To remap, or not to remap...

[MouthBoy]

...my C250d?

I have always like modifying my cars but there has always been a reason I shouldn't. Normally my car is how I get to work and back, or like this one how I get to clients and back - so if it goes wrong I am down more than just a car as I cannot work. However if the taglines are to be believed a 'stage one' is normally very safe. The car has only done 53k and has been very well maintained throughout so it should be a good example to play a little with.

Stock the car has 204bhp and 369ftlb. Depending where I look I get between 42-51bhp more, and between 41-88ftlb more on the most aggressive tunes. Some also offer a guarantee on their changes too.

Any opinions on this? Am I just being stupid and will not really notice the differences or will this be quite noticeable?

 

[brendy]

You will notice for sure, the car will accelerate in each gear better, overtaking feels easier too.
Had my mk1 leon cupra done, took it from 180 to 215 or so and a little more in terms of torque increase, it was a different car altogether.
My WRX, I modified the rom myself, it went from a very tame car altogether into a hilarious back road blaster. Brakes had to be upgraded too as they were found out very quickly too.
My 530d msport, also mapped, is sneaky fast as it simply doesn't have the raw edge of smaller or sporty cars but it just seems to go and I have to keep an eye on the speedo when on the motorways as it feels so calm inside.

 

[MouthBoy]

You will notice for sure, the car will accelerate in each gear better, overtaking feels easier too.
Had my mk1 leon cupra done, took it from 180 to 215 or so and a little more in terms of torque increase, it was a different car altogether.
My WRX, I modified the rom myself, it went from a very tame car altogether into a hilarious back road blaster. Brakes had to be upgraded too as they were found out very quickly too.
My 530d msport, also mapped, is sneaky fast as it simply doesn't have the raw edge of smaller or sporty cars but it just seems to go and I have to keep an eye on the speedo when on the motorways as it feels so calm inside.

Have you encountered any issues at all with any of the remaps? I presume as you have done 3 cars now you're an advocate of it?

Where did you get yours done?

 

[OpenToSuggestions]

The key lies in getting it remapped by someone reputable, not some backstreet dump. This is far more important than getting the most hp.
With a remap you have absolutely no idea what air:fuel ratio, timing, boost etc. are being used.

In general I see nothing wrong getting a car remapped provided you treat it well i.e. service on time and fully, let it warm up before flooring it etc.

 

[andy_mk3]

Had my old A3 2.0tdi mapped, from 170 to 205bhp and a big improvement in mid range torque. Transformed the car from a respectable diesel to surprisingly quick. Nice punch of mid range torque really changes how it drives. Had it mapped at 80k miles, at 106k now and never a single problem.

Now have an A6 3.0tdi which is 245bhp, I'll definitely be mapping that too, should get around 300bhp out of it, which again should transform it.

 

[233]

3.0 tdi will be a Stormer once mapped
Not exactly slow to begin with


As above get it done by someone reputable and spend a little more

 

[Diagro]

As said, depends who maps it.

Most just use off the shelf maps.

Ideally you want a custom map. Mapped live on the road.

 

[andy_mk3]

3.0 tdi will be a Stormer once mapped
Not exactly slow to begin with


As above get it done by someone reputable and spend a little more

Definitely far from slow. It's great being able to get up to speed in a very short space of time.

I got my A3 mapped at DervTech. They are fantastic, all done properly on a rolling road too, so they can adjust everything properly including smoke levels to keep the DPF happy.

 

[MouthBoy]

Yep looking to go to a reputable place. Any suggestions? Have been looking at CleticTuning.

Regarding insurance, what's the best approach to let them know?

 

[Nasher]

Some insurers will just say no, or hike premiums to silly levels. Especially the mainstream ones.

You may need to switch to a modified car insurer to get a good price, but the best ones can be picky with who they accept. Check before you actually do it.

Do tell them as they can easily find out if the car gets written off and they check.

 

[MouthBoy]

Some insurers will just say no, or hike premiums to silly levels. Especially the mainstream ones.

You may need to switch to a modified car insurer to get a good price, but the best ones can be picky with who they accept. Check before you actually do it.

Do tell them as they can easily find out if the car gets written off and they check.

Yea I will check. As I also do business mileage I cannot afford to get caught out.

 

[Funky-Melon]

Yep looking to go to a reputable place. Any suggestions? Have been looking at CleticTuning.

