Tuning for efficiency

DonSke

I have look at tuning my Ford Mondeo 02 TDDi. You can but a plug in system on Ebay for about £100 that cliams to increase performance by 25% and fuel efficiency by 15%. Do these work units work at all and if so how? Also, I am not a petrol head and frankly I would prefer to increase fuel efficiency more, even if it means a reduction in performance. Can I get a ford Mondeo tuned for maximum efficiency, ignoring performance?

af_thefragile

I think the Diesel mondeo is already tuned for efficiency by the Ford guys.
I wouldn't trust anything off ebay that claims to do better than Ford...

But then I'm not into tuning and remapping either, so I'll leave this to the people who know more about this stuff...

sentient_6

Remap would be better. But for fuel efficency expect the torque/bhp to be reduced not increased. An increase in torque/bhp, while certainly doesnt drastically effected fuel consumption, it wont help it. The extra power doesnt come from nowhere like.

When i was inquiring about i own remap i got an email back from a crowd in cork, they said thi in part of it:

We can also offer you an " ECO - tuning " service , here we remap your vehicle to give you a gauranteed 15-20% increase in fuel ecomony , but unfortunetly you will lose 10-15% of your bhp & torque with this style of mapping . with the current increases in fuel costs , this service is proving very popular . ECO - tuning costs the same as above .

I ended up going to Joe in Urban Performance for a descent power increase.

af_thefragile wrote: »

I think the Diesel mondeo is already tuned for efficiency by the Ford guys.

More like tuned for a balance between power, efficiency & emissions. With a bias these days towards emmissions especially, a remap for power just tips the scale a bit really.

shedweller

I'd be interested in what an insurance company would think of this?

ianobrien

OP, You would be better taking the 100 quid and going for a proper meal. What you're buying is a resistor (which can be got for a few pence in Maplin) that fools your ECU into thinking that the engine is cold permanently, thereby fooling your ECU into injecting more fuel (as on a cold start cycle).

You'll get poor fuel economy, smoke under acceleration and if you're very unlucky, bore wash.

If you want to improve fuel economy, get the engine serviced, empty the car/boot of crap, check tyre pressure and just take it easy when driving. An Italian tune-up might help as well.

Owen

For once and for all, would people stop claiming tuning boxes are nothing but a resistor. There's a lot more going on in those small boxes than 'just a resistor'. Yes, for the most part they're not as good as a remap, but there are very advanced ones out there like the Synergy 2 for td4/BMW engines which are very advanced, and can compensate for faulty MAFs and o2 sensors as well as improving power and economy.

To the OP, you can get what's called an economy remap, instead of a performance remap. Speak to various remappers, a few can offer the service. Not all of them will have the ability to do it.

opinion guy

shedweller wrote: »

I'd be interested in what an insurance company would think of this?

Me too. What is the deal with insurance and remapping ?
And what about warranty ? I presume remapping would void a warranty on a car young enough to still have one ?

shedweller

opinion guy wrote: »

And what about warranty ? I presume remapping would void a warranty on a car young enough to still have one ?

It's a safe bet!

Owen

Remapping will instantly void a warranty on the engine, gearbox and clutch, it won't affect a warranty on all the other bits of the car. Thing is though, it's a grey area, because most remaps can't be detect at Dealer level, so even though your car's warranty is instantly revoked on a technicality, you can pretty much put everything through on warranty anyway.

DonSke

Thanks for all the advice. Just started using Boards.ie and already saved myself £100 because of the advice supplied:). Not sure if it is allowed here but can anyone point me to a good remapper in the Louth/Dublin area?

sentient_6

DonSke wrote: »

Thanks for all the advice. Just started using Boards.ie and already saved myself £100 because of the advice supplied:). Not sure if it is allowed here but can anyone point me to a good remapper in the Louth/Dublin area?

sentient_6 wrote: »

Joe in Urban Performance

google chippedire

Tragedy

sentient_6 wrote: »

google chippedire

Very expensive, shop around and save a lot of money.

ianobrien

PaintDoctor wrote: »

For once and for all, would people stop claiming tuning boxes are nothing but a resistor. There's a lot more going on in those small boxes than 'just a resistor'.

The proper tuning boxes are advanced pieces of kit. The 100 quid stuff of ebay is rubbish in my experience.

Gumbo

PaintDoctor wrote: »

For once and for all, would people stop claiming tuning boxes are nothing but a resistor. There's a lot more going on in those small boxes than 'just a resistor'. Yes, for the most part they're not as good as a remap, but there are very advanced ones out there like the Synergy 2 for td4/BMW engines which are very advanced, and can compensate for faulty MAFs and o2 sensors as well as improving power and economy.

To the OP, you can get what's called an economy remap, instead of a performance remap. Speak to various remappers, a few can offer the service. Not all of them will have the ability to do it.

genuine tuning boxes are worth the money if a remap is not available for your car but a 100 pound ebay box will not be a genuine Tuning Box system.

Owen

kceire wrote: »

genuine tuning boxes are worth the money if a remap is not available for your car but a 100 pound ebay box will not be a genuine Tuning Box system.

They're still not just a resistor though. There's is a small bit of tech in there which dynamically adjusts the fuelling signal. I agree they're not great, but to claim they're smoke and mirrors is a bit much IMO.