OT: Engine ECU remapping

[Conor]

Who in NI is best place to remap a 1.8 20v turbo VAG engine? Engine is a bit poor a low-mid revs and I'd prefer to have a power curve that has more mid-range torque rather than lots of peak power, without sacrificing low rev MPG. It's the 150bhp engine with the smaller K03 charger. 180-190bhp would suffice. I know you can get 220BHP out of that engine/turbo combo but that'll just ruin the car.

Drew, you know anybody?

Just need to get a dump valve and her lowered and she'll be sweet ;)

[simon]

http://www.obd-auto-tune.co.uk/index.html

in Ballymena, heard good things about them. There are others who shall remain nameless that have resulted in big bills in our workshop at Audi. That is a strong engine but a poor remap will give you piss poor fuel economy and a less than smooth torque curve (and your tyres won't thank you either).

[Conor]

Cheers Simon.

It's 4WD so I hope not to be shredding tyres!

[simon]

aye you might need a few more gee gees to light up all four

[Keef]

Plenty of people seem to speak highly of obd auto-tune. I got my 150 1.8t done by Triple7 using a Revotechnik map and its very smooth. The N75J valve (£45) from an Audi dealer will increase the boost in the mid range but sacrifice top end power, yet its noticably quicker than using the standard valve.

uk-mkivs.net is a good website for tuning discussions.

[byd1380]

Torquetronics in Kells

028-2589-8458

[chris]

have a look on www.reallymeansounds.com plenty of threads on there about remapping and where is best etc.

[onionfx]

I know a few people that swear by (not at) Torquetronics (TDI Ibiza and RS Focus)

No experience of any tuner personally though.

[Jonnyc]

did you get it done conor?

A few guys in work have been asking this week about it

[Conor]

Not yet Johnny, waiting until Sept when I renew my insurance.

[Jonnyc]

have you made a decision on where to go or found out more about what it involves?

[Conor]

Not really. Most places will give you a standard flashed re-map. I.e. a remap done by a company such as Jabba.... the tuner simply downloads the engine map info to the ECU.

The other option is a custom map, this is better as the tuner will do rolling road tests and see how the engine actually performs, and make adjustments to make the remap perfect. This of course costs a lot more.

I found this place great : www.briskoda.net

[jimjam]

Wonder if I could get the girlfriends clio re-mapped without her noticing?

[chris_the_sham]

pah. remapping - all nonsense - get a v8 with carbs and turn them up a bit!!!

[jimjam]

pah. remapping - all nonsense - get a v8 with carbs and turn them up a bit!!!

I get the feeling that this won't be the last time you mention getting a V8 chris??

[chris]

Ive heard alot of good things about ai autosport.

Know a few people that have been to the rolling road etc there and havnt heard any complaints.

http://www.aiautosport.co.uk/

[papasmurf]

Conor, ive used David @ torquetronics for my last three cars and they've all been 100%.

He can do whatever re-mapping you want done i'e depends on your driving (motorways/built up areas). He's done my last two for motorway driving where ive more torque through fifth & sixth gear.
He usually charges around £250 a pop, and he can put you in contact with a dump valve supplier i'm near sure.

PS i bought a new plug in tuning box of ebay £30 all in for the wifes 140bhp Altea and worked an absolute treat well worth the money.

[davymcf]

is it just me, or is that sort of stuff not soar on the car?

[Ninja2]

As far as I know you can usually boost performance a fair bit and not put too much extra stress on the engine, so long as it is all done right. Especially with the VAG diesels, they seem to be built like tanks. I would imagine the 1.9 is pretty good up to 190bhp or so, but I wouldn't want to go much beyond that. Even if your engine life was reduced from 200,000miles to 150,000 miles I would say most people wouldn't mind too much.

It all depends on how well the remapper knows their stuff, some of them are real cowboys...

[Conor]

Engine is a 1.8 petrol and a decent remap should shift it from 150bhp to 210-220bhp. This should be OK as the exact same engine comes in 180 and 225bhp variants from the factory (the 225bhp version has a different turbo).

[chris_the_sham]

insurance?

[Jonnyc]

most policies now adays allow for 1 modification to the car

[jimjam]

Engine is a 1.8 petrol and a decent remap should shift it from 150bhp to 210-220bhp. This should be OK as the exact same engine comes in 180 and 225bhp variants from the factory (the 225bhp version has a different turbo).

Assuming the manifold is the same, would you not be better off getting the bigger turbo from a breakers?

[colin-mck]

Assuming the manifold is the same, would you not be better off getting the bigger turbo from a breakers?

Twud probably need remapped anyway to provide the right fuelling for a bigger turbo. Plus turbos are expensive things if you get bearing trouble etc. so you would need to know the background of it before buying.

[jimjam]

But wouldnt a smaller turbo running at higher boost produce more heat and therfore be worse for the head?