AMGTestDriverNJ

I'm going to a tuning shop called KMD in NJ to get some baseline numbers on my E350 4matic. Why?! You might ask, well, I'm going to send my ECU out to Powerchip and I want to see what the real whp gains are yielded from a $700 dollar tune. There is alot of information out there about powerchip but I haven't seen any before and after dyno runs. The facility uses (forgive my spelling) a maha dyno which from what I understand is the most accurate because it compensates for road resistance and so forth. This is more of a project than anything else, I'm not even sure I will keep the tune. I guess it depends on the results. I'm hoping that this will help everyone else trying to decide with some real proof from a reliable 3rd party. I hope you are all interested as this whole process will be happening rather quickly. I hope to have the tuned ECU back in the car by Friday and back on the dyno either Friday or Saturday depending on the shop's schedule. I will keep you all posted! Wish me luck!

lkchris

So they have a 4-wheel dyno?

sdunham

How are you going to Dyno a 4-matic...? AWD version Dyno..?

With respect to the Powerchip, I was under the impression they don't add much more than about 10 horses which just doesn't seem worth the cost...
Are they telling you to expect significant gains in HP and Torque...?

GDawgC220

Yep, there are 4 wheel dynos out there.

Benz-O-Rama

Don't forget to put the car in dyno mode.


http://www.radioandtv.cc/audio/E55Dyno.wmv

AMGTestDriverNJ

of course there are 4wd dynos! How do you think they tune/dyno porsche turbos, WRX's, Audi's ect??? Anyway, yes I realize the car has to be in dyno mode otherwise the pulls won't be accurate. I will post results as soon as they are available. I may be pushed back to Thurs depending on their schedule tomorrow but I will keep the thread updated. If anybody would care to help, I would like to video the dyno pulls and put them on youtube for you guys to view, but I have yet to do the whole youtube video upload thing. Anyone w/ insight there or the ability to post for me would be greatly appreciated.

155

I'm really curious to see the numbers as I'm considering a Powerchip as well. Benz-o-rama's 500 seems really quick (based on 1/4 times) and seems to have made a significant difference. Let us know how it goes

155

OH btw, how many miles on your car?

Benz-O-Rama

Still haven't dynoed the damn thing though. I guess I should do that. Don't discount my awesomeness at driving the 1/4 mile. I'm a fantastic gas pedal pusher.

Plus I had the car waxed right before the track event. I'm sure that shaved off a few tenths.

AMGTestDriverNJ

Thats correct, they claim about 10hp and about 13 tq, nothing crazy but I want to see how much WHP we are really talking about here. Then, with the actual WHP numbers in hand from before and after, I'll divide the cost by number of hp gained to get an idea of $ to whp ratio. Right off the bat, I'm pretty sure it isn't worth the $ to most, but I have to see for myself what the state of the tuning game is. Additionally, being as my car asthetically + exhaust is a Brabus car, I want it to have just a little bit more kick that a regular 350 wouldn't. Only seems right, doesn't it? Its a couple hundred bucks out of pocket but I think the information that will be gained will be invaluable to the rest of you on the boards. I'm doing it for the people!

and yes, of course they have awd dynos. Think of all the tuned audis and porsches among others.....

AMGTTV8

awesome...this will be interesting - if i had a dollar for the number of times i stared at my screen wondering if it would be worth it..

Benz-O-Rama

Even more than the mild horsepower gains I got from my tune, what I enjoy most is the increased throttle response. You'll see what I mean. It just "wakes up" the car. Hard to explain.

AMGTestDriverNJ

just over 6 thousand miles! Pretty new, just enough miles to be ready for the dyno!

AMGTestDriverNJ

I'm doin it for you brotha! And everyone else that has thought the same! I'd love to do a tuner shootout, but I doubt many would be up put their software head to head w/ anyone elses and frankly I don't have enough cars or money to handle an independent version like this one I'm doing.....

