Evocars "Chip"

[wrinx]

Is there a good reason why I shouldn't buy THIS (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FIAT-Coupe-16V-Turbo-EVOCARS-chip-260HP-Q4-Delta-HPE_W0QQitemZ140231118672QQihZ004QQcategoryZ32094Q QssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)?

wrinx

[Q4Jan]

Not sure.
I and most other dutch Q4 drivers have this one:
http://squadra-tuning.nl/EN/en_alfa_155_q4.htm

But mine is more expensive and the evo one promises more hp....

I am not sure how it does that really because behind squadra-tuning is stephan lenior who has quite a big name in alfa tuning over here.

[wrinx]

I've already got a Squadra fitted but don't like having to use higher octane petrol, the price here is just stupid!

wrinx

[Brul(tm)]

don't like having to use higher octane petrol, the price here is just stupid!


That's no differnece on the other side of the pond :mad:

Squadra tell's you to use RON98 petrol, but I guess this is also the case with the Evocars chip. You just can't change the mapping whitout influencing the behavior of the engine. The work of Stpehan is considered save and fool proof! Not to much pressure, this way the head casget and the intercooler stay in one piece. If you want more than 1.4 bar, you need to repleace at least the intercooler for a stronger one (without the plasric side connections). You also might want to change to different spark plugs and so on....


Greetings,
Marc

[AlfaJack]

I have been running my Squadra on RON 95 for about 6 months now. Can barely tell the difference to be honest.

[Steve Webb]

The only problems I could see is the 1.5 bar overboost pressure, this is just over the accepted max for a standard head gasket of 1.4bar.

Also there are a couple of different Q4 ECU revisions and I'm not sure that its a 1 chip fits all soultion. If you do get the chip I would seriously suggest taking the car to a reputable rolling road to get the fueling spot on.

Other than that, yes cooler plugs are needed.

I was lucky in that Evocars wrote the chip for my car specifically for the mods on my car, and set it up on a rolling road.

[Evodelta]

Is there a good reason why I shouldn't buy THIS (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FIAT-Coupe-16V-Turbo-EVOCARS-chip-260HP-Q4-Delta-HPE_W0QQitemZ140231118672QQihZ004QQcategoryZ32094Q QssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)?

wrinx

On reading that list of rubbish I can think of several.

[AlfaJack]

If this is of any help the ECUs installed on Q4s are:

IAW 4W6 616.00.102
IAW 4W6 616.00.103
IAW 4W6 616.00.104

Where as Fiat Coupe IAW 4WF 194.05 for the 16vt (.04 if no immobiliser)

This is info from the Coupe forum. Not sure if these chips can cross between the different ECUs.

If the fuelling needs to be re-written to match the car, do they need to adjust all the settings in the EvoCars chip? If so, it would probably be best to make a map from scratch. Lots of money though.

[wrinx]

Is this the same?

http://www.evocars.com/acatalog/EPROM_Alfa_Romeo.html

wrinx

[Brul(tm)]

Is this the same?

http://www.evocars.com/acatalog/EPROM_Alfa_Romeo.html



Looks like the same figures as the Squadra chip. So I am still convinced that RON98 petrol is needed with this chip.
Like AlfaJack, I also run the Squadra chip on RON95 without problems.
It's a bit less aggresive on the throtle, but seems to be working.
The RON98 advise from Stephan is to prevent engine damage, so he strongly recomends RON98.

Greetings,
Marc

[WhizzMan]

To my understanding, the revisions in ECU firmware had to do with minor problems found and slightly changed emissions-regulations, not with engine changes, so one-chip-fits-all should work for a universal chip. If you want max power, get a chip made custom for your car on a rolling road etc. These generic maps are made to work okay on every stock car, but not get maximal performance, since the limits of each car differ slightly, they don't want to get too close to the edge and still put in a safety-margin. Stephan is quite conservative in his "off the shelf" performance chips and always advises people to run RON98 to make certain that what he promises will actually be achieved. If some "bigmouth" tuner decides to get closer to the limit of what's safe and works for every car, it's possible they claim higher output, but the percentage of customers that will encounter problems in stead of satisfaction will be higher than with a squadra chip.

Using RON98 enables your car to run at more advance for spark and/or higher boost. Since the ECU is hooked up to the knock-sensor and the pierburg, it auto-corrects if it detects knocking by decreasing boost and/or lessening spark-advance. This way, you can run RON95 in your "chipped" car without noticing too much. It *will* make it run less optimal and decrease the amount of torque/HP your car can produce, but if all systems function, your engine will not be damaged. For better performance, go for higher RON, for cheap(er) driving, go for regular 95.

[q4fatboy]

I run my Squadra on 95 RON for normal driving but am careful not to abuse it. For abuse sessions it always gets 98 RON.

That said my engines it bits at the moment, hopefully not related to the above.