I do not wish to purchase my own PROM burning stuff, so who is the best to have a custom chip built for a heavily modified TPI car? Is Ed Write at www.fastchip.com any good?

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1991 Z-28 350 TPI, 700r4 with B&M shiftkit, 2400 stall, B&M Console Megashifter, 4th gen power seats, MSD6A, Blaster2 Coil, Holley 58mm TB, Ram-air, MSD 8.5 super conductor wires, Flowmaster catback, Crane rollers, march pulleys, and all free mods. (Currently in body shop getting fresh paint!!) I miss her! =(

 

Yes, ed wright is the only one i've heard recommended if you MUST get a chip burned by a aftermarket vendor.


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89 IROC-Z 350 TPI

-Flowmaster Catback
-Performance Resource Chip
-700R4 (Rebuilt) Too much done to actually list
-K&N Airfilters
-Ported Plenum
-2.77 Gears (not much to brag about but eh, its there)
-MSD 8.5 mm plug wires
-Gutted cat
-!AIR
-Gutted Air Boxes

 

Is this topic in the right forum? Who would you all recommend or NOT recommend?

 

I've heard NOT to go with TPIS, why is TPIS not as good? In anyones opinion is Ed Wright the better way to go? I've heard good and bad about Ed's products.

 

TPIS is junk. TRAX had a level 5 (might have been 4, i forget, it was over $500 though) TPIS chip in his 90 IROC with cam/AFRs/AS&M runners. When he got into PROM burning and he looked at what was in that PROM he knew he made the right choice. His high dollar 'custom' PROM from TPIS had a STOCK fuel curve. Now, would you pay half a grand for a basically stock chip?

If i HAD to buy a chip i'd go with ed wright. That guy has been around online for years. Yes i've heard some bad about him in that time too, but he seems to be very easy to work with to fix things, and he definitely does 'something' to the PROM, unlike TPIS, PR, etc.

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Ed Maher - Moderator @ The TPI & Carb Boards
92 Z28 Convertible - Quasar blue / Tan top
305 TPI A4 2.73 - 14.7 @ 93.6
Stock except ported plenum and dual cats
-=ICON Motorsports=-

- Definitely prototypes, high powered mutants of some kind. Too weird to live, too cool to die

 

That's pretty bad -(TPIS)!!! I would be upset if I spent 500 on junk!!! I have TFS 23degree aluminum heads with the CNC port package and dual springs (up to .600lift) the cam I picked was SLP .502/.510 (.536/.544 with 1.6 rockers) 224/232 @ .50 (280/288) seat to seat, 10.5 to 1 compression, all forged bottom end 355ci. What all info would I need to send besides info above to have the PROM burned?

 

Why is PR junk? I heard they are really good. I just got one myself, not custom burned, just a performance chip. My friend has a Perfprmance Resource chip in his Formula 350, and he's doing 13.9's with now internal engine mods. I think thats decent

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1988 Pontiac Trans Am GTA L98 5.7L, Black on Black with 114,000kms.

Best ET 14.559 @ 95.25MPH
Custom 3" Stainless Exhaust Y-Pipe back (High flow Cat and Flowmaster Mufler)

 

