Hello everyone! That time has come! After owning my GD diesel i30 for little over 2 years I've finally decided to purchase a so called "tuning box". The decision wasn't easy...countless hours/days of gathering information about the forever battle of "ECU Remap vs Tuning Box"....I've chosen the second one because of few reasons: can be removed quickly and easy; can be transferred onto next car (with some fee for reprogramming or smthg) ; flexible (adjustable) performance settings; greatly improved technology over the years (from a simple resistor in a box to multi-channel real-time fuel and boost adjustment).
*note - I didn't make any photos at the moment (will try to do them next weekend), as the weather was really a bastard here in UK lately. so I was just focusing on installing the damn thing and testing if it works at all.
So in the very end, after all the research, I've chosen the TMC Motorsport Tuning Box with bluetooth app control. Quick stats of my car before and after:
kW: original 94 / tuned 120*
donkeys: original 128 / tuned 163*
Nm: original 260 / tuned 335*
and should get up to +15% more fuel economy (depending on driving style)
*these are the claimed maximum achievable figures on the highest performance setting.
I'm not going to advertise the company,just want to say, that after comparing about 10ish different options of tuning boxes available for 1.6 CRDi in UK, their offer was the best performance/reviews/value for money.
I ordered the box on Thurdsay, and already on Saturday morning the DHL guy was knocking on my door, so that was a nice surprise. In the set there was the Box itself, wiring loom with connections for turbo boost pressure sensor, CR pressure sensor and camshaft position sensor, and some standard paperwork.
The installation is pretty much straight forward, all plug&play. The installation process took me about 40 minutes, as I had to dance around the turbo boost pressure sensor, a nightmare to get to the connector. Ended up removing the air filter box. Finally after connecting all the wiring, placed the box itself between the battery and air filter box. Connected to the phone and went for a test drive.
Great feature of the app control is that you can switch the box on/off whenever you like to, or set a timer for a specific setting (eco/sport/sport+) to come on after engine is at operational temperature. And also the other great thing is that you can switch between these 3 settings on the go.
Now about the feel of the car. Hm....I guess the best description would be
Smooth . The engine generally feels to be working easier, especially on lower revs.
On the Eco mode the response is very linear, you don't get that great kick after 1800rpm (those who got a diesel, know I'm on about). The boost is still there, but it feels a lot more smoother, yet you still gain speed just as quick as before (at least feels that way).
On the Sport it feels generally more responsive to gas pedal, and is more nippy yet still it remains smooth on acceleration.
On Sport+ (the highest setting) you can feels the greatest difference. It really pushes you into the seat, as you floor it down.
Now this review is purely subjective, as I've made no measurements of any kind. And the main reason I've got this box, is to gain more milage or kms per liter of fuel.I travel a lot, so even a 0.5 l/100kms (or a 4-5 mpg increase) will make a difference . I've just filled the car to the full, and will see what the fuel consumption is going to be on next visit to fuel station (next Friday or Sunday).
Will make few photos of the product and how it looks like installed.
This topic is not about arguing what's better - tuning box or ecu remap. Just describing my experience. Updates to follow.
Cheers!