azlane

I was just wondering if anyone had tried these?

I am considering the purchase of a VBox Performance Box for my C63. I think this product would provide a good way to determine the best launch methods without having to go to a drag strip (or buy a helmet). It will give you the 60' times as well as the 1/4 and max velocity (or other distances if you want).

They are not cheap ($450) but I'm thinking it may be a good way to get something like 0-60 comparison times if you use it under safe conditions (empty country blacktop somewhere...).

I would also be very curious to see if anyone had taken a performance box to the dragstrip and compared times?

NS_C63

I have one. Works very well.

GPS based and very accurate.

The most it has ever been off compared to the track is about
0.07 of a sec. This difference you can only see when you download
data to computer because the unit only displays 1 decimal place and
the downloaded data gives you 2 decimal places.

It also has time and distance tests that can be customised.

Measures altitude.

Measures power (hp/kw) - this I find is not very accurate, but if you are measuring on the same stretch of road with same conditions in same gear then you can use it as a guide.

Ron Scarboro

Ditto, very accurate for acceleration...

Altitude is not accurate at all. There is a lot of noise on their boards regarding this feature and what it is for.

HP calc is sensitive to the inputs and road conditions. It is handy to compare cars though. I don't know what the true HP is, but I do know how they fare against each other on the same stretch of road.

Even Money

What's the point if you're not going to run down the 1/4 mile?

miami1lt

I have the G-Tech Pro from years ago...I am not totally pleased (since I didn't buy the RR version with download capability, and it SUCKS at hanging on the window)....is the VBox that big of an improvement do you know? If so, it may be worth the $$...

NS_C63

I have been using mine for over 2 years now. I have never had it come of the windscreen ever. Downloading the data is cool if really want to analyse your runs.

Dads C63

If you want an accurate way to record your cars performance and then review it and then you will want a V-Box.

EUGENE-Taiwan

totally agree the vbox is a great tool to use your cars performance.

I also use it aswell.

and its really fun to how fast your going

60-130 is a very popular way of seeing how fast your really is on a rolling start.

mine record was 9.01 sec 6MT

make sure you find a really flat road.

most people that are into these times know the a +/- 3% max on slopes is allowed

miami1lt

Can't wait...mine comes in tomorrow from VividRacing.

One thing that should be noted...the manual says that Power Mode is only for Manual Trannies and shouldn't be used for semi/fully automatic cars...

I think others eluded to its inaccuracy, but that is the justification--it isn't designed for A/Ts.

I really like that you can customize...there aren't many places here to do 60-130 tests (not saying I haven't), so for me, a 50-100 run would be much easier to duplicate at same/place time to see how my mods are working.

EUGENE-Taiwan

i'm not sure who can do this on MBworld. but you guys should do a 60-130 chart and have a moderator varifly it too
it will be fun

miami1lt

Yeah, not sure how that goes, though...1/4 mile times are drag strips...60-130mph times are usually street (unless doing a 1/2 or mile long run). I think that is asking for trouble if a moderator starts a thread like that.

My best 60-130 time was piecing a 50-85 time with a 70-130 time, and taking the 60-70 piece out of the first and matching with the 2nd...I was around 9.7-9.8...but that was in NO way a verified time.

EUGENE-Taiwan

maybe its different of every forum! If someone can keep record of it. I will be very interesting because of the mods. and what are the real life results. As you know the dyno is good but can vary from dyno to dyno.

BerBer63

It's recorded in the e55 forum sticky.

Mort

Should you not get good HP/TQ readings in manual mode or dyno mode in the C63?

The difference from chassis dynamometer readings will be wind direction and speed, how level the road is, rolling resistance of the tires, aerodynamic drag, etc.

miami1lt

^^^^
From Page 21 of the Vbox Manual

Power Mode
Your car’s power output can be measured using the Power Mode. There are two parts to this process: the acceleration run, which gives you the power at the wheels minus the losses caused by tyre and air resistance. The second part of the test measures these losses and also estimates gearbox losses. The Power Mode is also an additional tool for car tuning, where access to a chassis dynamometer is not possible.
Note that this is an estimation of power, and as such when carried out correctly will probably be within 5% of the true figure. It is very important that the test is carried out on a completely flat road and the correct procedure is followed very carefully. Please also note that power calculations may not be possible if the car is equipped with anything other than a standard manual gearbox – fully or semi automatic transmissions are unsuitable.

