Anyone heard any news or an update to the status of the GIAC chip?

 

Nice one there dgszweda1, when is the show going to start??

 

C'mon, don't you know the number for Helix by now....

 

I have personally seen everything at Helix, but am sworn to secrecy

 

Not going to rip into them. I called up there twice over the last few weeks and didn't get a hold of anyone. Sometimes people on the board have a scoop. I figured we might be hearing something with the Unichip being released. Still really interested in the GIAC regardless of the complaining that I have done having to wait for the chip.

 

I talked to Eric about this recently. They are actively working on the GIAC but it is not ready yet.
No details were provided and Eric said he is not at liberty to say but that there are some new developments.

It doesn't really matter. I want a mature and fully tested product and not something not ready to compete against UniChip or PowerChip or AmD. If the upgrade is solid and the price is $500 it will force prices downward.
I see plenty of talk about Unichip but I also don't see prices that are affordable. And I want evidence that those ECU upgrades do anything positive that is measurable for pulley sizes other than 15%. Sure they can say that their map is good for 17% and 19% but where is the evidence that is repeatable.

I'm waiting. I'll go for v.37 first.

 

>>I'm waiting. I'll go for v.37 first.

37 is old news. Wait for 38, it's apparently the cure for yo-yo.

Hmm I like the sound of that - like a MINI slogan
"Wait for THIRTY-EIGHT!"

M

 

I'm hopeful that BMW is also revising their ECU mapping with these updates. I can understand initially programming rich for safety and seeing how the warranty claims/field results turn out. I haven't heard of any engine problems which would seem to relate to running too lean, so there would seem to be no downside in leaning out the mixture a little. That may account for some of the higher power rating for 2005. (170 vs. 163?) along with the different supercharger blade coating. We all benefit then, with better mileage, longer Cat life, more power, and happier customers. Maybe wishful thinking.

None of the ECU vendors have posted information comparing the various versions of the factory s/w to their mappings. There is a possibility that the best factory ecu mods are similar to the earlier aftermarket offerings.

 

I heard "two weeks".

 

I get the sense from Eric that when they SAY there will be a 10-12 hp increase.........there will BE a 10-12 hp increase.......not 3-4 hp. That's the positive side of the long wait.

 

Actually, even according to Randy's maps, the 15% Unichip program doesn't do much at all. It only seems worth it if you don't have a pulley. Even then, with the dyno they used, I'd like to see more and better data.

As for GIAC, I have heard something recently, but I'm not sure I'm at liberty to say. I'll give another call this week and see what I can post.

 

i don't understand all this secrecy on here.... what secrets? what is to hide? are you the US government with strategic military information, and we the Russians?

just spill the damn beans already. If anything, you might save Garrett and Eric a sale or two by convincing people to wait longer.

 

>>I have personally seen everything at Helix, but am sworn to secrecy

Do you want a cookie?

This 1.5+ year delay is pathetic, everyone knows it, so is this childish "am sworn to secrecy" crap. If you're so sworn to secrecy why even admit that?

_________________



'04 BRG/B S, stockified


Someone in So Cal please buy my S-lites, first reasonable offer and they're yours!

 

>>>>I have personally seen everything at Helix, but am sworn to secrecy
>>
>> Do you want a cookie?
>>
>>This 1.5+ year delay is pathetic, everyone knows it, so is this childish "am sworn to secrecy" crap. If you're so sworn to secrecy why even admit that?
>>

Yeah, the whole "I know something you dont know" scene got pretty old after about 3rd grade.

 

>>>>I have personally seen everything at Helix, but am sworn to secrecy
>>
>>

 

I think a lot of people are curious about the GIAC tune for the 19% pulley. I am as well. But it appears at least based off of Randy's testing and comments made by some other manufacturers and people that there is less benefit, if any on chip tuning with the 19%, then chip tuning on the 15%. Some of Randy's graphs on the Unichip pointed to this as well. Does everyone think this is the case in general, or maybe just a Unichip issue?

