Stefano Scalia

Look, I know that they need to make a profit. I know that I, myself, could not make the modifications or tune a car. But (and please, correct me if I'm wrong) there is nearly zero-labor when you go in to get flashed with APR software, correct?

And no matter how much they tout "research and development" I refuse to believe that APR hasn't recoup'd their R&D costs.

I completely understand physical kits (Stg 3, or Injectors) but software, a simple flash of the ECU, for $599?

Any comments, please. But don't flame.

quid246

I agree... alot of gouging. Has the price ever really come down as it does with most technology?

clean.

It's no different than, say, purchasing Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator for close to $1000 each or a very specific trades-oriented CAD type software.

If the software that you run on your computer can be thousands of dollars why can't the tuner charge what they think their product is worth?

Having said this it is a lot of money but it's a capitalist system and the market has shown that it can bear the price of the goods.

Yield///Spread

If you do.....you're a hippie.

bhvrdr

I think the prices are an absolute bargain. What gets me is people who will try and find a cheap chip for $299 and say a $700 chip from a well established company is overpriced. This is the heart of the entire operating system on a vehicle that can add as much as 50hp and 60-80tq to a car. Try adding that hp on a NA BMW for less than 5 grand. The research and develpment does vary from tuner to tuner but I was just discussing fueling with APR a month ago and they were discussing the purchase of a 30K dollar diagnostics machine for the future. I'm sure many companies make these steps. For example, MTM has a 600,000 dollar dyno vault that even Audi uses to test cars in. $500 or even $1000 for a chip is a great deal. I'd rather pay for the RandD than a junky product. And if the ME7 and ME9 were so easy to tune we'd have a single stand alone unit on the market (which of course would cost more) but there is not even one company like Motronic/Autronic who have done this without us having to rip up our car and basically turn it into a B5 with drive by cable and new instruments. My .02

cheers! Mike

a4tis™[Bye Turbo]

if they charged each customer some bargain price for each chip, how would they eventually pay all their employees salaries? How would they continue to have the R&D facilities that they have to run? The money they make from the sale of one chip helps the perpetual costs of keeping a business running and cranking out good products.

I think $600 for a chip is a good deal, all things considered.

Bronze

They presently are probably working on projects for which they have zero revenue. How will they pay for those development costs being incurred now and in the months up to a products intro, if they don't continue charging a profitable price for products previously brought to market?

Those costs are what you'd expect, salaries, building lease costs, equipment investments, other operating expenses, etc.

Bronze

14 seconds.

Meskeetdog

let the flamin begin.....

QuattroFan02

it cures, tomorrow there will be other problems to address and all companies need the finacial backing to continue providing us a better way of life, being a new drug or software that'll bring a grin to your face.