S-PAutomotive.com

Author Topic: Tuning Boxes  (Read 3004 times)

October 10, 2014, 05:20:27 pm

Baller

  • Guest
Tuning Boxes
« on: October 10, 2014, 05:20:27 pm »
Anybody had much dealings with them, ones to avoid etc, I have a MK1 Golf with a 1z tdi from a 95 year passat [90 hp] also any other tuning tweeks  i e maybe bigger injectors and if so what size? I am still running the standard fly by wire pump.
Any advice on getting a few more horses from her would be greatly appreciated  :)



Reply #1October 15, 2014, 03:29:32 pm

vanbcguy

  • Administrator
  • Veteran

  • Offline
  • *****

  • 2831
  • Personal Text
    Vancouver, BC
Re: Tuning Boxes
« Reply #1 on: October 15, 2014, 03:29:32 pm »
Stay far, far away from tuning boxes.  They are NOT a good idea.  They work by falsifying signals from sensors on the engine to the ECU, tricking the ECU in to providing more fuel.  The problem is the ECU no longer knows what is going on, so it is not properly in control of the engine.  Even worse, quite a lot of the ECU parameters are 'adaptive' meaning that the ECU will figure out over time that it is being lied to and adjust itself accordingly.  This feature is in place to deal with the variations between sensors and vehicles.  The result is that the initial effects of the tuning box will fade away over time.

Rather than tricking inputs to the ECU to make it do the 'wrong' thing, you want a new program loaded in to the ECU to make it do what you want.  Where things get tricky is that the 1Z/AHU need to be 'chipped' rather than just have a file uploaded to them.  If you poke around on tdiclub.com you might be able to find someone who is selling an ECU that has already been chipped, or a set of chips.  I think some of the tuners (probably Malone) are still doing tunes for the older ECUs too.  It is MUCH better to tell the ECU that you want it to give you more HP and have it do its job than to try and trick it in to giving more power without it knowing what is going on.

Going larger on the injectors is a very good thing to do.  The engine will respond nicely to larger injectors even without any other tuning changes.  How big you go depends on your longer term goals and whether or not you intend to get a tune - you can increase the injector size a little with the stock tune, but if you want anything significantly larger you need the tune to go with it - that's back to the ECU knowing about what is going on.  Injectors and tuning changes ideally should be done at the same time.
Bryn

1994 Jetta - AHU M-TDI - Jezebel Jetta
2004 Jetta Wagon - 1.8T - Blitzen

Reply #2October 15, 2014, 05:27:20 pm

Baller

  • Guest
Re: Tuning Boxes
« Reply #2 on: October 15, 2014, 05:27:20 pm »
Thanks, what you say does seem to make sense, I appreciate your feed back and would like any more info on tuning and what is about if possible. many thanks, I'm sure others out there have some good Ideas would love to here from you.

Reply #3October 16, 2014, 12:35:41 pm

vanbcguy

  • Administrator
  • Veteran

  • Offline
  • *****

  • 2831
  • Personal Text
    Vancouver, BC
Re: Tuning Boxes
« Reply #3 on: October 16, 2014, 12:35:41 pm »
Quite a lot is possible... the question is what are your power goals and budget!

The 1Z does have some internal limitations to how much power you can put through it without upgrading the pistons.  The 1Z pistons are known to be somewhat weak.  They will handle moderately increased power (like 120hp or so) but they are definitely sensitive to heat.  If you're looking to just bolt stuff on / change external components without getting in to the engine you will want to set a reasonable power goal.  If you want to build a 200HP monster then you're going to need to upgrade some of the engine internals.

The stock turbo is pretty small on the 1Z/AHU.  It isn't good for much over stock boost really.  There are other wastegate turbos available such as the GT2052, or you can go to a more modern VNT turbo.  Either way, the computer program is going to need to be changed.  There was a european version of the 1Z/AHU that came with a VNT stock, so competent tuners (Malone for instance) can supply you with a proper program to run a VNT.  That opens the door to a whole range of newer turbos with far greater capabilities than what the original stock turbo could do.  Again it depends on your budget and goals...





Bryn

1994 Jetta - AHU M-TDI - Jezebel Jetta
2004 Jetta Wagon - 1.8T - Blitzen

 

Fixmyvw.com