[Dexter23]

Hey Guys

Thought some of you who are considering a piggyback tune would be interested in my experience, as I've recently had the opportunity to thoroughly try out two Racechip products.

I have a BMW 2 series, N20 motor, 2015.

I tried the Racechip S (claimed +34hp) for a couple of weeks. Felt like something was 'different' but no real improvement in performance. So I sent it back and ordered a Racechip GTS with app support (claimed +52hp). Again, no improvement in performance. Spent the next week talking to RC technical support, checking correct installation, and receiving device updates through the app. Something did 'feel' different each time, but sadly, the car was not going/accelerating any faster. Eventually, RC support obtained 'special permission' from the technical team, allowing the software team to send me a 'special update' for the device through the app. This update was apparently going to increase performance beyond the device maximum setting. Sadly, still no noticeable improvement in performance.

By this time I was pretty frustrated, suspecting that something was wrong with my car. So, just to check if my car was indeed the source of the problem, I ordered a BMS JB Stage 1 (claimed +35hp at the wheels). Installation took 5mins. Result? BIG increase in power, faster acceleration, completely transformed driving experience.

Given the above experience, I'm pretty confident to say that the Racechip product doesn't increase the performance of the N20 engine, and perhaps other engines too. Perhaps RC marketing, combined with the placebo effect just works too well.


Other things to note about the Racechip GTS:

- Installation instructions originally sent over were all incorrect - eventually got the right ones after speaking to technical support

- RC support asked me to go so far as to check the colours of wires to make sure the labeling on the harness was good (all was correct)

- Camshaft sensor was very difficult to access, and removing the RC harness was so difficult I nearly damaged the sensor itself (I don't understand why this is necessary, the JB 1 doesn't need to connect to this sensor)

- RC is very reluctant to disclose any technical information. Questions like "what does intercepting the MAP sensor do?" are replied with the technical staff pretending that they don't know English well enough to explain this. Apparently none of the technician's colleagues spoke English well enough either. Email enquiries on this topic were not answered.

- Managed to get one bit of technical info out of the support person once - I was told that the RC GTS increases the boost on my car by 0.2bar. This translates into 2.9 PSI. The JB Stage 1 increases boost by 4 PSI, and claims +35hp. So, assuming this statement is true, there is no way that the RC GTS could do +54hp with only +2.9PSI.

- I struggled to find a single dyno test of a racechip product that came from a (i) reliable and (ii) independent source. Most dyno tests available are posted by RC themselves

- RC has a very generous returns policy, and the returns process is super efficient. I wonder why?

[NVHoo]

I'm skeptical of most tunes. Very few back up their claims of increases with actual dyno testing. After all, how does a company know they increased performance if it was not measured yet they don't want to share? As most engines are underspeced and/or have a higher than advertised performance at some RPM, I suspect that many are taking credit for HP that was already there. Unless I see before and after dyno tests (like APR provides for their tunes), I don't believe it and won't buy it. Even then you have to be careful because an amateur doing before and after does not take into consideration the changes in air and engine temps when they do the "after". You can "feel" a difference in a tune by just re-mapping the throttle without any increase in HP.

Your experience with Race Chip is typical but it should be noted that one can buy the product from 2 different companies. There is a Race Chip retailer selling in the US that is based in Germany and is much cheaper the US authorized supplier and is known to have inferior customer service and instructions. Don't know which one you used. I looked into Race Chip quite a bit and it appears that the majority of folks were disappointed with performance and/or eventually had code issues. The big feature of piggyback systems is the "easy" and reversible install.