stephens

I just had a Powerchip Gold 98 retune of the ECU on my E55. The only other mod is a set of BMC air filters.
I was given before and after dyno graphs showing a 15kw rear wheel power gain on the car throughout the rev range.
To double check I ran a number of base line runs on my G-tech the night before.
These runs netted 380,385 and 382rwhp. Tonight in similar conditions, 1.5 degrees warmer, same relative humidity (I have a relative air density gauge used for tuning my 2 stroke GP bike where atmospheric conditions are critical to tuning.) the car netted 401, 406 and 400 rwhp.

I was initially fairly sceptical about performance gains from the Powerchip upgrade, but have to say that I am now convinced. For the money they also removed the speed limiter increased the rev limit and re-tuned the electronic throttle to give more immediate response. All this was done for 1/3 of the cost of the Renntech ECU with a real 20rwhp gain.

Rennteam

Sounds great...but...what about reliability and safety?
Did they testdrive this modification? Did they test it on several cars (NOT customer cars!)? Did they do high stress trials? Did they do top speed testing? Did they...well, I bet I know the answer.

I don't want to disappoint you too much but ECU mods incl. speed limit removal require a lot of experience, knowledge and testing, testing and testing. At 1/3 of the cost, you got what you paid for. I hope not but I'm pretty sure.

stephens

Rennteam
Powerchip has been doing chip conversions on cars for a long time. It was both dyno and road tested and has been tested on a number of SL55's already.
I have had modified ECU's in every performance car I have had over the last decade and all I have ever experienced is more perofrmance, better drivability and better fuel economy.
Are you an AMG salesrep or something???
If you had a close look at the pathetic exhaust manifolds supplied with our cars, you would be less in awe of Merc/AMG's design and development skills.

Crankin

stephens, are the bmc filters a proven improvement in power? I am considering them in my S class, but have heard of no testing vs. stock.
Thanks

AMGB

Based on my calcs (1.224), those mods bumped your E55 to 494 hp.

Can you actually feel a difference or see a difference with your G-Tech from 0-60 or 0-100 or 1/4 mile?

Just checked Renntech web site. Their chip upgrade is also rated at 494. Interesting...

amgB

04E55 AMG

I have been thinking about swapping my ECU when my 04 arrives in the fall. My only reservation is that this is a fast 4 door sedan stock not a sports car so will I experience that much more fun by increasing my HP and Torque and voiding the warranty? How fast does a 4 door sedan need to go? You can already go 0-60 in 4.2-4.3 seconds stock! I did a stage 2 upgrade on my 911 TT which was logical to me, but on a 4 door sedan that comes stock with so much power and torque does not seem logical.

Spero

stephens

There is no such thing as enough power! The change is a reprogramm of the flash memeory of the ECU, not a new "chip"
The change is undetetable.

stephens

Crankin
Honestly don't know. I'm pretty sure that MKB uses them though. They refer to the airfilter change as "intake optimisation" and it certainly hasn't hurt my performance.

pocholin

That is very good, congratulations on the gains.

Did you ever chip your 99 E55???

stephens

Pocholin
Sure did! Performance gains were about the same.

pocholin

Am I correct to assume it was Powerchips?

stephens

Nope, Unichip

Rennteam

There is no such thing as undetectable ECU software mods.
For AMG it takes only a few minutes to detect a modifed ECU software. And no, I'm not working for AMG and I'm somebody who is very well known for critizing AMG and other car manufacturers a lot for "this" and "that".
I got kicked out of the AMG Owner's Club in Germany, so I'm really not somebody influenced by AMG hype.
ECU mods on the E55 don't help much, you just increase the stress to the engine and drivetrain.
I know about the exhaust system design but have you ever thought that they did it with a purpose?
The only cars where ECU mods are somehow worth it, are turbo-charged cars.

Regarding airfilters: without ECU mods, a sport airfilter is thrown out money. There have been so many real life tests in serious car magazines about this issue. And if you gain 2-3 HP on a 500 HP car...this is ridiculous.

