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Pickups Chevrolet Avalanche Chevrolet Avalanche Problems & Solutions 
534 messages, Last post on Oct 16, 2006 at 6:49 PM
You are in the Chevrolet Avalanche Forum. Your Host is kcram
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Replying to: kokanee (Apr 09, 2006 5:15 am)
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Replying to: rudy331 (Aug 05, 2002 3:23 pm) |
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Replying to: turibe (Apr 10, 2006 10:34 am) I certainly appreciate your reply. I took my truck to the dealer, and as expected...they said the noise was normal. When I get off work tonight I'll take a ride in some sand and see how it sounds. Once again, thanks for your reply. |
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I am thinking of getting an engine performance booster for my avalanche. Has anybody else done this and what has been your experience with them?
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Replying to: turibe (Apr 22, 2006 8:17 am) If you mean a MECHANICAL device, then it depends on what you are talking about.
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Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Apr 22, 2006 9:10 am) Most people use them for the diesel vehicles, but i've seen/heard of a few for gas engines.
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Replying to: turibe (Apr 24, 2006 7:06 am) Well all I can tell you is what I read from the "experts" and they all seem to say the same thing about chips...some work, some don't, and some work but aren't good for your truck. So how to sort all this out? I think you need to shop carefully, first of all to determine the reputation of the chip vendor, then to ask them HOW they get the performance they claim (are they bumping the timing, or just extending the transmission shift points?) and also how much MPG you might LOSE (I'm a real skeptic about any device that claims to give you more power AND better mpg---that sounds rather contradictory to science). Then if all this passes muster, I'd try to find someone who has already bought and TESTED the chip over time and get his/her testimonial. My feeling is that factory engineers are very smart guys and that they don't leave lots of power on the table---and if they do leave a little HP on the table, it's a good idea to find out WHY they didn't add it to the stock vehicle. Most likely answers would be driveability in everyday use, and MPG.
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Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Apr 24, 2006 9:54 am) Most people never see the actual posted hp and torque with their vehicles thanks to built in torque management. This retards engine timing with gear changes, gives soft shifts, and other similar tricks. The main reasons for this seem to be related to emissions, driver preference for "soft" shifting, and transmission life. The 4L60E transmission in current GM trucks is long in the tooth, tracing back to the TH700R4, and wasn't originally designed to handle the power being made by the current crop of V8's. Part of the changes made to allow the bigger engines was softer shifts (reducing the amount of sudden torque load change) and engine retardation during shifts. This also reduces overall fuel efficiency and engine power output. So, if you don't mind firmer shifts and aren't too "enthusiastic" with your driving you can benefit with a reprogram. You can also shorten your transmissions life if you enjoy yourself too much though. BTW, GM isn't the only manufacturer doing this. Most of them have similar issues.
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Replying to: jerrywimer (Apr 24, 2006 11:13 am) I still find it hard to believe that engineers wouldn't leap at the chance to increase MPG by a simple software update. Engineers are DESPERATE for any increase in MPG, so I wonder why they would decline to do this. Makes no sense unless the increase in MPG has some negative effect on something else (like emissions, or engine longevity, etc.). No one has ever been able to explain this. Also I'm not always sold on dyno results as there are so many easy ways to cheat a dyno if you are a devious vendor. You might all find this interesting. Sorry if it's a bit off topic for some of you. http://www.turbomagazine.com/tech/0402tur_punkdyno/
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Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Apr 24, 2006 11:17 am) Interesting tricks with the dyno, btw.  There's much more to the story than just increased power output. But I'll try to let things get back on topic here, and just repeat my recommendations to search other truck forums for actual owner experiences. Some have more than just dyno logs (monitoring timing, to demonstrate how hp / torque are chopped by the PCM in some situations, is another example).  Edit: Almost forgot- despite the possible gains (likely 1 - 2 mpg), I haven't done this with my 2004 Silverado. Mostly because I fear that I'd be one of those that can't resist the feeling of extra power and would trash my transmission in a short period of time. I'm fairly certain that doing so voids the warranty. 
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