Rook3300

Ok, I've been on these boards for over 2 years now and have not seen anyone chime in on an ECU upgrade for the old stand-by 5.0L engine. It seems that I'll have mine for a while (the trade-in values are apparently in the crapper) and would like to eek out a little performance boost for my baby.

I've been looking at the Veloce Performance ECU upgrade. Supposedly bumps up power from the stock 302hp to about 335hp or so. Has anyone ever gotten a tune on their SL500? Does it make a difference at all?

Thanks!

-ROOK

NCE500

Most of the aftermarket vendors make a chip upgrade for your engine, but the gains will probably not be huge, maybe 20 hp/20 torque. Whether that is worth the cost and effort is a personal decision.

Eurocharged, Powerchips, Kleemann, Renntech all have ECU upgrades for your car. I have had very good results with Eurocharged in my SL600. I'd suggest that you shop them all and see what works best for you.

Rook3300

Yea, I've taken a look at what's out there. I just want to see if anyone else has done anything to their 5.0L engines. If I were dealing with an SL55 or 600 or 65, I could look at the boards and find loads of testimonials regarding ECU and even TCU tunes for those. I haven't found one for the 5.0L engine.

With regards to the performance-per-dollar. I'd rather start off at the lower point (approx $1100 for tune, for 20hp = $55/hp) before I jump into the deep end of the pool (approx $13K-$15 for supercharger, install & tune, for 150hp = $85-$100/hp). But before I do, I'm just looking for some actual person who has actually purchased an actual ECU tune on the 5.0L V8.

I'm not quite satisfied with the power my SL500 makes and am looking to take it to the next level. I'll either have to take matters into my own hands (tuning) or wait till the market bounces back to trade up (which could take a long while at this rate).

-ROOK

IngenereAMG

We tune the 500 engine, and while the numbers themselves aren't huge, it's the way my guys develop the tuning.

We broaden the power band, remove the speed limiter and improve the throttle response in addition to bumping power by ~10%. Overall, while not turning the car's power to an AMG, it is a very nice set up, well within the design specs of the engine and very reliable.

Let me know if you have other questions.

Late

Hey Dino, would your tune compensate for basic things like removing secondary cats and add a little extra power? I noticed after i got my straight pipes installed that when downshifting the RPM really hangs after hard acceleration. Also feels a little less torquey on full throttle starts.

I'm not looking to get a tune until i figure out whether i will be keeping the 500 or trading it in for an m6 but this might persuade me

SL4Life

I know this thread is old but if it's still alive please pm the cost for the 500ecu upgrade. Thanks

heylifeisshort

This is just my personal opinion, so no flames please: For a naturally-aspirated motor, an expensive ECU tune is just not worth it. The gains to be had don't justify the costs. Even combined with other bolt-ons, the $/HP is still very high. I suggest you look into upgrading the vehicle to a super/turbocharged version. You may get far more bang for your buck, and you will have instant satisfaction. The upgrade alone will cure your desire for more power, and if you want more after that, then tuning a super/turbocharged motor will yield much greater gains than an NA motor for the money. Again, just the opinion of a guy who watches his pennies and has been tuning vehicles for 24 years.

Benz-O-Rama

I have a Eurocharged tune on my E500 (Same engine) and it's run hiccup free for over 100K miles. I added shorty log style VRP HEM's, and some other minor exhaust work, etc... and promptly ran an 13.49@102.5. Not bad, considering the platform.

At the time, I paid $800 for the tune, but now... pfft..... the price is peanuts for a 500.

Bigsnake

Hi. I have a 2003 SL5oo and I have reprogramed my ECU. I've got 31 Hp more and 48 torque. But the big deferens was the throttle response and the gear changes. It holds the gears longer, sometimes to long. It takes 1-2 sec before it changes up a gear after you lift off the throttle. sometimes that can be a problem if you want to lower your speed discreetly after you spot a police car behind you.

Mercedes Modell:SL class 230 - Engine 5.0L 225kW / 306HK 460Nm (2001 - 2006) V8 24V M113
Ecotrim
Effect (kW)225 kW+18 kW. (HK)306 HK+24 HK
Torque Nm+37 (497 Nm) at 4250 rpm
Stag 1
(243 kW)+23 kW (248 kW). (330 HK)+31 HK
Torque +46 Nm(506 Nm) at 4250 rpm