There's an interesting "Perspective" column by editor Ray Thursby on overdoing it with engine, and other, modifications in the current issue. He had this to say about modded A4's:<p>"When you see, to name one example, a tweaked 1.8-liter Audi turbo-motor putting out a genuine 250 bhp or more, you can be certain it has either had a wholesale replacement of internal pieces or will have an operating life that can be measured in minutes."<p>and on chipped cars...<p>"I've driven several 'chipped' cars and must say that, from my point of view, they tend to be worse than stock. One affixed to an Audi 1.8 turbo sticks in my mind: Though it perhaps increased peak power to some extent, it made what was a pretty nice engine feel as though it were constantly on the edge of flying apart. There were soggy spots on the power curve, strange surges and hesitations, and a rough idle. It was dynamite on the dyno, pure gold when judged by the stopwatch, and sheer torture in the real world. And if it was indeed raising peak power substantially, it was also pushing vital components nearer or beyond their design limits."<p>These are pretty interesting comments from a mag that hosted a 1.8T chip shootout and has featured and raved about some pretty heavily modded A4's. Just thought I'd pass this along for those who haven't got their issue yet.<p>Tom P.<br>chipped 1.8T on the verge of self-destruction ;-)<p>

nt<br>

After reading their reason for not posting tests and what not, I wonder about their credibility. I have already noticed their poor writing and with a magazine with a staff of three, how much research can they really do.<p>Just my opinion.<p>Howard Kim<br>98 A4 1.8tms - Neuspeed Chip<br>Reconsidering my EC Subscription :)

I am wondering how much they need to walk the fine line to keep their major advertisers happy???????<p>Steve S.<br>97 2.8QM<br>

Chipped car worse than stock. He needs to share some of what he has been smoking. Maybe some chips are worse than stock, but this is the first time hearing this about the A4 1.8t. They praised and recommended the chips their comparison test. They even wrote about a chipped A4 that they fight to see who get to drives it. Now they are condeming them? Contridiction anyone. He makes it seem as if all Chipped A4 are worse than stock. I guess he didn't have anything else to write about, so he made something up.

I'm just in a posting mood today, I have no idea why. . . .<p>Anyone remember the issue of EC which featured the 5-series BMW's? The E28 M5, the E34 M5, and then a modified E39 540? I remember the write up. . .hmmm. . .i recall it said something about the "Hamman 540's handling being considerably tighter and grippier thru the cones. . ." and on and on, just gushing lines about how wonderful that car is. For you SoCal A4.org'ers, that car was done at D2 Autosport in Pasadena, and I happened to be there the same day getting work on my car when the owner of that "Hamman E39" (makes me laugh) showed up. <p>The car is about 2, maybe 3" from the ground MAX. It does indeed have the monster Hamman magnesium wheels and a Brembo 4 wheel big brake kit, but. . .it's just SO LOW!!!!!!!! I asked the mechanic how he lowered it so low, and he said they took the springs out, torched them with a flame, and put them in a compressor to squash them some more. . .quite an effective means of achieving tight, grippy, handling, eh?<p>The mechanic's own words : "I don't understand why people want to lower their cars so much, they handle like sh*7."<p>I asked the owner if he drives the car hard, his answer? "I drive it around town, it's a bit low for the twisties..."<p>Just a thought about EC's credibility. . . .did they even drive the car? I wonder. . . <p>Oh, and Turbo magazine. . . find the article with the white E36 M3 done by JT motorsports. . .the one that was lowered 5" with a body kit, and with Euro headlights. It doesn't even have a suspension on it, much less European headlights.<p>I really wonder about the professionalism of car mags today. .. .i mean, at least they could of photoshopped the M3 or something, then we could see that 5" drop, right? :)<p>Edmund Louie<br>98 A4Q 30V - sorry for the lengthy message :)

I'm really fed up with EC. Once again they have an "article" that gives you no<br>real information. If this chip is sooooo bad why doesn't the editor name its<br>manufacturer?. That would be valuable information to us A4 owners. Instead<br>they give us BS (such as the Brembo upgrade bit which was one big excuse<br>for not publishing any performance numbers).<p>EC is just a large advertisement which rarely criticizes the products it reviews,<br>leaving us guessing, confused, and begging for real information....