Revo Technik Software

[logger]

Is the standard turbo capable of making that much power? And can the fuel system flow the additional fuel for that power?

Pretty simply really:
If the standard turbo WAS NOT capable of making that much power - then it pretty much goes without saying - the engine would not make that much power.
If the fuel system could NOT flow the additional fuel for that power - then it would not make that much power either.
If one assumes Revo's power and torque figures are accurate then these components are clearly up to the task.

Go for it...

[Corey_R]

The APR option is starting to appeal to me (I'm thinking about it) cos you can switch normal mode vs tuned mode fairly easily.

I likewise have the same concern about wear on the drivetrain, but I'm beginning to justify it on the grounds in day to day commuting I want the economy. Let's face it... that's one key reason why we bought the 118TSI in the first place.

However on weekends or in late evenings when the traffic is clear & fuel economy won't suffer so much, I would switch it to the tuned setting. The idea of having a secret Q car (I think that's the term) is very appealing.

Yeah, APR is a great option and very easy to switch. However, both cars I've owned with an APR ECU update (MKV Golf GTI, and Polo GTI) have no had ANY increase in fuel consumption with the APR program active during 'regular' driving. What I mean by that is, if you're in the city or suburbia and accelerating at a 'normal' pace for which you could also do without the tune, the fuel consumption will be the same. Also, freeway driving, the fuel consumption is the same with tune or without.

It's only when you floor the car that the fuel consumption increases.

[prise]

I'll play devils advocate on this one.

If it was that easy to get so much more power out of a 1.4 liter engine and still get longevity and reliability, then why would VW with all the engineering resources behind them bother with a 2.0 liter for the GTI?

[iBoost]

Because they design far over the tolerances normally needed by 99% of drivers. That same car that runs fine in day to day suburbia may be taken to the outback in 50 degree heat and is expected to drive just as well there as anywhere else.

As with any of these flash tunes, it's always advisable to check the car regularly and have it serviced properly etc. If all that is done properly then the chances of a failure are very unlikely.

[idaho]

Pretty simply really:
If the standard turbo WAS NOT capable of making that much power - then it pretty much goes without saying - the engine would not make that much power.
If the fuel system could NOT flow the additional fuel for that power - then it would not make that much power either.
If one assumes Revo's power and torque figures are accurate then these components are clearly up to the task.

Go for it...

Maybe I should rephrase the question to can the engine make that power reliably? A standard 125 kw 1.4L engine has a specific power output (kw/L) about the same as a WRX STI (221kw / 2.5L). So it is not exactly unstressed to start with.

Going up to 163 kw with a 1.4L 10:1 Compression engine (and I know it has DI) on pump fuel and high-ish ambient temperatures (compared to EU) is a fair sort of ask. And just because an engine has knock control does not guarantee that it won't detonate either. It has to knock before the knock control can respond, but with higher cylinder pressures (otherwise it wouldn't have the extra power at the same rpm) any detonation is going to be harder on the engine.

[gtimal]

BOV's are illegal :p

There illegal if they blow off to atmosphere ,if you have the exiting gas's recirculate back into the induction system they will pass engineering .

Cheers

[Corey_R]

If it was that easy to get so much more power out of a 1.4 liter engine and still get longevity and reliability, then why would VW with all the engineering resources behind them bother with a 2.0 liter for the GTI?

Why would VW do that? So we can flash the 2.0 litre motor and get 190kw of power... that's why

Maybe I should rephrase the question to can the engine make that power reliably? A standard 125 kw 1.4L engine has a specific power output (kw/L) about the same as a WRX STI (221kw / 2.5L). So it is not exactly unstressed to start with.

Going up to 163 kw with a 1.4L 10:1 Compression engine (and I know it has DI) on pump fuel and high-ish ambient temperatures (compared to EU) is a fair sort of ask. And just because an engine has knock control does not guarantee that it won't detonate either. It has to knock before the knock control can respond, but with higher cylinder pressures (otherwise it wouldn't have the extra power at the same rpm) any detonation is going to be harder on the engine.

