question about piggyback/stand alone computers

i was thinking of changing out my extire exhaust (headers back) and know that i'll need to adjust the fuel air mix with some sort of computer. how exactly do stand alone and piggyback units work and what kind/type is recommended. What $ should i expect to find?

The 3G reacts very well to the GReddy E-manage. For the money, it is the best piggyback ECU you will find. Plus, it is much more programmable than the SAFC II or SAFR. You can expect to pay approx 320-$350 for the E-manage minus harnesses. With harnesses, up to $400.

so if i buy a new header and exhaust, i would have to program my car to make it run right correct? if that is the case, i didn't know that!

Because the Cali-spec manifolds are so restrictive, adding headers, intake, and cat-back exhaust will throw error codes and an SES light because so much more exhaust is flowing past. That will casue a rich condition that would need to be tuned out.

Which is why tuning header(s) gives a 30whp gain over stock.

so is that just in the eclipse cars or in other manufactors?

i has a cavalier that actually lost power with headers, free flowing cat, and catback system cause of how rich it ran. i also lost about 5 miles per gallon cause of it. problem was there wasn't any compatable units for my cavalier so i was stuck with it. i think it's with all car cause of the increased exhaust flow.

how do i know if my car is CA spec or FED spec?

if your car is an 02-04, then it is a cali spec

Certain 00-01 too. It all depends on the state you live in and their exhaust requirements.

i was reading about the greddy e-manage piggyback and it says it only has 5 adjustable rpm points. Is that enough? i see alot of other can be adjusted every 500 rpms or has at least 8 adjustable points.

It has 5 points for the regular user. For optimum results, you will need to get the car dyno tuned with a shop that has the Support Tool. That will give you a 16x16 tuning map, anti-stall (for atmospheric BOV release), and a host of other features not otherwise available.