Hey guys, this post is mainly for my dad- He has an 06' s55 amg with approx. 9,000 miles on it -- its his baby. Anyway, he's been looking into what it takes to increase the horsepower on the car and has looked into renntech etc, but i was wondering what the most cost effective way is to gain around 50hp. Also, are there any mods you can do that will not void the warranty? I've read about adding green filters, iridium spark plugs etc., but is this the best way to go- will this void the warranty? I dont know why an air filter and spark plugs would, but then again its mercedes and you never know.

Thanks a lot for the help, I appreciate it a lot.

 

Kleemann, Renntech, Eurocharged, Evosport etc. all do simple Stage 1 Tune and pulley kits.

There. Easy added power.

 

Do any of those void the warranty tho? Is a dyno required after the ecu upgrade?

 

Not if the dealer finds out ;-)

ECU tune can be inconspicuous. Don't quote me on this if a dealer reflashes it back to stock, some tuners will tune it back for free once more.

As for the pulley, as long as they don't check down the engine, you're fine. You can bring your car to the dealer for regular work not concerning anything major to the engine. He'll be fine.

Dyno is obviously not required right after the tune. It's desired to check rwhp gains. After the tune and pulley, you'll feel and see the difference during pulls and acceleration. Guaranteed.

 

how easy is it to put on the pulley and take it off? Do you just need a belt tensioner to get it on/off and are the tunes mostly plug-and-play? I'm asking, because if you did need to take the car in, couldn't you just replace the pulley with the sock one? Also, my dad's "guy" at the MB dealership said that renntech parts are covered under their warranty. They had a 700hp sl55amg there that they were working on.

 

If the dealer is an authorized Renntech dealer, then it should be covered under warranty, but I imagine they will want to do the install for that to be the case. Just guessing on that last bit but it makes sense. Renntech parts are generally more expensive, I suspect for that reason. The guy who founded Renntech is an ex-AMG guy. Many of the other suppliers listed above are considerably more cost effective, but they rely on either a)your dealer turning a blind eye or b)your dealer not noticing (the more likely scenario).

 

Exactly. If your dealer is Renntech authorized and covered, then you should no problem with anything from Renntech...

However they are pretty damn expensive compared to other effective tuning companies. So yes, if you don't choose Renntech because of cost (which is perfectly fine), then read my previous post and just hope that the dealer doesn't find the pulley and/or tune.

As for the pulley take off and put on, you need tools and whatnot. Best to hope that the dealer doesn't find out about a non Renntech pulley. Or you can have a tech take it off every time for service...

 

So are the pulleys plug n play or is a dyno a must? Will it mess up your engine if a dyno is not done? I have been considering a pulley kit myself but scared of the funds it might take to have it dynoed especially since I dont know of any shops in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

Thanks

 

The authorized dealer will cover Renntech parts but MB still has to approve warranty repairs to the rest of the car. If the failure is traced back to some Renntech work and won't cover it, is the dealer going to step up like when the engine goes?

 

Ahhh. There's the rub. Depends how much stomach you have for litigation.

 

That's slightly different. You are correct. There are some risks of course when modding any car with parts from any tuners.

 

The OP did ask about voiding the warranty using aftermarket tuners. A 2006 S55 would either have the MB extended warranty or from some other company. I think I have read posts of factory warranty coverage being cancelled because of mods but haven't not seen anything yet on an aftermarket warranty like from Chrysler. The contract's fine print will spell everything out in detail.

 

You don't say where you / the car are? There are several MB dealers in larger metro areas that have AMG performance centers and they typically will mod a car and warranty it. I know for example that MB of Buckhead in Atlanta will do both Kleemann or Renntech. Won't void your warranty and will be done correctly.

Pulley on / off is not a job for an amateur (including the local non-MB specialist garage). It's to easy to not get it right and spin a pully on the crank; then you are in for seriour bucks to repair. Make sure whoever does the work is experienced.

A pulley and "stage I" tune will give you about the 40-50 HP you are looking for but to really get the bang for the $ a stage 2 pulley, ECU tune AND headers is the way to go. Jamming more air in without improving the air flow out is just not optimal. I did mine in stages and the difference when I added the headers was significant, much greater HP add than just the pulley / ECU (more than double the added HP).

It is NOT necessary to use a dyno if you stick with Kleemann or Renntech as their standard programs are well tested and proven. Plus the ECU is very adaptable even with their tunes so it in general won't let you hurt the engine.

As far as warranty, I just ended a Chrysler 2 yr unlimited mileage warranty and I had all the mods from the day they inspected it to put the warranty in place until it expired. In the interim they repaired the car MANY times and never blinked at the mods. BUT, that is mostly because I dealt with a large dealer and the warranty company takes their word for most things without coming out to look. But, most recetly I needed a new IC pump and they did send out a warranty rep to insect it and he just looked it over and said okay.

BTW, that is something your dad should have checked on a MB diagnositc machine, the IC pump. Very often people drive these cars without knowing they aren't working as it won't show up unless you make repeated hard pulls and exceed 190 IAT. You definitley want to confirm the IC pump is in good working order BEFORE doing any mods.