My Linea MJD - with race chip

kdadi · 11th May 2011, 09:55

Dear bhipians,

I have been a satisifed owner of a Fiat Linea MJD for nearly two years now. It's done about 20k kms so far. My car is pretty much stock except for
- Addition of race chip kit (race-chip.de), which has been pretty much plug-n-play
- Leather seat covers
- Michelin Primacy LC tyres (changed on Day 2 itself)

A lot has been said about the Linea's design, quality etc., and I would not delve into that.

Performance
Good. Was not too hurt by the performance in stock form, but found a very good VFM in race chip (compared to other well-know brands of ecu remaps), and decided to go for it 1 year into the ownership. And boy, am I pleased with its performance

You can check out the website for details on the increase in power and torque, which I think will be lesser than what is indicated there as we have a slightly detuned version of the engine here in India.

It really does pin you back to the seat once the turbo spools up - I can notice this around 1900 - 2000 rpm. You can ride the wave of torque to around 4000 rpm after which of course as in most common rail diesel's it's pretty pointless to be in the same gear. You can easily notice the difference in all gears. Most addictive is the pull in 3rd gear, and 5th is more than capable for your highway demands.

On the highways, it goes from 80 to 160 in single relentless surge in 5th gear! After that it tapers off quite rapidly towards it's top speed. Overtaking is painless - when I need to overtake, just dip into the pedal a little and am in front of the other vehicle in a jiffy!

Some performance data

0 - 100 = ~ 12.9 secs
20 - 80 in 3rd gear = ~ 9.2 secs
40 - 100 in 4th gear = ~ 11.3 secs
Top speed I have reached = 165 kmph indicated (ran out of road)

Acceleration measurements done using my cousin's in-phone accelerometer, which uses GPS. As per my calculations, there is ~ 2.5 secs gain with the chip compared to the standard linea mjd.

Ride & Handling
Excellent. I usually drive around 100kmph on highways and it's rock solid. Steering is perfectly weighted, rough roads dont upset the stability and I get better overall average speeds now. Low speed ride is a bit stiff, but I prefer it that way. The tyre noise is quite less owing to the Michelins..and I only fill it up with nitrogen.

I consider myself a "sensitive" user of the car, so am very careful on our speed humps and really bad roads. Even then, the low ground clearance has resulted in scraping the underside about 7-8 times unknowingly in the past couple of years.

Fuel Economy
Fantastic. My daily commute to office is not what you would call a congested route. So my in-city efficiency figures might be surprising to many. Highway numbers have surprised me considering that it's such a large car. Usually travel single to office, and 2 - 4 people when on highways, with medium to full luggage.

In-city = ~ 15-16 kmpl average
Highway = ~ 21 - 23 kmpl average (drops to around 19 when I really drive hard on the gas)

Specific Mention

There is now a noticeable torque steer in lower gears upon hard acceleration.
The chip has made the turbo lag more noticeable now. So if you are not above 1900 rpm - then it's a wait for the turbo to kick in, time for coffee - and then the blast off!
Am also not that happy with the overall cabin noise when cruising around 100. It's really quite audible.

AvinashKeezh · 11th May 2011, 10:45

Hey kdadi,
Congrats on the racechip, there are quite a few Linea MJD owners who'd be pleased to know that the plug 'n play option is turning out well.
Has there been any niggles/ issues when you take it to service?

ms001 · 11th May 2011, 10:49

Nice crisp review there.
How much did you pay for the chip, where did you source it from in bangalore.
which service center are you visiting for regular service.

And please post some pictures of the beauty .

mac187 · 11th May 2011, 11:10

Nice to know that your enjoyin your car each day. I would like to know more about the Race chip. Did you get it from a dealer or ordered for the same online?

Please share more details about the chip and price compared to petes.

aks_karthik · 11th May 2011, 11:31

Congrats kdadi,

I too have installed RaceChip Tuning Box in my Linea before a week which i bought it from Germany.
Yes as you said the pulling is awesome.
Check my Thread and post your comments on my questions there.

Enjoy and Drive Safe

kdadi · 11th May 2011, 11:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by AvinashKeezh

Hey kdadi,
Congrats on the racechip, there are quite a few Linea MJD owners who'd be pleased to know that the plug 'n play option is turning out well.
Has there been any niggles/ issues when you take it to service?

No niggles so far - in fact, I even forgot to remove the chip when I dropped my vehicle for the 15k service.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ms001

Nice crisp review there.
How much did you pay for the chip, where did you source it from in bangalore.
which service center are you visiting for regular service.

And please post some pictures of the beauty .

Quote:

Originally Posted by mac187

Nice to know that your enjoyin your car each day. I would like to know more about the Race chip. Did you get it from a dealer or ordered for the same online?

Please share more details about the chip and price compared to petes.

