IS BETTER A CHIP TUNING OR REMAPPING?

This is one of the most frequently asked questions we have received over many years. The answer is not immediate and requires some considerations. First and foremost, you must consider how the car you wish to increase the power and performance is being used. Let's make a distinction right away between non-extreme use and competitive use. In the first case, we are talking about cars that are used normally and must be exactly as reliable as the stock version. In this case, the chip tuning additional unit solution, whether for turbodiesel or turbo-petrol engines, is most suitable, provided that the unit is of unquestionable quality and whether it is obtained from a serious company with undisputed experience in electronic tuning.

In fact, chip-tuning modules have some significant advantages:

1. They do not require any tampering with the engine or the engine control ECU
2. They provide medium-to-high torque and power increases
3. They optimize fuel consumption
4. They can be easily installed by anyone with a minimum amount of manual dexterity
5. It is possible to reset everything in a few minutes without any problems
6. They are adjustable to the customer's specific needs
7. They do not require expensive mechanical components
8. They preserve all the electronic engine management safeguards

Remapping the ECU is the ideal solution for more extensive tuning needs, which are usually intended for racing cars. Remapping allows for greater increases in power and torque, and for this reason, it requires significant adjustments to the mechanical parts of the engine and often to the clutch assembly. The turbocharger is one of the first components with special (and expensive) parts that require adaptations or replacements, along with the heat exchanger, often air-water ( discussed in more detail below), the exhaust system (on which counter-pressures need to be reduced), the lubrication and cooling systems, and the clutch-piston assembly that must withstand high maximum torque values. Although these elements are normally very expensive, they can be considered "accessories" to the engine... with even more intensive tuning, it may be necessary to open the engine to adapt other mechanical components such as the connecting rods, pistons, cam axles, intake duct machining, exhaust duct machining, etc.

Installing a high-level chip tuning unit allows precise and targeted intervention on certain engine parameters such as boost pressure, injection pressure, the duration of the injection phases, and more, depending on the type of injection system (diesel or gasoline) and on the type of supercharging. The performance gains achievable with high-quality chip tuners are very high and valuable because of the excellent reliability and the possibility (when driving cautiously) of reducing fuel consumption when not at full capacity. There can also be savings in average fuel consumption when climbing and recovering from the higher torque at low to medium engine speeds, thanks to increased use of high gears and lower average engine speeds (remember that with the same power output, a higher engine speed requires greater energy losses for the movement of accessory parts such as the coolant pump or the lubrication circuit pump). Just to cite a few examples, on the roller test bench, we have repeatedly recorded power increases of about 35hp for 1900-2000cc displacement turbocharged diesel or gasoline engines, while for 3000cc common-rail turbodiesel engines, it is possible to obtain power increases of even 45-50hp, all with great reliability. Furthermore, remember that chip tuners are a non-invasive solution for tuning that allows you to restore the engine to stock conditions in a few minutes. SELETRON chip tuning modules very effectively meet the need to increase engine performance by medium-high values without distorting its operating parameters and leaving the range of safety systems provided by the engine management unit (ECU) unchanged.

Whether you have an ABARTH, ALFA ROMEO, AUDI, BMW, CITROEN, FIAT, FORD, HYUNDAI, MERCEDES, RENAULT, SEAT, SKODA, or VW car or any other brand, Seletron offers you chip tuning additional units designed specifically for your engine. Not only that. Whether you have a diesel, gasoline, LPG, CNG, or hybrid engine, the chip tuning modules designed by Seletron are perfectly suited to each one and are delivered already specially mapped.

Earlier, we mentioned a particular type of intercooler that, until a few years ago, was mostly to be found in very few super-sports or competitive engines but has more recently been used on a variety of medium-high range models. Let's take the opportunity to provide some clarification.

AIR-WATER INTERCOOLER

Until a few years ago, this little-known device was used almost exclusively for cars with souped-up engines and engines for marine use. Today, some car manufacturers with modern common-rail or turbocharged diesel engines are beginning to use it on some of their models. Let's see what it is and what benefits it provides. First, we'll give some background by explaining what the intercooler is used for in turbocharged engines. For many years, designers of both diesel and gasoline turbocharged engines have been installing radiators to lower the temperature of the air compressed by the turbocharger before it is sent to the intake manifolds. These devices are composed of bundles of tubes wrapped in sheets of aluminum or other metal that serve to transfer heat to the air that flows into the intercooler itself. This traditional type of intercooler is called an air-to-air type because it cools the air compressed by the turbo with air from the front of the vehicle. As some may know, the lower the temperature of the air, the greater the presence of oxygen; conversely, as the temperature of the compressed air increases, there is less oxygen, an element necessary for combustion in the active phases of the engine, whether diesel or gasoline powered. The air-to-water intercooler (also called air-to-water heat exchanger) performs the same function, but to cool the compressed air coming from the compressor coil (which can even exceed 140° C), it does not use the air that hits the front of the vehicle but uses water present in a special circuit that can be cooled by a radiator placed on the front or can be connected on the main engine coolant circuit at suitable branches. The advantages are associated with the greater thermal transfer power that liquid has over air when running over the bundle of pipes carrying the compressed air. Since the air-water intercooler is much more effective with the same heat exchange surface area, it is possible to use much smaller heat exchangers, which having less internal volume, are pressurized faster, effectively reducing turbo-lag ( the delay of turbocharging caused in part by the mechanical inertia of the impellers and in part by the volume of the supercharger circuit ducts). An additional advantage of this cooler is that it does not need to be mounted on the front of the vehicle but can be installed on the engine itself with much shorter and stiffer ducts that provide a further reduction in the volume to be pressurized. In summary, the air-to-water intercooler allows for greater stability of the temperature of the air fed into the engine and a large reduction in the response lag of the supercharger complex. To give just a few examples of manufacturers that employ air-water intercoolers on their common-rail engines, we can cite Audi (on the recent 1.6TDI and 2.0TDI), BMW (on the four-turbo versions it even employs 2), Mercedes-Benz, on some versions of the 2.2-liter 4-cylinder, among others.

If you rely on Seletron, you can choose CHIPBOX®, the chip tuning unit suitable for all engines that will increase your car's power by up to 30 percent. With the proper management of fuel and turbine pressure, CHIPBOX® allows you to increase power and, by increasing the torque available at the average rpm where cars are usually operated, you can engage higher gears sooner and reduce shifting, decreasing fuel consumption by up to 10 percent.