Joined
·
23 Posts
I thought this might warrant a discussion........
I have had a series of Audi products over the past few years.... ( 1998 A4 2.8Q, 2000 A6 2.7t 6 speed, 2001 S4 6 speed) I loved them all but I have had a few problems *(NONE with the A4 though) and I chipped the S4. I had an APR chip that was fantastic.
Some background for those of you that don't know what a chip is.... Basically, a chip is just a downloaded program onto the ECU that will allow the engine to either remap some fuel/air mix or raise the rev limiter to eek out a few more hp. BUT, on cars with forced induction (turbo or supercharged) it is a MUCH different story. The reason is that the ECU controls the ammount of pressure (PSI, BAR) that the turbo/SC will shove into the engine. With this, a simple chip can DRAMATICLY increase the hp #s on an F/I car. A "chip" will NOT give a great ammount of power to a simple naturally aspirated car. In FACT, more often than not, the power is very very minimal and I would be VERY hesitant to believe any claims of more than 5%. I would encourage you to go to the DINAN website and look for the white paper on dynoing cars. Amazing how much difference air temp and barometric pressure can affect the hp/torque figures. The premise is that he took a stock M5 and it showed a 60 hp difference on different dynos and under different temps/pressure. So, DON'T believe all the dyno charts as they can be easily manipulated. ok.... so,
Chipping these days is a tricky deal.... I can't tell you how many guys I know from the S4 boards(Audiworld~ I posted under "Longhorn")that chipped their S4's and were then stiffed on wtty work when the turbos blew up. In fact, of all of the engine problems that could be possibly linked to the turbos, the dealership pretty much told the owner to go pound sand.
I would offer this warning, IF you decide that losing the engine wtty is worth the 5% power hike, AND you can afford to fix any of the problems out of pocket if you get denied svc, THEN do it. Also realize that if you get denied svc, your VIN will be entered into the system as "chipped" and you will (by law) be required to disclose that in the event you try to sell your vehicle. I am sure an attorney here could list the specifics but on home related stuff it's treble (tripple) damages. yikes!!
For me, this was one of the driving reasons for me to get rid of the S4. The car was great...no, fantastic but needed more power to deal with all the weight. And, since the chip only brought it up to around 300 hp, I was really looking at a stage 2+ (chip, downpipes and cat-back exhaust~ 350 hp/ 385 lb/ft) car to get it where I wanted. So, that is why I got the M3. Lighter, RWD and it had all the power I wanted right out of the box and I could keep the wtty in tact.
So, that is the reason that I got the V8 TReg.... (Although, I would LOVE the V10TT)
Just my $.02, keep the change.
Sean
I have had a series of Audi products over the past few years.... ( 1998 A4 2.8Q, 2000 A6 2.7t 6 speed, 2001 S4 6 speed) I loved them all but I have had a few problems *(NONE with the A4 though) and I chipped the S4. I had an APR chip that was fantastic.
Some background for those of you that don't know what a chip is.... Basically, a chip is just a downloaded program onto the ECU that will allow the engine to either remap some fuel/air mix or raise the rev limiter to eek out a few more hp. BUT, on cars with forced induction (turbo or supercharged) it is a MUCH different story. The reason is that the ECU controls the ammount of pressure (PSI, BAR) that the turbo/SC will shove into the engine. With this, a simple chip can DRAMATICLY increase the hp #s on an F/I car. A "chip" will NOT give a great ammount of power to a simple naturally aspirated car. In FACT, more often than not, the power is very very minimal and I would be VERY hesitant to believe any claims of more than 5%. I would encourage you to go to the DINAN website and look for the white paper on dynoing cars. Amazing how much difference air temp and barometric pressure can affect the hp/torque figures. The premise is that he took a stock M5 and it showed a 60 hp difference on different dynos and under different temps/pressure. So, DON'T believe all the dyno charts as they can be easily manipulated. ok.... so,
Chipping these days is a tricky deal.... I can't tell you how many guys I know from the S4 boards(Audiworld~ I posted under "Longhorn")that chipped their S4's and were then stiffed on wtty work when the turbos blew up. In fact, of all of the engine problems that could be possibly linked to the turbos, the dealership pretty much told the owner to go pound sand.
I would offer this warning, IF you decide that losing the engine wtty is worth the 5% power hike, AND you can afford to fix any of the problems out of pocket if you get denied svc, THEN do it. Also realize that if you get denied svc, your VIN will be entered into the system as "chipped" and you will (by law) be required to disclose that in the event you try to sell your vehicle. I am sure an attorney here could list the specifics but on home related stuff it's treble (tripple) damages. yikes!!
For me, this was one of the driving reasons for me to get rid of the S4. The car was great...no, fantastic but needed more power to deal with all the weight. And, since the chip only brought it up to around 300 hp, I was really looking at a stage 2+ (chip, downpipes and cat-back exhaust~ 350 hp/ 385 lb/ft) car to get it where I wanted. So, that is why I got the M3. Lighter, RWD and it had all the power I wanted right out of the box and I could keep the wtty in tact.
So, that is the reason that I got the V8 TReg.... (Although, I would LOVE the V10TT)
Just my $.02, keep the change.
Sean