Will post pictures as soon as I can find some (haven't actually taken much). I ordered it directly from race-chip.de online. It was a prompt delivery. Cost at door was 12k INR. There are two variants, I bought the cheaper one with lesser overall increase (the price of the higher-end one seemed too high for the increase in benefit). Anyway, I think the price was a key factor to go in for racechip compared to petes or others available locally..

I dont know if it's true, but one of the main things quoted in favour of racechip is that it works only when needed (i.e. hard acceleration) and therefore enables better efficiency and less stress on the engine under normal driving. But I presume it's more of a marketing thing than real benefit.

jtomhk · 11th May 2011, 11:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by kdadi

Am also not that happy with the overall cabin noise when cruising around 100. It's really quite audible.

I will never be tired of repeating just how effective Dynamat is, for a quiet and comfy ride. Read my experience here
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/produc...ml#post2342910
Even yesterday, I was thinking how much my perspective towards my car has changed. I felt I was riding a really expensive car (which it is, for me). But before I did the damping job, I had felt cheated for the price I paid.
Now, it is the best place (on the road

) to get isolated from the noisy world outside.

kdadi · 11th May 2011, 13:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by jtomhk

I will never be tired of repeating just how effective Dynamat is, for a quiet and comfy ride. Read my experience here
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/produc...ml#post2342910
Even yesterday, I was thinking how much my perspective towards my car has changed. I felt I was riding a really expensive car (which it is, for me). But before I did the damping job, I had felt cheated for the price I paid.
Now, it is the best place (on the road

) to get isolated from the noisy world outside.

Thanks jtomhk. Can you provide details as to how much does it cost and where is it available in Bangalore?

Sunney · 11th May 2011, 17:39

Me too interested, if it reduce cabin silence and improve power too.
Can we get it locally or Bangalore?
Mine is a Linea MJD.....

jtomhk · 11th May 2011, 19:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by kdadi

Thanks jtomhk. Can you provide details as to how much does it cost and where is it available in Bangalore?

Sorry I am not sure about the availability in B'lore. Please try posting in the other Damping thread http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/produc...er-thread.html.

I got it from ebay.com. Including shipping and a free roller it costs close to 10K. Never mind the price at all. You'll never ever regret it.
There are 9 sheets in the package. We'll need 2 sheets for each door with leftover pieces. So for the doors we'll be using total 8 sheets and I think the rest of the sheet and the leftover pieces will fill the trunk to some extend.
Here is the ebay link.
DYNAMAT Xtreme BULK PACK 10455 + FREE ROLLER 36 FT² | eBay
I think it's the best deal at eBay.com.
Only problem is that they will be bending the sheets to fit into the standard USPS packing dimension. But I don't think that matters much. Also, it reaches india within a week, but to reach my 'village' took flat 3 weeks. So it's better to order it to a metro address.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sunney

Me too interested, if it reduce cabin silence and improve power too.

Hey, I didn't mention power

Sunney · 11th May 2011, 20:14

@kdadi: post #1: "You can check out the website for details on the increase in power and torque,......."
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
It is not you but kdadi mentioned, about improved power....
Or is it that it is not at all improving power?
If so what is it's performance?

kdadi · 12th May 2011, 08:58

Sunney,

My post was on the race chip, which does of course increase the power & torque. The question to jtomhk was about dynamat, which is a sound deadening kit.

Rgds,
kdadi

kdadi · 20th May 2011, 09:10

Finally here are a couple of pictures of my car...

Naparajito · 20th May 2011, 12:05

That is is really elegant!! Looks wonderful!! Now that's what i call a good looking car!!
Some interior snaps would look good too :_)
Cheers,
Naparajito

goandude · 20th May 2011, 15:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by Naparajito

That is is really elegant!! Looks wonderful!! Now that's what i call a good looking car!!
Some interior snaps would look good too :_)
Cheers,
Naparajito

