Diesel Tuning Box

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Icemaker

Apr 13, 2005
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i was a big fan of these devices right up to the point where my alhambra's engine was destroyed through over fuelling caused by the engine re-map.

i had a very expensive dms engine re-map module that actually reprogrammed the engines ecu rather than just confuse the signal which is what the plug in boxes do so it should have been a much safer device but it still caused the faults that ultimately destroyed my engine in my opinion.

these devices are not worth it in the long run.
 
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Glenn_5132962

Sep 5, 2006
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Thats a lot of money for whats basically a variable resistor in a box that intercepts the signal from the common rail pressure sensor & fools the ecu into thinking the pressure is lower than it is. Hence the engine runs with a higher rail pressure than it was designed to do - this makes the fuel pump & injectors work harder. It gives more power & torque & it also fools the fuel computer of the car into displaying an over-optimistic MPG. This is the basis for people claiming they get more mpg as well as more power. True MPG will be the same as before if you drive carefull, use the extra power & torque & the mpg will be worse. The life of the expensive pump, injectors, clutch, driveshafts, gearbox & tyres will be all be reduced. Of course if its a relatively new car with a low milage it might be fine while you have it but future owners may suffer.
 
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seth1

Oct 28, 2006
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There is absolutly no arguing with Glens reply.Although Glen is spot on,the very reason i asked my question to Rab is that not all these devices work the same way or are constructed the sameway,some do contain microprocessers.My next question was going to be how does it attach to the engine and on to what? When i,ve looked at what wiring diagrams they show,they dont give much away.

seth
 
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Mikey_74

Sep 11, 2009
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I believe these boxes mainly as already stated sit in between the fuel rail pressure sensor and the wiring loom, as already stated increasing the pressure to the fuel rail which is supposed to give a finer mist of fuel, and more fuel in to the cylinder, some of the more advanced ones also I believe plug in between the air mass meter although I'm not sure as to why, as for the bad luck that Icebreaker had with his engine destroyed by a remap, this is quite common it would seem, although personaly I have difficulty in blamming the remap/tuning box entirely, sadly cars vary massively from one to the next, so you can't really blame the what has been done when it may have happened anyway, I'm a fan of tuning Diesel engines, I hate driving diesels that haven't been played with, my currrent car I had remapped nearly 4 years ago, and has since done 80k miles, still pulls cleanly and strong, making light work of the caravan, and it's total mileage is now 206k miles well worth the money IMHO

I hope this makes some kind of sense

Regards

Mike
 
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Rabfaetheblae

Mar 18, 2009
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Seth if its anything like my last one it was just a case of taking a connection appart then connecting the box inbetween, i had one on my 03 mondeo 2ltr tdci and it really made for a better driving experiance, i had that on it for about 3 years and all was fine,

Im in Azerbiajan just now but hope to get home thursday if alls ok with the mad weather back home, so il fit it friday..

Regards Rab
 
Dustydog

Dustydog

Jun 20, 2005
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Rab

I used once of these inline powerboxes for a few years.

Yes the performance was good but gradually, and I don't know how , the ECU started to compensate for the powerbox. The car started to belch thick black smoke. This turned out to be a sticking EGR Valve. Probably caused by all that extra fuel going through the system. EGR Valve was replaced at my expense.

Personally I will not use rechips etc again.

Cheers

Dustydog
 
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NigelHutson

Jul 28, 2008
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Dustydog,

I don't think that a sticking EGR valve will have anything to do with tuning. They're a pain and probably their manufacture produces more rubbish than they save in a cars life. If you look at many car forum, EGR valves crop up regularly, and in many cases people either by-pass them or blank them off. I've had a sticking EGR valve on may resent car (replaced under warranty thank goodness).

I've also used tuning boxes of reputable manufacture (not ebay specials) on a number of vehicles, and touching lots of wood, there have been only benifits. My current car (a Discovery) has one fitted, and the difference in drivability is amazing. I hasten to add that I'm not bothered about racing away from lights etc, but driving sensibly, the throttle response and increased torque allow a much more relaxed drive. Economy wise, it hasn't made any apparent difference, but I have a light right foot anyway. I bought my latest box from bhpplus, who I have found to be most helpful. I am in no way connected to the industry, I'm simply a very satisfied customer. Oh, and a bit of 2-stroke oil in the fuel works wonders too!
 
Dustydog

Dustydog

Jun 20, 2005
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Nigel

From what I understand the Powerbox I used allowed higher pressures and more fuel into the injectors. Theoretically the more fuel burnt per cycle can cause more sooting up and hence EGR problems. In truth I don't know why an EGR Valve starts sticking.

The new valve including fitting and cleaning out the pipes has cost
 
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seth1

Oct 28, 2006
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Hi Rab,if im correct in my asumption of how you describe the fitting and i could be totally wrong but it does fit with the brief shot i had of the schematic,this type plugs in between (on to)the fuel rail pressure sensor and EDC control unit(engine ecu).This particular model operates by increasing the fuel pressure.It carrys out this procedure via obviously the EDC control unit(corrupt signal)which in turn "adjusts" the

"M.prop" valve on the high pressure fuel pump.Thus fuel pressure increase.

