Installed my EAT chip today... strange happening.

[hakwuzhere]

So, I finally got my chip installed today, and after running it through the OBC reboot, I went to take it out for a spin... car was warmed up, so checked and made sure the rev limiter was gone...yep! :)

So I get out onto the exit on the highway, pulling out of the exit Im in 2cd and revving at about 4k... push it to 5k, then 6k and shift.. look in my rearview and see a cloud of smoke behind my car! yikes! Laid off it for a bit.. then tried the same thing again... same smoke!

The drive home was about 25 miles, and the other times I took it above 5k RPMs I didnt notice anything... so Im not sure if its a problem... is it normal when I change the chip to have something like this happen?

[Jeff N.]

When was the last time you pulled it to redline? May just be the engine cleaning out some gunk.

[hakwuzhere]

Been a few weeks since I hit the limiter... but Ive pulled it close to 6k a few times prior to installing the chip.

[632 Regal]

more power=more ring blowby?

[Qube]

Are you using recommended octane, for one?

Or maybe it's your bimmer saying... HOOOOOOOLLLLYYYYY YSHIIIIITITITITTTT after living for the first time :)

[hakwuzhere]

In the 3 months that Ive owned it, it hasnt seen anything but 92 or 93 octane...

Ill go out tommorow and see if I still see it smokin... heh, reminded me of driving my friends Maxima with a 150 shot of NOS...(well, definately not that fast)

[F4Phantom]

Can I just ask here if it is wise to remove the rev limiter? I gave my car (auto) a bit of stick last night and noticed it changed right on redline at 6000rpm. My question would be how much harder does it need to rev and how much more acceleration will you get from a few 100 rpm all the way up there, and even if you do get a bit more power, is it worth it decreasing the engines life? Mine has done 270,000km, seems fine but I would be reluctant to push a worn old engine that hard.

[632 Regal]

I wouldnt, you wont see much power over that limit.

[genphreak]

Can I just ask here if it is wise to remove the rev limiter? I gave my car (auto) a bit of stick last night and noticed it changed right on redline at 6000rpm. My question would be how much harder does it need to rev and how much more acceleration will you get from a few 100 rpm all the way up there, and even if you do get a bit more power, is it worth it decreasing the engines life? Mine has done 270,000km, seems fine but I would be reluctant to push a worn old engine that hard.An auto will always change before redline anyway, so no fear there unless you are holding it in gear, nuetral or using manual mode unwisely. You are pretty safe therefore...

[632 Regal]

otherwise theres no reason to get rid of the limiter...I know my engine is different but it dont pull any stronger after the redline, to me its a waste of engine. On a drunkin night you could blow the engine and it would be a blessing to get you off the road :D

An auto will always change before redline anyway, so no fear there unless you are holding it in gear, nuetral or using manual mode unwisely. You are pretty safe therefore...

[granit_silber]

otherwise theres no reason to get rid of the limiter...I know my engine is different but it dont pull any stronger after the redline, to me its a waste of engine. On a drunkin night you could blow the engine and it would be a blessing to get you off the road :D
To change the shift points you have to get a new tranny chip. Which I think Mark also has.
-ashley

[hakwuzhere]

After driving another 70 or so miles, I havent noticed any difference at all between shifting at 5500 and 6500... so yea, removing the limiter doesnt do much for you.

Now to figure out why my computer says Im getting 12mpg, when I was at 19.4 before (gonna give it a few tanks to figure out where I need to be).

Also the problem with the smoke has not happened again, so it might have been the engine cleaning out some gunk.

Next question about the EAT chip, the car just doesnt feel optimised at hwy speed (55-65) it starts to feel like your crusing at 75-80(dangerous for me!)... Im thinking that this may be a bit of getting used to, but it definately feels alot different at 65mph.

[632 Regal]

did you reboot the computer?

[Robin-535im]

Hak - remember that the fuel trim map has to be re-learned before the mixtures will be correct at WOT. To "teach" the ECU, the engine has to run at all the RPM vs. Load points in the 2D map and get an average idea of what amount of fuel is required to get the mixture perfect for all these mid throttle operating points.

That mid-throttle map is used to forecast what amount of fuel should be used at wide open throttle (WOT) - something like 10% more fuel gets you to the "maximum power" air/fuel mixture from the "best emmissions" a/f mixture.

So if it is using the old fuel map and you floor it, I think it will be too rich, because I think advancing the timing (which is what chips do) means you can use less fuel. So if it's still in the "more fuel" mode and you floor it, it's "more fuel" + 10%*"more fuel" and you'll be rich.

In short, drive it at mid throttle (up to ~2/3 pedal) at lots of different RPM / load points, and then try the pedal to the metal to see if that fixes it.

HTH

Robin

[hakwuzhere]

I dont understand alot of what you said Robin, but I think I got the point.... :) I thought it might be something to do with the new ECU learning, and my mechanic suggested that it was running rich when I saw the smoke...

Ive been driving all day, and I probobly have another 50-100 miles to go... :)

[632 Regal]

did you reboot the computer?

[SRR2]

In pre-OBD II (this might be an approximation) cars you have to unplug the ECU to install the chip, therefore the adaptation memory will be automatically cleared without any further action. You don't need to disconnect the battery at all, and certainly don't need to go through that voodoo of "connect the battery terminals together with the switch on while standing on your head wearing a kelly green shirt with purple pocket protector and reciting the first fourteen verses of the Kama Sutra while holding an old toothbrush in your mouth" or whatever it is.

This reminds me of a funny exchange about adaptation that occurred on the old Z3 message board a few years ago:
http://bimmer.roadfly.com/z3/messages/archive/msgsy1999w14/70774.html
Jim Conforti in full bloom....

[hakwuzhere]

The computer was rebooted when the chip was installed. But I dont have a kelly green shirt... is there anyway I can do this with a pea green polo?....