Porsche Enthusiasts Club Forum

Boxed and unfitted 944 s2 Peformance Chip

I bought to fit to my car and never got round to it before some prat wrote it off. So grab a bargain.

Cost £99

Sell for £55 posted

What Promax Say:

The ProMAX Performance chips for the normally aspirated models have been extensively developed to provide not only a power increase, but also improved smoother running. All flat spots and anomalies have been engineered out of the original compromise chip (ECU EPROM). To ensure that emissions are not effected, changes beneath 3,000 rpm are minimal. The timing curve on these chips is substantially smoother than the original with the often pronounced step in the mid-range made more progressive.

Power gains at the top end are between 5-10%. Power increases of up to 20% have been recorded on cars fitted with a cone type air filter and free flowing exhaust.

How can performance be so easily improved? Why didn't Porsche build this performance into the car to begin with?
There are many reasons for this. Some cars are deliberately kept in a lower state of tune so as not to get too close to the performance of other models (i.e. marketing reasons). In the case of the 968 - where a 18bhp gain is typical - this was taking it too close to the current 964 models output of 250bhp. In the case of the 944S2, the 944 Turbo was only 39bhp away and the 3.2 Carrera (at the time in 1989) was 232bhp. Other reasons included ensuring the car can use low octane fuel and survive a few missed services. If you are prepared to use 98 octane fuel (not essential, but best to get the maximum performance) - you can enjoy the performance that your car is actually capable of. Power gains are anything from 10-25bhp (often more) with torque gains of 15-22lbft.

NOTE: All power and torque gains are dependent on your car's current engine condition, modifications and induction systems. Power gains can not be guaranteed. .

PM sent, but found it on eBay and bought it anyway, or at least hope it was this one.

And if you don't check it on the dyno your risking your engine. Copy & paste tuning is hit & miss. Dyno time is cheaper than a new engine so why not do it properly & check the thing after you fitted it? Do not assume that your car is spot on before you fit it. You can't tell.

I agree with the sentiments, however Promax have been developing this and selling it for some time so I have some confidence and I also have no expectations of huge power improvements (after all its not a Turbo) I just thought for the price it was worth a try. I will keep an eye on the mixture to make sure it does not run too lean or rich and don't tend to drive it very hard anyway so I think the risks are reasonably mitigated.

I also agree that setting up on a dyno gives better results, however I can't get dyno and mapping time for £55, as to the car being "spot on" I suspect it is as spot on as any other 100K mile S2, more than regularly serviced, including ignition, belts, clutch, water pump etc. let's see what happens as a daily driver it could just as easily get written off on the way to work.

I'm not knocking Promax or there chips. Really. A guy I know put his S2 on the dyno. It made 130 at the wheels. About 50 less than it should. Massive power loss & a lot worse than my lux is at the moment!! The owner. A mechanic, was in shock. He had no idea. What if he had fitted a Promax chip. The ecu can not compensate for more than a few %. That margin is reduced after the car is chipped. It would likely have run even richer resulting in engine damage. An extreme example I know but it happens. I pay £50 an hour for dyno time. It will not take an hour to check the fueling. You can adjust the fueling with the mixture screw to make sure the chip has the best chance of working properly at the same time. You will also know for sure that it is working as it was intended & what the result is. Much cheaper than spending 6 hours on a live map. I'm not saying don't buy performance chips. Just that they should always be checked after fitting because if your engine has any issues it's very possible that you won't know about them. Often power loss is gradual & to the owner who drives his car regularly. Not noticeable until it gets really silly. Cars with problems don't always cough & splutter!
Performance chips are by there nature a compromise as no two cars are the same. With cars as old as ours the difference can be very large. Well outside the range that L jetronic can adjust for.
I hope your chip gives you the improvement your looking for.