Hey, look under the hood!
It's a bird!
It's a plane!
It's SUPERCHIP!
With apologies to Superman, performance computer chips or superchips are quickly becoming a popular way for auto enthusiasts to squeeze out more power from their cars. Basically what a superchip mod does is to store a new engine management program in your car's computer. Noticeable increases in horsepower and torque as well as improvements in driveability are the chief benefits of this type of chip. Installation is easy and the price is right...we'll examine just how easy and cost effective a superchip is below.
Depending on the make/model of your car or truck, a superchip can help your vehicle crank out from 9 to 60 more horsepower. Not too shabby when you consider some compact cars barely make it to 115 horses. Yeah, you could have elected for the more powerful engine with some cars but the $1000 or better mark up in price dwarfs the price of a superchip. Better to go with the superchip and pocket the savings.
So, how hard is it to install a superchip? Actually, it is really a simple procedure:
1. Locate your car's computer chip [usually found in your dashboard].
2. Remove the factory installed chip and replace it with the superchip...one chip slides out and the other slides in.
3. Place a cover over the chip to keep it in place and to keep dirt and dust out.
That's it! The hardest part will be to remove the dash, but even that job isn't all that difficult.
As I said previously, the price of installing a superchip can be done for a lot less than an engine upgrade. Prices start below $300, so it ends up being one the cheaper performance enhancing mods out there.
You can also find other types of performance computer chips that will work well including Jet Chips and the Hypertech performance chip. With either chip you stand to wring out additional performance from your car for a reasonably priced mod. Hey, if it is increased performance you want then one of these chips is for you!
Matt Keegan is a contributing writer for Car Parts Stuff, an online supplier of high quality and well priced automobile parts.
