Hyper chip

[Ken]

Oh man, the dude wanted a ballpark price. I didn't see any pricing.

_ken

 

[GusVette]

Price!!!

Check out Eckler's http://www.ecklers.com
or
Mid-America http://www.madirect.com

Gus

 

[Radar]

I have a Hypertech Stage 2 chip in my 89 convertible. I think the Stage 2 is the same as the Stage 1 except the cooling fans are set to come on at 174 degrees so a 160 engine thermosata is needed.

I also have installed a 160 degree engine thermostat. The car runs great and has much better pull out of the hole as well as WOT. My mileage seems good, I get 26 MPG on a sustained highway trip. The car also easily passed Wisconsin emissions.

Hope this helps.

Radar

 

[rdgfx3]

Anybody have a report on how the chips perform with the Speed/Density Config.in a 90 model L-98?

 

[sleepyhead]

I have a Hypertech Stage 2 chip in my 89 convertible. I think the Stage 2 is the same as the Stage 1 except the cooling fans are set to come on at 174 degrees so a 160 engine thermosata is needed.

I also have installed a 160 degree engine thermostat. The car runs great and has much better pull out of the hole as well as WOT. My mileage seems good, I get 26 MPG on a sustained highway trip. The car also easily passed Wisconsin emissions.

Hope this helps.

Radar

Radar,

I'm thinking of getting a chip for my '89 convertible come spring. If you had to do it over again, would you buy the Stage I chip or go with the Stage II? Also, I'm wondering how much of a change in acceleration that you actually felt once you installed the chip?

Thanks for any help you can give!

-J.

 

[Radar]

Hi -J

Well I can not exactly answer that question directly because I bought the car from my brother with the chip installed. He tells me that it made quite a difference. He said the car was pretty flat from a dead stop before the chip change.

The car runs just fine and feels very strong. I have a 2:59 rear axle ratio so my "out of the hole" lauch is handicapped, but it is very strong all of the way to redline. I don't know if the chip effected it, but my 1-2 shift with the automatic is very firm, really nice! As a matter of fact, if I am going about 35 and rally nail it, it drops to first and chirps the tires on the 1/2 shift! I like that part. It also passed both Ohio and Wisconsin emissions test with out a problem. Mileage is good; I got 26 MPG on a trip from Cincinnatti to Milwaukee last summer.

I also have the 160 degree thermostat installed now. The Stage Two chip lowers the fan cut-in temperature to about 175 degrees F. What happened at first with the original thermostat was that my cooling fan just ran all of the time because the engine thermostat wanted 220 and the chip wanted 175! It was not going to happen. With the 160 t'sat, the car runs great and the heater is strong. I don't use the car in the cold weather so I don't worry about it running too cool. I can't say I noticed a whole lot of change with the cooler temperature but it could of helped some. I like the idea of cooler under-hood temps so I would advise you to go Satge 2 and make the thermosat change.

I really love my 89. Do you have a lot of dash squeaks? I have one really annoying one that seems to come just right of the center of the dash. What a pain! I paln to put the dash upper cover off this winter and find that monster and exterminate it. I also have the Bose stero and two dead amps. That is my winter project.

Hope this helps!

Radar :TALK :Twist

 

[vms4evr]

Keith,
Computer location. 84-89 is under passenger side dash (the back breaker). 90-96 is drivers side engine compartment.
Radar,
When you get ready to take the center console off this winter i'd suggest you take some weatherstripping and put it on the back. The 84 i had would squeek and I kept on trying to shim it. Then I just pulled it and put some weatherstrip behind it to act as a cushion to stop plastic on plastic chaffing which may be causing some of your squeeks. I also put a couple of strips on the radio so that when it went back in it was snug and couldn't touch anything. No more squeeks there afterwards.
If you're going to keep the Bose I would suggest you replace the amps in pairs. Back pair, front pair. It makes a difference on the volume and balance of the sound. Trust me on this one...
Graham

 

[sleepyhead]

Hi -J

I really love my 89. Do you have a lot of dash squeaks? I have one really annoying one that seems to come just right of the center of the dash. What a pain! I paln to put the dash upper cover off this winter and find that monster and exterminate it. I also have the Bose stero and two dead amps. That is my winter project.

Hope this helps!

Radar :TALK :Twist

Thanks for the advice! In answer to your question, luckily I don't have any dash squeaks - but I do have an annoying rattle right behind the driver-side left shoulder. That's one of the major drawbacks of owning a C4 as opposed to a C5 - all those noises!

-J.

 

[Radar]

Thanks for the advise.

Radar

 

[Paul G]

Hi guys, I am putting in my .02. I have an 88 4+3 with the hypertech chip. It was in there with a 160 stat when I bought the car last year. We live in northwest Indiana, only gets real hot in the middle of summer around here. The rest of the year is comfortable to cold. My engine temp ran about 160 with the set up the way it was. That is just to cool to be running at IMHO. I was concerned that the engine would not get warm enough to burn off moisture etc. I took out the 160 and put in a 180. Now engine temps are around 175. I feel much better this way.

I guess what I am saying is if you live in a hot climate the 160 is probably okay. If your in a cooler place I wouldnt recomend temps that low. In the end I guess do what you are comfotable with.

This has been debated on every forum on the net. I believe there is no hard and fast rule to follow.

