dmilzoff

I have a stock 2003 996TT with 5000 miles and I have a need to do an upgrade. I'm cheap but I'm not dumb.
The Upsolute from a local dealer is $ 600.00 installed. He has a $ 150.00 remote switch option which will permit me to switch back and forth to stock programming. He can do the complete job in 2 -4 hours while I wait (and watch!), which I like.
Why is this chip so much less than the others? He does not dyno the car but claims the same 100 HP or so gain as the other chips. Is there a difference in quality or function?
Is the switching option wise to use when I service the car or will they know the car is chipped anyway?
Any personal experience/opinions on the Upsolute chip?

LSM

I wanted to preface my statement by sayiung I have no personal experience with this chip. I will give my opinion. I have heard from a number of sources that the chip is junk and does not make anywhere near that hp. I was also told from a reliable tuner that shall remain nameless, " I would never put that chip on a car I owned" It really comes down to, you get what you pay for. If it was that easy and that inexpensive, why would all the reputable companies charge 6x as much. We are not talking a couple hundred here or there. The price differnce is in the thousands like two thousand nine hundred dollar diffrence. I know where you are coming from and I wish I could help you more. Check out this website, 996tt owners on this board seem to have more experience---MODERATORS I HOPE THIS IS OK?" www.funcarsonline.com

-Lou

racer63

I looked at the Upsolute before going with EVO (GIAC). I decided on EVO because:

1. I can upgrade in stages (I started with stage 1 and am now at 4gt) and receive credit for amounts paid previously.

2. They test their product in horrible conditions - Phoenix when its hot, and with crummy fuel - to make sure there is an extra margin of safety. I value you this "over engineered" approach because the cost of a rebuild (if your engine is damaged) is very pricey.

3. They can do a before and after dyno for you so that you can see the gains made.

If you do go with Upsolute, I'd ask if they are willing to sell it to you contingent upon the car producing the claimed horsepower on the dyno with you present. A reputable tuner should be willing to do that for you. (I'd also do a baseline run in stock form. Some turbos put out more power stock than others... this way you can assess whether the performance gain is worth it.)

Trojan Man

I have the Upsolute in my 996TT, and I also had it installed in my Audi A6 Biturbo. It did make a slight power increase in the Audi at the expense of (I think) making my tiptronic tranny sound clunky prematurely.

On the 996TT I don't have any dyno figures, but it pulls much harder than stock and the boost gauge registers 1 bar max instead of .8 bar max. Clearly the chip is doing something for the better.

From my experience in my cars and friends' cars, the Upsolute is NOT the BEST chip, but IMHO it is worth every penny of $600. The other more expensive brands may be better, but certainly not 5-6 times better as their price might suggest.

Of course, I tend not to keep my cars more than 3 years, so I don't have to worry about long term reliability!

BCS996TT

You will find a number of very pleased customers with the upsolute chip. Cobra06 on this board is running a custom Upsolute with GT1 turbos and dynoed at 582HP. That's just shy of a GIAC Stage IV (less the headers). Sharky runs a 11.6 1/4mi with his.

Im am not saying that Upsolute is the best and will certainly agree that GIAC is probably one of the best if not the best, however, I am very pleased with my ecu...the car holds 1.0 bar and is a significant improvement over stock. If it's not 100HP increase, then I would bet it's pretty close to it.

For 500.00, you really cant go wrong. You have 30 days to try it out...if you hate it, you can return your car back to stock and get a refund.

My 2 cents.

BCS996TT

If there is any GIAC stage I or II owner in the Norther NJ area, I would love to compare the performance...let me know.

dmilzoff

BCS996TT
I sent you a PM. I would love to compare your car to my stock 0003 TT.

BCS996TT

just replied....call me on my cell phone

dmilzoff

I have been waiting for your e-mail to come through. I will call you when it does. Please check to see if the address was correct.
dmilzoff@usa.net

BCS996TT

check email

msindi

Tony from NJ had the Upsolute and switched to GIAC...
I replied to this thread on 6speed - http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/s...&threadid=1266

BCS996TT

Mansour,

You're right...I believe Tony got Shank's previous setup. For that price, I would have snatched that up as well....had I known.

Regardless...I am not doubting GIAC at all. I know it's an excellent setup and a lot of guys have it. However, I must say that the price/performance of the upsolute is well worth it IMHO.

To each his own.

-Best

msindi

BSC - I am not disagreeing with you - I just think Upsolute's X50 software might not be as good as their regular/K16 software...I never tried their custom setups either...
I also agree that the GIAC is EXTREMELY expensive...

Trojan Man

I should probably add that I am not sure what would happen if you blew an engine with the Upsolute software, but I have heard that GIAC and some of the other big name brands will take care of you no matter what (as long as their software caused the problem).

As I said in my previous post, this is not a big concern for me since I don't keep anything more than 3 years. If, however, I were buying a car to keep, I would spend the extra dough and get GIAC.

BCS996TT

Probably nothing, although I've searched all the archives/forum (Upsolute) and have yet to read about any blown engine, etc. as a result of their chip.

From what I've read and heard, some tuners (e.g. Ruf) will give a 1 year warranty on all their work, etc. That is comforting, however, after a year you're on your own.

As I said before, only time will tell. The true test will be when someone actually does blow an engine b/c of an improperly tuned ECU, etc....that's when you'll see that company's true colors...whether good or bad.