Matt A

TDC PowerBox

208 posts in this topic

I took a chance and bought a tuner for my smart from TDC Technologies. Including shipping, tax, etc it cost $280. Since installing it (<2 minutes), you can really notice the power gain. I'll have to do a few more tests but living in southern Saskatchewan, its tough finding a high grade and long incline ... go figure. TDC claims that when the powerbox is set at the max level, the HP goes from 41(stock) to 50. Thats over 37% increase. The biggest reason I chose the CR-PB is because I can remove it when its time to go to the dealership for service and warranty work. If anyone in the Regina area wants to check it out or try it in their smart before making their descision up on a tuner PM me and we can set something up.

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Gee Matt, That's a very good price... less than half what the earlier tuning boxes were asking. The website says they come pre-set at the half-way adjustment that they claim gives 60% of the available increase. Is that where you left yours, or have you tried adusting up/down yet?What about smoke? That's one of the ugly downsides of diesel sport-tuning.Bil :sun:

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We've seen claims up to 65HP, but I'm unclear whether this is @ flywheel or at the road :dunno: I really expect they mean @ flywheel, with maybe 55BHP @ final drive...TDC claims 56BHP with 130-140 Nm torque which is very respectable IMHOBil :sun:

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TDC claims that when the powerbox is set at the max level, the HP goes from 41(stock) to 50. Thats over 37% increase.

That's 22%, no?

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Wow ... my math skills where pretty bad. I don't know what the heck I typed into the calculator. Thanks for the correction. 22% increase. :doublethumb: I have turned mine all the way up. The manual said that turning it all the way up may cause a code to be thrown, so I turned it up two revolutions at a time with a quick drive around the block each time. My theory, although maybe not accurate, was that a spike in voltage could cause an error and a slow progression could lower the chances. At any rate, I have no errors codes so I am happy. When the engine fires up cold there is a little puff of black smoke which is normal, and during heavy acceleration there is a little black smoke. I would say there is no more smoke than what is produced by the tune offered in Calgary. This coming from watching Dave blow by me in the summer climbing the hill at Lumsden.

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I don't know how safe it is, but im experimenting with stacking. I had the remap done in Calgary and am now playing with a Van Akin s power box, at the same time. I have noticed a big HP gain with the box on level 1, but am not sure when i'm going to get brave and try more. What do you guys think?

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Putz,The stack concept is intriguing... but I think I'd want some metrics before going too radical. X-Gauge or Scangauge, plus EGT monitoring would be my priority, I think... plus before and after dyno.Where did you find your van Aaken box? How much did it cost? Do you have a piccie of the install? They make some ... interesting claims.

Power and Torque increases are achieved without black exhausts and without prejudicing engine reliability.

In the end, this unit is one of several microprocessor based units that plugs in between the ECU and the fuel rail to alter fuel rate and timing. Their performance claims are modest - 49BHP and 117Nm, so I tend to believe them :dunno: Please let us know how it goes for you. I am very interested in the "stack effect".Bil :sun:

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That is an awesome idea. I would almost put money on a code being thrown before you do any damage. Basically all the power box is supposed to do is increase air volume. Happy testing.

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Putz,The stack concept is intriguing... but I think I'd want some metrics before going too radical. X-Gauge or Scangauge, plus EGT monitoring would be my priority, I think... plus before and after dyno.Where did you find your van Aaken box? How much did it cost? Do you have a piccie of the install? They make some ... interesting claims.

Power and Torque increases are achieved without black exhausts and without prejudicing engine reliability.