 

[Radar]

In my mind, what is more important is the oil temperature. That is the medium that needs to burn off moisture to keep corrosion in check . With the 160 degree t'stat, my oil temps hold about 185 deg under light loads and about 201 to 206 on a hard cruise. These temperutres seem plenty warm to maintain good oil chemistry.

Also, with cooler water temperature, my automatic transmission oil cooler should keep the tranny slightly cooler too.

I only use my car in the summer and it almost always runs hotter than 160. I think if I was using it in more cold weather, I too would stay with the higher engine t'stat. However, I would change to the Hypertech Stage 1 chip so the cooling fan comes on at the factory setting that I think is around 225 deg.

Radar

 

[tom94vette]

Whoa, wait a minute. I live in Florida. I took my thermostat out completely. The car still heated up to 210 in a split second. I went to Ecklers reunion and asked for a 160 degree thermostat and the rep told me that if the car runs under 180 degrees that its bad for the engine. The car was designed to run at 200+ degrees and that I shouldn't mess with that, that's why the fans kick on at 237, because it is the optimal running temperature. So why am I reading that everyones cars are running better at 160 degrees. 160 degrees, my electric bicycle runs hotter than that. Please explain why the corvette engineers designed the car to run at 200+ if 160 is better. Huh?

Tom:confused

 

[Drewser]

According to Hypertech:
"From the laws of Physics, we know that cooler air is denser than warmer air, and since horsepower increases as the amount of air and fuel burned increases, cooler air makes more power. Replacing the factory thermostat with the Hypertech low-temp PowerStat(tm) will allow the engine to run cooler, making more power and reducing the engine's tendency to detonate. Detonation, usually producing audible pinging or even knocking sounds, refers to the spontaneous explosion of the unburned air/fuel mixture in the combustion chamber. Detonation violently ends the normal combustion process, reduces power, and can severely damage the engine."

As for why the engineers didn't do it, I just don't know. Why didn't they put a hot chip and other performance enhancing equipment? Maybe they had a buttload full of 180 degree thermostats they had to use up, or it could be that they left you something to do with your spare time. I know I for one like the extra horses that I get out of the chip & 'stat. To each his own.


:s

 

[Radar]

I think the throttle body area on the L98 is warmed by the engine coolant to reduce the emisiions and to aid the engine warm-up. While this helps when first starting, this also reduces the density of the air flowing into the engine. If I remeber my physics correctly, the perfect gas law is PV=nRT. This says that the volume of the air mixture is directly proprtional to the air's temperature. A denser air can transport more fuel to the cylinders when the ratio is 13.7 parts air to one part fuel. If each part of air is more dense, the relative portion of fuel is increased to rebalance. The EMC wathes the oxygen level in the exhaust and adjusts the fuel injector on-off pulse length to enrichen the mixture for ideal combustion.

What this boiles down to is alittle extra power with a cooler throttle body because the engine management computer tailers the mixture for more fuel. I know the the engines are designed for the hotter temperatures but I also think that it is much more related tp emissions efficiency (especially HC). To counteract the cooler temp, I run Mobil 1 synthetic oil so sludge formation is minimized. I also change oil religiously.

All I know is that my car runs stronger with this setup, the mileage is good and it easily passes Wisconsin emissions tests for NOx, CO and HC. The is not a sign of sludge in the engine.

Radar

:cool

 

[Ken]

Unless you live in a warm climate year-round, don't bypass the throttle body water passages; it prevents icing of the butterflies.

I bypassed mine, but I live in SoCal.

_ken

 

[Topless]

Ok, a different angle....

From reading the threads, most are using the chip on automatics. What about on a '92 with a 6spd? I get the usual high temps at stop lights and traffic, but oddly enough, I can run through Nevada when it is 115* out and run under 205* even with the a/c running (under or at 200* without the a/c). Since I live in Denver, cold is a factor, arrggghhh.

To chip, or not to chip, that is the question.

 

[Drewser]

It is true that mine is an automatic, but I had it out this morning when the temp was 32 outside and it heated right up to 160 like normal. Plenty hot enough for the heater. I think my oil is about 10-20 degrees cooler too. My cooler temp isn't from the chip as much as it is from the 160 degree thermostat and the fan switch that turns the fan on at 160. Maybe c4c5 can help you with your 6 speed.

 

[c4ever]

I hear a lot about the TB by-pass. Living in Fla. I'm considering it. Is there an easy way to do this. Additional hose, kit, etc. Though I enjoy making beneficial changes to the power plant, I don't want a mess under the hood :nono
Does it require removing the stat housing (I hate removing the stat housing:L )

 

[Topless]

Drewser...

I have heard that you can get a recalibrated sensor/switch for the block that will turn on the fans at a lower temperature. Could I go this route and get a 160* stat, or would I be screwing up the computer and fuel curve?

 

[JT ZR-Won]

Re: Drewser...

I have heard that you can get a recalibrated sensor/switch for the block that will turn on the fans at a lower temperature. Could I go this route and get a 160* stat, or would I be screwing up the computer and fuel curve?

Topless,
I believe the fanswitch will work just fine by itself. But I think if you install a 160 thermostat without adjusting the ECM, you might have some troubles. I had another Tuned Port Injected car a while back that I put a 160 thermostat in but didn't change the chip right away. The temp gauge fluctuated depending if I was driving or sitting still.......I recommend the chip and the stat

Jay