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MG MGF Technical - Icon Race SuperChip

Anyone tested the Icon superchip? How much power do i get? Price?

/Magnus
Magnus Wallin

Hi Magnus,

basically the ICON race chip is an interceptor device that alters the ignition timing. This means that as the standard engine management system is slightly retarded (5% from optimum) to take into account poor fuels, the BEST you can hope for with an ICON installed is a 5% power gain. So perhaps you'd think that'd mean 5 bhp. But things are never as simple as that, as at maximum power output, the difference between the engine management map and the absolute optimum is probably a whole load less than 5%.

What I am saying is that you simply do not see huge gains in power with these interceptor chips, irrespective of who makes them :o(
Stu has power curves that emphasise this point...

They are not all that cheap, and the cost rarely includes a full rolling road set up - so that's an additional 'hidden cost'. Failure to do this can result in burnt exhaust valves - and even melted exhaust manifolds!!!

Much better to invest your hard earned money on other modifications.

What kind of budget do you have, and what kind of power gains are you after Magnus?
Rob Bell

I concur, I had the Icon chip fitted for a couple of years. Correctly set my MPi with K&N and Exhaust was showing in the order of 138bhp at the flywheel. In honesty I'm uncertain how much the ICON did. Just to clarify one thing, I believe that the ICON responsible for frying an engine was a predecessor of the current chip and not specifially designed for the F and I don't think it was programmeable.

Anyway the best value for money is the air filter. The exhaust is a little expensive with little gain to be seen but still, it is a must have just for THAT noise.

Serious gains are to be seen with head work and correctly timed cams. As we have just seen on last weekends RR test my MPi is showing 162BHP and 144 lbft of torque (don't ask me what that is in Metric) This is a little expensive at about 33/BHP but I would say well worth the cash.
tim woolcott

Another vote against Icon. If power could be safely improved with a little tweak to the ignition programming, why wouldn't MGR take this easy step to improve the performance of the car - after all they have done it with the 75 V6s for the MG versions and have also done it for the oil burner in the 75.

Snake oil salemen - avoid lke the plague!

Cheers

Patrick
Patrick Beet

AND wasn't that what Dirk of Luxemburg fitted just before he had his huge meltdown!

Ted
Ted Newman

Jep he had. It's along time ago and I promised to keep my mouth about the whole *truth*.
Anyway, only what I think will not break this promises:
It seams obvious that the chip *Firmware* installed to Dirk's car was however incompatible to the ECU software at his VVC.

May be coincedence may be not. The problem was never ansered by the manufacturer/installer.
May be Tim's idea regarding never right adapted to the K-Engine explains what happend to Dirk.

Moral of the story:
*When you play with your toy and whyever believe any salesman, then don't wonder you need a new toy at any time*

@ Luc, (if you read) Apology, I hope I didn't say more then I know ... :)
Let some greets fly to your brother. I miss him here caise it got so boring trivial with the other *mad Mega comments* at the BBS :(

No flames !
:o)

Cheers
Dieter
Dieter K.

Sometimes, when you are right at the front of car modifications, you get burnt when you are sold something that it was not capable of providing what was claimed of it.

I think that Dirk fell foul of this - and perhaps not through fault of his own. Shame, because he sure did love his F!
Rob Bell

This thread was discussed between 13/05/2003 and 15/05/2003

MG MGF Technical index

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