Octavia now at Stage II ...

[Martin]

Day 7 update

Got up this morning (still raining) and braced myself for a firm ride to work
(This is an indication that the car is a tad firmer than I prefer)
As I went over the driveway curb onto the street I immediately thought "that's not so bad"
The rest of the trip to work was more comfortable than last week - while still being noticeably firmer than stock
It does appear that the springs have settled! The harsh edge they had last week has been reduced
I'm pretty happy (and surprised) about this...

I'm also back to driving with medium to high music volume
(having got over the initial thrill of these modifications)
I don't hear the induction noise over the music during normal usage

So I may have over stated what a Stage II tune does to the car
(Last week I had reservations about the springs and living with the car)
It's not too bad (although I don't want to make any further suspension or engine modifications)

In the wet you need to be gentle with the throttle - very easy to wheel spin from stationary

I'm having trouble encouraging the gear box to kick down from 5th to 4th is slow traffic
I get a few engine resonances (like labouring) at low rpm
I use a little more throttle to tell the gearbox to change down
This works when wanting a change down from 6th to 5th
I find it hard to get the same change down from 5th to 4th
I tend to get 3rd and the engine switches to ragging bull mode
Easy to get around the problem by using the paddles

I have two more changes planned:
Larger intercooler - summer/track insurance
The engine mount insert thing that fills the void in the dog bone (car to gearbox brace)
I just feel that with this extra power I don't want the engine swinging or slapping around

(Tempted to play with front brakes also...again for track days, to prevent fade)

[Martin]

I've now realised that the APR ECU upgrade has taken the torque to a level exceeding the rating of the DSG clutch, which is about 350mn. Stock torque is ~280nm and my engine is likely to be around 400~420 nm

(APR specify 314 but the units are foot pounds - bah, details)

This may explain the false neutral I got the other day during a launch control start...(DSG trying to save it's self)

[Martin]

The Stage II ECU tune is not impacting my fuel economy
40km less per tank compared to factory ECU mapping, this is driving to work
If you spend a lot of time using the power I'm sure it would impact fuel economy
The point is, the car can still be used in a frugal manner

[Dutch77]

The Stage II ECU tune is not impacting my fuel economy
40km less per tank compared to factory ECU mapping, this is driving to work
If you spend a lot of time using the power I'm sure it would impact fuel economy
The point is, the car can still be used in a frugal manner

Certainly if you get up it I'd expect lower economy, but it might be fair to suggest that with more power on tap across the board that in day to day driving you may use less throttle as a result which helps keep the fuel use down? (or I could be completely wrong..)

Either way sounds like the mods have been a wise choice, hopefully the DSG won't become an issue!

[Martin]

The Stage II ECU tune is not impacting my fuel economy

Whoops - spoke too soon!
While it was on track at half tank I came up short at the end of the tank today

So here are my fuel tank range figures:
Stock ECU Map = ~565km
APR Stage 1 = ~520km
APR Stage 2 = 480~490km

Given how much better the Stage II performance is I'm happy with that
Not so much from a power level point of view,
from a power band point of view, low end and top end improved and smoother
Stage II is more usable and pleasing

Also, as our automatic Mazda SP23 with 120kw can only do 420km on the same fuel load I'm laughing in Skoda

[zei20t]

unusual, im getting better economy on my stage 1 than the factory tune.

still, stage 2 with decent power and response and you're still getting close to 500km from a tank; not bad at all!

[Martin]

I've always liked sleepers
I love quietly driving to work mostly conserving fuel
But as/when/if I desire, I can bring out the raging bull

[cbay]

I've always liked sleepers
I love quietly driving to work mostly conserving fuel
But as/when/if I desire, I can bring out the raging bull

^ This is why i love Skodas. I've just got the wrong one for that (should've gotten a 118 like TSIfan)

[Mysticality]

Whoops - spoke too soon!
While it was on track at half tank I came up short at the end of the tank today

So here are my fuel tank range figures:
Stock ECU Map = ~565km
APR Stage 1 = ~520km
APR Stage 2 = 480~490km

Given how much better the Stage II performance is I'm happy with that
Not so much from a power level point of view,
from a power band point of view, low end and top end improved and smoother
Stage II is more usable and pleasing

Also, as our automatic Mazda SP23 with 120kw can only do 420km on the same fuel load I'm laughing in Skoda

I was a little bit devastated when I got my Carbonio intake... Went from an average of 5.9L/100km to 6.3... Thats on the MFD, anyways.
Here's my Fuelly record.
Tom Jones (Skoda Octavia) | Fuelly

Should be interesting to see how it goes with a retune, though... But I think thats gonna have to come after the tow bar!!

[rc_vRS]

Martin - when you had your tune flashed, did your ECU have to be physically removed/modified in any way or were they able to flash through the OBD port?

[Martin]

Most of the aftermarket ECU firmware updates are done via the OBDII port
The APR updates are certainly done that way - very easy/clean

I'm waiting for the intercooler to arrive now
Having ensured the inlet and exhaust flow freely it makes sense to also ensure the inlet air temp is well managed
Protection against hot weather and track days (given all this extra power & torque is now available)

[rc_vRS]

Most of the aftermarket ECU firmware updates are done via the OBDII port
The APR updates are certainly done that way - very easy/clean

Ok no worries, was just asking since a few people on forums with various VAG models have mentioned later model ECU's had to be removed from the vehicle and bench flashed (even at APR) due to security/sw changes. Sounds like they managed to get around that now and can easily flash through the OBD port.

[Martin]

Yeah - I think that was the case a few years ago
It will be interesting so see if manufacturers want to lock us out in time
You can still flash the Golf R via the OBDII port however

[Martin]

So given today's wet weather, my "Lethal Weapon" became "Useless Flipper"
I could even break traction in 3rd gear
In future, on days like this, I will simply flick it back to the stock ECU mapping in order to avoid the temptation and save fuel and increase safety

[Martin]

Saturday was a huge drive with the Skoda guys
Sunday was a moderate touring day with the family
First time they've been in the car since the modifications
Didn't get any complaints (I was careful to reduce speed and avoid bumps and not use large throttle)
Maybe I'm wrong - StageII is not too anti social for occupants - it's certainly not a comfort ride however