ECU/chip & hyclone - what's the go?

[Marco-EFIVL]

Yeah I've been looking at getting more power and maybe *gasp* economy/efficiency, the three things I've been seriously considering are these:

- Hyclones, now has anyone here used em? Do they work as advertised, I'm thinking of installing a pair of them.. Anyone with any experiance?
- K&N or ITG Filters, I guess they speak for themselves.

However, the most important factor is that I'm a bit of an amature , this ECU/chip thing confuses me . Now I'm under the impression that there is a diffence between ECU and the chip, as the ECU is the entire unit whilst the chip is, well, just the chip (have I got that right?).

Currently I am looking at either 'Powerchip' or 'Unichip', however since I am in a little confusion between the ECU and chip (such as how would replaceing the entire ECU effect the car as opposed to just the chip).. Not just that, I've also read here that chips which are 'one fits all' are quite ineffective and unreliable.

Now on to Hyclones, has any one here used them, talking to my uncle (Mechanic 30+ years) reckon they work, a bloke in town (I work/live in the country) swears by them and installs two on all the utes and cars in his fleet. So I'm not to sure, to me, the principle seems logical enough, but it does seem a bit 'to good to be true'...

I'll post a bit of info on both devices, any help with this would be much appreciated.


Cheers.

[Marco-EFIVL]

Hyclone:

What is Hiclone?
Hiclone is a simple maintenance-free device, which fits inside the air filter housing of a carburettor or in the air induction hose on EFI, turbo, LPG or diesel engines. Hiclone has no moving parts and is made from stainless steel, so it will last a lifetime. Hiclone has an unconditional money back guarantee.


How does Hiclone work?
Hiclone simply changes the flow of air through the air induction system.
Hiclones special fins create a swirling effect, this optimises flow through the air intake system and improves fuel-air mixing to allow near-complete combustion. Just think of how nature produces its most efficient flow rates, invert a bottle or empty the sink and nature will show you how Hiclone works. You just need to try one and you'll see. Just look at the letters sent to us from happy customers.


Two Hiclones?
We have found that with one Hiclone we generally gain between 10 to 20 per cent better fuel efficiency, but with two Hiclones we generaly gain over 20 per cent fuel efficiency. A pre-turbo Hiclone will bring the turbo on up to 600 rpm earlier.


The many benefits of Hiclone include:
-More power output
-Increased mileage
-More stable idling
-Reduced engine noise
-Longer engine life
-Less pollution


Boosts power?
It minimises the restriction of air flow and gathers fuel to the centre of the air stream which then rapidly moves to the combustion chamber. This also prevents the adherence of fuel to the wall of the intake system.


Improves mileage?
Hiclones swirling effect makes fuel particles finer and creates a near complete, rapid burn maximising the efficiency of combustion with available air and fuel. Click here for our test results.

Pretty impressive claims, but as I said before, the theory seems sounds, but does it work in practice?


Now... Powerchip:

Welcome to the fastest way of getting your car performing to the level you demand.

This "Fast Track" section allows you to obtain the critical information you need to make an informed decision about our products... FAST!

Because you are a busy person, and need the information as quickly as possible, please continue to find out more information about the best way of improving the performance of your vehicle.


More Power and Torque.
One of the most important aspects of the Powerchip engine software upgrade is the improvements made to the Power and Torque throughout the power band.

For most vehicles we can improve the performance by about 10%, with software for most turbo vehicles giving up to 25% more power and torque.


Acceleration.
The relationship between engine power and torque has a direct relationship to acceleration and "off the line" performance. When power and torque are increased, the acceleration of your vehicle improves accordingly.

Your acceleration will improve with Powerchip enhanced software in your engine.


Smoothness and Driveability.
The technology from Powerchip is more than just a racing and "WOT" experience, which is one of the reasons that all of our software is researched while driving on normal streets and roads.

Each Powerchip program is developed to improved the performance at each throttle opening position, which means that if you even touch your foot lightly on the gas your engine will respond instantly.


Powerchip™ is a reprogrammed engine software calibration, designed to optimise the performance and efficiency of most modern fuel-injected vehicles.


High Octane Gasoline.
The performance gain is made possible by, and fully maximises the use of, high octane gasoline. State-of-art equipment is used to read and enhance the software program inside your vehicle's Electronic Control Unit (ECU), and tune the vehicle to suit the gasoline that you run in your vehicle. If you want the best performance improvement, you understand the importance of using the best gasoline, and a Powerchip to suit!


