Looking at this discussion group this morning, this ad/link showed up on the page: http://www.gfchips.com/
It had a leader line promising 60 HP and 7 mpg improvement. Ironic for it to appear on this site.
I find it amusing that someones selling a “chip” to help your engine perform in the stoichiometric window of 14.7 to 1 when your pcm is already designed to do that without any outside help. Todays engines are already running at their peak performance so I don’t see how anything like a “chip” could increase that. And I would have to believe that stepping up the timing on someones engine with a bad knock sensor is a recipe for disaster. Not to mention the original software in the PCM already does that. Hokey at best, disastrous at worst. You wanna have a faster car? Start with the hard parts. Larger throttle body, exhaust, etc.
They make these things sound so sophisticated and a huge technical advancement in programming…
Well I hate to tell you this…but the ECU’s program doesn’t change one iota with the new chip. The program is EXACTLY the same…The only thing that changes are the input parameters to the methods/functions of the program…thus changing the way the car behaves.
This is NOT very technical…Even your typical high-school hacker is more sophisticated.
It isn’t as ironic as you think. Unless things have changed at CT Plaza, the advertisements are provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which means the CT lackeys don’t vet the advertisers that appear on this site.
Should we expect the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to carefully select only ethical advertisements? I think so.
Should we expect the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to carefully select only ethical advertisements? I think so.
I think so too…Wish ALL radio stations and tv stations and web-sites would put a stop to these blatantly unethical companies that are selling BOGUS products. It’s so bad now.
Guys like Kevin Trudeau (who has already been convicted for this) is still making MILLIONS for his scam products and books.
The one I LOVE is the company selling Gold called the New York Mint. Their advertising makes you think they are part of the US Mint and they are doing you a service. They are a private company that is selling gold at 2-3 times what it’s actually worth.
Too bad the scammer (that’s what I’d call a ‘chip’ maker like this) gets to ride on CT’s coat-tails and get inferred legitimacy. But I guess it’s not much different than the ads that show up on the PCMag web site for worthless software.
I recently stopped doing business with JC Whitney because, when I looked through their catalog, there were several scam “fuel economy boosting” products. Perhaps I should boycott this site too. It’s something I’ll have to think about.
If I was to ban ALL companies that support these products…I wouldn’t watch TV…listen to the Radio…or read a single magazine or newspaper…I guess that’s not a bad thing…but they are EVERYWHERE.
I suspect that “snake oil” salespeople have been around since the beginning of time and will probably be here until the end of time. There are a lot of gullible people out there who will buy anything if it’s packaged and pitched in a pleasing manner. Those people keep the scammers in business because common sense is a rare commodity with them. Think people…think!!!
It’s a scam of course and the words from the seller of this bogus gimmick says it all; “may sound too good to be true”.
Unfortunately, the pool of sucker fish is as wide and as deep as the Atlantic Ocean.
I used to sell a device that would save motorists money on gasoline. I called it a “Molecular Gasoline Transfer System”. The generic name for the device was “siphon hose”. I guaranteed it to save motorists money. However, we did not offer to post bail in the warranty. The device became outmoded with all the locking gas doors on modern cars.
Here are two perfectly legal devices that are sure to save save motorists money:
I think Pete explained it beautifully.
Engines’ management systems are sold optimized for mileage without producing unacceptable performance. Changing a program will never improve mileage. It can improve perfoormance IF it’s combined with other changes, but always at the expense of mileage.
For example, if an engine is modified to use forced induction via a turbocharger or supercharger, the injectors need to be changed and the program changed to be able to maintain a proper fuel/air ratio with the added air being pumped in. But always at the exppense of mileage.
Short of such a change, no “chip” will do anything meaningful.
“The GF module installs into your engine bay and is connected via 2 wires that plug into the IAT sensor.”
Yet another $69 resistor. Ugh!
“Here are two perfectly legal devices that are sure to save save motorists money:” And it is one of the first that will work.
“Should we expect the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to carefully select only ethical advertisements?”
Maybe not. The CPB folks are not experts in almost anything they run ads for. How can we expect them to know what works and what doesn’t, no matter what the item is? I don’t think that we can hold them to a higher standard than any fine newspaper, like the Washington Post, NY Times, or LA Times. Have you noticed that some of these auto-related scams often tout their ads in newspapers or on commercial television as if it actually means something? In America, it’s ultimately up to the customer to protect himself from the snake oil salesmen.
As long as it benefits CPB financially they wouldn’t care anyway. The local newspaper here runs a glut of ads every single day for work at home schemes, fuel saver devices, investment opportunities, etc. and they also run a block ad under every category touting this stuff that “consumers should use caution”, “should be aware of scams”, and so on.
The people at the paper know these are scams but they get paid daily for running them so they will never quit.
I don’t worry as much about the ads as I do ‘news stories’ about these scams, where reporters swallow the nonsense hook, line, and sinker, and provide priceless free advertising that lives on in Youtube clips forever…
I think you guy have it all wrong. These ads aren’t placed thorugh CT or CPB. Google ads targets ads based on information on the content of the site. Car-related sites get car-realted ads. Music sites get music ads, etc. CT gets the revenue from Google.