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Performance Chips

9773 Views 16 Replies 12 Participants Last post by  azcube
Has anyone installed any of the aftermarket performance chips? If so how is it working and are there any issues with the warranty. The chip manufacturers claim that it doesn't void the warranty, but is that really true?
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i wasnt aware that anyone made a chip for this car.. i guess any 1.8 nissan chip would work.

i wouldnt mind a few extra ponies.
From what I have read the chips are not a good idea as they change the way the motor was made to run. Many people looking for an extra few bHP have blown their engines using the chips. The after market chips also void your warranty I believe.
Generic chips are definitely dangerous, you never know what kind of mods the chip was set up for or who tuned it.

Most of the OBD-II cars on the road don't need a chip (sorry Audi/VW/Porsche guys!), they are tunable the same way Nissan updates the ECU for emissions updates through writable memory in the factory ECU.

I have some prototype software that I will be beta testing in the very near future, I will post up as this project nears public release :)

Dylan @ Kei Garage
It's a joke, it doesn't actually work. They sell the same thing on ebay for every car known to man.


"Chip Specifications
++POWER
45+ horsepower
50+ FT/LB of torque
Faster acceleration
Higher top end power
Smoother shifting
Improved throttle response
Better low end torque
Improved towing capacity
Smoother power throughout the powerband
++ENGINE LIFE
Extends the life of engine spark plugs
Extends the life of engine oil
Extends the life of engine belts by reducing engine RPMs
Improved engine performance extends the time between costly engine tune-ups and check-ups.
++FUEL ECONOMY
Up to 15 MPG - improved fuel efficiency GUARANTEED"

If you can get 45hp and 50 ft/lbs of torque out of a non turbo 4 cylinder with a chip I'll buy a 100 of them ;)

-Dylan @ Kei Garage
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haha yeah hes right turbo doesnt even give you that much power. im sure a chip thats on ebay that costs 10$ would not give you +45hp
Well then how can power programming on diesel pick-ups get 100+ hp, and gobs more torque? I know they are more expensive units, but they are just plug in modules like the one on eBay. It doesnt seem too far fetched that an extra 45hp could be squeezed out of the 1.8L engine.

NOTE* Not wanting to start a war with speed shops, but have you tried any "chips" on any vehicle?, not just econo-4-bangers, and if you have what were your results before and after dyno testing?
Almost all diesels out there today are turbo. With a lot of displacement and boost you can make those kind of increases quite easily.

With a non boosted 4 cylinder gains like that are very hard with out major modification to the engine (head work, cams, ect).

-Dylan @ Kei Garage
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I see.
If Nissan could have squeezed out +45 for under $10.00 the car would have already had it. This is hype not hoursepower.

When you see the ads that are too good to be true just remember what your mom told you ;)
ChristineK said:
When you see the ads that are too good to be true just remember what your mom told you ;)
What does always wear clean underwear have to do with this chip? :D
Well if that is what your mom told you ;D
You can take that to the bank :yes:

I always wondered about that one ??? Do people wear underwear with tire tracks in them ???
Want to increase HP?? Just add Stickers LOL
Bringing back another old thread... Yet again... :p

Those cheap eBay chips are nothing more than a plastic box with a couple of resistors in it to try and "trick" the ECU into seeing a colder air charge coming into the engine (it changes the resistance reading coming from the MAP sensor to the ECU), thus adding more fuel to the mixture. Kind of like the difference of driving in the middle of the summer vs driving in the middle of the winter. The cooler, denser air gives the engine a little more perk because there's more air available per given volume, hence more fuel for the more air, hence slightly added power on those cool/cold days.

Those eBay schmucks figure more fuel should produce more power. The problem is, they're little "chips" are making the ECU add more fuel to the mix, but there's NOT the proper ratio of air there to support it and make it add power, so all they're doing is making your car run rich, wasting fuel. Luckily, ECU's these days sense this kind of BS after a few hours/days of driving and automatically adjust the fuel curve back to normal, completely ignoring that stupid chip you installed.


As far as power is concerned with our little Cube's, sure they could use a little more, but they aren't bad either. When matched with the 6-speed manual, the Cube is every bit as quick (actually a tad quicker) than my old '02 Miata 5-speed. There's a sign a little ways down from the entrance of my neighborhood. If I floor it right out of the neighborhood to that sign, I consistently hit 70 mph in the Cube. In the Miata, I could only manage 62 mph. Highway acceleration is equally impressive and also better than the Miata. I'm able to surprise quite a few people on the highway when I go to pass them. ;D

Of course, I do wish the throttle response of the Cube was better. It kind of sucks to throw it down into 4th or 3rd, floor it and wait a brief second for the power to come on. But once it does, it pulls pretty darn good!
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Chops,

I am not sure about your comment there. I think '02 Miata still has the edge. I own a manual cube. :)

"the Cube is every bit as quick (actually a tad quicker) than my old '02 Miata 5-speed."
get a bully dog programer it works for me
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