Given the dearth of aftermarket performance options for the normally-aspirated engines in the 2.5i and 3.0R Legacy/Outback models, I'm very surprised that nobody has yet investigated whether an OpenPort cable and OpenECU software can be used with these ECUs.

I know that the 2005 Impreza 2.5RS ECU can be read and reflashed with these tools. I have high confidence the same is true for 2005+ Legacy/Outback NA ECUs. We need a couple of people to step up and verify this.

These brave souls would already have a laptop running Windows XP with an available USB port. They would purchase an OpenPort cable from http://www.tactrix.com/product_info.php?products_id=31 for ~$85 including S&H. Once the cable arrives, they'd download a free copy of EcuFlash from http://openecu.org/index.php?title=EcuFlash and follow the instructions at http://www.scoobypedia.co.uk/index.p...ReflashingECUs.

In the unlikely event that the OpenPort cable can't read or reflash these cars, it can still be used to datalog important information using the free software at http://www.tari.co.za/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl. And it can also be used as an OBD-II scan tool with the free software from http://www.aktivematrix.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=957.

So the only downside is that you might only get a data logger and scan tool for the $85 cost of the OpenPort cable. The upside is the ability to change target A/F ratios and spark advance and to turn off pesky trouble codes like P0420 when your cat disappears.

Any volunteers?