Hi, how are you all doing? I am looking around right now for a company that will supply quality eproms that work, and are not like the rest that are just "there". I have looked at jms chips, I have heard they work well for a decent price, tpis also has good chips but are too expensive, and I have just seen an add from summit about motorvation chips. I know that there are alot of companies that make eproms out there that are custom for each of our custom applications, but I am curious as to who has had good success with aftermarket chips without serious cash or any motor problems, thanks again guys!

 

The best one I've used when my 89 IROC was stock was the Hypertech Stage 3 chip. It was designed for off road use and no cats with bolt ons. It was worth 2 -3 tenths in the qtr. I might still have it. Hypertech doesnt make that chip anymore.

 

You will have to send it back for fine-tuning, but ed wright burned me a decent one. Look for skidownit on corvetteforum also.

 

For the time, and effort, you'll be ahead to learn how to do your own.

The changes the aftermarket chips do are generally laughable. ie the secret calibration is generally changing thermostats, and the fan turn on temp.. Basically they run with the choke slightly on.

 

Go to http://www.pcmforless.com
This dude does some good custom burning.

 

i've had success with an edwright chip .

 

Grumpy is right. If you did mods to the car, you really should do a custom tune. The off-the-shelf chips are probably tuned for a different motor. How do you know if you're using the same parts they were using when they tuned the chip? If you're running different heads, bigger cam, bigger injectors, etc you wont get the most out of that setup. A custom tune will get the full potential out of your combo. But if your motor is stock then you might get acceptable results. Grumpy is also right in that most aftermarket chips just mess with the cooling system and maybe make minor changes to other parts of the tune. Waste of time and money.

 

theres a difference between a generic chip based for use on stock vehicles and a custom tuned chip.
my car wont even run with my old ADS superchip or the original stock chip for that matter.

i understand "that if you did the mods you do the tuning mind set" but any body can bolt on a set of heads or put a cam in, these are mechanical procedure's

to each there own ... ay.... theres an example of a store bought listed in an above post running high 10's

 

I think the original post was asking about low cost aftermarket chips, not some high dollar custom eproms. If he wanted to maximize his combo, then why bother with custom eproms? Step up to the aftermarket ECU such as the DFI. Even the old GEN 6 DFI can be found sometimes cheaper than a custom chip. And its capable of 800+HP .

 

Well he can either take it to someone to have his car tuned for his specific setup, or he can try it on his own the DIY route and save some money. What we're trying to say is that the off-the-shelf chips out there will usually not give you as much power as a custom tuned chip tuned specifically for your car. Chances are that off-the-shelf chip were not tuned for your specific setup, but there are exceptions. Having someone tune the car for you might end up being a 'high dollar' matter, but if you go the DIY route then it can be alot cheaper. The stock GM ECM's are more powerfull than you think. The stock 730 ECM found in any Speed Density TPI car will handle pretty much about any motor you throw at it and even aftermarket intake designs. If you plan to use F/I, the 749 Typhoon/Syclone ECM with a $58 code tune will calculate up to 14.5psi with the stock 2 bar map. Its just a matter of DIY tuning to get it right on your specific car. Full cost for everything for me to get started on real time tuning my Vortech charged 91 Z28 (including W/B 02 stuff) is right around $650 and my own time. This is $300 cheaper than the cheapest aftermarket ECM out there, the Holley Commander 950, and over $1500 cheaper than a high dollar SpeedPro F.A.S.T. DFI system. Just need to take the time to get it right.

 

how challenging is the aftermarket DFI route? what is the most user friendly system out there for under 1,000?
this could probably help out a few folks

 

It took me 6 months to learn on my own when the first GEN 6 DFI came out years ago. There were no support or someone knowledgeable enough for my questions. Nowadays, you can find support coast to coast. If you understand the basics of an engines fuel and timing requiremnts, then I'm sure you can learn. In my opinion, the Gen 6 DFI is the simplest to use and learn. It is powerful enough to feed a 615ci Big Chief Pro Mod motor (my old combo) and mild enough for a daily driver with minor boltons. There is a DFI book specifically for the Gen 6 and it is very informative. Just remember when tuning, start rich and keep the timing on the low side.

 

DFI was a consideration in the future if i feel i werent getting the most from my car, how ever i'm not that familiar with computers other than signing on and playing around with i-tunes

the programs pretty much walk you through the tuning process huh?

 

The DFIV6 is not user freindly. The DFIV7 is user freindly as it is a windows based program and does many calculations for you. BUT you still need to understand what you are changing and why. You can make your own startup program with the V7 in 20 min and you will be about 75% on your way.