I've been hearing mixed feelings about the throttle by wire, what's your opinion?

 

Good, b/c there is no throttle cable that can stretch over time which means your throttle blade will open 100% no matter how many miles you have on your car.

 

Good... if they'd ever get the initial lag worked out of it. The slight hesitation kills me in certain instances.

 

Here's my 2C:

At first, the "stumble effect" that the electronic throttle created - just plain bugged me!
But after 5,000 miles, I swear I hardly even notice it anymore - I just accept it and drive "around" it.

My father drove my car for the first time a few months back - immediately noticed the "lag" in throttle repsonse and pedal feel, and noted that HE didn't like it.

But he also noticed that when I shifted the car (6spd) I managed to gas it early enough to minimize the effect....equate it similarly to turbo lag on a t-charged car -- there ARE ways to reduce the effects.

Also, I do notice ALOT of on/off throttle abruptness in this car that I've never noticed in other vehicles I've owned/driven.
But again - I think that's the price of driving a fairly well-tuned, high performance engine -- it's a compromise.

One bonus that I've often thought of, is the fact that THROTTLE by WIRE = no sloppy cruise control mechanism. Talk about spot-on, erro-free cruise control on the hwy, that WILL NEVER break or act-up....how cool is THAT??? --bet you never thought of THAT did you, naysayers...???

Certainly, it's all a compromise that I am ALL TOO HAPPY to make on a daily basis!!
This car rocks -- despite it's shortcomings.

Throttle stumble --? Don't know WHAT you're talking about.....

g.r.

 

You know why D.B.W. rocks? Because Nissan can put an 80mm throttle body on the 3.5 to make it scream on the top end, but still have good low end. They acheive this with the D.B.W., when you floor it, it opens the throttle say 40%, until the engine can handle the extra airflow, and then it gradualy opens to 100%. Can't do that with a cable.

 

I've noticed that the throttle lag is only really an issue for me in hot weather, ie 90+ F. Other than that I can still feel it at times when I make abrupt throttle changes, but it isn't really a problem. I've read that an intake does wonders for the lag, but I can't get myself to get an intake without knowing why the MAFS keeps going on other's cars. As for the benefit of having an error-free cruise control, well I never use cruise control unless I'm trying to save gas, which I think I've only done once, so that isn't really an issue for me. I think its more of an annoyance than anything. I have noticed the same on/off throttle abruptness that ghostrider has, but that only annoys me when I'm in first and the car starts to buck or something when I let off completely. Easy to work around by keeping light pressure on the throttle, but still very annoying. I don't see any reason for it really. Maybe someone here knows the why it does it. I've seen people mention a fuel cutoff, is that relevant to 02+?

 

I've read alot about the recent introduction of FI to motorcyling in the past 4-5 years, and it would seem that the two-wheel guys are having the same issue with throttle management as we are.

Now, I KNOW that MOST of these guys are still using CABLE assemblies from the hand mounted throttle control - but it has always interested me that the use of Carbs STILL produces the SMOOTHEST throttle response available to the market.

As the proliferation of these systems through racing and improved "breeding" evolves, I believe issues like stumbling and jerking will become a thing of the past!

Let's face it: we got used as labrats before the system was proven trouble-free.
It COULD be worse!

g.r.

 

The first thing I noticed was what ghostrider mentioned. The smooth cruise control. It's "instant on" with "instant response" and the pedal doesn't move around under your foot after you turn it on like most other cruise controls I've used.

Throttle lag? What throttle lag? I drove a Civic before, that thing had throttle lag, it was called lack of acceleration!!!

I've ridden injected motorcycles though. They're OK. I still prefer carbs opened by cables on my bikes...

 

Check your PM. (personal mail)

g.r.

 

Folks.... the DBW isn't causing your lag. It's the MAF and ECU MAP. Try making your own 3" PVC MAF and see how quick your throttle responds then. It's a night and day difference.

Also, it's a 70mm TB not 80mm.

 

I dont have that problem in my 03 auto yet, but I do notice it slightly in our 350Z but not as bad as some people state.

 

I swear I thought I measured 80mm on my TB. I'll have to go re-measure. I remember thinking it was insanely large for a factory car. So I could very well be wrong...

 

You have to remove the TB and measure it from the back side which is the diamater to house the butterfly valve. Notice the inlet is tapered like most TB's. Besides, the MAF is only 70mm so having a TB much larger than that would be near pointless.