AMGTestDriverNJ

That increased throttle response is programmed in similar to what the sprint booster would do if you just had that unit alone. While I understand that this really "wakes up the car" and I'm excited that it will, I'm concerned about actual whp which is what I imagine all of you are interested in. I know that there are alot of people who are less technically inclined than others, and I believe that tuners and tuning companies offering chip tuning prey on your lack of knowledge of what real whp is. Making your car feel faster, and actually making your car make more power are two different things, but to the laymen, they can be easily confused. I hope that this experiment will clarify this for everyone which is my ultimate goal! Arm yourself with knowledge!

Benz-O-Rama

I hear ya. I think my tuner claimed 20-25hp and 20-25tq increase, at the crank. Take into account the drivetrain loss of 18% (in a RWD car, not sure abuot AWD) I figured I got 15-19hp/tq at the wheels. I can say that my car ran a 14.2x @99mph before my tune and 13.49@102.5 after my tune. And I ran no slower than a 13.7x (with ESP on ) this last time out.

Now, there are a lot of factors to consider. Ambient temperature, unsprung weight, tires, and launch technique to name a few. All of these factors were 'better' during my recent faster runs. But the day I got my tune, the car was faster. The newness has since worn off and I can't tell as much, but numbers don't lie.

I'm looking forward to seeing your gains on the 350 engine in AWD platform. Should be interesting.

AMGTestDriverNJ

Hey guys, quick update here. I've been pushed back to tomorrow @ 8am est. I will be recording the dyno runs so if anyone has the ability to post them I would greatly appreciate it. I'll also be installing 6000k HIDs over the weekend so there is alot going on! I'll keep you all posted.

sdunham

I agree there's more to Chip upgrades than just HP and Torque improvements such as the mentioned throttle response and "feeling more lively"... Seat of the pants improvements are sometimes all you get with these expensive mods... I'm only curious because I'd like to get some improvements from my E500's 5.0 liter, especially when compared to the improvements I got out of my F250 Turbo Diesel with an air box, turbo back exhaust and Super Chips Custom Tunes... I went from 335 horse/505 Torque to 485 Horse/795 Torque with these typical mods... That's the kind of bang for the buck I'd like to see from Mercedes Benz mods but they just aren't out there unless you drop $10 grand...
Good luck with your Dyno day...

xr650rguy

the difference is the turbo and that the diesel needs detonation to ignite, so more Oxygen isn't a bad thing, actually keeping things cooler with a surplus. With gasoline, you can't just dump more fuel like you can with a turbocharged diesel. Even if you ad a turbo or supercharger, the requirement window for fuel/air is quite small.

Does anyone have a turbo E500?

MB211

I am sure, somewhere, somebody dumped tooooo much money to do just that.....

155

+1 I'm sure there's a few Renntech E500turbos out there.

K-A

Nice!! I've been looking to find the stock WHP of an E350, and more especially, 1/4 mile times and it seems nobody's done either (who post them on the Internet at least).

What I'm wondering is how much more WHP AWD robs over RWD?

AMGTestDriverNJ

questions will be answered tomorrow! I'm glad to share it with all of you!

AMGTestDriverNJ

Here are the results as promised..... I will scan in the actual dyno graphs as soon as I get access to a scanner. In the meantime, the raw numbers.
We did 3 pulls. I took the best and worst of the 3. We also did a 0-60 pull.

The worst pull was 1st:
Engine Power 251.1 hp
Wheel Power 171.1 hp
Torque 248.7 lb.ft
Ambient Temp 47.5 F
Intake Air Temp 64.4 F

The car ran better as it warmed up........

The best pull was 3rd:
Engine Power 268.9 hp
Wheel Power 192.5 hp
Torque 257.6 lb.ft.
Ambient Temp 49.5 F
Intake Air Temp 68.0 F

0-60 pull was 4.8555 sec
(remember this is a dyno not a road)

Overall, I was impressed. The car made good numbers. I do have a few videos and I'm in the process of trying to get them up on Youtube for you guys. Its just fun to watch. Anyway, here are some pictures I took while I was there and I'll be sure to scan these dyno graphs in ASAP!

GDawgC220

Nice! I'm putting out the same at the wheels for hp. What torque are you putting out at the wheels?