR, dwell.
- Arbitrary boost with closed-loop control and PWM wastegate.
- 2-stage nitrous, anti-lag, 4-stage launch — yes.
- Ride-by-wire rewritten from scratch, with dedicated PID.
- Per-cylinder knock with adaptive digital filtering.
Piggybacks already exist and they are good at what they do — quick Stage 1/2 calibration without touching hardware. Pistonix exists for what is past that: serious turbo, drag, custom V-twin.
Per platform Commercial pilot Wave 3 Roadmap Wave 2
How it lands on your bike.
Twin Cam · Sportster (EFI)
Direct plug-in — this is the intended design, and the harness does not exist yet. The idea is to unplug the original Delphi ECM and plug Pistonix into the same connector through an adapter harness, keeping sensors, injectors, coils and wiring original, with the factory ECM going in a drawer. None of it has been built or measured on a motorcycle: the ECM pinout is still being mapped, and the one file in the repository has every pin marked “to confirm”, including the connector type itself.
- ◦ No cut wires, no soldering, no drilling — a design goal for the adapter harness
- ◦ Reversible: plug the Delphi back — follows directly from the item above, if it holds
- ◦ Stock cluster keeps working — depends on replicating the broadcast the cluster expects; not implemented
- ◦ Diagnostic port — the project's Twin Cam is CAN, not J1850 (Softail 2011+, Dyna 2012+, Touring/Sportster 2014+); the previous version of this line said J1850 and was wrong for the pilot bike
Milwaukee-Eight 2017+
Replacement with HDLAN passthrough — the intended approach, none of it built yet. The M8 runs an authenticated CAN network (HDLAN) between ECM, ABS, cluster and key fob — you cannot just ignore it. The plan is to replace the ECM while passing through the original messages: report the data the cluster expects, keep the ABS happy, answer key fob challenges. There is no HDLAN code in the firmware today: the M8 only enters development after the Twin Cam pilot, and this passthrough is the least certain part of the roadmap.
- ◦ Cluster, ABS and security to keep working — a goal
- ◦ Ride-by-wire under our PID with redundant TPS — a goal
- ◦ Reversible — original ECM back in
- ⚠ None of this has been built or tested yet
Evolution · Shovelhead
Retrofit. These engines did not ship with EFI or a modern ECM, so there is nothing to "replace". Pistonix would enter as a retrofit in two modes:
- Ignition-only: keeps the carburetor, swaps only the igniter. Programmable 3D RPM × vacuum curve, internal datalogger.
- EFI conversion: aftermarket throttle body, injectors, return-style fuel system and Pistonix as the full ECU. More ambitious build, easy starts, better mileage.
Custom V-twin (S&S, RevTech, Ultima, JIMS)
No factory ECM to replace. Custom builds never had a Harley brain, so Pistonix becomes the engine's primary ECU. You define the wiring from scratch — the Pistonix harness comes pre-crimped for the common points (sensors, injectors, coils, lambda) and the auxiliaries are free for customization.
- ✓ Total wiring and tuning freedom
- ✓ Configurable trigger wheel (32-2, 36-2, 60-2)
- ✓ Direct support via Pistonix Garage and WhatsApp
Reversibility
Everything you install, you can uninstall.
On Twin Cam, Sportster and M8, installing Pistonix does not destroy anything on the bike. No cut wires, no soldering, no drilling. If you decide to sell the bike, take it to an authorized dealer, or simply roll back to stock — just plug the Delphi ECM back in. Ten minutes and the bike is the way it left the factory.
The intent is for the hardware to follow you, not the bike: move to another bike on the same platform and it travels with you with a new adapter harness. Warranty terms do not exist yet — nothing is on sale — and will come in writing with the purchase.
Kit contents
What is in the box.
Final contents are platform- and model-specific. Broadly:
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Pistonix ECU
The brain itself, with pre-flashed firmware and an initial basemap.
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Adapter harness (platform-specific)
Pre-crimped, plug-and-play. AMP Superseal on one side, the original ECU connector on the other.
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USB-C cable
For use with the Pistonix Tuner desktop software.
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Wideband sensors (1 or 2 units)
Bosch LSU 4.9 with stainless-steel weld bungs (or slip-on adapter when available).
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Illustrated install manual
In Portuguese and English, with platform-specific step-by-step photos. Online version always up to date via Pistonix Garage.
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Pistonix Tuner license
Included with any ECU. Map editor, datalog viewer, firmware flashing. Windows, macOS, Linux.
Waitlist
Be the first to know.
Pistonix is under active development. Sign up for product updates, early basemaps, invites to ride at Milwaukee Garage Drag Racing events, and priority when pre-orders open.
- Monthly roadmap and firmware updates
- Invite to pre-sale tuning sessions
- Priority on the first batch
- Early access to per-engine basemaps