Race chip gives a warranty for engine . Vap dont

 

Racechip isn't exactly a "tune" because the ECU continues to run the standard OEM ECU programing. That's why it's undetectable. The quality of health monitoring is inherent to the OEM software. Since any health monitoring scheme works by monitoring resulting conditions rather than analyzing control inputs, the OEM software should catch any dangerous result like it does all the time. The exception is the higher than known boost which puts the engine's overall build strength to the test like any tune.

 

Thanks - is there any detailed information about what specific parameters are adjusted by the Racechip and to what degree for each map?
And what the differences are for each these parameters between the 5-7 maps that come with the racechip unit?
i wasn’t able to find this info on the site.

 

https://www.youtube.com/user/RaceChipChiptuningyoutube
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...lZ3HyNwOTQm8uf

There is a brief Jag blurb on their .us site from the 2014 days.
https://www.racechip.us/presse-news/...type-v8-s.html

It confirms exactly what I found with my V8 S, the base motor puts down more than 495 HP, 488 WHP to be exact or 508 WHP with a supercharger pulley. So the V8 S makes 555 HP at the flywheel from the factory, or 575 HP with a pulley. The numbers seem strangely coincidental with the R, so maybe they are truly the same car?

 

Not the same car (suspension differences), but certainly the same engine/tune.

 

I'd be nervous to potentially void my warranty for 40 ponies, TBH. That said, I've really liked reading this thread!

 

Thanks for the links, I was looking for information around what engine / ecu paramaters are altered and how, for example:
-are fuel tables altered? Does the car utilize short / long term fuel trims and if so how are these adjusted in real time to account for increased boost?
-how is afr kept adjusted, what's the curve like under load?
-is timing advanced, how much?
-how is the intake air temp increase due to higher boost impacting everything (feuling, timing corrections, etc.)?
-Are knock tables or sensors adjusted in any way, if so how, and why?
-are there logs showing what the above paramaters and more look like under wot?

On the bmw platforms we have a great piggy back called jb4, and all the above details and more are fully transparent, you can take logs to check the health of your engine against the tune, and much more. It's hard for me to trust what this race chip is trying to accomplish without knowing more about what it being altered and to what extend and what is not being altered.

 

I have a JB4 BMW. Racechip is nothing like a JB4. It's a lot like a JB Plus. It's gives a moderate 10-15% boost as a set and forget device with no useful user interface beyond off/on. With the Bluetooth app you can turn it off/on while driving. I wouldn't even call it a tune, it's not a piggyback ECU like JB4, nor does it altered firmware like Velocity. The stock ECU and stock firmware still operate normally but sensor intercepts fool the ECU into commanding a little more boost.

The only similarity to JB4 is it can be removed in a few minutes without a trace. The RC harness only has two intercepts instead of JB4's four. One sensor is easier than any of the JB4 locations, and one is harder the first time, but similar to JB4 once you figure it out.

Go RC if you want the possibility of preserving your warranty and you don't have any bolt-ons that will throw a code without a tune. You can combine high flow air filters and an upper pulley without issue. It's also about $200 cheaper.

Go VAP if you are out of warranty and/or want bolt-ons that require a tune.

Both seem to give comparable performance boosts to a stock car including an upper pulley. If you want a lower pulley you can't use RC.

Neither are going to give you anything in the ball park of a JB4 experience, with a hundred tunable parameters on the fly, seven programmable maps, pedal programming, gauge hijacking to repurpose the instrument cluster, a USB/BT interface with laptop performance logging and detailed firmware tweaking and a dashboard UI to use while driving.

Both RC and VAP cost more than a JB4 too, so be ready for that. Obviously the F-Type can't support a 100K tuners and those kinds of economies of scale. What the Jag does give you is a ferocious bitch lion of a car, before tuning.

 

Can someone go in to more detail on how to "rig" the exhaust valves open? Someone mentioned pulling a fuse. What am I looking for? (This would be on my 3.0 SC XF so I might not have the same options).

 

Removing Fuse 43 in the left side footwell fails the valves to open in my 2014.

 

Thanks, do you know what Fuse 43 is listed as controlling in the owners manual? Is it just "exhaust valve" or something similar? It might be a different number if it exists at all in my car.

ETA: I have three different fuses all listed as "Exhaust Sensors". Maybe just related to catalytic converter?

 

Or a playdough BMW charge pipe that cracks into 5 pieces and blows off the throttle body if you add 1 psi more boost. And a plastic boost solenoid that fails after a year. And a sensor connector so cheap it breaks in half. And plastic turbo intercooler piping that leaks in three places you can't fix without upgrading. Or a turbo plagued with oil control problems that coats your valves in caked carbon build-up if you don't add a catch can and methanol injection. Or a crap pressed tin and plastic FMIC that can't hold a seal when boosted and has to be replaced with a aftermarket all-aluminum quality part. Seriously.

 

yes all true, Might I also add rattly turbos, oil leaks from the valve cover, oil filter housing, oil pan, rear main seal, the failing injectors which Can flood your engine, or the short circuiting 2007-2009 Ecu that also takes out all your injectors, coils, and plugs (happened to me!), and my favorite - the glorious issue of the power steering pulley contacting the subframe which shreds the belt causing it to be ingested through the front seal blowing up your motor....which is why I was disheartened to learn that the next generation F-Type may be using a bmw v8!! Thanks for the detail, super helpful.

 

Ok, adding to my 7 year old BMW's neverending list of $1500 to $10,000 problems: sheared vanos bolt heads in the oil pan, rough idle, clogged vanos solenoids, entire fuse box electrical bus shorting, burned starter motor, starter motor leads on fire, leaking oil filter housing gaskets prematurely destroying the serpentine belt and tensioner pully, two time $3700 clutch replacement in <100K miles, leaking intake manifold gaskets, cracked vacuum lines x 2, failed battery interface, recalled lethal airbags, torn fake leather seats, dashboard delaminated at 90K miles, convertible top total fabric failure at 100K, complete front bumper separation from mild chin scraping, FMIC bolt failure, underbody cardboard cladding failure at all panel attachment point, 4 x failover failure causing tire rubbing on wheel well liners, gloss black interior air vent lovers have turned matte lime green, catastrophic M package front left alloy wheel failure, radiator reservoir failure, multiple oil pan leaks requiring removal of the front subframe, and I'm forgetting half the problems. "German engineering" coming to a Jag near you.

 

That would be a 4.11% with a 59.5mm pulley (the smallest one on the market for the F-Type)

 

Who offers a 59.5mm upper?