Avantgarde
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- Eugene
- Joined
- Apr 4, 2022
- Threads
- 7
- Messages
- 253
- Reaction score
- 371
- Location
- Ann Arbor, MI
- Vehicles
- 22' Taycan RWD PB+, 21' X5 Xdrive45e, 09' Cayman
- Thread starter
- #1
OK, I finally pulled the trigger and installed this product on my Taycan RWD PB+.
https://www.racechip.us/the-range-e...9Vx863szXhmKSPZPJMcq7fO3peTYPIcRoC8lsQAvD_BwE
As far as I can tell I seem to be a true "avantgarde" in doing this so I thought I'd share my impressions.
Racechip markets this product as a "range extender" - which is stupid. It has something to do with the fact that it was first developed for Teslas, which tend to have very sensitive accelerator pedals. So by introducing a less sensitive "ECO" mapping they claim to save some energy and hence the marketing. Anyways the one I bought is the same product that is specifically tuned for Taycan.
Why did I do it? Not for extending the range for sure. I posted here previously how two Taycan RWD loaners I drove (MY 2024 and another Late MY 2023) made me realize Porsche tuned Taycan pedal mappings post 1H 23 MY, making both brake and accelerator pedals a lot more sensitive to input. Updated mappings made the car a lot more enjoyable to drive compared to older versions. I was able to make the Porsche Service update my brake set-up to the latest software which solved half of the problem. But I knew I would not be able to get the accelerator mapping updated (They explained they can perform an update only when there is a specific service procedure published by HQ). So I went ahead and ordered this product mainly for the "sport" setting hoping it would energize my pedal making it similar to newer models.
Installation: It is a self-install and I was super nervous about this. (i've never tuned or modify any of my cars before as I generally don't like playing with factory set-up). But I was dedicated to make this happen. Installation concept is simple as you remove the socket going into your pedal (back-bottom side of the pedal) and you place the Racechip RX as a bridge between pedal and the car's accelerator wire. Pulling out the socket was a bit nerve racking as it required quite a bit of force to disengage the clip holding it attached, but in the end I managed to do it after several tries. Once you install the hardware, you pair it with the Racechip app and do some calibration and good to go in about 10-15 minutes. My biggest fear was to get some sort of an engine light or something due to voltage issues etc. Nothing happened.
Result: Well it worked! Pedal became a lot more lively, and giving the sense that my car just got faster (even though of course it did not). The most noticeable benefit is to accelerate easily/effortlessly without belaboring my right foot, making the car feel "lighter". The pedal sensitivity increased but not to a degree that would make it difficult to drive smoothly if intended. Honestly I realized many cars have this type of set-up as stock to make them "feel" faster.
How is it different than stock Sport mode?: In my experience Taycan's Sport mode does not really increase pedal sensitivity as much, but more programmed to reduce the threshold for utilization of the 1st gear. During my comparisons between RWD loaners and my car, I realized that I preferred the loaner's normal mode to my car's sport mode. This was especially true when I did not want to push the car to the limit but just wanted to drive a bit enthusiastically. Bottom line Racechip makes even the normal more "lively/sensitive" than the stock sport mode, with less downshifts to 1st gear. And it is still easy to trigger a downshift if wanted in normal mode as you need to press the pedal much less. Now when you put the Taycan in sport AND put the chip setup in Sport (which you select through the app), the result becomes a bit wild to be honest . But it is very easy to turn off mapping intervention all together through the app.
All in all I am really happy with the result and enjoy the drive better and wanted to share the experience.
P.S.: Btw after ordering mine I realized there are couple alternatives other than Racechip out there, some giving you more ability to tweak different modes.
https://www.racechip.us/the-range-e...9Vx863szXhmKSPZPJMcq7fO3peTYPIcRoC8lsQAvD_BwE
As far as I can tell I seem to be a true "avantgarde" in doing this so I thought I'd share my impressions.
Racechip markets this product as a "range extender" - which is stupid. It has something to do with the fact that it was first developed for Teslas, which tend to have very sensitive accelerator pedals. So by introducing a less sensitive "ECO" mapping they claim to save some energy and hence the marketing. Anyways the one I bought is the same product that is specifically tuned for Taycan.
Why did I do it? Not for extending the range for sure. I posted here previously how two Taycan RWD loaners I drove (MY 2024 and another Late MY 2023) made me realize Porsche tuned Taycan pedal mappings post 1H 23 MY, making both brake and accelerator pedals a lot more sensitive to input. Updated mappings made the car a lot more enjoyable to drive compared to older versions. I was able to make the Porsche Service update my brake set-up to the latest software which solved half of the problem. But I knew I would not be able to get the accelerator mapping updated (They explained they can perform an update only when there is a specific service procedure published by HQ). So I went ahead and ordered this product mainly for the "sport" setting hoping it would energize my pedal making it similar to newer models.
Installation: It is a self-install and I was super nervous about this. (i've never tuned or modify any of my cars before as I generally don't like playing with factory set-up). But I was dedicated to make this happen. Installation concept is simple as you remove the socket going into your pedal (back-bottom side of the pedal) and you place the Racechip RX as a bridge between pedal and the car's accelerator wire. Pulling out the socket was a bit nerve racking as it required quite a bit of force to disengage the clip holding it attached, but in the end I managed to do it after several tries. Once you install the hardware, you pair it with the Racechip app and do some calibration and good to go in about 10-15 minutes. My biggest fear was to get some sort of an engine light or something due to voltage issues etc. Nothing happened.
Result: Well it worked! Pedal became a lot more lively, and giving the sense that my car just got faster (even though of course it did not). The most noticeable benefit is to accelerate easily/effortlessly without belaboring my right foot, making the car feel "lighter". The pedal sensitivity increased but not to a degree that would make it difficult to drive smoothly if intended. Honestly I realized many cars have this type of set-up as stock to make them "feel" faster.
How is it different than stock Sport mode?: In my experience Taycan's Sport mode does not really increase pedal sensitivity as much, but more programmed to reduce the threshold for utilization of the 1st gear. During my comparisons between RWD loaners and my car, I realized that I preferred the loaner's normal mode to my car's sport mode. This was especially true when I did not want to push the car to the limit but just wanted to drive a bit enthusiastically. Bottom line Racechip makes even the normal more "lively/sensitive" than the stock sport mode, with less downshifts to 1st gear. And it is still easy to trigger a downshift if wanted in normal mode as you need to press the pedal much less. Now when you put the Taycan in sport AND put the chip setup in Sport (which you select through the app), the result becomes a bit wild to be honest . But it is very easy to turn off mapping intervention all together through the app.
All in all I am really happy with the result and enjoy the drive better and wanted to share the experience.
P.S.: Btw after ordering mine I realized there are couple alternatives other than Racechip out there, some giving you more ability to tweak different modes.
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