So my personal opinion on this is: do the job right (go for a real power upgrade with all the necessary mods like exhaust, cats, pulley, ECU software etc.) or forget about it.
But as always: you're free to do what you want.

04E55 AMG

Rennteam,

You said it best. I agree with you completely that you can easily detect ECU software mods. It was very easy for my local Porsche dealer to identify it on my 911 TT. Your thrill of ownership will not increase by modding the new AMG as a daily driver. Spending 3K-7K seems somewhat silly to me. My driving thrill with my TT did not change much on the streest just on the track. I said it before, if you have a car that runs 4.2-4.3 from 0-60 as a daily driver stock you are throwing your money away. Everyone is free to spend money as they like.

Happy Holiday Weekend to All,
Spero

stephens

I asked my factory owned dealer to check whether they could detect the chip yesterday. Answer No. I am sure that some bright spark at AMG can work it out, but that is not relevant to me in the real world where I live.
I did not get a 2hp gain, I saw 20 rear wheel horsepower.
Your point about the AMG exhaust is a valid one. This is why I changed air filters for example, to undo all the changes AMG made to detune the car.
I do it as much for fun as anything else, but there are associated benefits too. For example, fixing the exhaust system will also result in it sounding much nicer.
It is going to cost about 3K all up for an additional 50 rear wheel horsepower.
How is this NOT going to increase my thrill of ownership??
FWIW I am actually pretty disappointed in the new car. Compared to my W210 E55, the new one is a limo where as the old is more like a sports car. I had changed to H&R springs amongst other modifications and used it as a daily driver that gave me as much driving thrill as my 996 Porsche. I actually sold the Porsche because with the E55 I no longer had a need for it. The same cannot be said with the new car.

pocholin

So, does that mean the new E55 is going to be easy prey for the new M5 as far as suspension and handling goes?

Rennteam

Hmm, we did a 996 C2 vs. E55 comparison today and I outran the 996 C2 (stock suspension!) at any time, even in pretty sharp turns. There is no way the old E55 is going to outrun the 996 C2, so I'm not quite sure what to say to your "old W210 was better" comment. It was a pretty interesting experience, I had the suspension set to setting 2 all the time, tire pressure was front 2.5 bar and rear 3.1 bar.
ESP had been turned off several times but it wasn't really an advantage because if you drive a "clean" track, the ESP doesn't come on all the time.
The only thing I didn't like about the E55 is when it came to extremely sharp and fast turns (let's say around 100 degree turns at around 80-90 mph). When I "threw" the E55 into such turns, it "slipped" over all four tires (sorry for my bad English) to the outside of the curve even without the ESP coming on.
Conclusion: the E55 is too heavy. A third sport setting (even stiffer!) with wider tires (let's say 255's front and 285's rear) would do the job but hey, we're driving a high power limousine, not a sports car. My former 996 Turbo with 543 HP and H&R coilover kit was a sports car but I have to admit that I'm pretty impressed with my new E55 family car. I'm really sad to hear that you're not.

Dr Chill

You've got to be kidding. The W211 inferior to the W210. I think not.

stephens

Facts:
W210 E55 .90G on 200ft skid pad stock.
W211 E55 .83G on 200ft skid pad stock.

W210 1715Kg
W211 1850Kg

An E55 was run against a C2 996 at Philkip Island race circuit and was within 1sec of its lap times.(by the way I had the C2 with factory sport suspension and the E55 was easily it's equal in performance.) The new car is vastly superior, no argument, but it is no longer a 4 door sports car. This is my gripe.
Who was driving the Porsche and E55 in your comparison and what track was it at??

I agree with Rennteam insomuch that the car needs to be lowered and wider tyres fitted to offset the additional weight over the old model and improve its handling.

I currently have a 1999 with H&R suspension as well as the 2003. The old car is noticebly more nimble than the new car.
However I have just started with some modifications to address the problem.

Pocholin
To answer your question, IMO Mercedes will definately have to offer a suspension "updgrade" (read wider wheels and tyres, retuned suspension and steering electronics) to match the new M5, given that BMW doesn't ruin its handling as they have its looks.

pocholin

Thanks for the info.

stephens

No problems!