smartdot... it came across as personal... Like Padawan said, it's become common place lately... Growing a thicker skin is one thing but when a pattern becomes evident there is an issue.
Sorry, but I fail to see what Kane said coming across as personal. I know sometimes his posts may have a sarcastic lean to them, but this was nothing more than his opinion.
As far as this mod goes, I've got to admit that I'm intriqued by it. But, I too have a problem with the price. I'm not saying that Smart Madness is over charging, as he deserves to make a profit. I think the manufacturers the one whose is charging too much.
I can't believe that the electronics of this thing are so sophisticated to justify that kind of price. I also think there will be other companies coming out with similar devices at more reasonable prices in the future.
Hi folks!
Love the site. I've had my Smart since early February and I love it. I just had Smart Madness install a Sprint Power Booster in my car, and I wanted to tell anyone who might be interested that it really, truly, woke the car’s performance up!!
For those who may not be aware, the Smart car uses throttle by wire instead of a traditional throttle cable from the pedal to the throttle body. The butterfly in the throttle body opens and closes with an electronic servo that picks up a low voltage signal from the throttle pedal.
The Sprint Power Booster adds additional voltage to that signal which eliminates 99% of the throttle response lag that occurs when you push the accelerator pedal down.
Even though the device does not change or re-flash the engine management computer, since it’s installation the car responds better, shifts quicker, and it takes much less throttle pedal input to get the car moving from a dead stop. Additionally, because of the aforementioned performance changes, the car performs like it’s had an additional 5 to 6 H.P. added to it. The most noticeable change that happened is when I’m climbing a hill. Before, going up a hill in third gear required a significant amount of pedal input to get the transmission to shift down into second, but now that same task only requires about ¼ throttle input and the transmission kicks down into the lower gear with very little lag time.
I highly recommend this device, and once you install one on your Smart, you will also recommend one to other owners too.
In conclusion and for the record, I do not work for Sprint or Smart Madness; I just wanted to share information about this wonderful device with fellow members and owners who might be interested in improving their car’s performance.
This is on the SmartMadness web site in the description on the unit:
While the car itself isn’t any faster in 0-60 or ¼ mile times, this product isn’t designed to increase engine power. Sprint Booster does not increase horsepower. Sprint Booster changes the throttle response in the low to mid rpm range where cars spend a majority of their time. As a result, your car feels peppier and more powerful. This product is engineered to enhance the driving experience by providing increased response time (eliminating delay) between the drive by wire throttle pedal to the actual electronic throttle body.
In our case, Sprint Booster made the driver input to the throttle approximately half a second to 1 second quicker, essentially making the instant acceleration feel like a cable to throttle body system. On vehicles equipped with the cable to throttle set up you could simply tighten the cable to eliminate any slack and create faster throttle response, think of Sprint Booster as the high-tech electronic equivalent. The best way to describe the feeling is to think of any vehicle you may have driven equipped with a ‘sport’ more option, that is the type of sensation Sprint Booster provides. This product does nothing with fuel or ignition in your vehicle, it’s a simple plug n play mod that delivers instant response throughout the power band, making accelerating and rev matching incredibly more fun"
Changing the inputs to the engine management computer will make the car respond differently, but better is an opinion and can be debated as more responses are added to the thread.
I'm not convinced that this is a good option to go along with my lead foot.
Don't take this as criticism, just working on ensure we understand the device, its operation and benefits. Good luck on your sales!
My 2¢, it is intriguing & I would possibly try it, but for me the price is prohibitive. Almost as much as the cruise control, which I would personally find more useful. I'm not blessed with unlimited funds.
Peace
Wow! Take it easy. He wasn't making a personal attack, just his opinion. You people need to grow some thicker skin if you let something as simple as his post bother you that much.
Merry Christmas.
Quote:
Originally Posted by smartdot
Sorry, but I fail to see what Kane said coming across as personal. I know sometimes his posts may have a sarcastic lean to them, but this was nothing more than his opinion.
As far as this mod goes, I've got to admit that I'm intriqued by it. But, I too have a problem with the price. I'm not saying that Smart Madness is over charging, as he deserves to make a profit. I think the manufacturers the one whose is charging too much.
I can't believe that the electronics of this thing are so sophisticated to justify that kind of price. I also think there will be other companies coming out with similar devices at more reasonable prices in the future.