Do some careful reading about CelticTuning, they're a franchise so some will obviously be better than others but historically from what I've read they quote very optimistic figures and many have had ECU's bodged/poor quality work etc.

Some of the higher power Volvos and Skodas have had issues with them.

Plenty happy with them though so depends what your local one is like I guess.

 

[Avalon]

Most of my turbo diesels/petrol's have been mapped, all were better to drive as a result, I tended to prefer smoother power delivery over headline figures and i'd always suggest taking claimed power figures with a pinch of salt. Look on the brand specific forums, see who's work is well regarded, the Quantum resellers tend to be OK, but i'd look for one with a dyno for before and after runs. Insurance wise, it's a lottery, my old car had two pages of declared retrofit options/modifications including induction, remap, throttle body and exhaust work and was sub £200/yr fully comp via a specialist broker, the 18 year old 68bhp Fabia that replaced it came in at nearly 3x that from a mainstream comparison site.

Oh and yes, you will certainly notice a difference.

 

[adam cool dude]

Had my Saab done from 250 BHP to 275BHP and 420nm. A lot more lively than before.

 

[MouthBoy]

Do some careful reading about CelticTuning, they're a franchise so some will obviously be better than others but historically from what I've read they quote very optimistic figures and many have had ECU's bodged/poor quality work etc.

Some of the higher power Volvos and Skodas have had issues with them.

Plenty happy with them though so depends what your local one is like I guess.

Thanks for the heads up. I will do my research.

Although I would love high figures, honestly I just want a little bit more from what I already have. If I was really pushing for performance, I probably would not be a in diesel. Whats weird is that I thought the high torque figure of 500NM/369ftlbs would seem 'faster' than it actually does when I put my foot down, although that could be the gearbox thinking about the change down rather than the power from the engine.

Most of my turbo diesels/petrol's have been mapped, all were better to drive as a result, I tended to prefer smoother power delivery over headline figures and i'd always suggest taking claimed power figures with a pinch of salt. Look on the brand specific forums, see who's work is well regarded, the Quantum resellers tend to be OK, but i'd look for one with a dyno for before and after runs. Insurance wise, it's a lottery, my old car had two pages of declared retrofit options/modifications including induction, remap, throttle body and exhaust work and was sub £200/yr fully comp via a specialist broker, the 18 year old 68bhp Fabia that replaced it came in at nearly 3x that from a mainstream comparison site.

Oh and yes, you will certainly notice a difference.

Always a pinch of salt with figures, but what I hope is that because my car is under 3 years old still I would be lucky to get a little more than if the engine was 5-7 years old. I could be utterly wrong though. Like I have said above though, I am not after 'wow figures' but a better driving experience overall. Not saying it is bad as it is though, but just want a little more.

Regarding insurance I will call my insurance company at some point to find out some theoretical prices. Wife and I agree that if my insurance gets silly it wouldn't be worth it.

Had my Saab done from 250 BHP to 275BHP and 420nm. A lot more lively than before.

That is a healthy increase. Was model was that on? I was looking at a 9-3 2.8 V6 before my old man put his Mercedes up for sale.

 

[jigger]

My first question would be will you leave a trail smog behind you and how often would you need to replace the DPF.

 

[MouthBoy]

My first question would be will you leave a trail smog behind you and how often would you need to replace the DPF.

Not planning to leave a trail behind me, is this a possible affect of the tune?

Not worried about the DPF as most of my driving is on the motorway so it gets a decent speed for at least an hour each day. A few times a month I do 6-8hour round trips on motorways too so it gets a good clean out.

 

[Stephanie Peterson]

I got about 15Hp and 10ft pounds from a stg3 remap on my mk4 MX5, add in the exhaust and its about 25hp and 15ft over stock.
Doesnt sound a lot compared to turbo cars but the 500rpm increase in rev limit makes a huge difference in performance, couple that to a curve that is now a lot fatter and the car feels considerably quicker - after all each horsy only has to push ~1000kilo or so compared to most things around 1.5 tons now.

 

[Nasher]

That sounds more like stage 1 even for a non-turbo O_o

 

[jigger]

Not planning to leave a trail behind me, is this a possible affect of the tune?

Not worried about the DPF as most of my driving is on the motorway so it gets a decent speed for at least an hour each day. A few times a month I do 6-8hour round trips on motorways too so it gets a good clean out.

I’m not sure, but I know of a tuned A3 and crap that throws out is boarder line offensive. I’d imagine that will build up in the filter quickly.

It’s just something I’d look into before hand.