Best Performance Chip for Fuel Economy
In today’s world, fuel economy is a very important part when choosing your vehicle. But what if you already have an older vehicle that you would like to be a little more conservative on fuel? The answer to that question is performance chips.
Performance chips are an easy and cheap way to improve the engine’s performance and fuel economy characteristics on your car. They are relatively simple electronic devices that read the values of your engine’s sensors and make certain adjustments to them so that you can achieve the best performance and fuel economy.
However, your experience may vary from vehicle to vehicle. So, it is better to research the best performance chip for fuel economy options available.
Let’s discover them!
About Performance Chip and Its Function
Since the early 80s, vehicles manufactured in the United States and Europe have included an onboard computer that monitors the engine’s vitals.
A performance chip is an add-on that simply connects to the engine’s main computer and reads the sensor values of the engine, alters the value of the data it reads from the engine, and gives that information back to the car’s computer or ECU.
The values it changes will depend on what the chip is expected to do. Still, it will usually alter the engine’s air-fuel ratio (or AFR), ignition timing, and shift points on the transmission (if automatic) to achieve more horsepower or improved fuel economy.
It could alter other values too, but that depends on the make and model of your vehicle and the performance chip itself.
Most manufacturers leave some leeway in terms of engine performance. So, performance chips aim to unlock, in some sense, the wasted potential that the engine could have achieved if it wasn’t held back artificially by the manufacturer.
The Best Performance Chip for Fuel Economy
Many manufacturers claim that their chip is the best. However, there isn’t a single definitive answer to which is the best performance chip for fuel economy.
There are many factors at play; hence, it might depend on the make and model of your vehicle, the environmental characteristics of your area, or it could be as simple as the way you drive.
That’s why we have listed multiple models of performance chips to easily choose the one that suits your needs the best.
- Jet Performance chips
- DiabloSport Performance chips
- Bully Dog Performance chips
- RaceChip Ultimate Performance chips
- Superchips Performance chips
- Hypertech Performance chips
- SCT Performance chips
- Edge Products Performance chips
Overview
Jet Performance chips
Jet Performance chips are a popular choice for improving performance and fuel economy. These chips are designed to optimize the air/fuel ratio and ignition timing of your engine, improving performance and fuel economy.
Jet Performance chips are available for various makes and models and can be easily installed in your car’s ECU.
The chip features include optimizing the AFR for different driving conditions, such as driving in the city in stop-and-go traffic or on the highway. You can dial in the settings on the chip to either improve fuel efficiency or performance.
Jet Performance Stage 2
Their most popular option is the Jet Performance Stage 2, allowing tuning to the air-to-fuel ratio, ignition advance, transmissions, and other parameters. Each profile is tested on the track and dyno to ensure the best drivability from each application.
DiabloSport Performance chips
DiabloSport by Holley is another excellent choice for a performance chip or tuner. Holley has more than 127 years of experience in the automotive market, and they have an excellent reputation in the industry. Their DiabloSport Performance chips offer tuning options for performance or efficiency for various makes and models.
The chips can easily be reprogrammed to suit different driving styles and preferences. They can be tuned for either aggressive performance or a smooth and efficient ride.
While their DiabloSport chips are tailored for people looking to squeeze every ounce of performance from their car, they can be tuned to fit your fuel economy needs because of their easily programmable nature.
DiabloSport inTune i3
Their most popular performance tuner is their DiabloSport inTune i3 performance chip. It works on Chrysler, Ford, or GM vehicles, with a built-in Wi-Fi module allowing you to alter the performance of your car without opening the hood or without running wires into your cabin.
It has several preset modes, such as Economy, Performance, and Racing, which perfectly balance sensibility and performance.
Trinity 2 EX
Another available tuner is the Trinity 2 EX, with a unique feature to tune multiple vehicles with one device, allowing you to tune your whole driveway with their multi-vehicle licensing.
Equipped with Wi-Fi and a touch screen, this tuner can navigate and update easily. You can license multiple vehicles through their Ignition Update Software, so you can have your vehicles running their best with just one simple device.
