FAQ - Engine optimization

Services for upgrading engines to achieve higher performance and lower fuel consumption have been available for a long time. This concept is known by many names, including chip tuning, chip tuning boxes, OBD programming, and more. What we work with is called engine optimization or Engine tuning.

Our engine optimization involves a digital fine-tuning of the original software in the vehicle’s Engine Control Unit (ECU), which is the car’s main computer or “brain.” This adjustment results in smoother engine operation, increased torque, and higher performance.

During optimization, we not only increase the peaks of the engine’s torque and power but also extend the curves, ensuring that the power comes in earlier and lasts longer. This leads to improved performance and significant opportunities for fuel savings.

Since we always start from the original software in your vehicle’s ECU and are accustomed to handling more complex tasks, we can also customize and program special features that are impossible to achieve with pre-programmed tuning boxes or hand-held devices on the market.

Feel free to ask us about the following, among other things:

• Changing/removing or programming a top speed limiter
  
• Changing shift points/engine rpm cutoffs
  
• Deprogramming DPF/EGR/Lambda 2
  
• ECU cloning
  
• Deprogramming or “unmarrying” an ECU

There are primarily three reasons why our customers choose to optimize their vehicles: Driving Enjoyment, Efficiency, and Fuel Savings.

Driving Enjoyment:
Customization of engine software enhances power, torque, and throttle response, offering a smoother, more responsive driving experience.

Efficiency:
Optimizing engine performance provides more power where needed, making tasks like towing, farming, and boating easier and more efficient.

Fuel Savings:
Optimization leads to real fuel savings, ranging from 5-10% for everyday vehicles to over 20% for heavier vehicles, positively impacting both personal and business expenses.

A customized engine optimization adjusts the vehicle’s engine control by fine-tuning parameters such as injector timing, fuel/ignition, turbo (boost pressure), fuel pressure, and more. This results in better performance and accurate calculations for fuel consumption and particulate filter regeneration. Compared to external tuning boxes, this solution offers more advanced technology that reduces problems and fuel consumption.

A great and common question, and the short answer is – they do! Here’s an explanation:

Modern engines are controlled by a computer called the Engine Control Unit (ECU), which gives manufacturers incredible control over factors like how much power each engine generates. During development, they can create software that boosts the engine’s power, or they can reduce it.

For example, a 2-liter turbo diesel engine capable of 220hp may be delivered from the factory with 180hp, with the same hardware but different software. Manufacturers often release weaker versions with the same engine, like 150hp or 120hp, by simply “downscaling” the software. This allows them to produce multiple products from the same hardware. If they want a sportier version, they can create a 195hp model using the same engine.

The reason manufacturers build these large margins is that the engines need to work in different markets with varying fuel qualities, from +50°C to -50°C, and from sea level to high altitudes. They also have to meet various tax, insurance, and emissions regulations depending on the market.

With these large margins in mind, we don’t need to worry about optimizing your car in this climate with good fuel quality. With your specific wishes and goals, we can tailor the engine’s characteristics to perfectly suit your car, optimized just for you.

Reprogramming always results in better engine performance, more power, and often lower fuel consumption, whether it’s in a car, motorhome, truck, tractor, or boat. The upgrade provides more power and torque to the engine. The fuel savings come from more efficient combustion and a better ability to utilize the new power.

Power and torque increases tend to have a more significant impact on turbocharged engines than on naturally aspirated engines, and fuel savings follow a similar pattern. A fuel saving of 10-20%, and sometimes even more, is possible for diesel/turbo gasoline engines, but typically somewhat lower for naturally aspirated gasoline engines.

For more aggressive software with high power outputs, fuel consumption usually remains unchanged.

However, it’s important to note that a vehicle doesn’t automatically use less fuel just because it’s optimized. The engine’s changed characteristics mean that with maintained performance, you can save fuel, but it requires a different driving style, such as shifting earlier or, with a stronger engine, skipping a gear during normal driving.

We reprogram the base software in the engine control unit. The various modes you can select (and sometimes adjust) for things like the transmission and chassis are not affected by our optimization. We typically describe them as filters on the base program. In Sport mode, the car will perform at its fullest, but the other modes will still limit and tone down performance, driving enjoyment, etc., to achieve comfort or economy, as usual. Everything works as before, but the base program for the engine will now have a higher minimum level.

We can also program different settings for each mode. For example, some may want the “Pop ‘n Bang” or “Popcorn” effect in Sport mode but not in Normal or Economy mode.

Engines vary in their potential for power increase. Here’s a general overview of the upgrades we make:

Turbo Engines: The trend in engine manufacturing has been down-sizing (smaller engine displacement, fewer cylinders) combined with turbocharging, which is ideal for optimization. All modern diesel engines have turbos, and more gasoline engines are now turbocharged as well. Typically, we see a power increase of about 15-20%, with some engines (both gasoline and diesel) potentially achieving 40-50% more power due to electronic restrictions.

Naturally Aspirated Engines: These engines don’t benefit from a turbo or compressor. With just a reprogramming, significant power increases are harder to achieve. We typically see a 4-10% increase in power and torque. Many companies avoid working on these engines, but our references speak for themselves—an optimized naturally aspirated engine delivers significantly more driving pleasure than the numbers suggest! Popular brands with naturally aspirated engines we optimize include Porsche, BMW, Mercedes, and Audi.

Interesting Note on Marine Naturally Aspirated Engines: In the marine environment, reprogramming can often remove electronic restrictions that limit power in engines that share the same displacement as stronger versions. For example, a Mercury 40hp engine is the same as the 50hp and 60hp models, but electronically restricted. We can often optimize these to around 70hp. Similarly, larger outboard motors like the Yamaha 250hp are the same as the 300hp version.

