Chip Tuning....

[David C Klasse]

Tonight it occured to me the possibility that my car just might already have a chip installed. Of course, it's very unlikely, but a number of growing indicators make me think it just might.

I raced a friend in her 1997 c280 from a stoplight and i one by a fare margin up to 50 mph or so (about a carlenth). I know she was flooring it, I could hear her engine still rev in first gear when we were doing 40.

I could beat (barely though) a 1999 BMW 323is (friend used to have one) to 60 mph (BMW rated 7.2/1 seconds to sixty and Mercedes C280 8.3...[could this be because they are tested differently by different manufacturers?])

Another friend of mine has a Porsche boxster, 2001, 2.7 liter flat 6, rated by Porsche 0-60 @ 6.3 +/- (don't recall EXACT #), and he just barely beat me all the way up to 80 mph, and I had a passenger. He had the advantage up to about 60, about a car length or two, but then we were still the same (1-2 carlengths different) up to 80. I suppose this could be partly due to the fact that his stick shifting ability might not be as fast as the rating.

I am aware these are not tests in a test environment without test equipment and all, just rough ratings.

Anyway, I know that it's very unlikely that my car already has a chip, but is there anyway to tell? I can see the 3 modules under the hood, but don't know which one is the ECU (that's the one they tune, correct?). Even so, I wouldn't have the slightest idea how to tell. Is there anyway without taking it apart?

(I feel somewhat ignorant asking this question because it's probably just me getting amped over nothing, but that's why I have you all here. )

[Edited by David C Klasse on 06-13-2001 at 03:08 AM]

[David C Klasse]

Raced the C280 against the CLK320 (top up) and I won by just less than a car's distance. The spec ratings for a CLK320 with top up are 0-60 in 7.5, and my C280 is supposed to be 8.3. Maybe this is just because my car is 90,000 miles broken in, meanwhile the CLK is only 900 miles broken in.... ?

Any thoughts?

[Ashman]

David,

Remember your posts about Driving hard.

Remember how mercedes cars especially newere ones tend to adjust to how you drive?

I think you are just a better driver than the others, and I think driving hard has made your car faster.

But really who knows, I'd consider that it is possible, but wouldn't your mech notice?

My car is the kind of car that drags until about 40, then really gets its wings and takes off from there.

Unless I brakestand and take off, but I'm skeptical about that with less than 2k on the tranny rebuild.

Alon

[MBenzNL]

Originally posted by David C Klasse
I raced a friend in her 1997 c280 from a stoplight and i one by a fare margin up to 50 mph or so (about a carlenth). I know she was flooring it, I could hear her engine still rev in first gear when we were doing 40.

I once "raced" my 1985 190D (2,0l 4-cylinder) against a friend of me with a 1986 190D 2,5 (5-cylinder) and I even managed to overtake him after I had been bumper tailing him some 10 kilometers on our Dutch 1,5 car wide roads...I am sure that it wasn't my car being fast or his car being slow, it was him being not able to beat/(disab)use his car.

greetingz,

[David C Klasse]

Steve,
I understand that because it seems more like ones ability to drive/race long distances, is a little different than a straight line acceleration from a stand still by simply jamming the pedal to the floor.

Alon,
That's a good point... maybe my car has adjusted itself to my driving style. (BTW, did you get my emails?)