Autothority Chip

[LUV2REV]

Does anyone else have an Autothority chip in their NSX ? I recently purchased my second 1991 NSX from the original owner and it has the Autothority chip. I have all records since day one but there is no information on the chip, just the receipt. I e-mailed Autothority but they never got back to me and there is no information on their website. The original owner told me the chip raised the rev-limiter to 8400 RPM's and advanced the timing slightly. If anyone can confirm what this chip entails that would be greatly appreciated (I have the original ECU if ever needed). Lastly, can this engine spin to 8400 RPM's safely ? Thanks, Brady

 

[Big_D]

I remember reading about the oil pump gear being a potential problem at those rpms. I would keep shifting at 8K max.

 

[greenberet]

I have an Autothority chip in my car, but it was custom programmed with the car on a dyno and I asked for the rev limit to stay at 8000 rpm. I'm not sure how similar this is to your chip. I've had the chip in my NSX since 1995 without any problems other than that my catalytic converters are shot (perhaps because of a somewhat rich mixture at full throttle, perhaps just because of old age) and the idle is sometimes not very stable when the car is started on a cold day with the climate control on.

 

[LUV2REV]

Thanks for the replies. I have Comptech headers, no catalytic converters (have Comptech straight pipes), a Comptech modified airbox and DC exhaust. I wonder if the Autothority chip is a nice compliment to these upgrades or am I just being paranoid pondering going back to the stock ECU just to be safe ?

 

[greenberet]

With an airbox, headers, test pipes, and a sport exhaust, your engine will beathe more freely than stock. I'm not sure how the OEM chip responds to that - whether it will keep the air/fuel ratio correct or whether it will get leaner or richer than you'd like. I think I remember reading somewhere that the air/fuel ratio is affected. With your modified engine, I'd expect that the Autothority chip will keep the air/fuel ratio in a better range - but that's just my relatively uninformed opinion.

However, revving the engine to 8400 rpm will stress it more than revving it to 8000 rpm.

 

[Big_D]

Perhaps get your car on the dyno and post some results. I suspect that the torque curve will flatten out at or near 8K rpm anyway.