While the power increase on a naturally aspirated engine may seem modest, we perform many optimizations on such engines with impressive results. We work on both large and small engines, and our customers are often pleasantly surprised by the improvements, even in engines with the smallest power increases.

It’s important not to expect the same level of performance boost as a turbocharged engine. On a naturally aspirated engine, the typical increase is around 5-7%, with some exceptions where the increase can be greater.

Improved Throttle Response
Throttle response and acceleration improve significantly, resulting in a more enjoyable driving experience. The upgrade will be more noticeable and appreciated than the numbers suggest, whether you drive a Fiat 500 or an Aston Martin.

Not Just Peak Power
When optimizing, we don’t just raise the torque and peak power. We also stretch the curves so that power comes on earlier and stays longer, resulting in a significant performance boost and potential fuel savings.

There are several reasons for this. The main reason is that we never optimize beyond what the drivetrain is designed to handle. Over-optimizing can lead to damage, such as bent crankshafts or a broken gearbox.

Another reason is that we focus on performance, not just numbers. A high peak power figure does not automatically mean better performance. Our focus is on delivering power early and maintaining it throughout the RPM range. On paper, 250 hp might seem better than 230 hp. However, with 250 hp, you might have to wait for power to build up at higher RPMs, with a quick drop-off. In contrast, with 230 hp delivered at 2,000 RPM and sustained throughout the range, you’ll experience better performance, less wear, and the potential for fuel savings.

OptiOne doesn’t use horsepower per currency as a selling point. We focus on selling a result and an experience. Therefore, we downplay the numbers because peak power is rarely the best measure of an optimization result.

Interestingly, it’s often the low-price companies promising the highest power increases, even when trim boxes are involved, despite these not offering the same refinement as a custom engine software solution. We aim to provide a balanced optimization for your vehicle, enhancing the power where you actually use it daily.

We report modest power increases. To discuss performance and/or higher power gains, feel free to contact us!

The simple answer is no, we can’t. The more accurate response is that all engines produce different amounts of power. Even brand-new engines from the same manufacturer and model can have varying power and torque outputs.

If the engine is older, there could be a noticeable difference from what’s specified for a new engine. That’s why we can’t guarantee that you’ll get the exact power increase promised, just as you can’t guarantee that your engine is delivering exactly the power it should. The result we present is an average from multiple optimizations of the same engine. Some engines perform better, others less so.

The experience is the most important.

And honestly, does it really matter if you increase a 180hp engine to 220 or 230hp? If you find the car more enjoyable to drive with noticeably better performance and lower fuel consumption, what does a few horsepower here or there matter?

Simply installing a performance exhaust system, such as a half-system from the catalytic converter and back, rarely results in noticeable power gains. At most, you might gain a few horsepower at the top end.

A related question often asked is whether combining a performance exhaust system with tailored software will provide more power than each separately. The answer is yes, you will get a bit of extra power from the combination. But more importantly, it’s always nice to enjoy both a better sound and the power gain from the optimization. Feel free to contact us for more information!

Car manufacturers’ terms are quite clear: you’re not allowed to modify the car in any way that deviates from the original (which they don’t profit from!). Therefore, it’s often stated in the terms that you can’t upgrade the engine or make any changes that deviate from the original.

That said, we have yet to encounter a customer who has been denied warranty service when it comes to the crunch. We’ve never even had to discuss such a case with a car dealer or workshop, nor have we had to activate our external engine damage guarantees (since 2007).

Additionally, many brand-specific car and boat dealers hire us to perform engine optimizations on brand-new engines before they are delivered to customers. So, while the terms are clear, the gray area is quite large.

We are very careful to assess the condition of the vehicle before starting any upgrade work. Our philosophy is that as long as you stick to reasonable power levels and maintain proper service, we don’t see any signs of increased wear.

What matters most is the technology you choose, and a good rule of thumb is not to choose the company that promises the highest power at the lowest price. Programming is an art, and there’s a big difference between a skilled programmer and a beginner. OptiOne takes as much responsibility as possible, and you can read more about how we work to understand it better.

When you bring your car to an OptiOne partner, our representative will first conduct a needs analysis with you. We then take the car for a test drive and perform a full vehicle diagnosis to ensure it’s running well before we begin working on it.

Next, we read the entire original software, and our optimization team creates a tailored software based on the needs analysis, balanced with our experience with similar cars to achieve the best result possible.

Once we’ve written the optimized program, test-driven your “new” car, and completed a final check with our diagnostic equipment, we’ll contact you to let you know your car is ready for pickup.

Before you leave, you’ll receive a folder with documentation about the work performed, an overview of how the car has been optimized, and tips for what to keep in mind as an owner of an optimized vehicle.

The entire process usually takes 5-7 hours for a Stage 1 optimization, without further modifications to the hardware.

Many of our customers who are far away or unable to visit an OptiOne station send their engine control unit (ECU) to us. This is a common approach, especially for boat motors.

The downside is that our trained staff cannot test drive the vehicle before and after optimization, and we are unable to perform a full diagnostic check of the entire system. However, we’ve never encountered any issues with this process. If you’re not satisfied with the results after optimization, you can send the ECU back to us, and we will either adjust the optimization or revert it to the original settings, offering a full refund.

The easiest way to book is to search for your vehicle on our website and submit an order inquiry. 

You ar also very welcome to give us a call and we will help you with your booking.

• Nm – Newton meters, refers to torque, typically delivered at lower RPMs.
  
• kW – Kilowatts, the modern unit of power measurement, gradually replacing horsepower.
  
• hp – Horsepower, the British method of measuring power.
  
• rpm – Revolutions per minute, refers to engine speed (revolutions per minute).
  
• DIN-hk – A standardized German measurement method. DIN horsepower is the same as hk or PS.
  
• PS – Pferdestärke, the German term for horsepower.