preferably with the bonnet opened and the race chip in view

11th May 2011, 09:55	#1
kdadi BHPian Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 80 Thanked: 102 Times	My Linea MJD - with race chip Dear bhipians, I have been a satisifed owner of a Fiat Linea MJD for nearly two years now. It's done about 20k kms so far. My car is pretty much stock except for - Addition of race chip kit (race-chip.de), which has been pretty much plug-n-play - Leather seat covers - Michelin Primacy LC tyres (changed on Day 2 itself) A lot has been said about the Linea's design, quality etc., and I would not delve into that. Performance Good. Was not too hurt by the performance in stock form, but found a very good VFM in race chip (compared to other well-know brands of ecu remaps), and decided to go for it 1 year into the ownership. And boy, am I pleased with its performance You can check out the website for details on the increase in power and torque, which I think will be lesser than what is indicated there as we have a slightly detuned version of the engine here in India. It really does pin you back to the seat once the turbo spools up - I can notice this around 1900 - 2000 rpm. You can ride the wave of torque to around 4000 rpm after which of course as in most common rail diesel's it's pretty pointless to be in the same gear. You can easily notice the difference in all gears. Most addictive is the pull in 3rd gear, and 5th is more than capable for your highway demands. On the highways, it goes from 80 to 160 in single relentless surge in 5th gear! After that it tapers off quite rapidly towards it's top speed. Overtaking is painless - when I need to overtake, just dip into the pedal a little and am in front of the other vehicle in a jiffy! Some performance data 0 - 100 = ~ 12.9 secs 20 - 80 in 3rd gear = ~ 9.2 secs 40 - 100 in 4th gear = ~ 11.3 secs Top speed I have reached = 165 kmph indicated (ran out of road) Acceleration measurements done using my cousin's in-phone accelerometer, which uses GPS. As per my calculations, there is ~ 2.5 secs gain with the chip compared to the standard linea mjd. Ride & Handling Excellent. I usually drive around 100kmph on highways and it's rock solid. Steering is perfectly weighted, rough roads dont upset the stability and I get better overall average speeds now. Low speed ride is a bit stiff, but I prefer it that way. The tyre noise is quite less owing to the Michelins..and I only fill it up with nitrogen. I consider myself a "sensitive" user of the car, so am very careful on our speed humps and really bad roads. Even then, the low ground clearance has resulted in scraping the underside about 7-8 times unknowingly in the past couple of years. Fuel Economy Fantastic. My daily commute to office is not what you would call a congested route. So my in-city efficiency figures might be surprising to many. Highway numbers have surprised me considering that it's such a large car. Usually travel single to office, and 2 - 4 people when on highways, with medium to full luggage. In-city = ~ 15-16 kmpl average Highway = ~ 21 - 23 kmpl average (drops to around 19 when I really drive hard on the gas) Specific Mention There is now a noticeable torque steer in lower gears upon hard acceleration. The chip has made the turbo lag more noticeable now. So if you are not above 1900 rpm - then it's a wait for the turbo to kick in, time for coffee - and then the blast off! Am also not that happy with the overall cabin noise when cruising around 100. It's really quite audible.
	(3) Thanks

11th May 2011, 10:45	#2
AvinashKeezh BHPian Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 234 Thanked: 11 Times	Re: My Linea MJD - with race chip Hey kdadi, Congrats on the racechip, there are quite a few Linea MJD owners who'd be pleased to know that the plug 'n play option is turning out well. Has there been any niggles/ issues when you take it to service?
	() Thanks

11th May 2011, 10:49	#3
ms001 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: bangalore Posts: 1,003 Thanked: 162 Times	Re: My Linea MJD - with race chip Nice crisp review there. How much did you pay for the chip, where did you source it from in bangalore. which service center are you visiting for regular service. And please post some pictures of the beauty .
	(1) Thanks

11th May 2011, 11:10	#4
mac187 BHPian Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Plano, Texas Posts: 687 Thanked: 751 Times	Re: My Linea MJD - with race chip Nice to know that your enjoyin your car each day. I would like to know more about the Race chip. Did you get it from a dealer or ordered for the same online? Please share more details about the chip and price compared to petes.
	() Thanks

11th May 2011, 11:31	#5
aks_karthik Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Chennai Posts: 1,947 Thanked: 341 Times View My Garage	Re: My Linea MJD - with race chip Congrats kdadi, I too have installed RaceChip Tuning Box in my Linea before a week which i bought it from Germany. Yes as you said the pulling is awesome. Check my Thread and post your comments on my questions there. Enjoy and Drive Safe
	() Thanks

11th May 2011, 17:39	#9
Sunney BHPian Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Itanagar Posts: 186 Thanked: 63 Times	Re: My Linea MJD - with race chip Me too interested, if it reduce cabin silence and improve power too. Can we get it locally or Bangalore? Mine is a Linea MJD.....
	() Thanks

11th May 2011, 20:14	#11
Sunney BHPian Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Itanagar Posts: 186 Thanked: 63 Times	Re: My Linea MJD - with race chip @kdadi: post #1: "You can check out the website for details on the increase in power and torque,......." ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ It is not you but kdadi mentioned, about improved power.... Or is it that it is not at all improving power? If so what is it's performance?
	() Thanks

12th May 2011, 08:58	#12
kdadi BHPian Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 80 Thanked: 102 Times	Re: My Linea MJD - with race chip Sunney, My post was on the race chip, which does of course increase the power & torque. The question to jtomhk was about dynamat, which is a sound deadening kit. Rgds, kdadi
	() Thanks

20th May 2011, 09:10	#13
kdadi BHPian Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 80 Thanked: 102 Times	Re: My Linea MJD - with race chip Finally here are a couple of pictures of my car... Attached Thumbnails
	(2) Thanks

20th May 2011, 12:05	#14
Naparajito BHPian Join Date: May 2010 Location: Bangalore Posts: 275 Thanked: 312 Times View My Garage	Re: My Linea MJD - with race chip That is is really elegant!! Looks wonderful!! Now that's what i call a good looking car!! Some interior snaps would look good too :_) Cheers, Naparajito
	() Thanks