I need opinions on the unichip.

[IceFyre13th]

Originally Posted by jamesm

flashing a stock ecu is always better than a piggyback, that much is well understood. it doesn't make the unichip worthless, just with openflash at $499 now and ecuflash about to drop for the cost of a cable, there aren't many cases where it's the best option. actually, I'd probably argue that there aren't any. I'm pretty sure the unichips that are out there are about all that are going to be out there. that seems to be a pattern, they hit the markets early and some people jump on until a better option comes along then everyone switches. people did use unichips on wrx's at one point when i had my bug-eye, that and the old 'utec' or whatever it was called lol.

I agree 100%, more power and better maps can be had with a flash.

But the real question that should be answered first is, what is the intended application.

If this was a race car, I would not be even thinking about a Flash or supplemental ECU like UniChip......more like pulling the engine and rebuilding it to handle the stresses a racing engine will see, then changing the ECU to a standalone unit like MegaSqiurt along with correct sensors to get the most out of the engine....along with the 10's of thousand other dollars that need to be spent to be competitve.

If it was a street / limited use race / track car, a flash would make the most sense. Along with full exhaust, intake, minor suspension, wheels / tires, and safety gear.......

As a daily driver that will not see any race or track use, UniChip makes the most sense......

Granted, the other solutions like OpenFlash are becoming cheaper, but the no footprint of the UniChip is just that extra "peace of mind" that give it the edge.

[jamesm]

Originally Posted by IceFyre13th

I agree 100%, more power and better maps can be had with a flash.

But the real question that should be answered first is, what is the intended application.

If this was a race car, I would not be even thinking about a Flash or supplemental ECU like UniChip......more like pulling the engine and rebuilding it to handle the stresses a racing engine will see, then changing the ECU to a standalone unit like MegaSqiurt along with correct sensors to get the most out of the engine....along with the 10's of thousand other dollars that need to be spent to be competitve.

If it was a street / limited use race / track car, a flash would make the most sense. Along with full exhaust, intake, minor suspension, wheels / tires, and safety gear.......

As a daily driver that will not see any race or track use, UniChip makes the most sense......

Granted, the other solutions like OpenFlash are becoming cheaper, but the no footprint of the UniChip is just that extra "peace of mind" that give it the edge.

to each his own, but that's just insanity in my opinion. the flash wins my money in all three of the above scenarios. i suppose if i was building a real race car i may consider a standalone, but only if i wasn't paying for it.

your warranty is void if you modify your ecu in any way or use a piggyback of any sort. you can remove either for dealer trips if you choose. the 'no footprint' thing is really a moot point.

[IceFyre13th]

No, your warranty is void only "if the aftermarket part can be proven to be the cause of the failure" (Moss-Ferg act).

But do I expect them to warranty my exhaust or intake now.....nope. Could those parts damage something else on my car, sure. Moss-Ferg act insures me that they have to prove the damage was caused by the part...I fully understand they have no reason to warranty the parts I have changed. But they cannot deny or void my warranty just because they are there.

[Flako]

To answer your your question without all the BS I'm reading; Unichip is awesome for a daily driver, and leaves NO footprint just take take it off when u go to the dealer and they will never know [=

[mad_sb]

Originally Posted by dannyboy

How is the unichip?

waste of money if you honestly want my opnion

[mad_sb]

Originally Posted by Boofneenee

...
but my question still stands.. How? how can they tell if you tuned the car IF you removed the unichip? what methods can they use? interrogation is not viable.

..

They can look for evidence of tempering with the connectors and the firewall pass through location for one. That's a lot easier than sending an ecu in for analysis (checking the flash counter, if one exists).

[feldy]

First off uniChip ecutek, open flash and what ever else you could think of doing to the ecu voids your warranty. plain and simple. if you take it off and take it to the dealer like nothing happened and if you lie and get caught that's fraud you can and should go to jail. enough said. you have to pay to play. Its time you put your big boy pants on. if you unichip and you want your free oil change go get it. You are entitled to it.

[ScionFrsFan]

I had great experience with the unichip. That being said I'm moving on to open flash and I'm excited to see what the difference will be like.

[nakamur21]

I thought about getting a flash, but what changed my mind was the fact that with Unichip, I could easily install everything I need at home, download maps whenever I want, switch whenever I want, and take it off and resell it if I ever decide to change to FI.

Plus, I personally think it looks cool under the hood. I bought mine on sale, so it was less than $400. Really it's a can't lose product. I mean, for the money, you could almost afford an open flash tablet or about half of an Ecutek tune.

Can it do everything? No.

Can it put a huge smile on your face? Yes.

[FR-Sizzle]

Originally Posted by dannyboy

Yeah I want it because I have the ap headers, ap catback, j2 mid-pipe, injen intake, and perrin pulley. So I wanna get the full power out of these parts.

Sorry to see you with the AP parts. I remember a lot of people posting dyno's showing almost no gain on it except maybe 3-4 WHP at the peak whereas the dyno's they posted showed gains through out the whole dyno of 10-12 whp. I heard the headers are even worse too not giving ANY gains. Hopefully that changes with a tune. Let us know how that goes.

[mad_sb]

Originally Posted by nakamur21

I thought about getting a flash, but what changed my mind was the fact that with Unichip, I could easily install everything I need at home, download maps whenever I want, switch whenever I want, and take it off and resell it if I ever decide to change to FI.

Plus, I personally think it looks cool under the hood. I bought mine on sale, so it was less than $400. Really it's a can't lose product. I mean, for the money, you could almost afford an open flash tablet or about half of an Ecutek tune.

Can it do everything? No.

Can it put a huge smile on your face? Yes.

you can do that with openflash tablet as well and install / un install is much, much faster :happy0180:

[nakamur21]

That wasn't out when I bought the unichip. Are you saying open flash is so superior that I should sell unichip and buy open flash?

[Boofneenee]

Originally Posted by nakamur21

That wasn't out when I bought the unichip. Are you saying open flash is so superior that I should sell unichip and buy open flash?

I think to use the word "superior" when comparing the unichip to the open flash tab is a bit misleading.. in all honesty,, on a bone stock car.. how much more power can you expect to make in toerms of horses and tq? And dont give me that "on a NA car each HP is precious discussion" because if your planning to get that intense with your mods your going to void your warranty with other, additional parts like pulleys etc.

Unichip has a dyno graph of before and after using a CAI Injen and Unichip on their website.. 15 hp is listed on the dyno around 6k revs.. thats a pretty significant boost for a 200 hp car.

Go to the flash tablet website and read their own discussion on if it can be detected... you will se that it can be infact traced.

If markings on my connectors from having removed and connected the unichip are the only bit of evidence a dealer or shop can use to determine if I tuned my car then I am not too worried. The unichip leaves no electronic or digital proof that it was ever on the car.

in all these negative posts from people who hate the Unichip I have not found one to specifically show how it can (other than the physical markings that may be present on the connectors") be detected.. just rants of negativity and hatred for a super inexpensive, flexible product that I personally enjoy.

[mad_sb]

Originally Posted by Boofneenee

...
in all these negative posts from people who hate the Unichip I have not found one to specifically show how it can (other than the physical markings that may be present on the connectors") be detected.. just rants of negativity and hatred for a super inexpensive, flexible product that I personally enjoy.

Ok, then PROVE to me how a reflash can be detected when the original, un modified rom, is flashed back in