Thinking about an EAT chip

[wjbell]

I've heard a lot of good things about EAT chips from the board I usually frequent (roadfly) and wanted to get a few opinions.

I've got a very well maintined 90 535i with about 148K. It idles slightly rough and the milage is about 18 FWY 16 in the city. I know it's hard to get gauge anything from a message, but generally will the EAT chip smooth out an idle? I'm also concerned about it being too far away from stock. I don't want a chip that will remap my computer so much that now it feels like a racecar. I'm looking for added power smooth all the way up the powerband. Any power gains above 4500 RPM aren't important to me.

Another main concern is should I attempt to pass a California smog test with this chip? I plan on keeping the stock chip around for just such occations ;) but if the EAT chip will pass smog that a bonus.

I'm new to this board and just looking for some added info on this.

TIA

[angrypancake]

booooooooo roadflea. The creator of the EAT chip is a frequent poster here, Mark D. search the forums and you should get quite a bit about the chip, probly everything you need to know and more.

[wjbell]

I haven't been post too long at the 'roadflea' board either but I'm just curious... what the story is with all the animosity within the bimmer boards. The roadfly board even goes as far as blocking links to other boards, which I think is a little childish, but...

[632 Regal]

roadflea is crap, when I fiirst was surfing their info was very commercial and the posters didnt know much about rocks, I accidently found this place and was hooked.

As for a 535 EAT chip you wont be disappointed, it sacrifices nothing runs better and may also cop a few miles to a gallon...too bad Mark is too busy to whip one up for the 530 boys, theres a few buggin here. The 535 chip plugs right in and you will feel it from the first trip out onto the roads.

[Qube]

Go ahead and do a 'shogun' reset and see if that smooths out your ride. If it doesn't then swapping and EAT most likely won't, but what do I know ;)

[kev535i]

Ive had the EAT chip in my 535 for about a month and am very happy as already stated really makes a difference especially in the power range you mentioned,made mine idle a litte better but the 535's are known for a rough idle, go for it and theres even a sale on at the moment!

[Kalevera]

I like my EAT chip very much, but I think people can get unrealistic expectations of performance gains from the manner in which people speak of them. Most of what I have to say about the topic has already been beaten to death on the board in other threads.

I only run the chip when it's economical (based on what I calculated, gas has to be over about $2.50 a gallon for regular to allow the mileage gain to offset the price of premium).

The car WILL idle better, given that everything else is in good shape. Vacuum leaks are killer on M30s, not to mention any number of other things. So are valves that are out of adjustment. Higher octane gas + good mapping = smoother idle.

The car feels slightly faster, and in my opinion, sounds better. The chip takes better advantage of what's available in the M30.

I've had the chip out for about three weeks given current gas prices. There's a noticeable difference, but I'm not missing it, per se.

best, whit

[grave77]

I can say that 80% of the guys in this board owns this EAT chip and each and every one is a proud owner too ... non until now was disapointed at all ( talking about the 535i owners ) you will never regret installing this chip at all.

[Mendozart]

I took mine out in May to see if the emissions would differ, since the first time I smogged my car it had the EAT chip in. The #'s were pretty close, passing with both chips of course. But the gas prices went insane so I didn't put it back in till just this week. I could really tell the difference after driving my car with the stock chip for 6 months. Sport mode is where you really see the difference.

[grave77]

I didnt notice any difference in the consumption .. I would tell that it made more mileage too ... that's if u stay driving the way u were. but I have tested the emmission lately ... with a bad AFM it gave me 0.98 for the CO level ... thats without a catalytic converter ...

[Mendozart]

Supposedly you do get a little better gas mileage, but what I was talking about was having to put in super unleaded gas. With the stock chip in I was putting in the midgrade unleaded with no pinging.

[MarkD]

roadflea is crap, when I fiirst was surfing their info was very commercial and the posters didnt know much about rocks, I accidently found this place and was hooked.

As for a 535 EAT chip you wont be disappointed, it sacrifices nothing runs better and may also cop a few miles to a gallon...too bad Mark is too busy to whip one up for the 530 boys, theres a few buggin here. The 535 chip plugs right in and you will feel it from the first trip out onto the roads.


Jeff,

I had planned to make the chip from your stock one, but this year my diabetes got really bad. I was not able to get much work in for many months. (like only 2 hours a day) So that left me very busy the rest of the time just trying to catch up.

One of my top priorities when I get back in January is to make a 530 chip.
Since I have not found a 530 auto or manual here yet, it's going to be hard. I may have to send you a few chips to try.

Mark

[grave77]

I use RON 98 right now unleaded ... excellantly oparational. there is no pinging issue with the 535i as far as I know... you need to ask MarkD ... there is a thread about this in this board ... do some search ...

[Russell]

on my 95 525i. IMO, It works very well. Gas mileage is at least the same, runs smoother and has much better low end pep. Idles about the same. Just seems to make the car easier to drive.

