TAILORED
CHIPTUNING

What is chiptuning?

Chiptuning is the tuning of an engine for better performance. Nowadays, every car contains a computer. This computer controls the engine and is called the engine management system or ECU (Electronic Control Unit).

The engine management system is the brain of the engine and regulates the running of the engine based on various values, including turbo pressure, throttle position and injection amount.

By adjusting the software, we tune the engine differently. If possible, we always remove the speed limiter from your vehicle.

Recalibration
of the motor

The vehicle manufacturer has set the engines to a default value. We determine new settings based on the engine’s technical data (turbo, fuel pump and drive train). We want to get the maximum out of it in a safe way. When tuning an engine, improved drivability is just as important to us as an increase in power and torque.

Why don't the
manufacturers tune?

The manufacturers offer motors in various designs. The engines are positioned to fit into the product range. For cost reasons, an engine block is therefore supplied in different power variants. This creates room for manoeuvre, which we use.

Tuning is a profession

All engines today are equipped with advanced injection technology. Diesel engines have increasingly used common rail technology with piezo injectors in recent years, while petrol engines are increasingly equipped with direct injection.
Tuning requires a lot of knowledge and experience. As you can read about us here, we have a team that has been in the business for years. That’s why we know what to get out of your car in a safe way.

An optimal ratio of
the air/fuel mixture
.

When chiptuning, our team adjusts various parameters in the engine management. If you add a little more air and inject more fuel, your engine will deliver more power. It is important that the air/fuel mixture remains in an optimal ratio. We pay a lot of attention to that.

An optimal fuel mixture favours service life and ensures less pollution. A mixture that is too rich leads to higher consumption and more pollution. A lean mixture leads to a higher engine temperature and to the engine not being able to start properly.

One side effect of our chip tuning is that your car drives more economically because the engine has to rev less and no fuel is lost. The fuel saving is a by-product and unfortunately not always guaranteed. Your driving style also plays a big role. You also have more torque available, so you can drive in a higher gear sooner.

Tuning to the highestTÜV requirements

On request, we deliver all tunings with TÜV certificate which require an individual acceptance which is calculated separately. The CO2 and consumption measurements in an ECE cycle remain at least the same with us.
With the chip tunings developed by us, we keep the emission values under control.

We adjust the engine so that the CO2 emissions and fuel consumption remain at least the same. On our test bench, we simulate an ECE cycle with an exhaust gas analysis. An exhaust gas analysis is important for cars in a favourable tax class in order to continue to meet government standards. Tuning from Tuningbase ensures even more driving pleasure!

CHIPTUNING METHODEN

Since not every engine management system is programmable, we have developed two tuning options to give all engines an improved tuning. This way, we can get the best out of your car. Both methods guarantee a high-quality tuning.

1

Programming the original engine management
(software chip tuning)

When chiptuning, our team adjusts various parameters in the engine management. If you add a little more air and inject more fuel, your engine will deliver more power. The software of the original engine management system is read out via diagnostics or directly on the ECU (debugging mode). Then we rewrite the software and put it back. The advantage of this method is that we can influence all values. Even values that are not essential for chip tuning. It is important that the air/fuel mixture remains in an optimal ratio. We pay a lot of attention to this.
An optimal fuel mixture favours durability and ensures less pollution. A mixture that is too rich leads to higher consumption and more pollution. A lean mixture leads to a higher engine temperature and to the engine not being able to start properly.

2

Programming of a freely
programmable
control unit

When programming a freely programmable control unit, we replace the original engine management system with a freely programmable control unit. In this way, we adapt the performance of your vehicle to your own wishes. This method of chip tuning offers many more possibilities when installing a different turbo or larger injectors. We use engine management systems from AEM, Vipec, Autronic, Hondata and Haltech. The Mitsubishi EVO IX, Nissan 350Z and Hyundai Genesis are examples that can be tuned in this way. We use a freely programmable ECU for racing and rally purposes, but there are some vehicles for which this is the only tuning option.Tuning detection

. The manufacturer has equipped the ECU of some new models with tuning detection. If a tuned vehicle is locked to a diagnostic device during a service, for example, the factory may be alerted to the chip tuning and the warranty will be voided.

THE TUNINGBASE METHOD

The development of a chip tuning for a new engine type can take weeks. Recalibrating your vehicle will take at least 2 hours. We want to explain exactly what we do to keep you happy on the road. You can also read more about us here. What our mission is and what is so unique about Tuningbase.

Phase 1
Development:

When a new engine or a new model is launched, we first carry out technical studies on the engine and the powertrain. It is important for us to know the characteristics of the turbo and the injection system. Then we read out an engine of the type in question and see how the safety can be bypassed. We examine and analyse the original software completely. In doing so, we analyse the key fields that are important to us. This way we know where the injection control, rev limiting, turbo pressure and torque limiting are set. In some cases, tuning certain (atmospheric) engines is not worthwhile. We are always very honest about this, because we want to ensure a good result.

test

As soon as we have a car with a new engine available, we test the vehicle in its original condition with diagnostic equipment and a performance measurement on the test bench. We then compare the values requested by the control unit with the specified values.

Optimise

After the test, our team goes to work and we recalibrate the engine. We use diagnostic equipment to calibrate our settings and thus guarantee an optimal air/fuel mixture ratio. For petrol engines, we also talk about the ‘lambda’ values. The tuning we have developed is adapted to daily use and we always maintain a safety margin. The engine is not loaded with maximum load. The entire development process can take weeks.

Research & Development

Besides developing chip tuning, we do even more. Together with Injen, we develop new intake systems and manufacture customised intercoolers and compressors for various vehicles.

Phase 2

VOTING ON THE TEST BENCH

Our engineers develop the tuning software for your car on a Superflow (Tuningbase Gent) and Dynocom (Tuningbase Houten) four-wheel dyno. All four wheels rotate for a correct measurement. The cooling of the engine is variable to ensure a realistic measurement. With diagnostic equipment we calibrate the desired and delivered values of the turbo and injection system. While the engineers optimise the software, we keep a close eye on the injection, the injection quantity, the fuel mixture, the turbo pressure and the intake and exhaust temperatures on the test bench.
After making an appointment, we make preparations so that you don’t have to wait unnecessarily. Once your car is inside, we first make a diagnosis. For older cars, we check the condition of the engine and always look for fault codes. If necessary, we do a test drive where we examine the running engine. Then we read the software from your car’s ECU and adjust it accordingly. We do this using programming we have developed.

. Optionally, we check the performance on the test bench. We always do a test drive to see if the air/fuel mixture ratio is set correctly. Tuning your vehicle takes at least 2 hours (2-3 hours on average). Individual adjustments, e.g. for racing purposes, are of course also possible and it is also possible to get the best out of an engine. However, we do not give any guarantees and different prices apply.

PASSION FOR TUNING

Passion for the job and a professional approach ensure that we deliver solid and long-lasting car tuning. To underline our quality, we guarantee our software and offer an additional software warranty.

. After tuning, you don’t have to drive your car. This is an urban myth that some tuners will tell you to postpone possible disappointment. We don’t like that. Our goal is 100% satisfaction. Of course, it is still advisable to let the engine warm up properly and cool down after a quick drive. This does not change after the tuning.

If you are not satisfied with the chip tuning, you can always contact Tuningbase customer service. We can then arrange an appointment to further customise the tuning to your specific requirements. So get a quote today and see what can make your car better!

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