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Discussion Starter · #1 ·
Hi, this is my first thread and question to the FJ community here, and as I have my FJ in the shop to get revamped after buying used, one thing I want to do is buy a performance chip to improve my HP and get the most out of my already dwindling gas mileage because of larger tires and a slight lift. So my question(s) to the all-knowing FJ community is this:

1) Is a performance chip for the FJ worth it?

2) If it is, who is a reliable manufacturer?
 

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Welcome to the forum.
Perfomance chips do two things - They help you burn more fuel, and they reduce the life of the engine.
If you want more power/torque, put a supercharger on it.
If you want to save fuel, put 30" HT pizza cutters on it, remove the roof rack, skid plates, and aftermarket bumpers, and keep it below 50mph.

Don't waste your time or money with aftermarket "cold" air intakes (the FJ has an actual cold air intake already as stock) - they just make more noise and more often than not don't filter the air as well as stock, and they have a habit of screwing your MAF sensor up. Also the change in power is negligible, and often loses power, especially down low.

Exhaust - You might gain a couple of BHP at the very top end, but negligible - it will just be noisier, fail emissions tests, use more fuel, etc etc.

Also - The FJ isn't a racecar.

Here Ronny Dahl talks about offroad fuel economy:
- he discusses chips specifically.
 

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I have run performance chips in other Toyota vehicles and agree with the negative posted comments. Any chip or piggy-back module that improves gas mileage is simply leaning out the air fuel mixture. A potentially hazardous condition. Having said that, I do run a Sprint Booster which improves acceleration without changing the AFR. It overrides the stock software which Toyota purposely designed to delay acceleration to achieve higher MPG ratings in city driving. In stop-and-go traffic I can disable the device, returning to the stock software. The Sprint Booster will give you noticeably faster acceleration but does not increase HP and your MPG will decline if you're always putting your foot in it.

If you're dead set on a module check out "Unichip". They have been making chips for Toyota's for many years.
 

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Discussion Starter · #6 ·
Thanks for the responses, they were all of help! I appreciate the guidance. I will not be using a performance chip, however I am looking into the sprint booster to replace the stock version that Toyota made it with. I'm not so concerned with saving MPG, but I'm interested in maybe supercharging it.
 

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I have been binge reading for over a week since I got my '11 FJ and everything says..... There is no cost effective way to increase power or gas mileage in the way of a modification. So our best best is to keep any extra weight to a minimum and Stock is the best MPG its gonna get.
Heavy bumpers, big tires, lifts, and anything atttached to the roof will only make it worse.
 

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I just got a performance chip for my 09 fj cruiser form a company called powertune. I was not expecting much when I bought it and it's just ok, no crazy increase in HP but it does give it more pep. If you want a little more kick then I'd recommend it but don't expect to gain a ton of hp. The company also put together reviews on their site from customers. Some just talking about it and some doing 0-60 tests with and without it. powertune performance chip review
 

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Have a read of this

 

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Hi, this is my first thread and question to the FJ community here, and as I have my FJ in the shop to get revamped after buying used, one thing I want to do is buy a performance chip to improve my HP and get the most out of my already dwindling gas mileage because of larger tires and a slight lift.
You might be able to get a few more horsepower, or you might be able to get a little more mpg, but you're not going to get both from a chip, or Toyota would have done it already.
 
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