Do not have smog test here in central KY so not sure of the chip's impact.

Good luck.


I've heard a lot of good things about EAT chips from the board I usually frequent (roadfly) and wanted to get a few opinions.

I've got a very well maintined 90 535i with about 148K. It idles slightly rough and the milage is about 18 FWY 16 in the city. I know it's hard to get gauge anything from a message, but generally will the EAT chip smooth out an idle? I'm also concerned about it being too far away from stock. I don't want a chip that will remap my computer so much that now it feels like a racecar. I'm looking for added power smooth all the way up the powerband. Any power gains above 4500 RPM aren't important to me.

Another main concern is should I attempt to pass a California smog test with this chip? I plan on keeping the stock chip around for just such occations ;) but if the EAT chip will pass smog that a bonus.

I'm new to this board and just looking for some added info on this.

TIA

[Sweet535i]

Okay, who doesn't want better performance? Dumb question but really being rhetorical here. After looking at the different opinions it seems to come down to...are the benefits of the chip (or any chip) worth the additional cost of using premium gas? I actually love my 535i even more when I pump in 87 octane :) Of course I'd LOVE increased performance but with 91/93 octane gas going for 15-20 cents more a gallon...(sigh)

[Russell]

Mine requires 89 octane in stock form. Itis only 20 cents or so for me to go to 93 octane. No brainer for me. I actualy think the gas mileage is up about 1 mpg in average mixed driving. I now get 22.5 to 24 mpg depending on road and weather conditions

[Scott C]

Mine requires 89 octane in stock form. Itis only 20 cents or so for me to go to 93 octane. No brainer for me. I actualy think the gas mileage is up about 1 mpg in average mixed driving. I now get 22.5 to 24 mpg depending on road and weather conditions


1995 525 m50.... No brainer - while I don't see a HUGE difference in performance overall, I do see a very noticeable improvement in driveability - low end throttle response (like from a stop) is so much better. As for the cost of using premium? Well that is the price you pay for the benefit. And as long as you don't get "on" it, you could in fact see better gas mileage (I don't ;) )

Scot

[Gayle]

Another main concern is should I attempt to pass a California smog test with this chip? I plan on keeping the stock chip around for just such occations ;) but if the EAT chip will pass smog that a bonus.

I'm new to this board and just looking for some added info on this.

TIA

Hey new guy. Our cars are twins. I have a white 90 535im in California (San Diego). So where are you?

My car has a dinan chip (had it when I bought the car) and I had no smog troubles on this car. Before that had a 525 with no chip that had mega smog troubles. Dealing with it taught me every trick known to man on how to pass the CA smog test. All the research I did then makes me believe that the vast majority of people do not have to take their chips out to pass the test.

And by the way, Mark told me he plans to develop a chip especially for CA (I think because we have different gas issues here) and hopes to have it ready in January.

Gayle

[Mendozart]

You are right on saying you don't have to take your chip out to pass smog. Like I said previously on this thread, I passed no problem with stock or EAT chip installed. I was just curious to see the difference in emissions #'s. That's interesting about Mark making a chip specifically for CA. I wonder if He'll let us trade our old chip in.

[grave77]

for me before using a chip I was using RON 98 while my car is tuned to 95... I pay 5% extra but simply it worth the smoothness and power increas. I would tell you to drive it without the chip and u will know how much it was making ur life beautiful driving with it.

[wjbell]

Hey new guy. Our cars are twins. I have a white 90 535im in California (San Diego). So where are you?

My car has a dinan chip (had it when I bought the car) and I had no smog troubles on this car. Before that had a 525 with no chip that had mega smog troubles. Dealing with it taught me every trick known to man on how to pass the CA smog test. All the research I did then makes me believe that the vast majority of people do not have to take their chips out to pass the test.

And by the way, Mark told me he plans to develop a chip especially for CA (I think because we have different gas issues here) and hopes to have it ready in January.

Gayle

Hey, cool! I live in Sacramento. Thanks for the reply on the smog. I think I'll email Mark (unless he replies here) if/when he'll make a special chip for Calafornia users, and weather or not it's any less powerful/better than a non-California one.

[Sweet535i]

The 535i M30 engine has 9.0/1 compression vs. 10.5/1 for the M50. This is why the engines differ on the minimum octane rating. A big benefit to M30 owners if you ask me. $.20 gallon makes a difference, particularly over time. Not knocking the chips performance benefits, just attempting to weigh the cost/benefit before going forward.

[willobmw]

WJBell, Just had an emmission test(Virginia) late last month with the E.A.T Chip installed on a 1990 535ia w/113,600 miles and original cat. Results as follows:

15 MPH/ 25 MPH
Limit/Reading/ Limit/Reading
HC ppm 81/ 12 88/ 34
CO% 0.32/ 0.06 0.47/ 0.17
NO ppm 1059/ 53 1029/ 391

I would say Mark D. did a great job. Smoother idle, more low end grunt and more smiles per gallon. Cannot speak on MPG because the pedal is always down.:D
Willobmw
1990 535i
1981 528i
1975 2002

[Sweet535i]

I'm also in VA and have to face the dreaded emissions test, although I just got mine done recently so I'm good for a couple years. Good to know the chip performs so well in this area though!

