Guest

Does anyone know what type of performance chip I can put in my car (3.2TL - 2001) and how many horse it will give? thanks!

drbeatty

None available yet.

Guest

Heard there was a uni-chip for the accord that fits our car dunno if its true or not though. Also i heard there was a chip for the prelude that help the sport shifter shift quicker. without the second lag.

GIMMICK

Yup its true . . . the only chip mod worthwhile doing is the Unichip. They've done one on the TL and I think it added 10 hp with their current chip. They're developing a newer chip that'll allow timing to be advanced on the direct ignition engines to be able to extract more power. It'll be ready by August.

bebber

are there any disadvantages to using a modded chip? Does it shorten engine life or cause extra emissions?

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'01 Naples Gold TL with Navi
Interior wood trim kit
Custom aluminum mesh grill
Wings West 2-leg spoiler wing
Solar Gard Titanium Tint 43 all around.
Cuzo Hyperwhite hi beams.
Acura logo tire valve stem caps.

bobowah

what's the deal on the unichip is it for the accord or the TL? Also we if we add this in do we void our warranty?


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1999 3.2TL-NAVI Nighthawk Black Pearl
Comptech drop-in filter/'02 tail lights/Comptech exhaust/Hokuto Turugi 17x7/Kumho Ecsta Supra 712 225/45/17
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needs to be lowered soon (big wheel gap), maybe H&R Sport Springs?

GIMMICK

The Unichip is not just a chip, but a piggy back computer that attaches to the stock PCM (program control module). That's why it could attach to both the Accord & TL (among many other cars). It receives the input from the various sensors all over the engine and modifies the output signal to increase the engine's power by optimizing air/fuel ratio and advancing the timing. You don't swap any chip out, in fact if you wanted to turn off the Unichip you could unplug it. The Unichip will not harm the engine because it's dyno tuned specifically for your car. It makes it as efficient as it could be.

I'm planning to get the mod as soon as they have the newer version chip is released. The current unit only allows to optimize the air/fuel ratio, the newer unit will allow them to advance the timing also so that more power could be extracted. The V6 Accord members from SHO will organize a meet in August at the Racers Group in Sonoma CA so that we could get the word out on the product. We already had one member dyno with an increase of 30 ft-lb torque as early as 2000 rpm.

StylinTLS

Uhmmm...kinda sounds like the Venom400 to me. Except maybe working on the upper RPM range.

songoku

Sounds like it's gonna avoid dealer warranty if something happens...

sneuxstorm

sounds like the V-AFC, from ApexI. I thought about getting that, but was worried about splicing into the the ECU, then what if I got it all wrong??

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Photoshop Chop Shop
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Shyne

I would be real interested if I knew more facts about "chips." It's gotta mess up something ...

Edward'TLS

The chip is stressing the engine to its limits. I don't know if this will harm the engine or not.

Car manufacturers spend enormous resources to implement "optimal" air/fuel and ignition timing mappings for their vehicles. "Optimal" in their terms is to allow safety margins for the engines and moving parts (4-year drivetrain warranty !) whilst sticking to the OBDII pollution restrictions.

The only way to extract more hp is either to take away the safety margins or to defect the OBDII related components.

GIMMICK

I totally understand you guys concern . . . maybe I'm not explaining it well enough. Check out the Racers Group website for more information on their Unichip product. They could explain it better than I ever could.
http://www.theracersgroup.com/theprogram_unichip.html

This I could tell you for certain, its a lot better than Venom 400, the Unichip is dyno tuned specifically for your vehicle with the mods that you have on there. Sometimes the extra volume of air from an aftermarket intake/header/exhaust will fool the stock ECU into thinking that there's more air than is actually going through and it overcompensates by dumping more fuel than it should into the cylinder. This running rich condition hampers performance and reduces gas mileage. The Unichip can correct that problem by bringing the air/fuel mixture closer to stoichiometric and get better combustion and be more efficient. The air/fuel mixture manipulation is much like what the Apex'i VAFC does. To extract power from the Apex'i VAFC, it also has to be dyno tuned. However, the Apex'i doesn't allow you to advance the timing like the Unichip does. You could extract more power from the engine by advancing the timing because you get a more complete combustion of the gasses in the cylinder.

As for "voiding the dealer warranty IF something should happen" . . . well since the Unichip is dyno tuned specifically for your vehicle, it reduces the chances of SOMETHING happening. Unlike the JET chip where you fill out a form of your mods, send it along with your ecu, and they approximate the best fuel and timing maps, the Unichip is tested on the dyno at increments to see what changing a variable (timing, fuel mixture) does to the engine. They start at the baseline point (stock settings) and work from there, at each increment they should see an increase in power until they reach the maximum power at which point it start to decrease. Then they know where the max power is at that specific rpm. They'll do this at certain points on the rpm range (I believe its at every 500 rpm) and interpolate the data from there. I'm not too sure about the resolution (they may actually be doing it at closer intervals to get a more accurate map). Another thing about the Unichip is since its a piggy back computer (stand alone) you don't tamper with anything in the ECU, it simply hooks up to it. If anything should void the warranty it would be the JET chip which requires you to remove your ECU from your car and shipping it out to them.

