FatDaddyBMW
03-24-2003, 01:15 AM
Gruppe,
Forgive me if you've seen this on another forum, but I felt all of you needed to hear my comparison between the aforementioned chips for an eta-powered e28.
As some of you may know, Mark D'Sylva is going to develop a chip that will optimize a 325i cam for the eta engine. I'm going to be doing the testing on it and will do the before and after dyno runs, too. I'm paying for everything myself (dyno runs, chip, maintenance items, etc) and am getting NO benefits from Mark for helping or for "advertising" for him.
I have chosen to give Mark some good press as it seems like he gets no press and he really does deserve some!
So, without making you wait any longer, here is a post that I made to some BMW-related boards. . .
I've been driving with the Mark D'Sylva chip on my 528e lately, and BOY do I like that thing! Like I said, it was just light years ahead of the Dinan chip!
Today, a fellow 528e driver stopped by, and I took him out for a ride in my car. He was nice and terrified : -)
Once I parked, we swapped ECUs. He's got a Jim C chip, and me the Mark D chip. Well, now I have the JC and he has the Mark D, but you get the point!
I've driven the car for probably about 40 miles or so since the ECU was plugged in, and I've already noticed a difference between the two chips. The difference isn't as pronounced as it was when I went from Dinan to Mark D, but it's still a bit noticeable, somewhat akin to going from the 3.25 diff back to the 2.93.
I have to say that I'm not as impressed with the JC chip as I thought I would be. Whereas the Dinan chip felt minutely better than stock until 3,000 where it really took off, the Mark D'Sylva chip seems to just pull at every single RPM. The Jim C chip has a slightly more pronounced jump at 3,000 than the Mark D but not as much so as Dinan. The Jim C pulls more than Dinan at lower RPMs but not as much as Mark D.
So, here's the breakdown:
At lower RPMs (below 3,000): Mark D, then Jim C, then Dinan
At mid-range (3k - 4k): Mark D, then Jim C, then Dinan
At high RPMs: No surprise when I say Mark D, Jim C, Dinan!
I was actually expecting the Jim C to either completely obliterate the other two chips or for it to at least be a tad better at some RPM range. Nope. The MD chip just seems to do well at every RPM. I'm especially impressed with its lower RPM prowess.
More evidence that backs up the facts about Mark D's chip being better at lower RPMs is the fact that it's harder for me to rev match with the Jim C chip. I at first thought that I wasn't pressing the gas as hard as before, but this isn't true. When I press the gas the same amount, the Jim C chip just doesn't get the revs high enough to match revs. I have to press the gas harder to match them!
I really thought I was imagining things, but I tested this thing over and over and over tonight, and I have to admit that the Mark D chip takes the cake!
Guys, PLEASE understand me when I say that I am being as completely unbiased as possible. I was actually HOPING the JC chip would be better so that I could say it was and prove that I wasn't biased! But, I would be lying if I said that I thought the Jim C chip was the better chip.
It looks to me like there finally IS a better eta chip than the Jim C chip:
Mark D'Sylva!!!
Thanks for reading. E-mail me if you have any questions.
Brad "Shifty" Couvillon
'87 528e
www.fatdaddybmw.com
Forgive me if you've seen this on another forum, but I felt all of you needed to hear my comparison between the aforementioned chips for an eta-powered e28.
As some of you may know, Mark D'Sylva is going to develop a chip that will optimize a 325i cam for the eta engine. I'm going to be doing the testing on it and will do the before and after dyno runs, too. I'm paying for everything myself (dyno runs, chip, maintenance items, etc) and am getting NO benefits from Mark for helping or for "advertising" for him.
I have chosen to give Mark some good press as it seems like he gets no press and he really does deserve some!
So, without making you wait any longer, here is a post that I made to some BMW-related boards. . .
I've been driving with the Mark D'Sylva chip on my 528e lately, and BOY do I like that thing! Like I said, it was just light years ahead of the Dinan chip!
Today, a fellow 528e driver stopped by, and I took him out for a ride in my car. He was nice and terrified : -)
Once I parked, we swapped ECUs. He's got a Jim C chip, and me the Mark D chip. Well, now I have the JC and he has the Mark D, but you get the point!
I've driven the car for probably about 40 miles or so since the ECU was plugged in, and I've already noticed a difference between the two chips. The difference isn't as pronounced as it was when I went from Dinan to Mark D, but it's still a bit noticeable, somewhat akin to going from the 3.25 diff back to the 2.93.
I have to say that I'm not as impressed with the JC chip as I thought I would be. Whereas the Dinan chip felt minutely better than stock until 3,000 where it really took off, the Mark D'Sylva chip seems to just pull at every single RPM. The Jim C chip has a slightly more pronounced jump at 3,000 than the Mark D but not as much so as Dinan. The Jim C pulls more than Dinan at lower RPMs but not as much as Mark D.
So, here's the breakdown:
At lower RPMs (below 3,000): Mark D, then Jim C, then Dinan
At mid-range (3k - 4k): Mark D, then Jim C, then Dinan
At high RPMs: No surprise when I say Mark D, Jim C, Dinan!
I was actually expecting the Jim C to either completely obliterate the other two chips or for it to at least be a tad better at some RPM range. Nope. The MD chip just seems to do well at every RPM. I'm especially impressed with its lower RPM prowess.
More evidence that backs up the facts about Mark D's chip being better at lower RPMs is the fact that it's harder for me to rev match with the Jim C chip. I at first thought that I wasn't pressing the gas as hard as before, but this isn't true. When I press the gas the same amount, the Jim C chip just doesn't get the revs high enough to match revs. I have to press the gas harder to match them!
I really thought I was imagining things, but I tested this thing over and over and over tonight, and I have to admit that the Mark D chip takes the cake!
Guys, PLEASE understand me when I say that I am being as completely unbiased as possible. I was actually HOPING the JC chip would be better so that I could say it was and prove that I wasn't biased! But, I would be lying if I said that I thought the Jim C chip was the better chip.
It looks to me like there finally IS a better eta chip than the Jim C chip:
Mark D'Sylva!!!
Thanks for reading. E-mail me if you have any questions.
Brad "Shifty" Couvillon
'87 528e
www.fatdaddybmw.com