I just bought my son a '95 Z28 B4C package car, 124K milage but runs great. He is insistant on installing a "chip" in it for more power, I think it has waaayyyy more power than Jr. needs!!

Are they really worth it for street driving?

Cheap one to buy would be?? Where??

Any help would be welcome!

Tim

 

Just a cheap, off the shelf chip? No, not really. Try something like madz28.com or pcmforless.com Custom tune > off the shelf tune

 

I hope he is over 21. If not, I would leave the car alone. These can be dangerous in the wrong hands. The power from the factory is way more than a newer driver needs or can handle. I almost wrecked mine a couple times when I first got it and thats with 20 years experience. Spend money on suspension and good tires to keep the car on the road.

 

a "chip" is only used on the 93 lt1's i believe. for the cars after that that use a MAF setup, you would get a "tune." as mentioned above, madz28 and pcm4less are some of the best tuners out there for what you would want. you can talk to them about how much power it will free up, but more importantly they will make the car run and drive better in just about every way

as far as the cars being dangerous, its all up to the driver. i've been driving my z28 since i was 17 (21 now) and while it has put me in my place a time or 2, it was my own stupidity that caused it. the lt1 isn't a super car, and while it does have more power than the average car, it isn't to the point where you have to have years of experience to control it

 

yea, I've had a v8 car since I started driving, just don't be stupid and nothing will go wrong.

 

A mail-order PCM flash tune (as noted above, there is no removable chip) will pick up 10-15HP on a stock LT1. Mostly gained by leaning out the power enrichment (PE) mode, target A/F ratio, which is set too rich at the factory. That small difference is not going to change how he drives it, how much trouble he manages to get into, or how much harm he does to himself or others. That will be detemined by him.

 

Its called be responsible, I am still in one piece and I was no where near 21 when I got my car.

To the op's question, an off the shelf chip is not worth it, from the sounds of it you son needs to get on here instead of you (or both if you want) and do some heavy research, if there is one thing I have learned its not to listen to anyone else about my car, everyone claims huge gains from "chips" on stock cars. When my car don't even take a chip.

If your going to get the computer (PCM) redone then a custom tune is the best way, you will gain some power, but it will not be life changing by no means.

 

Tell your son that it's not a Honda or a BMW, and there isn't 75hp to be had from a magic computer chip. This is an American musclecar -- it comes from the factory with access to its full potential.

If he wants more horsepower, there are dozens of ways to get it. Upgrading the exhaust is a great place to start. As you make other modifications, it is often appropriate to tune the car accordingly to get the most out of the mods.

If you're concerned about your son's safety, and you are willing to spend money on his car, I have some other suggestions, though. Try to get him interested in improving the car's handling and braking capabilities by upgrading wheels/tires, brakes, shock absorbers, springs, and other suspension components. By choosing wisely, you can actually make the car safer (by improving the car's ability to avoid accidents).

From the factory, our cars came with some pretty junky shock absorbers. Left alone, they'll reduce the car to rattles after 75,000 miles or so. Your son's B4C has 124k on it? I'll bet it rattles like mad. Am I right? Of course I am. So go get a set of better shock absorbers -- they'll provide a smoother ride while also improving handling.

Finally, as an aside, I suggest that you let your son spend his own money on upgrades and do his own wrenching on the car. If you want to provide support, do it by buying him tools and how-to books, or by helping him do the work.

 

Mail Order Tune - you send your PCM they send it back.

I went with trifecta - they send you a little handheld PDA and you upload your tune then send them the PDA back, that way your car is never down sitting around without an PCM or you don't have to deal with swaping PCMs


as everyone else said - I hope he isn't a young driver..... I could only imagine what would have happend if i had owned mine when i was a teenager.. *scary*

 

First 3 mods I recommend for an Fbody;

- Cold Air Intake
- 3" Catback
- Mailorder Tune

In that order. Excellent bang-for-your-buck projects.

 

Personally, if your son is under 18, have one of the tuners set the speed limiter to 75mph and the rev limiter to 4500rpm. It won't keep him out of trouble, but can help if he tries to impress friends by doing stupid things.

 

^ lol perfect!


nanny tune!

 

Often referred to as the "valet tune".
And quite common on the Corvette side of the modding world LOL.
There are products on the market that allow the owner to flip a switch between tunes for that very reason.