Performance upgrades GTI

[Martin]

I,m in the process of sourcing a DP for my GTI.

I chipped about 2 or 3 years ago and car has been trouble free.

I,m happy with expected gain with DP BUT........

Is it worth fitting a TIP and CAI to our cars with the KO3 in regards to power gains.

Also will I need a FMIC if the above is fitted.

Car goes great and I understand the Flash was the best bang for buck but curious as to real world gains other members have experienced

I have a Skoda Octavia - 2L TSI engine with K03 turbo
APR Stage1 was heaps fun and a quick win upgrade
The mid range torque improvement was awesome,
but the top end was weak and actually worse than stock
(less top end power and slow to rev out)

I put a down pipe onto it and upgraded to APR Stage2
Only 20kw!~25kw more but power band is much wider/richer/cleaner,
pulls from lower RPM and the top end was fully cleaned up, goes hard
Midrange torque further improved - overtaking is a total none event now

I've master the art of teasing kids in Commodore's and Subaru RS's,
they think they will blow me away and undertake me,
I don't use all my power, just enough to keep my nose a little in front,
Great to see young kids getting hot and bothered and grabbing for gears
before having to bail out and stand on the brakes to avoid hitting a parked car

I have also added CAI and FMIC - no significant performance benefit

For VAG daily drives I reckon DP & Stage2 is all you need
It's highly effective from both cost and performance points of view

I thought you only went to a stage 2 tune if you had a k03s, intercooler, full exhaust, high flow intake?

Intercooler and intake have no impact on ECU program
(If you do get any gains from CAI the MAF and ECU will deal with it)

How much of a difference between stage 1 and 2 for a k03 with just a downpipe?

Check with your chip tuner - for APR (on paper) it's about 20kw~25kw but the real world performance and usability is much more significant

I have quite a few upgrades..I can't drive my car in the wet at all now and first gear is also useless as is second if u come into it with any heat. Surprised how much traction issues the gti has to be honest. Makes me want to go back to rwd or give awd a go.

Yeah, I hear you...
FWD is a modern practical thing but it gets very messy over ~180kw
In really conditions I've actually reverted to the stock ECU program
Car is useless in the wet below 50km/h
Even in the dry, front wheel spin from standing starts in 1st is a pain in the arse
You just have to exercise a lot of self control and be super smooth

[h100vw]

I thought you only went to a stage 2 tune if you had a k03s, intercooler, full exhaust, high flow intake?

How much of a difference between stage 1 and 2 for a k03 with just a downpipe?

It depends how the tuner classifies their system. Phase 1 is for a factory std car, Phase 2 with Custom-Code always involves a downpipe + any other bolt ons. Phase 3 is a turbo change, although on the MK4 we have a tune for a K03s on the AGU, which gets charged as a Phase 2. For confusion to the public

Gavin

[bullsta]

Ended up going down the low key route noting my Tune
Just ordered the APR R1 DV and Dub's BFI Stage 1 Dogbone mount inserts
Taking out my Platinum NKG7 (2 yrs / 30k) and fitting the NKG Coppers in the 7 also (I step colder)
Be interesting to see how these plugs faired. I hear Platinum don't dissipate the heat but mine have been faultless.
Come to think of it so has my Stock DV!!! but hey who knows it could make a difference.
I'll post pics of the Platinums when I remove them out of curiosity.
Hoping I can fit the Dogbone mounts at home too
Cheers for all your help

[noone]

If your plugs were holding heat or your DV was not working 100%, you really wouldn't know it unless you log it. The engine will retard timing if it gets too hot and the boost will be lower than it should be (without a gauge, you won't know).

Stock DV's are not designed to hold 20 PSI, I'd think about logging it next, see whats really going on.

[bullsta]

Hey Noone I,ve never plugged the car into any Vag cable, except when I first bought it 3 years ago.
Seems to run fine but as you said maybe it could run better?
I should check out if anyone around here in Sydney has one.
Is there much I can do though really if I have a Revo tune?

[bullsta]

Another quick question
Any ever fit a decat DP to our cars??
And if so how much noise do they make running through the standard exhaust

[noone]

Decat is very illegal
the reason to 'log' the car is to see if all is working well, if you have a boost leak it can give you an indication, if you have an issue with injectors or sparkplugs, it can give you an indication.

There is a thread for Vag Com assistance, check it out.

[bullsta]

Cool.
Disregard that decat question too