Modern engines have an electronic engine management system known as an ECU (Engine Control Unit). The ECU takes readings from various sensors in the engine e.g. fuel mixture, timing, engine speed etc and manages these parameters according to the software programmed within it (maps). These maps govern the performance, economy and the way your car drives and performs.
Most modern ECU's are programmable, so they can be reprogrammed with alternative maps to suit the needs of the owner/user, this is known as ECU tuning (also referred to as Chipping, Remaps etc). If you watch motorsports you may have noticed the pit technicians busy with laptops, they are often altering the ECU maps to fine tune the car according to the current weather conditions, type of circuit etc. ECU tuning is not new, it has been used in motorsports and by the vehicle manufacturers for a long time for various purposes.
Why the factory mapping may not be ideal for your needs
Vehicle manufacturers have to consider many things when they set up the ECU mapping for a new vehicle model and build in huge tolerances to comply with the target requirements. Manufacturers have to ensure their vehicles will operate in various climates from freezing Northern Europe to the heat in Africa and allow that the vehicle will use various grades of fuel around the world. They also have to comply with international and national legislation around the world and allow that not all owners will service the car according to schedule and the list goes on. As a result efficiency and performance is often compromised on a global platform vehicle.
There are also the marketing reasons. Look carefully at most vehicle ranges and you will notice that various models use the same engine but have different power outputs. Models are often marketed with various trim levels and ECU mapping to offer models to fit target markets which take into account company tax brackets, emissions, insurance grouping and desirability. Just look at how many different power outputs are offered from the VAG 1.9 TDi engine from 90bhp to 150bhp by using different ECU mapping.
So how can you benefit from ECU Tuning?
When "chipping" or "remap" is mentioned the first image that comes to most peoples minds is one of the power crazed petrol head trying to get max power from their road weapon! But this is just one group of customers, the majority of customers have various other reasons for ECU tuning.
Just remapping specifically for UK climate and driving conditions alone can improve efficiency and performance, but you can benefit much more by tuning according to your own personal needs and usage. Here are a few examples to get you thinking:
General Road
It is possible to increase power by up to 35% and economy by up to 15% depending on the vehicle. Most popular is a combination set up to improve both power and mpg by a noticeable but sensible amount, actual gains depend on the model of your vehicle. A bespoke remap will be tailored to suit your needs depending whether you mostly drive in town, the open road or motorways, whether you do short journeys or long etc. Any flat spots can be ironed out and torque and power can be made available when and where you want it and so on.
Whilst power boost is very noticeable specially in turbo engines, the first thing customers usually notice and appreciate is the improvement in the way the car drives, with smoother power delivery and better throttle response the driving pleasure is noticeably improved.
Track & Motorsport
Again a bespoke remap can be tailored to your needs, mapping torque and power where you need it most. If you use your car for both road and track use, we have the unique V-Switch solution which gives you immediate control between a choice of 3 bespoke maps. You decide how you want the maps designed and when you use them, so you may have a road use mapping and a track use mapping and simply switch between them as you need. This is truly an awesome solution for any track day enthusiast!
Towing
Towing a caravan or heavy trailer completely changes the needs of power delivery compared to when not towing. You can therefore maximise efficiency when towing by remapping, improving flexibility through the gears and low down torque making it so much easier to tow. Not only that but you will see better performance and possible improvement in mpg too. Our V-Switch solution is ideal for this as you can have a map for normal road use and a separate map for towing and switch between the two when you need to, brilliant!
Fleet
Fuel is a huge cost for fleet owners, so could you benefit by remapping for maximum economy and reduce cost? Some fleet owners of modern light commercials remap the fleet to limit the available performance of their vehicles to reduce abuse of the high performance often found in these vehicles. This often means reduced accidents, insurance claims, speeding violations and of course improved economy.
Valet Mode
If you have a performance vehicle but need someone else with less experience to drive the vehicle e.g. an offspring learning to drive etc, you can remap to limit the available performance. Again the V-Switch is a great option here because you can have a normal map and a limited performance map which you can switch between as you need. Perfect…now you can relax when your pride and joy is in someone else's hands!
ECU Tuning at Rude Racing
At Rude Racing we can offer ECU tuning solutions for most vehicles from a taxi to a race car. The most common are:
Cars
SUV's
4x4's
Light Commercials
Taxi TX2 / TX4
Motorhomes
We have ECU tuning solutions for:
Turbo Diesel Turbo Petrol Supercharged Petrol Petrol (Normally Aspirated)
Substantial outright gains in both power and economy are possible from turbocharged vehicles and less so from NA petrol vehicles, however huge improvements are made in drivability, throttle response and smooth power delivery in all cases making it well worthwhile to tune NA petrol vehicles too.
We offer three options for ECU Tuning:
V-Switch
Is a unique and flexible solution to ECU Tuning. The V-Switch is designed to be easily set up and used by the vehicle owner and allows you to choose between three maps as and when required. The three maps are the factory standard map plus two bespoke maps of your choice which can be switched in minutes. This solution is highly recommended by us. More about V-Switch
V-Box
Is a stand alone plug-in diesel tuning box which does not remap the ECU, but works in conjunction with it altering some of the fuelling parameters to improve efficiency. The V-Box is designed to be easily installed and used by the vehicle owner and ideal when remapping the ECU is not possible on some vehicles or where the owner prefers to have a removable tuning device. More about V-Box
Full Rolling Road Remap
This solution is offered in association with our tuning partners and involves bringing your car to us for a full diagnostic and remap service. This solution is suitable for highly modified vehicles with upgraded hardware or for race cars. Prices depend on the work being done. Contact us for more info
If you are unsure about which solution will be best for you, please contact us and we will be happy to help you.
Our V-Switch and V-Box solutions are from Viezu Technologies (Formally Chipped UK). In our opinion they are one of the best tuning houses in the world and with over 200 dealers worldwide they are certainly one of the biggest. Having been in the business for over 20 years their knowledge and experience is unquestionable.
There are many reasons why we believe Viezu to be the best in the business, here are a few:
Long established dependable & trusted UK company.
All remap files are written in house by industry leading technicians.
Every map is individually written for the specific vehicle using rolling road diagnostics and extensive research.
Development is carried out using state of the art technology and TUV approved equipment including Bosch emissions equipment – meaning you do not have to worry about the next MOT!
The whole remap process is fully insured, the applications comes with a 14 day money back warranty and the software has a lifetime guarantee.
Superb technical and after sales support
Caution:
If you are considering a remap, please be advised that some remapping tools are available cheaply these days and cheap copied map files can be bought on a CD. Unfortunately there are some "remapping specialists" who use these products and give the industry a bad name at times. They are priced very cheaply, but quality of these maps and what affect they will have on your car is often unknown, so they may or may not work well, but the most important question is who will be responsible if they damage your car? Cheap remaps especially those promising exaggerated performance figures should be treated with caution as they are proven time and time again to be a false economy. It's sounds too good to be true for a reason!
We believe our products to be one of the very best in the market today and although not the cheapest, they represent exceptional quality and value for money.
Paul Busby Video
Please Note: Not all brands listed above are available online, please call us on 01376 326076 or email us with your enquires.
