I went to Atlanta a few months back and was going to check out EA. I was looking to pick up some goodies while there and maybe let them work on my car. Well as luck would have it I blew an intercooler hose while in the area. Since there was a Volvo shop and dealer (indi shop, not corp. owned.) down from the hotel where I was staying I went to them for parts. They had some nice upgrade things but were also serious into preventive maintenance and Volvo pride in general. While in conversation with the shop manager I played dumb when he asked if I knew much about cars. He went into detail explaining how each part will do this to make more power. He was for real. Take the K&N drop in filter, max of 3 HP gain he says. He also mentioned a few other things about the ECU, wastegate adjustments, and real details. No doubt that this guy was for real and was not out to take my credit card for a ride. We got into some serious detail and I started asking questions. Things like ignition amps and goofy things like that. (I know from real dyno tests that they don't do crap if your engine is tuned right.) He explained to me that they were pretty much a hoax and did not suggest one. (Hmmm, smart guy.) Well, after getting this from him I brought up the internet and speed shops in the area. I explained to him that I was looking to tune my car and go all out with it. He suggested IPD right off the bat. I asked about some aerospace place in the area and his face turned red. Even the service writer behind the counter laughed at the suggestion. They both had nothing good to say about the claims and quality of the place. He gave some examples of people that have brought in their cars after being tuned by EA. Yeah, some extra power but in real life the car was not any more of a beast than an IPD ECU and exhaust-equipped car. He also mentioned the prices and the honesty of EA. Needless to say, I got the intercooler hose I needed and left. I drove past EA after that. I figure that a local indi shop telling the truth to a stranger about the true expectations of the common sense items, they were telling the truth about EA. I did not bother to stop in even though I drove <5 miles away from their shop for 2-weeks while in town. IMHO, EA is not trustworthy nor on my list of good shops. I was going to stop in to judge this for myself but the intercooler hose saved me from a lousy sales pitch. I must say one thing though. This is only my feeling about the place. I would not go there after hearing the locals. Usually a good shop has a great rep. among the locals. Same goes the other way around. Even with competitive shops they will admit legitimatised facts about the other guy. This is not the case with EA. I cannot speak for anyone else and I am acting on my own. You should give them a call and ask them to prove the claims with a before and after chassis dyno. If it all holds up, then kudos on getting lucky. Seems to me they are all about advertising hype and hiding the truth. Sorry EA, you will not get my money.
Prospero