Most of the information I've learned and relaying here is through their website, talking to the Racer's Group main technician (Tony), and accounts from the V6 Accord members who've had the Unichip installed. (I just turn into a big sponge when it concerns the next mod that I'm considering) I understand your skepticism, until there's more proof (specifically for the TL).

Like I said above, I'm planning to get the Unichip once they have the new unit available in August. I'll open an invitation to anybody who wants to witness the dyno tuning at the Racer's Group at Sonoma California. Hopefully, after that my car could be considered as proof of whether the mod works or not.

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">[This message has been edited by GIMMICK on June 04, 2001 @ ]</font>

GIMMICK

Here's an excerpt directly from the Racer's Group website that can be considered as a rebutal for your arguement.

The factories program their ECU`s to operate under the worse conditions possible. They have to assume that customers will be traveling from state to state, using different types of fuel, encountering altitude changes, temperature variations, etc, etc. ALL engines are a little different (more than you would think) & people drive & maintain their cars differently. When the factories offer a "bonus" of not having to service your new vehicle for an extended period of time, it definitely comes at a price. They have to factor in so many variables & assure the general public that their shiny new car will start every time & under all conditions that they are forced to simply "neuter" the tuning. The ECU is setup for the lowest common denominator otherwise it will not function correctly. With the UNICHIP, everything now changes & each car can now perform to its optimum. These optimized gains can be significant.

Gomez

I understand that a lot of people think: "if there was a way, Acura would've already done it." However, you have to remember that your engine is tuned by Acura not only for power and emissions, but also comfort and fuel economy. Lose a little in one area, gain in another.

That in mind, I find it easily believable that you could extract 10 HP easy from our wngine sacrificing only a little smoothness and fuel economy.

Remember that many manufacturers run the same block in different levels of tune for radically different behavior. Consider GM's 350 small block in the Corvette vs. a Tahoe...

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'01 White Diamond Pearl 3.2TL
-Wing, tint, wood and Whistler

Edub

hi guys,
was wondering if a newer chip was ever designed and installed by anyone here... also, if they made a chip for the CL S,... it should fit the TL s too right?

thanks
eric

samkws

ok....so after a bunch of talking...

how much is that chip?????

A$IAN_CHICKEN

2 years later.....

JayDawgs2000TL

I guess nothin ever came from it... lol hence the post being 2 years old... If there are some chips out there for the TL, I would love to know... But I've never seen one yet...

AndySara

I just wrote the Unichip distributor in the US this morning. This is the reply I received.

Subject: Unichip Information
Date: Tue, 22 Apr 2003 09:06:47 -0700
From: "Jack Friedman"
To: Andy <andyo@bellsouth.net>



Andy,
Currently we can do only fuel control on your car. We're working on a new module which will control fuel and timing... that should provide a better solution than the current module and better than anything else you can buy.
The problem isn't a technical, but rather limited demand to date; however, the S2000 uses the same control scheme as your car so the demand is now there.
I hope to have a test module ready in about a month and if everything If you're interested, give me a shout in two months and I should be able to provide you with a great control unit. If you have any other questions, call or shoot me an e-mail.

Jack

Jack Friedman, General Manager
The Racer's Group
(707) 935-3999
Fax (707) 382-6007

Edward'TLS

By the time they are still working on the CHIPS for the current generation TL, the all new '04 TL would have already come out. Might as well ask them to start working on the '04 TL chips.

AndySara

Guess what else I just received ?

Subject: RE: Unichip Information
Date: Tue, 22 Apr 2003 11:35:51 -0700
From: "Jack Friedman"
To: <AndyO@Bellsouth.net>



Andy,
I'm forwarding this to the guy who may head up the Unichip Honda/Acura development program. Feel free to speak with him about what's going on in terms of interest and product development. The more interest, the sooner things will get developed and released.

Jack

Jack Friedman, General Manager
The Racer's Group
(707) 935-3999
Fax (707) 382-6007


You guys have any interest in the product ??

samkws

sure
if the price is right~

patrick

I got an e-mail from Fred Friedman, and he says it costs about US $995 for both the chip and install. Expensive IMHO. The performance gains is more than 10 HP - I got a fax copy of the dyno, and it is posted on the other website. But the gains are at the crank...nevertheless the Unichip does provide extra HP - 297.8 HP at 6,500 RPM (with intake and exhaust).

samkws

wow...995 for a chip is too expensive to me either~