ECU Piggyback on MB Cars

[adam2]

 

is mine further improved version?!

 

and also special promo?!    

[lwang065]

Will the newly-launched CLA180 be able to install piggyback ECU? Anyone tried? Actually CLA180 and CLA200 is same engine rite? 

 

Hi, I am torn between a new CLA-180 and have it mod to CLA-200 specs, or just go for the CLA-200.  But current price of CLA-200 is about $13k more.  May I have views/advice on which to go for, please?  

 

Things to consider, how to avoid voiding the warranty for the mod CLA-180?  What are the potential downside for modding?  If the OMV of the CLA-180 and CLA-200 different?  

 

Apologies if the answers are available elsewhere, but I've tried searching and did not find any conclusive views.  Thanks

[mgmuse]

Hi, I am torn between a new CLA-180 and have it mod to CLA-200 specs, or just go for the CLA-200.  But current price of CLA-200 is about $13k more.  May I have views/advice on which to go for, please?  

 

Things to consider, how to avoid voiding the warranty for the mod CLA-180?  What are the potential downside for modding?  If the OMV of the CLA-180 and CLA-200 different?  

 

Apologies if the answers are available elsewhere, but I've tried searching and did not find any conclusive views.  Thanks

 

Hi bro,

 

Im in the same situation, except i committed to the CLA-180 already. From what I know,

 

(1) You can directly ECU tune the 180 to be like the 200

 

or 

 

(2) You can install a piggyback to increase the performance.

 

From what I've read, the CLA180 & 200 do use the same engine, so i'm assuming the CLA180 has a pretty high capacity to be 'overclocked'.

 

Anyone has recommendation for workshops that do the above?

[BabyA]

Thanks for the quick response. .. Was reading it earlier.Doea it means C&C will honor the warranty or i will need to remove it before any servicing? or they still can tell?

For piggy-bags, regardless of what the installer say e.g. cannot find or hard to hard, it is still your own responsibility to get it removed before going to C&C. Otherwise warranty void, imo, is not the installer's fault... if u read enough articles and europe forums, u will know it is always best to remove it. Warranty issues applies globally, not just C&C.

Lastly, your nick does seem suspicious... a C&C spy? ROFL

[Knightrider]

Having done all this before, piggybacks one of riskiest things to mod car with. I learnt (luckily not the hard way), that every time a car is sent back to official servicing, the ECU is updated, and may render the piggyback incompatible - those with newer cars with warranty better take note of this.

Also, when the problem strikes, I'm pretty sure that Mercedes diagnostics system is not that dumb not to know parameters were changed. For BMW, almost definite, ECU history all recorded.

I'm not a professional, but essentially what the piggyback does is lean out the air fuel mixture - supposed to give more "oomph" in the combustion, but with the complexities and dynamics within modern engines, why take the risk (also, we pay highest car prices in the world - treasure the car more)

[BabyA]

1) Knightrider, u r right that piggybacks lean out the air-fuel mixure... unfortunately what u said are really Yesteryears.

Reason: Piggyback/PnP/Plug-n-Play, now does more such as MAF, Ignition Timing, Pressure, etc without touching/rewriting the software running in the factory ECU.

2) Your para-1 is all but a misunderstood concoction of piggyback and reflash/remap/OBD-Tuning all put into one. What u are talking about is related to remap/reflashed/OBD-Tuning, definitely not a piggyback thingy... unless your past experience with a "piggyback" that uses its own circuit board to act as "worker" while the parameters in e factory ecu was editted. Well, this is like the some early 90s piggyback which no longer exist. I think the early 90s Unichip uses this mode.

3) More importantly and critical, is your para-2 which is misleading and mixed up with ecu reflash or remap, a.k.a. ecu mod.

Reason: Piggyback/PnP/Plug-n-Play modules DOES NOT touch the original parameters in the factory fitted ECU. Only ecu mods e.g. custom tuning, will have original parameters altered.

NOTE: I do not sell Piggyback/PnP/Plug-n-Play modules nor a vendor nor affiliated with any vendors

[MarkCWQ]

Totally agree with BabyA. There's a difference between a piggyback and ECU flashed. I've had piggyback on my car within the first few months of collecting my car and I've never had any issues of compatibility. Subsequently I flashed my ECU after my warranty ended and it runs concurrently with my piggyback. Never had an issues since day one.

[Knightrider]

Firstly, it's piggyback, not piggybag.

My thoughts on this don't / can't date back to the early 90s - not old enough. My experience with piggybacks is more recent - cgi engine, one of the merc tuners. Overall, good fuel savings, some torque increase but feels silly when check engine light comes on your new Merc. Real life sg weather 0-100 timings, hardly any difference with / without piggyback.

Your understanding is too simplistic - just because the piggyback tricks the ECU and it isn't a remap, it does not mean that diagnostics can't trace back especially when a problem hits.

Anyway, I've moved on. Feels much better driving a more powerful stock car, without the worries.

[Knightrider]

Email extract from the piggyback distributor (supposedly reputable) I purchased from:

"What we have concluded after the discussion with the supplier is that because after your servicing with Mercedes Benz, MB has upgraded your car’s ecu therefore, the older version of module cannot be with the ecu."

Don't ask me how, but I managed to get a full refund!

[BabyA]

Simply meant the program within the PnP module is outdated and too bad it has no updates.

Your understanding is too simplistic - just because the piggyback tricks the ECU and it isn't a remap, it does not mean that diagnostics can't trace back especially when a problem hits.

You could be right about being too simplistic... only if i have not done enough research/inputs from reliable sources and decades in heavy modding (i dont leave it to modders-tuners, i will either learn it before or after what job is to be done).

Good u have moved on.

[Knightrider]

Simply meant the program within the PnP module is outdated and too bad it has no updates.

You could be right about being too simplistic... only if i have not done enough research/inputs from reliable sources and decades in heavy modding (i dont leave it to modders-tuners, i will either learn it before or after what job is to be done).

Good u have moved on.

No problem, got the refund. Just sharing so that others can consider the risks - an incompatible module, be it outdated or whatever, can wreak damage to the car within minutes.