eBay performance chip

[Wulfkind]

I was poking around ebay and ran into one of these:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2007-07-Toy...rts_Accessories

Now, I don't buy into the ebay performance mods much (much like the hyclone or the fuel saving devices!) but this one had me thinking and wondering if something like this does have any kind of benefit or if its just snake oil?

[dannywss]

nothing cheap is good.. put it in, if **** happens, u get all engine lights on, abs, and ****.. then who u gonna blame? yourself..

never spend cheap on mod

[the_random_hero]

I was poking around ebay and ran into one of these:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2007-07-Toy...rts_Accessories

Now, I don't buy into the ebay performance mods much (much like the hyclone or the fuel saving devices!) but this one had me thinking and wondering if something like this does have any kind of benefit or if its just snake oil?

It's just a resistor that changes air intake temp. sensor signal to advance timing a tiny little bit. 5c from Jaycar if you want to buy one ;)

[ELEGNT]

^^ wow he's good!!

[DJKOR]

^^ wow he's good!!

No joke... this guy was too good for us when I was studying... LOL.

[boxerboy]

From the ebay blurb...

How IAT "chips" damage your vehicle:

The majority of so-called "Performance Chips" on eBay are simple 1¢ resistors, often presented in a fancy box, sometimes with a switch or knob hanging off one side. They ALWAYS connect to the IAT and disable its functionality, and WILL damage your engine. The fact that these chips claim gains of 50, 80, even up to 100HP (better than most forced induction conversions) for a mere $10 or less is simply absurd. We at Volo wanted to take the chance to explain why these are bad for your vehicle...

Whatever the cost...he'd be making a killing with every sale.

[the_random_hero]

From the ebay blurb...

How IAT "chips" damage your vehicle:

The majority of so-called "Performance Chips" on eBay are simple 1¢ resistors, often presented in a fancy box, sometimes with a switch or knob hanging off one side. They ALWAYS connect to the IAT and disable its functionality, and WILL damage your engine. The fact that these chips claim gains of 50, 80, even up to 100HP (better than most forced induction conversions) for a mere $10 or less is simply absurd. We at Volo wanted to take the chance to explain why these are bad for your vehicle...

Whatever the cost...he'd be making a killing with every sale.

They don't kill your car... providing you aren't stupid with it :) Most of the time your factory timing curve is retarded to the point where you're miles away from detonation, a tiny little bit of advance shouldn't cause you any issues at all. On later model cars, I can't guarantee that you won't throw an ECU light although it shouldn't happen.

I'm not suggesting that everybody else rush out and do it, but it's a nice simple mod that is part of the way to netting similar gains to an aftermarket ECU on a stock engine. Read here for some more information.

[boxerboy]

I didn't mean killing the car...

[the_random_hero]

I didn't mean killing the car...

I was talking about what Volo (Volvo?) said ;)