Piggyback Vs Powerchip

[RG.net]

i'm aiming for more power out of my 5, but seeing i cant go F.I (because of the new p plate laws) i am looking for other options

i didnt know powerchip made chips for the 5, until i checked the site

they claim that they can boost the 5's kw from 106 to 120

and the nm from 165 to 186, mind you this is using ONLY 98 ron

the only downside i find is the price, $990 for the top of the range, i searched some other cars i.e commodore and they are half price which i find a little sus in the end its the same program just tuned for a diffrent car, but anyway, i wanted to know what benifets i can get out of an ecu

i have heard some good things about the megasquirt i.e plug and play, i'm not sure on the price for them but, also what power increase could you get out of an ECU? my car is quite stock (just exhaust and intake) same sort of figure or more?

any help would be great, on another note, what other mods have i overlooked ? i am thinking of getting some cam gears but other then that i am a little stumped

[adamjp]

For that kind of money, you could buy, fit and have tuned an eManage Blue or similar piggyback unit.

It would also be a great deal more flexible if you make other changes to the engine.

[Fatty]

when did the standard mx5 ever have 106kw ? ? ? ?

[RG.net]

the nb8a/b's?

[Fatty]

maybe at the flywheel, ok. i'm more familiar with power figures being quoted at the wheels so my point of reference may be off.

[RG.net]

ah, yeah at the fly, i've heard of numours numbers atw on a stock nb

one more thing, say i get the powerchip and once i get my full's, get a turbo etc, would i be able to run a piggyback with the powerchip, or will one or the other be canceled out

[Juffa]

I could be wrong, but I believe the powerchip is a new chip that is soldered into the the ECU, thereby replacing the existing chip. If this is right you could then attach a piggy back unit at a later stage. The piggy back takes the signals to and from the ECU and modifies them based on the settings in the piggy back.

Having said that is the powerchip is tuneable, if so it could be tuned say for your current requirements and then re-tuned if you were to add forced induction.

I would suggest that to install a powerchip and then later add a piggy back will be less costs effective. If it was me I would just go the piggy back.

J

[RG.net]

thanks for your 2c juffa

i'm starting to lean towards the piggyback, it would cost a little bit more, but i could get so much more out of it, i'm thinking of getting the greddy e-manage ultimate, i have found a tuner so we see how it goes anyone know any rough prices on the ultimate

[Fatty]

a piggyback doesn't need to be more expensive than the powerchip...

i know i bang on about it a bit too much but you can build a megasquirt or a DFA (there is now also a diy timing piggyback like the dfa too) for half the price (or less) of the powerchip. sure there are better (more expensive) options as well, it just depends how much you want to spend i guess, and if you can be stuffed spending the time building it yourself.

[RG.net]

i thought the megasquirt was for na6 and na8's only at this stage?

i dont really have the time to build my own ecu, as it's my daily driver i dont want to fiddle around with it too much, and i dont know too much (if anything) about ecu programing, i'm willing to spend 1-2k for an ecu tuned and fitted, as i will be able to use it now, and later on when i go f.i.

just a quick question, anyone know if an nb8a's rev limiter is ignition based or fuel cutting? i would like to increase the rpm a bit (if possible) just to hear the BP scream a little more

[Steampunk]

Gains will not be huge for naturally aspirated cars, especially if everything is stock. The only real advantage of upgrading your ECU, regardless of interceptor or standalone or chip, is to optimise upgraded cams, headwork, etc.
Another option that is relatively cheap and simple is trawl the net and find the Apexi Super Air Fuel Converter (SAFC). There are HEAPS on eBay, from $100 to $400 depending on the model. The Apexi SAFC has been around for over a decade and so there are about 5 different models in the evolution of it.

Even though Fatty does harp on about the DFA , he is just making a good point of it being a good \"value\" upgrade. If you don't want to build it yourself, trawl other forums, eg. boostcruising, as there would be a fair chance of people selling ready-built,used ones.

Equate price with power-gains, and figure out what you want to spend and what gains you expect.

[Garry]

I was always suss about powerchips. They used to claim the same power increase for every car, maybe a little bit more for exotic turbo cars. It always seemed strange to me that every make of car could have the same power increase. Surely some makes respond better than others?

[RG.net]

I was always suss about powerchips. They used to claim the same power increase for every car, maybe a little bit more for exotic turbo cars. It always seemed strange to me that every make of car could have the same power increase. Surely some makes respond better than others?

i'm curious to how an nb8a gets a 14kw gain but (say) a vs commodore gets 30kw i'm thinking if i get one, and isnt what i expected, i would of spent a grand on nothing, with an ecu it might not do much while the car is stockish, but when the mods come, i know it is there and all it will need is a quick tune, you gota start somewhere in search for power

[sprx3]

if you end up getting an emu (e-manage ultimate) & need any help i'll be happy to help you

[AB7]

if you end up getting an emu (e-manage ultimate) & need any help i'll be happy to help you

Hi SPX3.

Who did you get to fit n tune your EMU?
Do you know if EMU can handle 2001+ VVT?