Bully Dog Performance chips
Bully Dog is a well-known manufacturer of performance tuners and programmers for cars, trucks, and SUVs. Their tuners and performance chips are designed to improve engine performance by optimizing various engine parameters such as fuel delivery, ignition timing, and transmission shift points.
Aside from improving performance, they can also improve fuel economy and provide diagnostic data for your engine. Their compatibility list is excellent, offering a product for a wide range of makes and models.
Installation is relatively simple, most tuners can be plugged in and be good to go, but some might need additional sensors installed to access the tuner’s features.
Their range consists of the GT Gas & Diesel Performance tuner, monitor, and BDX Performance Programmer.
GT Gas & Diesel
The GT Gas & Diesel tuners are made to unlock horsepower and torque with preloaded tuning profiles built into the unit. The profiles range from fuel economy-based tunes to hauling and off-roading tasks.
The built-in Driving Coach feature helps you improve your driving habits for better fuel mileage in real-time. The only downside is that it is illegal in states with emissions testing.
BDX Performance programmer
The BDX Performance programmer is a handheld option designed for every task you can throw at it, be it fuel economy or towing. Its Wi-Fi-enabled nature keeps your cabin looking clean and sleek without any interfering wires.
The stock tunes that the BDX has pre-installed are Clean Air act safe, so you don’t have to worry about emissions testing.
RaceChip Ultimate Performance chips
The RaceChip Ultimate is a high-performance chip designed to enhance your vehicle’s power, torque, and fuel efficiency. It is a popular option for drivers who want to maximize engine performance and improve fuel economy.
It is easy to install and is very adjustable, which means you can fine-tune it to fit your driving style and needs. The chip comes with several preset modes, including Efficiency, Sport, and Race.
The RaceChip Ultimate is compatible with many vehicles, including petrol and diesel engines. It is also designed to work with both manual and automatic transmissions.
One of the unique features of the RaceChip Ultimate is the ability to control and monitor the chip through a smartphone app. This lets you adjust performance settings and access vital engine data in real time.
RaceChip also offers excellent warranty and customer support. The RaceChip Ultimate has a five-year warranty and a two-year engine warranty.
Superchips Performance Chips
Superchips is a well-known performance-tuning brand that offers many performance chips suitable for every occasion. Owned by the Holley tuning group, you are guaranteed to squeeze every last drop of performance from your engine.
Superchips are designed to optimize AFR, ignition timing, and boost pressure for the best possible performance and fuel efficiency.
There are multiple models, including the Flashpaq, Cortex, and TrailDash, each with unique features and capabilities for every make and model.
Flashpaq Performance chip
The Flashpaq performance chip is one of the most popular models from Superchips. It is designed to work with petrol and diesel engines and is compatible with many cars, trucks, and SUVs.
It is easy to install, and the plug-and-play design makes it very simple to use and set up. Moreover, it is fully adjustable, so you can hone it to work perfectly with your driving style.
Cortex Performance chip
The Cortex chips are another popular option from Superchips. It is designed for high-performance engines and can increase horsepower and torque while improving fuel economy.
The Cortex is also fully adjustable, and it comes with several preset modes like Economy, Performance, and Tow, which allows you to choose the level of performance for any task.
TrailDash Performance chip
Lastly, the TrailDash chips are designed for off-road users and enthusiasts and are perfect to meet the demands of the harshest driving conditions. They are compatible with most off-road trucks and SUVs.
The highly customizable nature of these chips makes them perfect for every scenario that your truck might be in. It has three preset modes like Mud, Sand, and Rock.
Hypertech Performance chips
Hypertech is another great choice, offering performance chips for both old and new cars. They provide several performance chips like the Max Energy and Max Energy Sport for high-performance engines. They have all of the expected features, such as AFR adjustment, ignition timing, and altered shift points.
Hypertech still offers their Power Chips, designed for older cars and ECUs, alongside their modern products for newer cars. Offering a great catalog of products, maintaining compatibility with many makes and models.
In addition to performance chips, Hypertech offers various other performance tuning products, including power programmers and speedometer calibrators. These products are designed to work together with their performance chips for improved accuracy and better results.
Overall, Hypertech is a reputable brand that has been around for a long time in the automotive industry, making easy-to-install performance chips.