I don't know much about Revo, but I've done my research on APR, so I'll talk about them for a moment. They spend thousands of hours testing their ECUs (and other hardware), using their international dealer network, including Harding Performance up in QLD, to test cars delivered to several internation locations in the local conditions to ensure that they are safe and practical for every day use etc. Anyone that has looked at APR will know that Harding Performance are involved in 'new products' from the development phase, so you can be 100% sure that not only are these APR products safe, but they're safe in 40degree QLD heat.

The other thing is, when Volkswagen decided to go into the 24 hours of Nurburgring with the Scirocco's, who did they turn to for performance parts? APR.
When VW needed a 300kw GTI show car for SEMA 2006, again APR.
When VW in Singapore needed to help move MKV GTI's towards the end of their life cycle, which company's ECU did they put on the cars as standard and covered the warranty for? APR.

So even Volkswagen themselves have confidence in APR and their products.

There illegal if they blow off to atmosphere ,if you have the exiting gas's recirculate back into the induction system they will pass engineering .

hehe - yeah, but I'm assuming that waterboy wants his to go PPPPSssssssstttttthhhhhhhhsssssshhhhhh @ 100dB

[gtimal]

hehe - yeah, but I'm assuming that waterboy wants his to go PPPPSssssssstttttthhhhhhhhsssssshhhhhh @ 100dB

That could be it .
I rather pipe a seperate exhaust system for the wastegate so I get a nice flame on gear change .

Cheers

[logger]

I would of thought a BOV would be unnecessary in any case. The turbo already has a recirc valve fitted which achieves the same thing with out the doof doof look at me factor.

[waterboy]

haha coreying, he knows me too well already!

Nah nothing too loud, just a nice little sneeze

ahhccchuu should be fine

Also, is it really that easy to change from I guess 'normal' mode to the 'tuned' mode?

Looks like ill be giving APR a call instead of Revo now

[dave_r]

I'll play devils advocate on this one.

If it was that easy to get so much more power out of a 1.4 liter engine and still get longevity and reliability, then why would VW with all the engineering resources behind them bother with a 2.0 liter for the GTI?

Because they have to cater for the people like me who drive their cars like they stole it every single time they get in the drivers seat. If they ran everything at the upper limits, it would increase their exposure to ongoing support and repairs which in turn has a negative impact on peoples perception of their reliability etc.

But most likely it comes down to a simple sales point of view. Having a few engines in the range offers differentiation and gives them the ability to have so many price points that the range of buyers increases considerably.

So even Volkswagen themselves have confidence in APR and their products.

Some interesting info there. I'd always sniggered at people spending $1000's on ECU reflashes as in most cases they've had very little if any localised tuning done on them. Half the time it would just be a bit more boost right through the rev range with instant power increases to impress customers.

I never liked the idea of taking a car which had extensive testing at every rpm done by a manufacturer and then slapping in a tune with 3hrs on a dyno which probably only looked at a bit of midrange and top end for a dyno graph.

If APR do extensive testing and have improved the tunes in every aspect, then I might just have to consider it

[cktsi]

Because they design far over the tolerances normally needed by 99% of drivers. That same car that runs fine in day to day suburbia may be taken to the outback in 50 degree heat and is expected to drive just as well there as anywhere else.

As with any of these flash tunes, it's always advisable to check the car regularly and have it serviced properly etc. If all that is done properly then the chances of a failure are very unlikely.

If this is the case, then why are VW detuning the Golf R for Oz?

[iBoost]

This has been discussed many times, and the general opinion is to differentiate the Golf R in the marketplace from the Audi S3. Audi is seen as the premium brand and as such needs to have an advantage in the power stakes.

[G-rig]

If APR do extensive testing and have improved the tunes in every aspect, then I might just have to consider it

Maybe ring them up and have a chat/find out. I reckon they would do more local testing than a lot of the others.

[philthy]

Some interesting info there. I'd always sniggered at people spending $1000's on ECU reflashes as in most cases they've had very little if any localised tuning done on them. Half the time it would just be a bit more boost right through the rev range with instant power increases to impress customers.

Maybe ring them up and have a chat/find out. I reckon they would do more local testing than a lot of the others.

You people do know how hot it gets in parts of Southern Europe (greece, italy etc) don't you? Australia isn't really that unique.

And other tuners do test locally. My understanding is that for Stage 3 etc most of the tuners will do logging of your car and send it o/s to their programmers for tweaking.

Lets not get carried away with the group hugs.