Look, your friends performance may or may not be related to the PR chip. Fact of the matter is, i'm sure the fuel is stock, off the shelf always is. And the L98 bin has a very flat timing curve, so any work on that could be duplicated by bumping up the timing. If you actually take the time to do just teh basics like fuel pressure and timing you can do more than an off the shelf chip will cuz it'll be optimized for your engine. If more people would take the time to learn how to make their cars run right rather than throw money at their cars they'd be a lot better off. 13.9 is nothing for one of our cars (except TBIs) with a few carefully selected parts on a basically stock car when optimized. Then as you know more and get better you get into bigger stuff and PROM tuning, cuz at that point you'll understand the relevant concepts.
If you've noticed me going off some lately, this is exactly why. All of this junk like chips, mods, etc has been discussed for5 years on this board or it's predecessor. I'm just trying to open people up to all of the stuff we've learned so that we're all better off.
Here's a perfect example. A buddy of mine has an 86 IROC and he just put ported stock heads and a 215/220 cam in w/ a heavily ported base, SLP runners and plenum turning a 2400 converter and 3.73s. I've driven it, it's wicked, easily a 13.7 car with the kinks worked out. But thats just it, it's rough and needs tuning. It had done a best of 14.3 @ 95.2 Against my advice he puts a PR chip in cuz they told him it might work goo, and if not they'd refund towards a custom chip. He ran a 14.2 @ 95.6 $175 for a tenth and not even half a mph? And the air might even have been better or more bite on the line?
One of these days i'm gonna sepend a whole day at the track with hiim instead of a short night. And i'm getting that thing near 100 mph and 13s just by playing with it, not even in the PROM.
I want other people to attack issues the same way. Rather than throw money at it and be dissappointed, giving a bad name to all our cars. In todays world of low 13/high 12 second stock Z28s, we need to get near there with some common sense, we already have 3 hands tied behind our back from the start. If you're into an engine swap, heads and cam, you damn well better at least hang with a stock Z28 or you're just playing with your **** .

 

I agree with Ed. I ran 13.81 with a stock L98, some bolt on's, and good suspension on a stock chip. I really gotta learn to burn my own stuff.

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Rob P
89RSconvtZZ4TPI Edelbrock Intake
SLP Dual Cold Air Intake 1 5/8" Headers Semi-Siamesed Runners, IROC
suspension, alum shaft. Numerous mods.
92Z28convt5spd (stock)
71Impala convt 402BB
BETTER DRIVING THRU SUPERIOR HORSEPOWER!

 

I wish I had the equipment and know how to do my own PROM burning, but my question was who would be the BEST custom CHIP burner to hand my specs over and let them burn the chip?

 

I think Ed stated that in his first response - Ed Wright at Fast Chips.

Before I decided to burn my own chips, I e'd him about his chips. Do the same and he'll let you know what info he needs.

Sparks a flyin'

[This message has been edited by sparks383iroc (edited November 06, 2001).]

 

Ed the IROC is as tuned as your gonna get.When Kat & I did the hi-flo intake everything was replaced as in plugs which were cut back & gapped as per your instructions,new 300+wires,distributor cap & rotor etc.I've been playin' w/fuel press and no way is it gonna pickup 6tenths.I have no clue on how to burn a chip or know anything about fuel curves so I have no choice but to go to a co. that does it.
BD3

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86 IROC mods:retro-fitted to a Comp Cams 210-215 499/499 112 roller cam,T.E.S.,Hooker Aerochamber catback
T.P.I.S. airfoil,Dan Burk ported intake system,,March
pulleys,Accel 8.8wires,ign.mod,Crane PS-91 coil,Crane HI-6S ign.box
RAM AIR induction,gutted MAF,
B&M shift kit,3.73 rear gears,Accel afpr,Hypertech stage 2 chip,Random Tech.cat.,Lakewood lower control arms,Lakewood adj.panhard rod,mac subframe connectors,PST polygraphite bushings 14.281 @ 95.45 2.004 60' on street tires
"The more I learn about women,the more
time & money I spend on my IROC"

 

You just have to believe man. You should be running way more than 95 mph. I'm barely off that still stock down to manifolds, with more weight and a brick wall for third gear.
Hey, if you're content i'll leave you alone. I'd like to see that thing run right though. As it stands now, i will be WAY ahead of a 14.2 by next spring, i'm in the process of picking up a purple friend to add to my pile of goodies. Man i need to start wrenching.

