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Are Peformance chips woth it?

sgdude

sgdude

New member
I'm looking at some cheap mods to increase the HP in my GTP. Performance chips seem to fit the bill. but are they a scam? im looking at this one, up to 35more HP:
eBay Motors: Pontiac Grand Prix /GTP NITRO Performance Chip/Module (item 280268014340 end time Sep-19-08 19:10:04 PDT)
this one, up to 15 more HP:
eBay Motors: Pontiac Grand AM / Prix Performance Speed Chip / Module (item 300259699031 end time Sep-22-08 21:16:41 PDT)
which would be better? the first one claims more HP

if those wont work, would a more expensive one work?
they claim better fuel economy also. is this true?
i would like your opinions
what exactly do they do?
i am also planning on getting a K&N filter. only $45 for (what i hear) ~5% more HP. are these worth it? any disadvantages?
im trying to increase HP on the cheap, so suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
 


:pjust get a tuner, chips are a joke in my opinion. from what I understand you can change the orbit of the moon with a tuner.
 
A tuner is a software package that you can use with a laptop (I suppose a desktop too) that hooks into the cars ODB II port and gives you read and write access to the cars computer, thus allowing you to change things such as fueling, timing, shift points, fan turn on temps, etc. Its a double edged sword. It is a wonderful tool that will open up an unbelievable world of fine tuning your engine and transmission but it can also be a disaster in the hands of someone that has no clue as to what they are doing and can easily grenade your engine.

It is a wise piece of advice that if you purchase one you do lots and lots and lots of reading and ask lots and lots and lots of questions before you actually start modifying the computer.
 
Those e-bay speed chips are just a little resistor that you wire into you IAT and it tricks IAT into thinking it's getting 32 degree air and supposedly commands more timing. Doesn't really work. If you don't want to tune you can buy a programmed pcm for about $100.
 


Preotic said:
Those e-bay speed chips are just a little resistor that you wire into you IAT and it tricks IAT into thinking it's getting 32 degree air and supposedly commands more timing. Doesn't really work. If you don't want to tune you can buy a programmed pcm for about $100.
Click to expand...

link please to the $100 pcm. and this $100 pcm would really make a difference? it would be better than a 30$ chip? what kind of difference would it make? and how would it effect my MPG (help, hurt, or no difference)?
 
sgdude said:
link please to the $100 pcm. and this $100 pcm would really make a difference? it would be better than a 30$ chip? what kind of difference would it make? and how would it effect my MPG (help, hurt, or no difference)?
Click to expand...

INTENSE-Racing.com: INTENSE™ Reprogrammed 3800 Powertrain Control Module (PCM) <<<link for $100 pcm. Overkill is a better option,but at a higher price. From what ive seen & heard its worth it to hold out for the Overkill PCM. Oh, and as for the fuel economy, your foot has the most effect on your MPG's:cool:
 
If I were given the choice of pounding my head with a 3lb sledge hammer and using one of those so called 'chips' Id choose the sledge hammer and still come out on the brighter side of thing and probably less damage.
 


To make it simple.....If you want to go real fast and plan on modding your car a lot and often get a tuner...if not get a custom tuned pcm.
 
I always say this and it is always true, we need to know your goal in terms of performance.

In my opinion $1k is not that much to spend and we could get you with a dam quick car for a little over 1k.

Route 1: In reality you should have a scanner [or tuner] or some sort of way to scan for Kr, which is the biggest problem when modding your car. In short it is the computers reaction [dropping timing] to uncontrolled detonation in your engines combustion chamber. For every * of Kr you lose HP. The Aeroforce scan gauge would show you how much kr you have, most likely little if you are stock. Your second mod should be a cold air intake, either wizaired or cold air inductions have good ones. Third you whould open up your exhaust and get a power log, it opens up the front manifold for better flow. Next a u-bend delete. And a downpipe. Then a reprogrammed PCM. A colder thrmostat to keep engine temps down, colder spark plugs, autolite 104's. Lastly and most influential you can drop your pulley size to a 3.5" modular pulley. The other mods will support the pulley drop, without the mods you would get Kr.


Aeroforce Scan guage = $230
Cold air inductions box = $260 or
Wizaired CAI = $244
Powerlog = $120
Intense PCM = $100
3' bolt in DP w/ cat = $190
U-bend delete w/ rear o2. = $50
Autolite 104's gaped at .055 = $10
180* Thermostat = $10
3.5" modular pulley system = $100

Total [assuming you get the wizaired]= $1054
keep in mind you will/may want a few other things, i believe their is a gasket for the thermostat, you may want a gauge pod for the scan gauge. Also if their are no emissions for your state you wont need the catted DP, if you want to weld it on instead of bolt on that will be cheper also. The above is an estimate, you could wind up spending more or less.

Route 2: More money but faster car, you could get headers instead of the powerlog and downpipe. You will need them if you plan on dropping another pulley size. [3.4] You would get the Tuner instead of the scan gauge 1.9 rockers, i believe they give around 20hp. And alcohol injection.

Route 3: (if you have the cash) Go Turbo. Sounds simple but its not. You'd need a built tranny along with this.

Route 4: (If you have cash and wanna keep the Eaton.)
-Intercooler
-Ported and polished Blower, throttle body and LIM.
-Cam
-Built Tranny

Im sure there is allot i forgot that you could do but here is the basics. Just laying out the options, when you pick one we can go into further detail.
 
