Pros and cons of remapping a car

lexuslad

Hi all, I recently bought a 2012 520 msport and looking to get it remapped? Anyone get it done before for the same car? any pros or cons to getting it done long term?

Dravokivich

Remapping is about as expressive as changing tires. What are you actually looking for?

Gumbo

Extra bit of power.
Not mentally noticeable in the F10 20d Engine.
Bit more responsive and I’ve really noticed it in the mid range mostly when over taking on motorways.

If you have the sport dials option in the iDrive you can actually see a before and after figure of power.

lexuslad

Dravokivich wrote: »

Remapping is about as expressive as changing tires. What are you actually looking for?

more power basically, was told id gain 45bhp and 80 torque. im just wondering would i notice the difference

lexuslad

kceire wrote: »

Extra bit of power.
Not mentally noticeable in the F10 20d Engine.
Bit more responsive and I’ve really noticed it in the mid range mostly when over taking on motorways.

If you have the sport dials option in the iDrive you can actually see a before and after figure of power.

what remap did you get done and who did it do you mind me asking?

mickdw

lexuslad wrote: »

Dravokivich wrote: »

Remapping is about as expressive as changing tires. What are you actually looking for?

more power basically, was told id gain 45bhp and 80 torque. im just wondering would i notice the difference

I'd say 45 bhp would be pushing it.
Personally, I wouldn't bother.
The 20d is excellent but you will never make it into a 30d no matter how much power you get out of it.

Gumbo

lexuslad wrote: »

what remap did you get done and who did it do you mind me asking?

I used BM workshop in Dublin - http://www.bmworkshop.ie/
Running 225bhp so only a 35 brake increase over standard. (2014 520d).

Whocare

I wonder is remapping bad for dpf

Dravokivich

Whocare wrote: »

I wonder is remapping bad for dpf

I don't see why that'll make any odds. Issues with DPF are often likely due to the driving method not really engaging it. If in the right gear and gotten up to operating temp, it should burn excess carbon. The uncertainty amongst consumers about DPFs tends to be down to manufacturers being unclear about what's actually needed. So you get some folks advising a high rev drive up and down the motorway.

From reading up on my car, DPF will not engage if either of the following creteria aren't being met, 1) minimum 4th gear 2) must be at least approx 60kmh. Then drive for a bit to get it up to temp. So a normal regular drive from Dublin upto Carlingford / Wexford / Kilkenny / Waterford is all it needs. I don't need to run off with high revs. Even though it may make the drive bit more fun.

Wailin

Whocare wrote: »

I wonder is remapping bad for dpf

No effect on dpf but can cause increased wear on gearbox and drivetrain plus extra strain on injectors.

Henry Ford III

A couple of potential negatives.

Insurance. Don't even consider not disclosing it.

Potential for increased wear on tyres, brakes, gearbox, and suspension.

TheBoyConor

If you have an accident it will invalidate your insurance if it were to come to light in the investigation.

You should disclose the modification to the insurer. the problem with this then though is they will absolutely rape you on your premium as, being a car modifier, you will be seen as a higher risk. People modify cars so they basically go faster - that suggests a tendency for speeding. And that is if they even quote you at all. The way things are going they might just say no chance.

bennyc

TheBoyConor wrote: »

If you have an accident it will invalidate your insurance if it were to come to light in the investigation.

You should disclose the modification to the insurer. the problem with this then though is they will absolutely rape you on your premium as, being a car modifier, you will be seen as a higher risk. People modify cars so they basically go faster - that suggests a tendency for speeding. And that is if they even quote you at all. The way things are going they might just say no chance.

Plus one on this, poor lad working with me spent 200 getting a Passat 2.0 140 remapped, made a great difference but he ended up spending another 200 on getting it un-mapped and an independent assessors report done as Insurance was having non of it, they ended up cancelling his policy at one point until the assessors report came back with the mapping undone. Call your insurance first, may even be no harm to do this around insurance renewal time and just say the car has been remapped when your getting quotes if you know what I mean.

