CCCTech

Chipping a car should actually improve economy, it will reduce it if the extra power is constantly being utilised, but on todays crowded roads it's very difficult to 'race' around everywhere. The main reason that economy is improved is because of the low down (low revs) torque that is produced. This basically means that less gear changing is required around town for instance, or when climbing that steep hill. Generally a chipped car is smoother to drive than a standard one, although this depends on the driver as well though. The standard files in todays cars are very restrictive, there are many reasons behind this - a big one being that they (Manufacturer) always want to keep tempting consumers with a new more powerful engine, so they don't exactly rush to release them. I guess they want a continual flow of buyers being tempted after two years by a similar car with 20% more power. They then sell this for x% more, even though the cost of developing this 'new' car is quite small as it's already been done on the current one. Another big reason is because they don't want to have to spend lots honouring their warranties. The file in our cars here in the UK is released world wide but we have some of the best fuel in the world, perfect climate (temp and altitude) and tend to abide by the service intervals. All this means that our cars are really 'held back' from what their true potential is. As for dealers not knowing a great deal about the cars - I think it's because they have to rely heavily on what the diagnostics tells them, and this isn't always right - The MAF sensore being a perfect example for any of you that have had problems. I also suspect that Citreon UK (and other manufacturers) don't like shelling out for new parts so just 'fob' customers off where possible. That's why these forums are great for sharing experiences !!! Ask the dealer for a copy of the fault codes when you have a prob then post 'em on here, either someone will know the answer or a common problem can be spotted which will help save two months wait !!!!

Fuel consumption certainly wont reach a 'very good' level for 10k miles or so, and as has already been pointed out the govt figures are difficult to achieve - much harder in a petrol though I reckon ! As for economy when chipped - As a rule, an improvement in economy of 10% can be expected. Some may be lower and I've even had 23% improvement mentioned to me - I think this was the exception not the rule though.