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well, i am looking at spending at most $1k, i am only a junior in high school, not even 17 yet, so i dont have that much money, and there is no way my parents would chip in for performance mods. also, i have never worked with cars, so unless one of my friends will do it for free (im working on that) installation has to be considered as a cost. It looks like a chip isnt worth it. i will tell you what my friends have done to there cars, and have suggested, and it would be really cool if u could tell me if u agree with them. it seems the most popular upgrades are:
cold air intake
k&m filter
new exaust
new headers
platinum spark plugs
good ideas? the GTP already has dual exaust, and a supercharger, so will these things help my car? and how much would they cost? how much HP would each add? how hard/costly to install? thanks alot for the info, u have no idea how much i appreciate this

my goal is 300HP (a 60HP gain), will the mods above get close to that?
 


cold air intake: Get a wiz or make your own
k&n filter: Just a drop-in is cheaper then a CAI, but not as good performance gain
new exaust: I'm assuming mufflers, don't worry, the stockers aren't very restrictive
new headers: Headers will give more performance, but do your homework on them
platinum spark plugs: NEVER in these cars! The factory plugs are Iridium. Either stick with the Iridium, or put in a cheaper Autolite 605 copper plug.

sgdude said:
my goal is 300HP (a 60HP gain), will the mods above get close to that?
Click to expand...

The factory HP rating is flywheel HP. The WHP of a stock GTP is close to 200, so if you want 300 HP to the wheels, you'll have to get the motor up toward the 400HP range.

To answer your question: No, the above mods will not net you even 300 Crank HP. Add a pulley drop and a good tune to the list, and you'll be closer to where you want to be.
 
DanGTP said:
cold air intake: Get a wiz or make your own
k&n filter: Just a drop-in is cheaper then a CAI, but not as good performance gain
new exaust: I'm assuming mufflers, don't worry, the stockers aren't very restrictive
new headers: Headers will give more performance, but do your homework on them
platinum spark plugs: NEVER in these cars! The factory plugs are Iridium. Either stick with the Iridium, or put in a cheaper Autolite 605 copper plug.
Click to expand...
so a k&n filter WILL actually improve performance? by how much? (at least 5hp?)
and i dont understand what u said about the exaust. im sorry, im just starting to get in to cars now that i have a friend with a celica GT (from between 00-05, 4cylender he has new intake, exaust, headers) and a friend with a 05 350Z (stock, v6)and i want to destroy both of them, lol
so what are the cheapest things i can do to my car to add horsepower with out damaging the car? i assume k&n filter ($45) is #1.
i just want to be faster than a 2005 350Z :P
but if thats not possible on the cheap, than so be it. i can still beat him (he cant shift, lol). just what should i buy that is cheap and will help performance? would those copper plugs benefit me? my car's mileage is only in the 40,000s (hard to belive, but true) so everythings pretty new (still got the new car smell, not even kidding!)
 
The K&N will help a bit, but the '97-'98 air boxes are not as efficient as the newer ones. My guess would be closer to 2-3 HP. I would recommend getting a cold air intake of some sort. I used a couple of pieces of 4" aluminum tubing and a Spectre air filter for mine. The total cost of something like that would be about $85ish and is a lot better than a K&N in a stock '97 air box. Also, relocating your coolant reservoir with one from a 99+ GP will open up the filter space some (do some searching to find a how-to on that).

As far as exhaust goes: removing the u-bend that sits after the catalytic converter is the best place to start. If you want to do a bit more exhaust work, a Power Log and 3" downpipe will most likely be all you need if you don't plan to mod very far. You don't need to worry about the stock mufflers at this point as they are not all that restrictive.

The AL605 copper plugs will be a benefit since they are a heat range colder than stock and pretty cheap. Also, being copper, they remove heat a bit better than iridium plugs (less knock). The drawback to this is that they have a shorter lifespan. Copper plugs should be changed every 10-12k to maintain peak performance and efficiency where iridium plugs can last up to 100k (change sooner to maintain performance, though - more like 60-75k). If you don't want to have to change your plugs every 10k and want a good iridium plug, try a set of NGK TR55IX plugs. They're a colder-than-stock plug but will last a long time.
 
sgdude said:
so a k&n filter WILL actually improve performance? by how much? (at least 5hp?)
and i dont understand what u said about the exaust. im sorry, im just starting to get in to cars now that i have a friend with a celica GT (from between 00-05, 4cylender he has new intake, exaust, headers) and a friend with a 05 350Z (stock, v6)and i want to destroy both of them, lol
so what are the cheapest things i can do to my car to add horsepower with out damaging the car? i assume k&n filter ($45) is #1.
i just want to be faster than a 2005 350Z :P
but if thats not possible on the cheap, than so be it. i can still beat him (he cant shift, lol). just what should i buy that is cheap and will help performance? would those copper plugs benefit me? my car's mileage is only in the 40,000s (hard to belive, but true) so everythings pretty new (still got the new car smell, not even kidding!)
Click to expand...

Not to be rude but i already spelt it out for you. Route 1 is what you are looking for as i suggested in my previous post. Go in order of the mods i listed [you could go without the scan gauge if you don't drop the pulley but every one on here im sure will HIGHLY suggest you can scan before and after a pulley drop]. Also you can push the plog to later because its a bit more difficult. Trust me i want down the same path, this is the simplest way to gain the most HP for the cheapest. I mean dam i even gave you the links to where you can find those products the cheapest [new] that i know of.

K&N filter fine, but a filter alone is a hot air intake giving you little to no horse power only MPG. You want a cold air intake or a fender wall intake. I like the cold air inductions box but the majority of people here have the wizaired. All of my mods on my list are very easy to install with little experience, beside the pulley, and if you get to that point then we will talk about it.
 
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