GF Performance Chip Kit

[2002Safari]

http://www.gfchips.com/gmcsafari.aspx

Has anyone tried one? For $69 seems to be a reasonable cost. They say nothing about needing higher octane fuel so I would expect 87 would be fine.

The company is in southern LA area, Irvine, CA.

[MountainManJoe]

hmm... higher performance, efficiency, and COOLER? That doesn't sound right to me.
Any why would you want to change your air/fuel ratio... your PCM already tries to achieve the ideal value of 14.7:1.

[Cobra]

hmmm i don't recall anyone ever posting that company before i've never heard of them. you have a odbII system right? a chip does not need to be installed in your computer to tune it i used a simple programmer that plugged into the obdII port and rewrote the setting in the computer it made a little difference but nothing drastic. A proper street tune will no doubt make a difference you'd appreciate if done right

TimelessB: generally speaking the OEM settings are not optimal they are safe and reliable and will run any of the engines that come off the production line no matter the difference, with a little tuning you can absolutely get higher performance and efficiency. Cooler......? well i'm not sure if you're running a little lean then yes, you could run cooler after a proper tune.

[MountainManJoe]

Yup, I know that production cars are tuned for reliability not performance. But usually getting more power involves running the engine hotter (think of the 200hp Astros with "hot" cams), and more output usually means consuming more fuel. Certainly there are small improvements to be made, but beyond a certain point it has trade-offs.

In any case, OP, if you do pull the trigger on this, I'm sure I speak for everyone that we like results! If you can, do careful, controlled testing. Obtain some figures before and after under same conditions.

[Cobra]

yeah what TimelessB said we all love to see before and after figures maybe i'll try on mine after it gets repaired


TimelessB: you're right tuning isn't magic you just try to find the right balance, get the most out of the engine and the cooler thing had me scratching my head

[2002Safari]

I probably will not bite. I do keep continuous records of fuel/service usage via a spreadsheet. I just finished a 6 week driving stint from Sacramento to LA which gives 400 miles each way plus driving in the area. I put on over 6000 miles in that period. Gas ate me alive. I planned some $350 per week at least.

I presently have a 93 Casita 16' travel trailer which I use the Safari as the tow vehicle. We are considering selling the Casita as we are not using it much and will shortly need to rent storage for it. Should we sell the trailer I will probably sell the Safari for something much more fuel efficient.

My Safari is 2002 Gray SLT with two bench touring seats in the back.

[LiftedAWDAstro]

That chip is for pre-96 OBD-I vans. Will not even plug into a 2002.

[doyoulikeithere]

Actually, it seems to offer a chip for any year of van up 2002 and beyond...

So, are you gonna do it?
Let me know if it works for you, k?

[Cobra]

are any of the chips inside the newer computers even replaceable or all soldered?

[LiftedAWDAstro]

are any of the chips inside the newer computers even replaceable or all soldered?

I don't think so. I have never seen an OBD-2 ECM with a replaceable chip.

[doyoulikeithere]

when I read what the link said it talked about how to install it.
Sounds like it doesnt replace the ECM chip, and installs inline with one of the existing sensors..

[LiftedAWDAstro]

I see...so it tricks the AIT sensor (lots of the E-bay ones do) to thinks it's colder outside so it dumps more fuel in...