In the end, this unit is one of several microprocessor based units that plugs in between the ECU and the fuel rail to alter fuel rate and timing. Their performance claims are modest - 49BHP and 117Nm, so I tend to believe them :dunno: Please let us know how it goes for you. I am very interested in the "stack effect".Bil :sun:
i got a special price from one of the suppliers that i deal with at work, but i am trying to get a mass buying deal going for about $550.00. i did notice an increase once i put the box in

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That is an awesome idea. I would almost put money on a code being thrown before you do any damage. Basically all the power box is supposed to do is increase air volume. Happy testing.

i was playing around with it today and i turned the box up as far as it would go and drove for about 150km and no codes, but lots of black smoke. i turned the box down to level 2 and it seems to be ok

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Wow ... my math skills where pretty bad. I don't know what the heck I typed into the calculator. Thanks for the correction. 22% increase. :doublethumb: I have turned mine all the way up. The manual said that turning it all the way up may cause a code to be thrown, so I turned it up two revolutions at a time with a quick drive around the block each time. My theory, although maybe not accurate, was that a spike in voltage could cause an error and a slow progression could lower the chances. At any rate, I have no errors codes so I am happy. When the engine fires up cold there is a little puff of black smoke which is normal, and during heavy acceleration there is a little black smoke. I would say there is no more smoke than what is produced by the tune offered in Calgary. This coming from watching Dave blow by me in the summer climbing the hill at Lumsden.

I have the same tuning box. I usually only install it for long trips so that I have some extra power for hills. Around town I take it out for better mileage. I figure that the mileage is affected more during acceleration and less on continuous highway driving.Mine is only turned up about halfway. I haven't tried to turn it up more, but I bought it from eightball and he said that if turned up any higher it starts smoking. To me, smoke = wasted fuel = bad. I just don't want to waste any fuel.

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I also installed the TDC powerbox and turned it up to 3/4 from the original 1/2. Reasonable power gains, no smoke, and no mileage change. It helps on hills in Durham Region Ontario. Totally happy and it only cost $230 US.

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I plugged one of these in today, left at the out-of-the-box setting. Only had time for a 50km drive, but got a hint of its potential. I will give the ECU another 100km or so to adapt and then have a good fun-run and post any observations. We're starting with a full tank... my initial impression and numbers on X-Gauge suggest that it will save fuel around town.

Smile-dial says +3

Bil :sun:

P.S. bluddy CCRA dinged me $35. It's always a coin toss whether they will or not :dunno:

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no that ive driven for a couple of months i can comtrol just how much smoke (i know where the throttle has to be to get it to smoke), and have now changed the box to level 2 where i think that im going to leave it. i really like the power gain being remapped and chipped (Van Akkins box). i have let several of the guys from around here take it for a ride and they all said it is mush better than stock. Eightball even drove my car and said that it is way better than his (he had a cr digi). i went through the mountains and with a passenger i did not loose any speed or have to gear down, until i came up to a slow moving big rig.

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music to my ears!!! i want one of these for christmas!

Same here!Bil, please post up your findings when you get a chance. I think this will be my next purchase.

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if anyone in the Edmonton area is interested in one of these boxes I think Mike @ Harrys Auto is making a good deal on them and is willing to install them no charge.

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I've run about 1,500km with the TD tuning box now and I am convinced. It comes set at the half-way adjustment, which they claim yields about 60% of available power, but I dialled it up to about 3/4 and I love it. Installs or comes back off in two minutes without tools.

- No discernable smoke, even under hard acceleration

- Power off the line is - well, there actually IS some!

- Take-off is smooth and quick - no clutch hesitation or stutter

- Up and down shifting is quick and positive

- You can row up the through the gears WAY more quickly than stock

- The extra torque seems to be available right through the rpm band (to be confirmed later by dyno)

- No mileage penalty in normal driving. BIG penalty if you "give-er."

This makes the fortwo drive more like "a real car". It's so easy to keep up with regular traffic that it feels like a whole different vehicle!

For under $300, I give this plug-and-play mod a BIG thumbs-up :thumbup:

What did I do with it? Once plugged and adjusted, I drove around town for several hundred klicks in just my normal routine and driving more-or-less the same as always. Then I went for a day-trip to Richmond and White Rock; 800+km round trip.

