DIYEFI.org Forum

Thought I'd post this. I found it interesting. It is a reprogrammer for many engine features via OBDII port, including shift points, rev limiters, spark/fuel curves, ect.

http://www.hypertech-inc.com/Products/Max%20Energy

I thought it was interesting to see OEM re-programmable ECU vai world wide standard interface. I once thought that vag-com would do it for my VW, but I can't seem to find that any more. Would be nice to have a fancy shmancy tool for programming my Jetta.

It's sorta cool, but not really. It just means they figured out all the cars they can reprogram stuff in from the OBD-II port. Their product is not doing anything special compared VAG-COM for Volkswagens, for instance. Even then, they are a generic company trying to support a myriad of different cars, which is something else that should not lend to their credibility. It is not cheap and takes a ton of time to tune a single car, let alone different models from totally different car manufacturers, all with different induction setups. Who knows what kind of techniques they utilized to make power, and who knows how reliable those techniques will be through different weather conditions.

Power "programmer" boxes are a dime a dozen now a days.

There is a good chance I'm ignorant about VAG-COM, but I think it can only program some features like setting the ECU into sleep mode for long term storage, and can re-acquaint a new ECU with the system such that you can change the ECU. My understanding is that VAG-COM may have once supported fuel and spark tables, but appears that it currently does not. Do I sound off base with VAG-COM? Are there other tools that will allow me to upload new tables to my OEM VW?

I'd be happy to learn I'm wrong. I'd like to upload new tables to my VW's OEM system with out having to chip it.

For VWs, there is really only stuff for the turbo variants of mark 4/5 cars (1999 and up). You have options like REVO, Unitronic, GIAC. These companies have "power programmer" style hand-held ECU flashers. The thing with these companies is, though, they only tune VAG family cars, and they are very well-known. This is the difference from something like "Max Energy".

It's the same with people like Hondata; their reputation for Honda tuning is awesome, but I would never trust them for my VW.