 

Ed I didn't say thjat I didn't want your input...just think that I've run out of tuning resources.Your more than welcome to see if you can get any more out of it w/o a custom chip and/or bigger injectors,just let me know when.
BD3
BTW this is a N.A. 305

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86 IROC mods:retro-fitted to a Comp Cams 210-215 499/499 112 roller cam,T.E.S.,Hooker Aerochamber catback
T.P.I.S. airfoil,Dan Burk ported intake system,,March
pulleys,Accel 8.8wires,ign.mod,Crane PS-91 coil,Crane HI-6S ign.box
RAM AIR induction,gutted MAF,
B&M shift kit,3.73 rear gears,Accel afpr,Hypertech stage 2 chip,Random Tech.cat.,Lakewood lower control arms,Lakewood adj.panhard rod,mac subframe connectors,PST polygraphite bushings 14.281 @ 95.45 2.004 60' on street tires
"The more I learn about women,the more
time & money I spend on my IROC"

[This message has been edited by IROCZ4BD3 (edited November 09, 2001).]

 

BTW Ed took your advice and playedw/fuel pressure a lil' more-->14.163 @98.16 @ Cecil County last night.
BD3

------------------
86 IROC mods:retro-fitted to a Comp Cams 210-215 499/499 112 roller cam,T.E.S.,Hooker Aerochamber catback
T.P.I.S. airfoil,Dan Burk ported intake system,,March
pulleys,Accel 8.8wires,ign.mod,Crane PS-91 coil,Crane HI-6S ign.box
RAM AIR induction,gutted MAF,
B&M shift kit,3.73 rear gears,Accel afpr,Hypertech stage 2 chip,Random Tech.cat.,Lakewood lower control arms,Lakewood adj.panhard rod,mac subframe connectors,PST polygraphite bushings 14.163 @98.16 2.004 60' on street tires
"The more I learn about women,the more
time & money I spend on my IROC"

 

Actually this is a common misbelief that a "tune up" is the same as "tuning"; it is not.

In the "good ol' days", tuning involved possibly rejetting the carb and recurving the distributor. It was often this tuning, that would make one guy's car faster than the another guy's car...even though the two cars may be identical.

With EFI, the ONLY way you can "tune" is inside the eprom. While the methodoligy is different from a carb, the concept is the same...adjusting the fuel mixture and spark advance to obtain max performance. There are more things you can play with (which actually making tuning easier once you start to understand them) and because of the greater precision, ultimately you can tune BETTER with EFI than with a carb. (Also, you don't get dirty).

The biggest advantage of tuning EFI over a carb, is that generally, tuning a carb affects an entire powerband. With EFI, you can tune one specific spot and not affect others. In many respects, tuning EFI is simpler than tuning a carb/dis.

As for "what works and doesn't work" with eprom burning - its a lot like a carb/dis also; a lot of "testing, trial and error". With experience, you can start with a "fairly good" setting but you ALWAYS need to do some testing to dial it in.

And this is the problem you'll face with a custom burned eprom. It will (or should be) fairly close, but it will not be optimal. Think of it as sending your carb to a shop and having them "rejet it and setting the idle screws" without having it on the actual engine. That is what a custom prom is...if they are good, it might be close...if they aren't....you have garbage.

But you still have not "tuned" your engine. I reserve that phrase ONLY for guys that actually burn their own eproms or adjust their own carbs/dis.

 

Glenn I don't think Ed is talkin' about me having my car in tune that way.He knows that I don't have a clue on that type of tuning and in the earlier post he said that he could get it into the 13's/100mph w/o messing w/ the prom which is why I stand by my statement.
BD3


------------------
86 IROC mods:retro-fitted to a Comp Cams 210-215 499/499 112 roller cam,T.E.S.,Hooker Aerochamber catback
T.P.I.S. airfoil,Dan Burk ported intake system,,March
pulleys,Accel 8.8wires,ign.mod,Crane PS-91 coil,Crane HI-6S ign.box
RAM AIR induction,gutted MAF,
B&M shift kit,3.73 rear gears,Accel afpr,Hypertech stage 2 chip,Random Tech.cat.,Lakewood lower control arms,Lakewood adj.panhard rod,mac subframe connectors,PST polygraphite bushings 14.163 @98.16 2.004 60' on street tires
"The more I learn about women,the more
time & money I spend on my IROC"