This method will most positivly produce a power increase but how safe it is,is anyones guess.

seth
 
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NigelHutson

Jul 28, 2008
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I suppose that's where there could be an issue with a non-reputable make (or any make for that matter) if it overfuels. Providing things stay within the manufacturers tollerences there shouldn't be a problem, something that I'm assured that the one I have fitted does.
 
Dustydog

Dustydog

Jun 20, 2005
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Nigel

I am told their main two purposes are:

1. to cool the combustion chambers with more CO2.

2. to allow a cleaner exhaust emmission.

Cheers

Dustydog
 
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Douglas_374404558

Feb 15, 2009
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HI! Rab i used to tow with same vehicle as you now have why on earth do you need more power when towing i found when i was towing (1475kg van )i had more than enough power, sometimes had a hard job to stop the wheels spining at start off and loads of power for overtaking and could get 60mph on motorway with ease .but then everyone,s got there own wants

all the best Duggie

p.s great car
 
G

Guest

Sorry Dusty dog, you have been informed wrong, As it plays no part in lowing the CO2, in fact on diesels it raises it. It is there to lower the NOX, which could also be done by using a trap.

Egr valves on modern diesels are a complete waste of time, they help to wear out the internals of the engine, injectors ect, far quicker than used to be the case, and they themselfs are prone to seizing up.

They do lower the combustion temp at low throttle openings, yes, but the are closed when you use full throttle or load the engine,and as this is when you engines produces the most thermal heat,then really it is not really lowering engine temp, when its at its higher values.

EGR valves are a nightmare on modern diesel, and indeed if you remove/blank them off, it actually improves your cars performance and also MPG! but alas its not possible on all makes of cars to do so.

Rab. if your Mondeo is the old shape pre 2007, Roveron does a digital tuning box for
 
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seth1

Oct 28, 2006
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Hello Me,not sure weather i agree with part of your post.Re-EGR,s a waste of time on modern diesels.Does this just mean passenger car power units or all general power units?Going back to euro 3 EGR MAN industrials were reburning 60% of the exhaust gases through the EGR,euro 4 increased again with the introduction of a fully calibrated EGR cylinder.Im more tempted to say cats are a waste of time due to the time it takes to warm them up(30miles)before they become effective.

As far as im aware Exhaust gas recirculation raises the combustion temps,obviously on a shut throttle,ie coasting,gearchanges etc this can be seen on the monitering snapshot of the diagnostic machine.
 
Dustydog

Dustydog

Jun 20, 2005
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Hi me

This comes from Parkers web site. Sorry but I still don't know how to condense this like sprocket.

Who do I believe; I'm confused!!

Cheers

Dustydog

What is the EGR valve and what can happen when it fails? Not much used to be heard about this valve until turbos started to appear.

What does EGR stand for and what is the valve supposed to do? EGR is the acronym for Exhaust Gas Recirculation. More than 30 years ago when the US EPA showed concern about NOx (Nitrogen Oxide) emissions, GM engineers came up with the idea of the EGR valve. Its basic function is to reduce NOx emissions. I shall not go into the problems caused by these emissions now or later. They are already well do***ented

When an engine is under load, the very high combustion chamber temperatures produced will increase the amount of NOx. The problem was how to reduce it. The answer - the good ol' EGR valve. This was designed to allow carbon dioxide to be introduced into the combustion chambers as a "coolant" gas. Now like all things produced by man, this valve too had its problems. The EGR valve was designed to open and close at appropriate moments but it could get sticky or even stuck! If it was stuck open, you'd find the engine would have a rough idle or stall. If closed the combustion chamber temperatures would rise under load and you would get "knocking".

Now along comes the turbo. Turbos mean boost and this is created by exhaust gases. Turbos will seize if the exhaust gas temperatures get very high for longish periods as the lubrication will fail due to the increased heat. So if the EGR valve is stuck closed, you've got expensive problems in the pipeline!

I will not go into how the EGR is activated but some are (were) mechanical and some part so with a combination of electronics. They are usually electronic with some exceptions! Now here lies one big problem. Some manufacturers have notorious reputations for poor electronic components and we frequently read about unfortunate people who have turbo failures on their cars. And replacement is not cheap folks - you are looking at a couple of grand or more so the next time your engine starts "knocking" under load or there's a bit of a whistle, don't think about changing plugs if it's a petrol engine or fuel brand, rush down to the dealer with a letter (and keep a copy) saying you are worried that the EGR valve is not functioning properly. Prevention is one hell of a lot cheaper than cure!

And if you have had a turbo replaced, check the service invoice and see if a new EGR valve was fitted. If not, and it's a "sticky" one, then in time the new turbo could fail too!

Hope this helps some of you in the future.
 
G

Guest

Seth, It seems to apply to cars, do not know why lorries don't suffer to the same degree, but that's how it seems to be, although it is not unknown in lorries.

I will dispute "parkers" especially on turbo heat problems being the fault of the EGR valve and higher cylinder temperatures too, as normally the sludge build up in the EGR is the fault of a leaking turbo!which makes the sludge.

As I said earlier the EGR valve is Shut under heavy engine load, and this is when there is the most heat in the engine.

Read EGR deletion.....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exhaust_gas_recirculation

This also is a fair read, but note the EGR valve is open only under light load so clearly the heat issue is all myth. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exhaust_gas_recirculation also note the trouble a leaking turbo causes the EGR...
 
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