SCT Performance chips
SCT has several performance chips in its catalog. The SCT Performance X4 Power Flash chip is one of their most popular models.
It comes pre-installed with several modes so that you can freely choose whether to have maximum fuel economy or maximum power. There are other performance chips that SCT Performance offers, such as the Livewire TS+ for higher-performing engines.
In addition to performance chips, SCT Performance also has a range of other performance-tuning products, including power programmers and custom-tuning software. These products are designed to work together with their performance chips to optimize engine performance and improve fuel economy.
Overall, SCT Performance is a reputable brand, and they cover a great range of makes and models, so there should be something available for anyone.
Edge Products Performance chips
Edge offers multiple performance chips, like the Evolution CS2 or the Juice with Attitude CS2.
Evolution CS2 Performance chip
The Evolution CS2 reprograms your car’s stock onboard computer, and it resides in the vehicle’s cab with a simple connection to the OBDII diagnostic port in your vehicle.
It has multiple power tunes, custom-tuned and tested by a capable team of engineers and tuners, and they are saved to the chip’s onboard memory, which you can change on the fly.
The Evolution CS2 works on diesel and petrol trucks and SUVs and can be installed and ready to go without ever needing to open up your vehicle’s hood.
Juice with Attitude CS2 Performance chip
The Juice with Attitude CS2 is made specifically for diesel vehicles and is the ultimate tuner choice for diesel owners. It precisely controls the timing and duration of the injector’s firing sequence.
It also monitors multiple engine parameters, such as transmission temperature, fuel pressure, turbo boost, and more, to ensure safe working conditions.
With up to six different power levels and the ability to change them on the fly, combined with dynamic safety monitoring and features, it is the perfect choice for diesel owners that want a simple device that will boost their performance.
In addition to performance chips, Edge Products also offer a range of other tuning products, such as gauges and power monitors, that go hand in hand with their performance chips.
Potential Drawbacks of the Chips
Because of their performance-enhancing nature, these chips might alter some parameters of the engines that allow them to stay within emission regulations.
The engine could have been detuned to maintain the harmful gasses that it creates under control. But by altering those parameters, the performance chip might make your engine fail emissions testing. This might happen because the chip disables the factory emission settings and unnecessarily triggers the CEL indicator.
Not every state tests for emissions, but if you live in an area where emissions are tested, you should consider that the chip might interfere with the tests and fail them.
Some chips don’t affect emissions, but you should always check the manufacturer’s claims.
Temper Your Expectations
It is important to remember that even though performance chips can improve engine performance and efficiency, they are not a replacement for proper and responsible driving habits and regular vehicle maintenance.
If you have a heavy foot on the accelerator, performance chips won’t help you save fuel, and you will just be wasting your money.
Another thing to consider is that the ECUs in modern cars are very advanced and that the expected fuel savings could be very low or negligible. Especially in today’s world, with stricter and more demanding regulations, the manufacturers of these cars know the limit of their engines and push them to their maximum potential.
Manufacturers just don’t leave headroom performance-wise into their engine design like they used to on older vehicles.
You still have to follow the basic laws of physics
The other thing is that you can’t beat the laws of physics. No matter how much you optimize the air-fuel ratio of your engine or how much you improve ignition timing, you can only expect to see a 1-2 MPG difference.
While they may improve performance, fuel economy improvements could be a hit or miss. Performance chips make the most sense for enthusiasts that want to get the most out of their vehicle, and not if you are chasing fuel economy gains.
These devices will not magically improve your vehicle’s characteristics. You should research the characteristics of the chip, the make, and the model of your vehicle before considering purchasing a device like this.
Conclusion
Performance chips don’t make sense to be installed in every car, but in certain models, they do work and can make a pretty significant difference to the performance of your car.
Their installation makes the most sense on older-generation cars or higher-performance vehicles. It doesn’t make sense to install a performance chip to improve fuel economy on a small economy car since the potential for improvement is minimal.
Make sure to research the best performance chip for fuel economy and whether it will make any noticeable change in your vehicle because maybe the only thing you need to change is the way you drive.
We hope our list will help you choose a good one!
