| I love racing at the local drag strip. It's a wonderful | | | | programming of the car's Electronic Control Unit, or |
| way to see what your car can do or how a new | | | | ECU. Since the ECU monitors several dozen sensors, |
| modification works out. It's also much safer to race | | | | it can provide much more information than is normally |
| on a track than to test performance on the street, | | | | displayed. And unlike in the past where analog gauges |
| and it's a great place to hang out and shoot the | | | | could only show one piece of information (like oil |
| breeze with fellow racing enthusiasts. But if you'd | | | | pressure or battery voltage), most of today's cars |
| expect just a bunch of old muscle cars and modified | | | | have screens and consoles that can be used to show |
| imports at the track you'd be surprised. I've seen | | | | all sorts of information. One example is the actual |
| Porsches, BMWs, AMG Mercedes and lots of Audis | | | | speed of the vehicle. Why would you need that |
| and Volkswagens. Go to the track and you're as | | | | when the car already has a speedometer? Because |
| likely to see a guy in a suit perusing the boost display | | | | many speedometers are wildly inaccurate, making |
| on his twin-turbo 12-cylinder Benz as you'll see a guy | | | | you feel like you're going much faster than your real |
| tweaking the carbs on his 68 Camaro. | | | | speed. |
| It's interesting to see so many upper level cars at | | | | Information available via software add-on modules |
| racing events these days, but that's all part of a | | | | varies from brand to brand and model to model. It |
| luxury car tuning revolution. Be it entry-level luxury | | | | may include 0-60 mph and 1/4-mile acceleration times, |
| vehicles from Volkswagen and Audi or more | | | | more elaborate boost pressure display, air-fuel ratio, |
| expensive models from Mercedes Benz, Audi, | | | | power and torque, or more technical information such |
| Porsche or others, it's become fashionable to tweak | | | | as ignition advance, knock sensor data, cam angle, |
| those vehicles to get even more performance from | | | | short and long term fuel trim, injector duty cycle and |
| their already powerful, high-revving engines. Simple | | | | more. |
| software updates can add 10-35% extra power just | | | | More interestingly yet, these easily installed software |
| by optimizing engine tuning. See, most cars are tuned | | | | control modules can be used to override annoying, |
| very conservatively so that they run well under any | | | | limiting or non-intuitive stock programming of how the |
| conditions and with any type of gas. Software tuning | | | | sunroof, windows, seats, mirrors and other parts of |
| can unleash extra power simply and easily and | | | | the car operate. It may even be possible to change |
| without the help of more traditional performance car | | | | the way the key remote works. Or you can do |
| parts. If your car has a turbo, performance increases | | | | things like adding a special horn sequence while you're |
| achievable with ECU modification are even larger. This | | | | in reverse. The possibilities are endless, ranging from |
| is why catalogs for Audi parts, Volkswagen parts, | | | | performance to convenience, from customized boost |
| Mercedes parts, BMW parts, and other luxury car | | | | display to comprehensive sensor readings, and from |
| parts include Electronic Control Unit, or ECU, | | | | simple plug-in modules to extensive ECU modification. |
| programming, performance chips and other ways to | | | | So next time you search for luxury performance car |
| optimize the vehicles' computers. | | | | parts, keep in mind that tuning starts and ends with |
| But performance is not everything that is available via | | | | the car's computer these days. |