Just telling you what it says!

miami1lt

Initial Review of PerformanceBox:

Ordered from Vivid Racing via third party (hint: Giant Jungle/Rainforest in S. America shares the same name) for $515 shipped...ordered on 28 Mar and received today...GREAT turn-around time, and only paid $5 extra for "expedited shipping".

Ok, so instructions are SIMPLE...you do have to register the product online to get access to ALL the goodies...unfortunately for me on the ride home from work today, I registered and had the email sent to my hotmail account, which I can't access from work. However, registering unlocks Lap Mode, Power Mode and something else. But I was still able to see it do the normal speedometer/compass, and also the race mode, which does your 0-whatevers, accel/decel, etc...

So, it is about the easiest electronic product to set up I've ever seen...it truly plugs in and plays immediately...they said you have to wait up to 15 min for it to find a signal...it took literally about 20 secs.

Speed was DEAD on...sure, there are times when it jumps around between tenths of seconds, and at a stop, it oscillates between 0-.1mph, but nothing major.

I did 2 x 30-50 runs and 2 x 50-70 runs...this thing is smartly built...everytime I went below 30 or 50, it automatically started again...and then it logs all the runs, but has a "best" screen, which will keep your best runs that are saved on the SD card (included). And for curiosity, my best 30-50mph time was 1.4 secs and 50-70 time was 1.9 secs.

I DIDN'T save to the SD card, so can't verify how the software works that comes with it. But I do have to admit that so far, I REALLY feel the money is very well worth it...Puts my G-Tech Pro to absolute and udder shame!

More updates (w/ graphs) to come.

EUGENE-Taiwan

put on some 60-130 times

miami1lt

^^ Will definitely try...but this isn't Taipei here...if I get clocked doing 130 here, it is game over...and we don't really have the roads to do it (ie. flat enough with cop visibility)...I've hit 130 about 3 times--I had to scope the route out a few times before I did it. Hawai'i uses laser only, so there is no guaranteed detection.

I will try to put a couple down...but it may take some time for the window to open up.

azlane

If anyone finds that they aren't using their vbox that much anymore and wants to sell it, please PM me as I might buy a used one if it is working 100%.

EUGENE-Taiwan

Ya I know what you mean!

I lived there for 2years when I was little.

you live on Ohau?

miami1lt

Yeah, Oahu just outside of Honolulu (like there's anywhere else other than in or just outside of Honolulu here).

By the way, thought I'd share a nice little run today...only a 10-90mph run, but I like the time (8.06s). I felt that was strong, since 90-100 should come in just over a sec and 0-10 should come in about .4 secs.

EUGENE-Taiwan

glad your having fun! the vbox really gets you to learn more about your car !

miami1lt

Just thought I'd throw another pitch out for VBOx after using it a bit more...this is awesome...you can take your entire run, and overlay it onto Google Earth...see attached, I took a snippit run (60-100mph), and graphed it, then exported the coords to google earth...perfect match (by the way, this is merged in powerpoint...you can't overlay the graph on the map I don't think...would be cool if you could).

Elevation was off a bit, and distance of run was VBox 588ft vs. Google Earh 594ft (that could have just been my misalignment of the google earth tool. But I was even in the left lane...amazing...by the way, you can't change that line, it is a loaded file that google earth opens, so no manipulation allowed I don't think.

Anyway, fun to see where your runs were...I can't believe the car can go from 60-100 in that short space (look at the size of the cars, and realize that in less than a Mark McGwire juiced ball, the car has picked up 40mph at highway speeds...awesome!

there is a ton you can do with this thing.

Only thing I don't like is there are quite a few drop-outs around here (infrastructure related). and I also can't figure out how to format the SD Card, as it says there is protection on it...but my runs are quickly adding up

W204 C63

wow thats awesome! i might have to get one of these.

miami1lt

it's worth it...even though a tad pricey, it will give you a good estimate of what you can do with the car.

WIFE ALERT!!

It is pretty wife-proof...however, if any of you Tiger Woods wannabes don't want your wife tracking your every movement, I suggest keeping this off unless you are doing a run. It will literally track every single movement, and if you overlay the entire plot, could lead her right to your "alternate home"...not saying I have to worry about that, just saying for those that may, this will get you BUSTED if she can figure how to operate it