Chip at high altitude?
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Chip at high altitude?
<center><img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/97197/pimped.jpg"></center><p>ok so my damn fast 2.7T isn't as fast as it could be?
has anyone who lives/drives up in the high country had luck with a chip? is there a difference because of high altitude? What Brand is the best?
I contacted APR with this question and never got a response.
i have heard that sealevel chips won't work correctly up here and that it may cause more problems. any advice?
has anyone who lives/drives up in the high country had luck with a chip? is there a difference because of high altitude? What Brand is the best?
I contacted APR with this question and never got a response.
i have heard that sealevel chips won't work correctly up here and that it may cause more problems. any advice?
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I'm in Highlands Ranch - several things to consider...
Due to thinner air at altitude, turbos need to spin faster to make the same amount of boost they'd make at sea level. With a chip at sea level, K03 turbos are spinning much closer to their limit. At altitude, K03s can spin very close to, if not over, their limit. Our ECUs have a built in barometer that adjusts requested boost levels based on altitude. MTM spent a lot of time in Denver and the mountains testing this feature as well as a variety of chips. There is some indication that the ECUs compensation does not completely function when chipped. Apparently altitude also requires slightly different timing maps as well.
To compensate MTM and O.CT make "altitude adjusted" chips - essentially de-tuned versions of their sea level and/or 93 octane chips.
All that said, there are plenty of people in the Denver area running GIAC, AMS, MTM, and O.CT chips with relatively few failures. FWIW, my advice is to go with a conservative chip like O.CT, replace your throttle body boot with an aftermarket TBB or APR Bipipe, and switch to better diverter valves like 710Ns or aftermarket DVs like Forge or Hyperboost. As mentioned, more agressive chips are available and in use here. Make sure you're comfortable with the risk if you choose to go that route. Replacing turbos isn't cheap.
Hope this helps
To compensate MTM and O.CT make "altitude adjusted" chips - essentially de-tuned versions of their sea level and/or 93 octane chips.
All that said, there are plenty of people in the Denver area running GIAC, AMS, MTM, and O.CT chips with relatively few failures. FWIW, my advice is to go with a conservative chip like O.CT, replace your throttle body boot with an aftermarket TBB or APR Bipipe, and switch to better diverter valves like 710Ns or aftermarket DVs like Forge or Hyperboost. As mentioned, more agressive chips are available and in use here. Make sure you're comfortable with the risk if you choose to go that route. Replacing turbos isn't cheap.
Hope this helps
AudiWorld Super User
Joined: Jul 2001
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From: Arvada, CO
My .02 (Arvada, CO).
Few companies bother to tune for altitude, which IMHO is a mistake. MTM learned the hard way that code that was tuned for sea level WILL NOT be ideal at altitude. After a bunch of turbo failures, they sent their tuner here to retune for altitude. After the tuning, the performance was still very good and the turbos were in a safe operating range. There is a reason Audi has a test facility here in Denver, and there is a reason you will often find next year's models running up hwy 103 to Mt. Evans... There were Bugatti Veyrons up there last week.
IMHO2, many tuners with three and four letter acronyms are too agressive with their boost curves for altitude, some even (knowingly or unknowingly) have in effect disabled the built-in altitude compensation. Personally, I would be very cautious running a chip that was not tuned for altitude. My guess is that some of the tuners don't really know what exactly to change for altitude, but that is just a guess.
Personally, I have used Sportec and MTM in my car knowing that both have been tuned for Colorado. All in all, I prefer the Sportec stuff, as it is a bit smoother and I don't hear the turbos, as I did sometimes with the MTM code. Power was comparable. My priorities are drivability and durability, not maximum power.
Of course, YMMV. Etc., etc., etc....
Oh yeah, my car is also a 2000 A6 2.7T 6spd.
IMHO2, many tuners with three and four letter acronyms are too agressive with their boost curves for altitude, some even (knowingly or unknowingly) have in effect disabled the built-in altitude compensation. Personally, I would be very cautious running a chip that was not tuned for altitude. My guess is that some of the tuners don't really know what exactly to change for altitude, but that is just a guess.
Personally, I have used Sportec and MTM in my car knowing that both have been tuned for Colorado. All in all, I prefer the Sportec stuff, as it is a bit smoother and I don't hear the turbos, as I did sometimes with the MTM code. Power was comparable. My priorities are drivability and durability, not maximum power.
Of course, YMMV. Etc., etc., etc....
Oh yeah, my car is also a 2000 A6 2.7T 6spd.
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Joined: Jun 2004
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Great points Steve...question
I travel to Salida about once a year for a visit with family. I was thinking about taking my car up for a romp next time I go. Any options with my low altitude chip to prevent any issues?
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You're running GIAC, right? You could always use the flashloader to return to "stock" mode at alt.
You just really don't want to hit the same kind of peak boost levels you're hitting down low. If you stay out of boost or turn your requested boost down (i.e. by switching to stock mode), you'll be a lot better off.
You'll know you're running too much boost when you get up to 8K feet, go WOT, and hear a sound like a 10 ton tea kettle whistling in your engine bay. NOT a pretty sound!
You'll know you're running too much boost when you get up to 8K feet, go WOT, and hear a sound like a 10 ton tea kettle whistling in your engine bay. NOT a pretty sound!