Any one used UNICHIP piggyback PCM(ECU)

[VIPER BAZ UK]

Been to a locan tuners today and he was fitting one to a Cosworth 450bhp 2.0litre..
And he is very confident it would work on the viper as well..
Has anybody used one? Did it work?
Guy said the stock PCM is still used but the Unichip ecu runs tps,sensors air flow ect ect..by re routing the wires from stock PCM to the Unichip ..
http://www.unichip.us/index2.html

 

[ERDOC]

I have one in my 97 GTS. The mods were performed by Woodhouse Dodge by the previous owners. I had some problems with the car starting initially but after I reset the computer it has performed well for the most part. I still have an occasional hiccup requiring two cranks to start the car. I am looking at the battery now as a possible culprit. Advanced Auto checked it out yesterday and said the battery was ok but the charge was low so they said the alternator may be bad. That is kinda weird since my Schumacher battery tender reads a full charge within one minute of plugging it in. A little off topic but anyone have any ideas.

 

[pullshard]

Yes, there WAS one on my car. The previous owner was able to get 60 more hp out of the car (Paxton) with it installed. And then about 15 minutes later, on the dyno, the engine blew up. They could never get the car to idle right with it. When I got the car, I plugged it in and it would not start. I sent it back to the 'unichip' tuner who said that he knew what it was an would fix it. Got it back 3 weeks later and the car would not even turn over with it plugged in. I just got my car back from another tuner. He was able to get it to start but said that it was only good for HP increase (he felt the system was not giving the car a safe tune). He could not get the car to run under 12 a\f. When you would let off the gas, it would still dump mass amounts of fuel into the cylinders. I called the racers group at sears point about the unichip (Unichip sponsored them). He said they work pretty well for certain cars, he did not reccomend it for a viper because they are not made for them. You would not believe the mess of wires there was when this system was in place. My advice is: Do not get it.

 

[FrankBarba]

I 2nd the opinion of not getting the Unichip. Had the Unichip burn up my ECU, which inturn emploded my motor. I talked with Peter Dewitt Owner of Unichip, he personally did the program for this car & did the installation of the Unichip (hardwired the chip into the ECU). He suggested i ship the whole car back to S.Africa where he could see exactly what happened. I shipped him the ECu instead (cost 1K). NOthing could be done. If your looking at a management system go with the Motec.

 

[Dave T (BADVENM)]

I'm having a few "issues" with my Unichip I reckon. Occasionally the car wont start and takes a few minutes and cranks to get going. Also having a slight hesitation on acceleration about 3K rpm thats noticeable and irritating. Currently troubleshooting the issue with Woodhouse.

If I were to vote whether to get one right now I'd say NO, once I get the apparent bugs worked out I'll pass on the info.

 

[ERDOC]

I had to remove the UNICHIP to finally get it to run properly. No issues since.

 

[Dave T (BADVENM)]

I did some more testing today. Did several hard accelerations from 2K and 3K rpms to 5500 rpms in 2nd and 3rd gear, no hesitation like before. Acceleration was consistent. Only questionable hesitation and its spotty is from a standstill accelerating in first and possibly 2nd gear. Will try again tomorrow to hopefully better define the issue.

Car started on the first attempt so I couldnt test recommendations from Woodhouse on troubleshooting this occasional issue.

 

[MadMaxx]

Why not just buy a 200$ Apexi SAFC-II, and a wideband O2? You would be surprised what that little sucker can do.

 

[James Bell]

I thought the Roe Racing Vec-2 was the best inexpensive pggyback/stand-alone computer available. Is anyone using it?

 

[VIPER BAZ UK]

Went for the Gen1 VEC2 but never installed it ended up getting an 02 RT/10 awaiting delivery(CANT WAIT).....

 

[MadMaxx]

Problem with "chips" is that every car is different. You can use base maps, but you still have to fine tune.

 

[James Bell]

Viper Baz do you still have the Gen-1 Vec-2? Is it for sale?

 

[VIPER BAZ UK]

Viper Baz do you still have the Gen-1 Vec-2? Is it for sale?

It Might be as i dont know if the new owner wants it or not will ask tomorrow.
It is still in the box brand new..

 

[RX VIPER]

I've got the Dastek Unichip Programmer that was on my GTS before the ROE S/C. It was tuned for my car by Cerra Racing in Ill. I picked up right at 25rwhp after the install that got me to 459 total. Just remember, it must be custom programmed for your car. It was $850 new in April, 2002. I'll sell it for $150 shipped if anyone wants it. PM if interested. Sorry, not trying to hi-jack the thread. This just reminded me I've got the thing downstairs. The $850 included the tuning- the unit was ~$600 or so.

Michael

 

[VIPER BAZ UK]

Viper Baz do you still have the Gen-1 Vec-2? Is it for sale?

You have PM..............