This journey is over BC's mountainous Coquihalla (super-) Highway. Changes in elevation from 400m to over 1,700m, with l o n g up- and downgrades. I almost never drive this road without seeing two or more cars or trucks at the side of the road with the hood up; it's a challenging route for any car's engine, brakes, and transmission and cooling and a/c etc etc.

I decided to do the trial in two phases - I'd go to Richmond with an ordinary foot; speed betweek 100-110kph (the posted limit), and be fairly gentle on the hills. On the way back, I'd turn it loose! 120 all the way, hills be damned.

On the way down, I was very pleasantly surprised to discover that I could roll up all but the worst grades without dropping from 6th gear. Yeah, the wee smartie lost some speed on the hills but could still maintain a decent pace. Pulling power all through the band! Average "over the top" was 5.5L/100km - not bad for totally keeping up with the traffic. This was not an economy run and as I said, the smart felt like a regular car. :dunno:

On the way back... um... we give 'er some Wellie ;) Passed everything on the road. Drove up hills like :devil: was coming to get me! The regular killer grades? Well once I downshifted, and without getting near the red line, I could actually accelerate up them! Even that lunatic grade coming off the Coq' at Merritt onto the Connector, I could climb at over the posted (90kph) limit! Unbe-freaking-lievable! Mind you, I paid the price in FE with a head-shaking 6.12L/100km.

Driving like the :devil: on the flatland in the Fraser Valley, all 'round Ditchmond and White Rock, yielded a surprising 4.29. Local, sane daily drives back in Kelowna are turning in high 3s - actually better than last week without the box.

In reading this report, keep in mind that there are additional unique factors to my set-up. Ultra-radical intake filter mod; CCV mod; the powerbox is "stacked" on a lightweight, mid-range ECU remap; front wheel air dams, VGs... oh, and... I polished the car before I left ;)

So: yep. get it. It's worth the investment. IMHO / YMMV + usual caveats and warnings about shortening the service life of your car, etc, etc. yada-yada

Bil :sun:

Addendum re: clutch juddering... FastEddy explained to me that with the auto-manual clutch, if the car doesn't have sufficient power to just dump the clutch at take-off, the electronics have to feather the clutch and this is much of what's happening when you complain of stuttery starts or lengthy shift intervals. With added power and torque, the clutch comes in more fully and immediately and off you go! Me likey :sun:

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Wow thanks so much for the VERY detailed findings. I've been anticipating for you post. LOL! :doublethumb:

So it sounds like the shifting time has greatly reduced, is that true? Cause I swear it takes the car 1.5 seconds to shift a gear, how long do you say it takes now?

I notice you said it drives more like a "regular car". But is the off the line acceleration enough to over take a car that is accelerating at a decent speed? Trust me I'm not going drag racing with this, :biglaugh: , but sometimes if I wanna make a turn on a light comming up, I want the ability to pass the car beside me and switch lanes.

Oh, and just to double check if I'm buying the right item, is this it here??

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAP...164828&rd=1

Hey thanks again Bil!! :doublethumb:

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Wow thanks so much for the VERY detailed findings. I've been anticipating for you post. LOL! :doublethumb:

So it sounds like the shifting time has greatly reduced, is that true?

Yes!

Cause I swear it takes the car 1.5 seconds to shift a gear, how long do you say it takes now?

Less than 1/2 the normal time.

I notice you said it drives more like a "regular car". But is the off the line acceleration enough to over take a car that is accelerating at a decent speed? Trust me I'm not going drag racing with this, :biglaugh: , but sometimes if I wanna make a turn on a light comming up, I want the ability to pass the car beside me and switch lanes.

Oh yes... I've been beating cars off the line all afternoon! For research purposes only.

Oh, and just to double check if I'm buying the right item, is this it here??

[link redacted]

That's the one. :yes:

Hey thanks again Bil!! :doublethumb:

My pleasure, cousin!

B:sun:

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