 

sooner or later you will run up against some barriers as you make the engine flow more. My findings were that the 19% with headwork, header, etc. needs more fuel at WOT and >6000 rpm than the stock injectors can deliver. As less than 6000 rpm, but WOT, the ecu mods will be sufficient to maximize the A/F ratio and the benefits of more boost at a lower rpm will be gained with the 19%. If all one is showing is max hp when comparing 19% + ECU and 15% + ECU, the 19% combo won't be optimized since no matter what you tell the ECU to do re. fuel map, the injectors are going to punk out.

 

>>I get the sense from Eric that when they SAY there will be a 10-12 hp increase.........there will BE a 10-12 hp increase.......not 3-4 hp. That's the positive side of the long wait.

I would say that the HP gains from GIAC will be less than your estimate. Maybe in the range of 10HP or less but the torque gain may be more than other ECUs and that is what I am after. That's why I am waiting.

As for secrecy about product development this late- Could be any of these or something else-
As they did testing they found a basic or subtle flaw and are correcting it-for the better
They found a breakthrough something-maybe new map idea/combo-maybe better method to install the upgrade
It can't be something that only affects the 17% and 19% maps because the 15% pulley version was first to appear.
They found a way to cut costs and make it cheaper-hey this is good.

No matter what, if it ain't ready and it is going to need some work before the full release is set then hype it down.
GIAC is not ready. No comment on the date. No comment on the latest development. That's it.
Now given ALL of the time invested, I would think that if the product is close to release then they ought to just finish it up and not take two years to come to market when competitors are making sales left and right. However some owners are waiting until they are out of warranty or perhaps want to load MINI ECU software version v.38 first then upgrade ECU which is fine. (my dealer doesn't have v.38 yet).

Interesting to note that those that know will not say. Hey that's pretty good secrecy- I'm a little impressed but not as impressed as if and when GIAC is released.

As for ECUs and 19% pulleys, yes I have heard from Randy that the gains on the 19% from any ECU are rather limited but I am hoping that Garrett has found a way to make some magic and that this magic can be backed up with some hard data that proves it.

As for ECU and 15% pulleys. I think people that added PowerChip to their pullied MCS found there was indeed more power-significantly more. Ask Dennis Minero, he thought the PowerChip was a great upgrade so I don't get that adding an ECU to a pullied MCS is not as good as adding an ECU upgrade to a non-pulley upgraded MCS.

 

It appears a lot of people are getting the Unichip and then getting it tweaked at Unichip shops on the dyno. This appears to be a good way to tweak the settings for your specific application.

Do you think GIAC will do the same? Can we purchase the chip and then get it further tweaked at one of the many GIAC shops? That would be a real big plus.

 

It isn't. All of the ECUs to date show greater increases with the ECU in pullied MINIs. Only the unichip showed otherwise. And I don't trust any chart showing a stock S with Alta intake makes 186HP. With a correction factor like that, who the heck knows what that does to the rest of the data. :???:

And as far as maxing out the injectors with the 19%...who knows if this will be the case. jlm has seen it but again, he has good headwork and a header. Very few of us (I think) have headwork and not a whole lot have a header although a decent number of people do. The most common modded setup will probably be pulley, intake, exhaust and ECU. With those mods, I'm hoping and think there's a pretty good chance that the injectors won't be maxed out.

 

>>Anyone heard any news or an update to the status of the GIAC chip?

I asked Erik while he was installing pulleys at the Dragon. It is running in his car, but there are still issues and he didn't quote a date.

Tom

 

>>It is running in his car, but there are still issues and he didn't quote a date.

Hah! Such weaksauce.

 

Im about to purchase the UNIchip, but I want to hear more on the GIAC. Ill be glad to wait to purchase it if someone would give me a reason to. Otherwise, they may just lose a potential customer.

 

>>Im about to purchase the UNIchip, but I want to hear more on the GIAC. Ill be glad to wait to purchase it if someone would give me a reason to. Otherwise, they may just lose a potential customer.


LoL, there are no reasons to wait.... thats what we've all been searching for since the introduction of the concept of the GIAC chip - a reason to wait.

well, if you want honesty, and you've got the dough, just get the UNICHIP. You might still have enough lead in your pipe to enjoy your car with that then before the GIAC comes out.....

 

You can get the Unichip now....But you'll still be getting the GIAC - whenever it comes out whether you get another ECU or not!