GTI 6 APR Carbonio air intake + downpipe..is it worth it??

[Corey_R]

Im considering getting the APR stage 1 ECU upgrade but not sure (Got a MK6 GTi DSG)..

All this has been answered many times before (especially in the ECU and tunning forum), but...

1) Yes, it's just direct port programming. No hardware is added. There may be a chance that your ECU is encrypted and needs to be removed from the car, however usually it's just a <30 minute job of plugging a laptop in and uploading the flash.

2) VW won't warrant any issues caused BY the APR ECU. So if you have a headlight fail, or a faulty wiper motor, the ECU upgrade obviously won't affect that. However, if the ECU directly caused a failure in the engine or drivetrain, then VW may not warrant that. Having said that, I have not seen a single issue on the MK6 GTI caused by an APR ECU reported here or any other forum thus far...

3) If you turn off the traction control and just mash the throttle from a standing start then of course all you're going to get is additional wheelspin. However, launch the car correctly and your 0 to 100 times will increase a fair wack, especially with the DSG. On my Stage II MKV GTI I found a ~2000rpm launch was great.
Even better, in-gear acceleration and 80 to 120 type runs are lots better.


Anyway, since you're in Brisbane, you can't be far from Harding Performance who are the A/NZ distributor for APR. So go down to them and test drive one of their stock cars, or altneratively get them to put the "trial ECU" onto your car. Just don't stray to far away after getting the trial done, cause it'll take longer to get back to the shop to get them to put it permanently on the car

[Brandon89]

Finally have my Stage 2 MK6 GTI, LOVE IT. Amazing stuff. cant wait to see what the service department has to say when I take it for its first service.

[Corey_R]

What components Brandon89? "Stage 2" is a much more "liberal" term than Stage 1

[danielb]

Are there any suppliers for Carbonio in Sydney?

[elisiX]

Be sure to keep us informed if they do make comment Brandon.

And congrats!

[Corey_R]

Are there any suppliers for Carbonio in Sydney?

Yes, any APR dealer in Australia or New Zealand will supply and install the Carbonio intake.

[Brandon89]

true that, just got the Carbonio stage 1 and 2 piping with the downpipe and the retune of course

[Corey_R]

Aaah, coolies!
So you have the two required parts, ECU + Downpipe, plus the optional Carbonio Stage 2 intake (awesome). The only other Stage 2 options are "full exhaust" and "intercooler".

Having owned a Stage 2 MKV GTI in the past (I had the full exhaust, but not the intercooler either), I can whole heartedly say they are awesome, and that you'll enjoy it immensely! Congrats

[Brandon89]

Hahha, thanks coreying, yeah I need to get the full exhaust next hey. They are awesome with the stage 2 upgrades. Gotta love APR. Definitely do enjoy the car alot more now hey. do most of the guys turn the tunes off when they go for servicing? the the reason I ask is when I first got the downpipe I got an engine light ( catylitic sensor) and APR had to tweak something for me, so now if i switch to stock mode is that error going to be generated again?

[Corey_R]

With my MKV, switching back to stock mode did not cause the engine light to come on. But I guess it's pretty easy for you to check yourself.
When you have a Stage I car, I can see the attraction of changing back to Stock and enabling the security lockout. But when you have a Stage II car, there are several hardware modifications on display anyway.
I'd probably still change it back to stock, just so that the "test driver" doesn't drive out of the lot and put himself in the wall due to the unexpected massive performance difference between it and stock... but that'd be the only reason.