Performance you can feel!
The result of the Powerchip is immediately noticeable or your money back. You can experience better throttle response, increased power and torque which results in faster acceleration, and more driving enjoyment!

Powerchip offers a driver the opportunity to extract the true potential from their vehicle, without extensive modification.


Electronic Ignition and Fuel Data Lookup Tables.
Getting extra performance is accomplished in the same way that ‘Hot Rodder’s” have achieved more power for decades: More ignition advance and more fuel is allowed to enter the engine.

A Powerchip is the electronic method of making changes to the ignition and fuel characteristics; they are comparable to changing carburettor jets, and re-curving a distributor. It is the only way of "tuning" a car that has a Electronic Fuel Injection (EFi). All control is completed by the ECU under the control of the chip. If it has a standard inferior chip it will operate at a low level, but when the standard chip is changed for a Powerchip, the car will then operate at the new higher level.


Size Matters!
The best way of thinking about how something so small can be so powerful, is to think of it like the SIM card in your mobile phone. When you put a different SIM card in your phone, it thinks differently.

Your home computer is similar to your car. It needs software to run, and it is only intelligent when the correct software is loaded. They both contain just digital instructions, but what they achieve is totally different... you can call that clever pragramming!

Again big claims, I'd be willing to try it, but unlike the Hyclone, where the 'theory' is sound, here it isn't quite as convincing, but it does make sense... Go for it, or proceed with caution?

[bangers]

don't bother with unichip, they're only good if you have heaps of mods and you have a spare $1200 laying around. get a powerchip, they are pretty much a one size fits all to a degree but i have one and the car runs better. hasn't increased my power but runs smoother. Hi-clones are debateable, i know they are useless if you only install 1. if you run 2 or more then they may work. K&N filters are great, well worth the money.

[Marco-EFIVL]

The people at Hyclone recommend ITG filters, I have nothing against K&N, in fact, I'm inclined to get K&N, but are ITG any good? Anybody here used them before?

oi Bangers when you say it runs smoother as a result of the powerchip, have you at all noticed better acceleration and/or better fuel economy?

[bangers]

i'm not sure on acceleration, i hadn't driven the car for a few weeks before i put the chip in. my missus reckons it was noticeable. i do have better fuel economy overall with the filter and chip.

[rb26dett]

I was told that with Turbo cars you can use up to 6 hiclones.

I dont know anyone who has used one, you can try it and let us know how you go.

[yosy]

I was told that with Turbo cars you can use up to 6 hiclones.

I dont know anyone who has used one, you can try it and let us know how you go.

Even tho they spin they spin using the energy of the air being drawn into your motor so they cant ever suck more air in
That means that its just matter occupying space that could have air their instead
so they only restrict.

[bangers]

they don't spin. the fins cause the air to spin around to supposedly make the air and fuel mix together properly creating a better and more even burn in the cylinders. in theory anyway.

[HSVenforcer]

Hyclones = piece of shit

Long story short i have seen them fitted to a variety of cars and i see no difference. I know of 2 cars which had them fitted and were dyno'd before and after. 0 difference in power and 0 in economy. They were also tested on the road with the same results. One was a 1991 Honda Prelude sir (imported jap model) which was all stock (in regards to the engine) except a pod filter and one fitted to a VS Acclaim V6 Ecotec. They fit into the catagory of "if you believe it will work then it will" ie Its all in your head. They have the same effect as the magic tablets you put in your tank and the magnets you put on your fuel lines which are meant to assist in breaking down the fuel bla bla bla so on and so forth.

They may be very good at creating the swirling effect in the intake pipe but can anyone explain how this can be maintained as they pass through the throttle body and past the valves or for that matter, how the effect is held going around the bends in the intake manifold? and lets not forget those with turbos.

They cant.

Dont waste your money.

FYI = i posed these same questions to a guy selling hyclones and all he did was bable and eventually hang up on me. Ask a rep to show you the technical stats to prove it works. Apart from lots of pretty graphs they wont show you diddly squat.

my 2cents worth

[ucwepn]

My only problem with the hyclone therory is that when the swirling air passes through the TB and past the butterfly that the swirling effect will be broken. So I thought what about inside the TB or past it? then realising that as the airflow is again broken up to go through the runners of the inlet manifold that the swirling effect would be broken again. I see the only solution is to weld a tiny one in each runner (do they have runner sized ones?), then there might be some effect.