Hi all,

I'm new to this site and new to LR (bought a black HST Auto TD4 in December)

I just fitted a Chip Express Tuning box and thought some folks might be interested in my experience, so here's a summary:

Make: Chip Express (www.chipexpress.com)
Retail Price: £395.00
Did I pay full price? No, made an offer.
Delivery experience: Very prompt but incorrect version supplied. Correct version supplied within 2 days.
Good company? Yes, responded to all my e-mails and phone calls.
Easy to install? Yes, took about 15 mins.
Can you feel the difference? Yes, engine is much perkier.
Downsides? None so far. Engine runs fine, no unwanted side-effects.
Fuel Consumption: I used to get 28.5 - 29 MPG. With the box fitted it's around 34 MPG for the same journeys.
Did it affect my insurance? Yes, premium load of £28.00
Is it worth it? Yes, in my opinion. It has made a great all-round improvement.

There are many boxes out there, the Chip express box comes with a fairly mild performance increase (178BHP & 460Nm) which is what I was after as I didn't want to over-stress anything, just perk it up a little.

So, there you have it, my experiences in a nutshell!

Cheers,
Jimbo 2008 HST Auto

That's good news. I'm happy to hear that you're getting performance improvements.
The whole chip-tuning philosophy has confused me for quite some time now. If these kinds of gains are possible, would the manufacturer not routinely set up their products to achieve them - particularly in terms of economy. With the current oil price/green lobby/4x4 phobia climate you would think it would be in Land Rover's interest to achieve the maximum mpg (but not necessarily power).
I'm fairly sure that these 3rd party companies are not able to achieve something that Land Rover can't, so I guess it's a case of Land Rover won't - but why not?

A good question. I agree, it almost seems too good to be true, and maybe it is, time will tell! The story I routinely hear is that a vehicle's engine & transmission have a safety envelope and for various reasons the manufacturers set things at the lower (safe) end of the envelope. I guess this makes some sense given potentially poor conditions the vehicles might see in some countries, including fuel quality etc. At the end of the day, I suspect tuning boxes and the like simply consume move of the manufacturer's safety envelope. From an ecomomy perspective, I have no idea how/why fitting a box like this improves fuel consumption by 10% +, but it does. 2008 HST Auto

I like the idea of chips however where I get hazy is when I think logical. Its More bhp= more diesel needed to feed these thirsty horses. How can it be any different ?? Ive heard before chipping does increase mpg however with increased bhp I just cant see it.
Maufacturers spend millions getting engines to run efficient then people interfere with it by putting on a £400 chip and claim it to be better..?
Not putting a dampener on the thread as with the chip It seems great (I like & thought about it myself) however im sure you can apreciate my beef if the answer lies within £400 why ever was this not done from day one.

I just now had a look on there website looks very good. Sorry to be negative, the main thing is you are getting the benefits which is the main thing. I worry it would mess up the computer in the car more than anything. Are these completely safe do you know. Getting an extra 5mpg im gonna work out how long it would take to pay for itself. cheers

Lets be honest you dont buy these to get better fuel economy. Its designed more to tweak the car to get the more power when you need it. It you dont put your foot into it, you will get better fuel economy. Put your foot into it, watch the fuel tank drain.

I'm saving up at the moment to get one, it will be great to get the extra power for the 4WDing i do

Dorko

These box's do not offer the improved mpg they claim. I have had a lot of experience with these types of device.

As the box intercepts the Signal from the ECU for fueling, it fools the system into thinking the fuel pressure has not been reached and makes the pump work harder, this is how ALL the box's work and how you get the power.

However, the downside is that it mess's with the cars trip computer and the computer thinks the car has has not used as much fuel as it has and the mpg reading starts to go up and look like your average mpg is getting batter.

I have a tuning box on my Signum 1.9 CDTi and yes the power/torque is much better, the trip is saying an average increase of about 5/6mpg. But calculating it from a full to empty and re-filling again, the economy was actualy about 1.5mpg better, and this increase 'could' actually be down to driving style.

A proper Re-map is the best and safest way to go. As a tuning box purely increase's fuel pressure to get the gains, a decent re-map alters fuel pressure, injector timing and turbo boost but keeping everything within the vehicles proper safety parameters.

I have Superchips Bluefin re-map on my FL2 and it has been faultless and is only a fraction more expensive that the tuning box mention in this thread.

I only use the box on the Signum as I got it fro free and the car goes after Christmas anyway. Freelander 2 HSE Lux 2013MY - Barolo Black with Ivory Leather. Alpine DVD - Privacy -Evoque 20" Dynamic Wheels and more to come.........

A friend of mine has his skoda taxi superchipped and now gets 50 miles more per tank.
so he recons anyway.

there a guy works down our chip shop swears he's Elvis At work
At home

"I can't always believe facts I read on the web" - Charles Dickens

winner by default of the tractor vs caravan race

I would rather have my car to the tuning company and have them do the work on a rolling road, making sure they are within limits

Better than blowing up your engine  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

chicken george wrote:

there a guy works down our chip shop swears he's Elvis

serious comments as usual  2007 Freelander 2 HSE TD4 Manual with Premium Pack & Moonroof.
Stornoway Grey with Ebony Black Pleather, Clear Indicators, Body Side Mouldings etc.

Sounds like a (Superchips Bluefin for ex.) re-map is the way to go if the company can guarantee the results they advertise. The only hesitation I would have is the insurance access (likely to sting here ) and if the modification affects my LR warranty 2007 Freelander 2 HSE TD4 Manual with Premium Pack & Moonroof.
Stornoway Grey with Ebony Black Pleather, Clear Indicators, Body Side Mouldings etc.

Theres a company here in Oz, that will guarantee it wont effect your car warranty as its tune doesnt map the ecu directly. It lets the car and ecu work as normal and then after the signal is sent through, it increase the AFR, giving more power

They swear there product will not damage the car, and if it does all costs will be paid for.

Dorko

AndyC wrote:

Sounds like a (Superchips Bluefin for ex.) re-map is the way to go if the company can guarantee the results they advertise. The only hesitation I would have is the insurance access (likely to sting here ) and if the modification affects my LR warranty

I had a PSI Powerbox on my FL1 and was very happy with it and have now fitted one to my FL2. Like the previous post I only fitted it to improve fuel economy and to make driving easier, especially overtaking.