[grave77]

I totaly agree ... throttle always opened to the max !! it should be called Full BMW solution for all flat points ...

[Gayle]

Hey, cool! I live in Sacramento. Thanks for the reply on the smog. I think I'll email Mark (unless he replies here) if/when he'll make a special chip for Calafornia users, and weather or not it's any less powerful/better than a non-California one.

He is on his way to India for 3 weeks so I wouldn't expect to hear back soon.

[MarkD]

He is on his way to India for 3 weeks so I wouldn't expect to hear back soon.

I'm leaving on Thursday but probably won't answer here after Tuesday. I'm taking a laptop so if I find some free wireless I may "check in".

When I tune the chip for CA, it will have slightly less torque than it does now, but it should still have more that the chip from Mountain View (that Gayle has now)

MarkD

[wjbell]

When I tune the chip for CA, it will have slightly less torque than it does now, but it should still have more that the chip from Mountain View (that Gayle has now)

MarkD

Why are you tuning a chip spacifically for CA? If I ordered a chip today for the 535i 179 DME would I be missing out on somthing that the new one will have? Because if there's nothing wrong with the current CA chip, and it has more tourque, I'd rather have that one.

[MarkD]

Why are you tuning a chip spacifically for CA? If I ordered a chip today for the 535i 179 DME would I be missing out on somthing that the new one will have? Because if there's nothing wrong with the current CA chip, and it has more tourque, I'd rather have that one.


Only because the fuel called 91 octane in CA is more like 90, and I've had one or two (not more) people in CA tell me that they have had some slight pinging with the 179 DME chip. That's the only reason.

Mark

[liquidtiger720]

Only because the fuel called 91 octane in CA is more like 90, and I've had one or two (not more) people in CA tell me that they have had some slight pinging with the 179 DME chip. That's the only reason.

Mark


Mark. If you were to make a CA version, do you think I could swap mine-?

I actually didnt hear any pining while your chip was in, I only too it out to pass smog. - I believe one guy didnt pass smog with your chip in, so I played it safe. I want to put it back in and make sure it isnt pining- but I have no clue what it sounds like, haha.

[wjbell]

Only because the fuel called 91 octane in CA is more like 90, and I've had one or two (not more) people in CA tell me that they have had some slight pinging with the 179 DME chip. That's the only reason.

Mark

Ok, thanks. A couple questions... how much less torque will the new version have than the current chip? And when will it be ready? (so I know when to order) Oh also, should I specify I'm in California somewhere in the order? Maybe in the paypal comments?

[MarkD]

Ok, thanks. A couple questions... how much less torque will the new version have than the current chip? And when will it be ready? (so I know when to order) Oh also, should I specify I'm in California somewhere in the order? Maybe in the paypal comments?

First I want to test it out in CA, so it may be Feb before it's ready to ship.
I'll send it to the person who had some pinging. It could even be a problem with his car, but I know the CA fuel is not very good these days.

When it is ready, I can announce it here and also you will be able to order it right off my site.

MarkD

[MarkD]

Mark. If you were to make a CA version, do you think I could swap mine-?

I actually didnt hear any pining while your chip was in, I only too it out to pass smog. - I believe one guy didnt pass smog with your chip in, so I played it safe. I want to put it back in and make sure it isnt pining- but I have no clue what it sounds like, haha.

I could probably arrange that. The chip should pass smog. We have a stringent test here in Ontario and it will pass here.

Mark

[M5Greg]

Only because the fuel called 91 octane in CA is more like 90, and I've had one or two (not more) people in CA tell me that they have had some slight pinging with the 179 DME chip. That's the only reason.

Mark

Mark,

I was one of those Ca guys. I found a pretty nasty vacuum leak on my intake Friday. I fixed the leak and put your chip back in. So far it's been working great. It has been cold and damp but it seems like my pinging issue is gone for now. BTW, the difference between your chip and stock was very noticable. I'm going to do another dyno soon but with the vacuum leak I didn't get a good baseline.

Greg S.

[MarkD]

Mark,

I was one of those Ca guys. I found a pretty nasty vacuum leak on my intake Friday. I fixed the leak and put your chip back in. So far it's been working great. It has been cold and damp but it seems like my pinging issue is gone for now. BTW, the difference between your chip and stock was very noticable. I'm going to do another dyno soon but with the vacuum leak I didn't get a good baseline.

Greg S.

Hi Greg,

it's someone with a 535i that mentioned pinging. It can be cause by a vacuum leak, carbon, etc but I know the octane of CA fuel is around 90 now so I'm going to adjust for it, just like I did in the CA version of the M5 chip.

Mark