[CJFusco]

After laying upside-down underneath my driver's side dashboard for a good ten minutes or so in the dark of night - various parts, screws, and tools falling occasionally onto my forehead - I hesitated for a moment before putting the key into the ignition.

After performing this kind of brain surgery on your beloved car, an operation that tampers with nearly all of the engine's vital functions, it is only natural to have this kind of trepidation. After all, once we got the DME out of the car, we came to find out that even though my car was manufactured in 1983, somewhere along the line it aquired a 1985 DME. Fair enough, the PowerProm still fits.

(FRWilk was very helpful along the way, by the way... he not only sells a good product, but also good customer service. And that is the most important part, isn't it?)

So after the brief hesitation, I turned the key.

The car fired immediately to life. A very audible sigh of relief could be heard.

Even at idle, I could tell something was different. Even though it is pretty cool out tonight (low 50s), there was none of the usual somewhat-rough running for the first few seconds as the car warms up. Smooth as silk. Could it be true? I managed to not screw this up? Is the FRWilk chip actually working?

My answer came when I revved the engine. A simple blip of the throttle up to 2500 rpm, and then let off... and it drops down to 950rpm, and not a single bit lower. No drop, no shudder, all smiles.

All seemed well, so my friend Chris and I decided to take it out for a spin. I decided to drive in my normal driving style; I figured this would be the best way to feel the difference. Coming out of Chris's neighborhood, I took the car up to 5000 in 1st and shifted into 2nd.... and broke the tires loose, completely by accident. I couldn't believe it.

The real test came on the way home, by myself - the conditions under which I am used to driving.

OK, I have something to admit here... I kinda miss the little VTec-like kick that the stock setup gives around 3700rpm. That, in and of itself, is the only thing better about the stock chip vs. the Power Prom. The fact of the matter is that, kick or not, the 944 is much, much faster with FRWilk's Power Prom chip. The reason that the kick is no longer there is because the torque curve is more of a gradual hill that starts at 2000 feet above sea level, as opposed to a valley than a mountain, the valley being sea level and the mountain being the peak of the torque curve. With the Power Prom, the peak is as high if not higher than with the stock chip. The only thing missing is that steep grade.

What does this mean in terms of drivability?

Well, judging by fourth gear; in the stock setup 2000 rpm in 4th is about 37ish MPH, 3000 rpm is about 60, and 4000 is just over 80.

Here are AFJuvat's numbers, using Wilk's chip in a separate test:
Shift from 1st to 2nd: approx 6000 RPM, 37MPH
Shift from 2nd to 3rd: approx 5700 RPM, 62MPH
Shift from 3rd to 4th: Approx 6000 RPM, 82 MPH
Shift from 4th to 5th: Approx 4000 RPM, 95 MPH

So, by my estimation, the jump in speed at 4000RPM in 4th gear is somewhere around 15mph. This is incredible... and you really feel it, too.

For example, 5th used to be just a cruising gear... unless you're doing 100+ in 5th, the accelleration is pretty slow. Not anymore, though. Now it accellerates in 5th the way it used to in 4th.

I've driven the 3-liter cars, the 944S2 and the 968. Okay, granted, the 968 is obviously going to be faster than my chipped 944... but the feeling is similar. The power comes on low and fast, and the revs just keep building with steady torque, presumably all the way up to redline (my new redline is over 7000rpm... so far, I've barely hit 6000). No dead spots - just constant power delivery.

In summation: if you own a 944NA and haven't purchased the Power Prom... what are you waiting for?

-CJF