Henry Ford III

TheBoyConor wrote: »

If you have an accident it will invalidate your insurance if it were to come to light in the investigation.

You should disclose the modification to the insurer. the problem with this then though is they will absolutely rape you on your premium as, being a car modifier, you will be seen as a higher risk. People modify cars so they basically go faster - that suggests a tendency for speeding. And that is if they even quote you at all. The way things are going they might just say no chance.

You must disclose it. It's a fundamental principle of the contract.

Turbohymac

Wouldn't dream of remapping after getting a vehicle mapped a few years back..only adding to premature egr etc faults with higher emissions..
If what the re mapping companies out there claim ..ie. more power up to 20 % and lower fuel consumption then the manufacturer of the vehicle would have it mapped during manufacturing... and it would certainly sell a brand of vehicle new if it genuinely had much more power /torque. And improved mpg..
However then the manufacturer would have to cover all the issues of the mapping under warranty.. and trust me there would be lots of issues

tossy

No issue mapping a car if done correctly, the problem is the amount of cowboys out there offering their 'services' no way would i let someone i met in a woodies car park map my car, and if a map costs you 200e it should be setting off alarm bells straight away.

The best engines to remap are the detuned versions of a more powerful engines. For example the case of Mercedes Sprinter they all use engine with code OM651. The lowest powed one with a single turbo is about 80 PS, then two identical twin turbo engines with 130 and 163 PS. It would almost be a sin not to remap the totally identical 130->163. It's designed to do the power reliably but just detuned.

It was also the same with the older 110 vs 130 PS engines. In the past I have heard some people getting a 110 PS one remapped as 140 PS without any issues in years to come. So I have heard.

tossy

samih wrote: »

The best engines to remap are the detuned versions of a more powerful engines. For example the case of Mercedes Sprinter they all use engine with code OM651. The lowest powed one with a single turbo is about 80 PS, then two identical twin turbo engines with 130 and 163 PS. It would almost be a sin not to remap the totally identical 130->163. It's designed to do the power reliably but just detuned.

It was also the same with the older 110 vs 130 PS engines. In the past I have heard some people getting a 110 PS one remapped as 140 PS without any issues in years to come. So I have heard.

Not always the case, i've had petrol cars mapped that were the highest output variants of that engine that gave great results when mapped.

tossy

tossy wrote: »

Not always the case, i've had petrol cars mapped that were the highest output variants of that engine that gave great results when mapped.

But the owner of the detuned version of your engine would have gotten even better results if the hardware was identical. I have in the past remapped a petrol 2.0 150->240 but had to change the turbo as the original one was good for about 210 PS max.

tossy

samih wrote: »

But the owner of the detuned version of your engine would have gotten even better results if the hardware was identical. I have in the past remapped a petrol 2.0 150->240 but had to change the turbo as the original one was good for about 210 PS max.

The owner of the detuned version would have got idenitcal results if the hardware was the same, the reason it was de tuned is because of all the parts the detuned one didn't have.

tossy

tossy wrote: »

The owner of the detuned version would have got idenitcal results if the hardware was the same, the reason it was de tuned is because of all the parts the detuned one didn't have.

I hear VW/Audi does that a lot. But the OM651 on the Sprinter is exactly the same unit with same turbo and injectors down to the minutest detail and both 130 and 163 would remap close to 200 PS without any modifications. Maybe it's an insurance thing or market driven, who knows. But examples like this are a really handy target for reliable no-brainer remaps.

Leonard Hofstadter

I'm not doubting what you're saying about Mercedes, but it's not always the case that a lower power version is the same as a higher power version of the engine just with a differently mapped ECU.

For example with BMW there will be different injectors and injection pressure but sometimes they even change things like the crankshaft to get to the next power level, maybe an extra or bigger turbo, too. It depends on the engine. It was a similar story for Toyota when they used to do their own diesel engines.