power chips
Drifting
Joined: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,396
Likes: 129
From: Plainfield IN
Le Mans Master
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 7,794
Likes: 2,256
From: Brighton MI
The early GM ECMs used a PROM chip (Program Read Only Memory IIRC). The chips contained the fuel maps, timing maps, etc. The aftermarket started making performance chips to wring out a little more power. The chips were physically replaced in the ECM to accomplish this. At least since the beginning of C5 production, maybe a bit earlier but not sure on that, the ECM itself became programmable (aka getting a tune). With the right equipment, you could access the ECM and customize many of the tunable parameters. There is no "chip" to replace in these ECMs.
Administrator
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From: In a parallel universe. Currently own 2014 Stingray Coupe.
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St. Jude Donor '03 thru '25
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Don’t waste your money - power chips do not work well on a C5. Just get a tune and you will be much happier - especially if you do so after adding some power mods.
Drifting
Joined: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,396
Likes: 129
From: Plainfield IN
Safety Car
Joined: Jan 2019
Posts: 4,308
Likes: 3,455
From: Somewhere, Florida
St. Jude Donor '20-'21-'22-'23-'24
Go to a dyno shop in your area. They can adjust many parameters on these cars - torque management, automatic transmission line pressures, adjust for tire size/gear changes, clean up the fuel tables, disable the low speed fuel cutoff, etc.
There's a lot of adjustability in these stock LS PCM already. Anything that claims to plug in to your car and give gains is snake oil.
There's a lot of adjustability in these stock LS PCM already. Anything that claims to plug in to your car and give gains is snake oil.
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Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2016
Posts: 2,305
Likes: 1,581
From: East Metro (Twin Cities) Minnesota
St. Jude Donor '21
Been tuning for years on my own modified cars.
If you are bone stock, there typically is not too much to change to make a major difference in seat of the pants power. Tuning can take care of the skip shift with manuals and can tweak the shift points and firmness of automatics if you want it a to shift less "slushy". The minor tweaks to fueling and timing will not add a material amount of HP that you will feel on a stock C5 - IMO.
If you do decide to have your car "tuned" find out who the reputable tuners are in your areas. There are quite a few good ones and a few I wouldn't let touch my rig. It is up to you to do some due diligence and find out who is who...
Good luck,
Toys
If you are bone stock, there typically is not too much to change to make a major difference in seat of the pants power. Tuning can take care of the skip shift with manuals and can tweak the shift points and firmness of automatics if you want it a to shift less "slushy". The minor tweaks to fueling and timing will not add a material amount of HP that you will feel on a stock C5 - IMO.
If you do decide to have your car "tuned" find out who the reputable tuners are in your areas. There are quite a few good ones and a few I wouldn't let touch my rig. It is up to you to do some due diligence and find out who is who...
Good luck,
Toys
Drifting
Joined: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,396
Likes: 129
From: Plainfield IN
Been tuning for years on my own modified cars.
If you are bone stock, there typically is not too much to change to make a major difference in seat of the pants power. Tuning can take care of the skip shift with manuals and can tweak the shift points and firmness of automatics if you want it a to shift less "slushy". The minor tweaks to fueling and timing will not add a material amount of HP that you will feel on a stock C5 - IMO.
If you do decide to have your car "tuned" find out who the reputable tuners are in your areas. There are quite a few good ones and a few I wouldn't let touch my rig. It is up to you to do some due diligence and find out who is who...
Good luck,
Toys
If you are bone stock, there typically is not too much to change to make a major difference in seat of the pants power. Tuning can take care of the skip shift with manuals and can tweak the shift points and firmness of automatics if you want it a to shift less "slushy". The minor tweaks to fueling and timing will not add a material amount of HP that you will feel on a stock C5 - IMO.
If you do decide to have your car "tuned" find out who the reputable tuners are in your areas. There are quite a few good ones and a few I wouldn't let touch my rig. It is up to you to do some due diligence and find out who is who...
Good luck,
Toys
Stock ‘98 w/auto
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2016
Posts: 2,305
Likes: 1,581
From: East Metro (Twin Cities) Minnesota
St. Jude Donor '21
Before you pay for a tune, think seriously about your 5 year plan for the car.
Makes no sense to pay for a tune and then decide in 6 months to do another mod.... and have to pay for another tune...
Makes no sense to pay for a tune and then decide in 6 months to do another mod.... and have to pay for another tune...
