Irvine car-chip company will shut down, give refunds to settle lawsuit

An Irvine-based company that sold aftermarket microchips it claimed boosted a car’s performance will shut down and issue refunds to customers to settle a civil consumer lawsuit, according to the Orange County district attorney’s office.

Prosecutors sued in October, accusing GForce Performance Chip of selling a product that did not boost horsepower or gas mileage when attached to a car’s engine as the company’s advertising claimed.

At the time, officials said the product was just an “elaborately packaged circuit board that contains no software.” The company allegedly took in millions of dollars by selling the chips at $69 each to thousands of buyers nationwide.

On Tuesday, GForce’s owner, 32-year-old Ravi Ghataode, agreed to permanently shutter the business, the district attorney’s office announced. In addition, the settlement bans him from selling similar devices.

The company also will pay $400,000 in civil penalties and pay refunds to customers who complained or who request a refund within 90 days after the settlement is finalized, prosecutors said.

An Orange County Superior Court judge still must sign off on the agreement, which does not require Ghataode to admit any wrongdoing.

Customers who want to lodge a complaint or receive a refund should contact the OCDA Consumer Fraud Hotline at (714) 834-6553, prosecutors said.