Anyone chip their E300 non-turbo?
 

I been contemplating for a while whether to chip my '97 E300. My main concern has been mileage while reliability is also a factor. The place I've had in mind is www.SpeedTuning.com

Any reviews guys?

Oppsss.. I meant http://www.speedtuningusa.com/

is there anything to chip? I mean with mechanical fuel injection (right?) it's all pretty simple.

They reprogram your ECM technically, but many refer this generically as "chipping"

I have a 95 E300D. What claims do they make about the reprogramming?

This is the Dyno page

Go to th every bottom and you will see the E300 and further down the E300TD.

I also believe that those figures are at the rear wheels. Don't mark my words but I believe that from a previous email I had sent them a while back...

Interesting, but when does it make the extra hp? I'd have to see it graphed. If the extra hp/torque is developed over a wide range of rpm it might be of some benefit. On the other hand a spike hp/t gain is next to worthless. Chips/programming are usually pretty effective procedures but normally come at the expense of economy and sometimes increased emissions. I'd have a hard time getting excited about 15hp. Keep us posted if you op for the deal.

Nobody addressed Mark's question... To the best of my knowledge fuel control and timing on the OM606 is NOT controled by ANY electronic devices. What exactly are they "chipping" and how do they increase power without adding fuel?

IMHO these "performance chips" are pretty much BS. I've bought two chips for a BMW I owned and could not detect the slightest difference in performance. Save your money and if you are really interested in a higher performing car buy an E320 gasser.

Tim

The E300 is a drive-by-wire system. So while it has a mechanical injection pump, that pump is electronically controlled. I haven't done the chip, but one of our members in the UK did and posted about it a long time ago. Try searching for E300 in the Performance Paddock.

An E320... Gas car? If I wanted a gas car then I would have bought an E320.

Anyway from my research I see that it increases the amount of fuel. Such that if I currently let the RPM's climb to 3K before I shift, where as I would only have to let the RPM's climb to a value less than 3K to achieve that same result. I'm going to try to contact them to see if they have any dyno information.

Rick

In a "drive by wire" system an electric motor moves the throttle plate instead of a complicated series of rods and pivot points. The motor moves the throttle arm instead of your foot - please correct me if I'm wrong here but the actual fuel control and governor are the same mechanical systems that have been in use for decades.
The amount of fuel that is injected for a given movement of the throttle arm is not effected at all by the a chip. UNLESS maybe the chip alters the characteristics of the throttle system so that a smaller push on the accelerator is translated into more movement of the throttle actuator. This would make the car seem faster.

At any rate I don't think I'd to the manufacturer for performance data. I'm sure they will tell you it will run 14 second quarters with a new chip.

Tim

Well, apparently the chip does something.

Thread 1

See Eddie Gilmartin's post in this thread, as well as Lightman's post below it explaining how the chips work in a Diesel.
Thread 2

(Edit)By the way, my diesels don't have throttle plates. But my E300 does have an electronically controlled turbo wastegate and EGR valve, which can certainly have an effect on performance. I haven't dug under the intake manifold to take a peek at the injection pump yet.

Pardon me if I'm a bit dense, but I'm stumped as to how an NA diesel can be chipped to do anything other than adjust its idle, pump timing and/or possibly increasing the high rpm fuel load--for tiny gains in HP and possibly slight losses in MPG.

I've played with NA VW diesels and found that by advancing the IP timing I was able to improve throttle response, but that's about it. There was a slight corresponding loss in fuel mileage. Without increasing the volume and/or density of the air in the cylinder along with a corresponding increase in fuel volume, I'm not sure how any HP gains can be realized in an NA engine.

The '98-'99 E300 turbodiesels available here in the states 'may' benefit from "chipping" if the internal full load stop and IP timing can be adjusted in concert with higher turbo boost pressures. Don't the OM606 engines also have variable intake runners that are electronically or vacuum operated? Maybe this is another area where both NA and turbo E300D's 'might' benefit from chip tuning.

I hope someone will chime in with some solid unbiased info--I'm curious myself.

Remember, that this is an 11% gain over stock. I agree that the real questions are where does it come into play, how is it done and does it increase fuel consumption in the range you drive it most.

Zeitgeist

I don't think the OM606 has timing control that is effected by electronics. I've never had one apart but I'm pretty sure this engine uses basically the same injection systems as the OM602/OM603 engines. I know these engines use a mechanical spring loaded advance device because I had it in my had the other day. You can set the start of delivery but the advance is under control of the spring calibration in the IP advance device. I'm also stumped how a chip could make any difference since no electronics are used for the delivery of fuel.

Rick
Your engine certainly does have boost control that is directed by a computer, as does my 91 300D. You can increase boost up to 50PSI (If you disabled the overboost protection system - it steps in anything over 1.1 bar as I recall) but unless your injection pump is calibrated to deliver the correct FUEL charge for the new boost level you will not get any more power. Period. FUEL = POWER. THis is why I'm not sure how a chip can change things in an OM606. When you do look at your IP you will see it has lots of electronic connections - they control idle speed and I think there is another connection for a rack position sensor that gives the ECU controlling the boost a sense of how much throttle has been aplplied.

I did read the posts from the guy in Ireland - If his 97 is a new CDI it would make sense that a chip could change things alot.
but hey I'm a skeptic. I also don't believe thant K&N air filters enhance performance... Call me strange.

Tim