Nonsense; it was personal. Let's say your walking down the street and a perfect stranger that you have never seen before walks up to you and calls you a fool because he sees you using an iphone; you folks are telling me that wouldn't be personal?
Thicker skin? So I'm the one who needs to change because some here feel that what was said was not so bad. Hummmm, that makes allot of sense if you are under the infulance of pretzel logic. Believe me, my skin is as thick as an Elephant, but I'll take your advice under consideration for about a nanosecond.
T12121: Just because a member "has done so much" for the membership here does not give him or anyone here for that matter carte blanche to be rude to another member, period. If this fellow was talking that way to another member at the other site that I moderate, he would have been given a blunt warning the first time and given a time out if there was a noticable pattern of rudeness observed after that.
To continue... Product pricing is not my fault. I'm getting the impression that most/some here are attacking the product not so much because of it's claims, but more so because of it's price point. Sure the module is expensive, and there are allot of other items that can be purchased for the car for it's price, but that's a matter of personal choice. I found that the car's improved performance was worth the cost, so I purchased one. Like Borris said, if you don't want one, then don't buy one, but don't go around pissing on the people that do. How and where I spend my money is no one's concern but my own (and Borris' too ).
Padawan: Well said. There are a multitude of ways to convey one's point without being rude and/or insulting. Evilution's comment was no more than a lightly vailed backhanded slap to my posted opinions and purchase of the booster. My opinion is that he made his comment because he considers himself to be the self appointed Guru of all things Smart, and my evalution (an evalution by a brand new member here) of the product did not come from him first; how impudent of me!
In conclusion, perhaps I need to retract my first comment in my first post within this site. Maybe saying that "I love this site" was a bit premature and I need to rethink my opinion of it. Believe me, I am generally an easy going guy that lets 99% of things roll off my back, but as you can see, I will not put up with crap if I'm provoked.
This is similar to the consumer electronics industry. Take 2 amplifiers both near identical specs same power etc....except they have different volume control contours. Amp 1 gives max power into it's rated load at level 5, but AMP 2 you have to go to level 8 guess which one is perceived to be the most powerful? Or in the TV biz big wall of flat panel tv's which one is the eye drawn to? the brightest most colorful or the correctly set one for the light conditions? Much research has gone into this. Speaker A plays louder than B or C on the same amp is it better than B or C or just has a lower impedance?
Back on subject do they make these so you can defeat the contour with a switch or do you have to remove it? Relevant as just had several days of pure ice driving when I needed less throtle respones than stock. Traction control don't work when there is 0 traction LOL
Next question does the revised contour make the compter think it is always in sport mode and if so how does that affect MPG's?
This is similar to the consumer electronics industry. Take 2 amplifiers both near identical specs same power etc....except they have different volume control contours. Amp 1 gives max power into it's rated load at level 5, but AMP 2 you have to go to level 8 guess which one is perceived to be the most powerful? Or in the TV biz big wall of flat panel tv's which one is the eye drawn to? the brightest most colorful or the correctly set one for the light conditions? Much research has gone into this. Speaker A plays louder than B or C on the same amp is it better than B or C or just has a lower impedance?
Back on subject do they make these so you can defeat the contour with a switch or do you have to remove it? Relevant as just had several days of pure ice driving when I needed less throtle respones than stock. Traction control don't work when there is 0 traction LOL
Next question does the revised contour make the compter think it is always in sport mode and if so how does that affect MPG's?
Macaw, regarding Q1, the module is not switched. It's plug and play behind the throttle pedal. However, it's not hard to remove; less than 5 minutes with a 13MM wrench.
With regards to your Q2, as Borris stated I have the performance level 3 module in my car and have caculated a loss of .5 MPG over two tanks since the installation of the device, and yes the car remains in a "sport" mode at all times.
You're joking, right. That must be a real fun site you moderate. What is it www.whiners.com?
You're quite funny. I've never seen or heard of that site before, are you a charter member there?
BTW, the other site that I moderate over is a blast. We are able to have allot of fun there without putting down another person's opinion of an idea or a product; in fact we consider ourselves a family there. Must have something to do with maturity I guess.
It probably makes for a quicker gear change due to the transmission learning the driving style. A normally configured throttle would read "pedal to the metal" input and learn to shift slightly quicker. As the Sprint device (especially type III) is making a "pedal to the metal" reaction without actually taking it there, the transmission is learning that the driver wants to get there NOW. I speculate that this is why it may shift quicker than normal...
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