The importance of Air.
When we get right down to the basics, a lot of emphases is put on the importance of air. Most of the engine development is about getting more air into the engine’s combustion chamber. The more air the intake valves can “inhale” before closing, the more power we can obtain. It is however not just about power, of course. Manufacturers give a lot of attention to combustion and the cleaning of exhaust gases. This is necessary to meet emissions standards and ensure good fuel economy. However, when it does come to producing power, more air is what you need.
More air means more power
Manufacturers and car enthusiasts optimise many things to increase the amount of air that enters the cylinders. Valve timing and surface area, intake manifold design, cylinder head layout and flow rate are some of these. This is why turbochargers are so popular. They are, in brief, mechanical air pumps. Waste exhaust gases drive them to force more air into the engine’s intake manifold. In this way, a smaller engine can ingest more air than would normally be possible through normal atmospheric pressure. The engine will then produce the power of a far larger engine, but with better fuel economy than large engines. The higher the air-fuel-ratio (AFR) number, the more air and therefore the leaner the mixture. It is scientifically proven that a leaner mixture gives more power and better efficiency.
Modern engines are far more economical than they were ten years ago, and also a lot more powerful. This is due to technological advances such as cylinder deactivation, fuel cut-off, and start-stop capabilities.
Unichip ingenuity and the ECU
The work of an engine’s electronic control unit (ECU) is to adjust many aspects of your vehicle. Among these are the spark timing, variable valve timing, fuel injection, turbocharger pressure, and a huge range of other variables. The ECU ensure that the best possible power output, economy and emissions figures are met. It is virtually impossible (and uneconomical) for manufacturers to produce millions of engines with the exact same tolerances and clearances. ECU programming must account for these variances, as well as many other operational variables. It is because of these that the factory engine maps are usually always a compromise.
The great thing about this compromise is that the Unichip can optimise it. Think of it as a piggyback computer that we add to your engine’s ECU to optimise its settings. It is now possible to tailor engine control maps to your specific engine. This will ensure that you get power and economy that is better than your standard vehicle. You can do this without having to modify your engine or reduce its life expectancy. What adds to its awesomeness, is that you can transfer your Unichip to your next car. So, do not miss out. Click here to contact us and have your Unichip fitted today.
