Golf MK6 GTD Bluefin Stage 1 Tune Review

[ryanjsoo]

Proud owner of a 2012 Golf MK6 GTD. Been looking for a first car for a few years and stumbled onto this platform after being impressed by a 2.0 TDI Tiguan. Was quite shocked that there really weren't many for sale but managed to find this immaculate example with 103,000kms. The car was deceased estate and always garaged. After a full service, it's been reliable, practical and immense fun over the last year. I've also learned heaps about car ownership and maintenance after lurking on the forums. A huge thanks to the kind posters whose advice and impressions have helped me to no end with my car!

This is definitely a platform that new drivers are taking seriously. Compared to the GTI, I found the used GTD's for sale were all in great condition, often driven conservatively and family owned. I personally felt it was a bit flat day to day in D mode where the transmission keeps the engine below boost. With the Stage 1 tune, the car is smoother to drive as it can hold gears longer when overtaking or driving uphill. It also has more top-end when required.

The Bluefin is an especially good option for those valuing convenient install and it is fully-reversible for insurance and servicing purposes (though most of these vehicles will be out of warranty). Still, I'm able to run the car stock day to day and enjoy a bit more power for the occasional track day, road trip or weekend drive.

As a disclaimer, I would like to thank Jonathan very much for his quick communication and for the unit tested for review today. Be sure to notify your insurance company when making modifications that affect the performance of your vehicle. All performance testing was conducted in a controlled environment, drive responsibly! I have no formal mechanical training and take no responsibility for damage to user’s vehicles, these are my personal impressions and experiences. I hope my full impressions below help those on the fence or apprehensive about performance modifications!



Introduction –


As modern vehicles have increasingly resorted to forced-induction in order to achieve greater efficiency, ECU remaps or tunes have become increasingly common as the most cost-effective performance modification on the market. None exemplify this more than Superchips with their Bluefin plug & go remap system that, at around half the price of a custom remap, takes convenience and value to a new level. With over half a million vehicles mapped to date, the Bluefin system is tried and tested with a wealth of reviews and feedback online. As I didn’t see any reviews specific to my model of car, I reached out for cooperation. Jonathan, who manages the Australian branch, was very quick to respond and provided terrific support and responsiveness along the way. You can read all about the Bluefin tune and buy one for yourself here and browse Superchip's range here.


Install –



The package includes the handheld device and mini-USB cable, a computer with internet access is all else that is required. Video instructions are also available on the Superchips website and the process is identical for most vehicles. Of note, the MK6 GTD and TDI also require a different handheld device (VAGH-T) than the GTI (VAG-T) as they employ a newer ECU. Installation is intuitive with instructions on the handheld’s screen in addition to clear prompts on the PC software. It’s is as simple as downloading and installing the software from the Superchips website onto a computer and plugging the handset into the OBD II port on the car where it leads the user through the steps to back up the stock map.

Once back up and connected over USB to a desktop or laptop with Bluefin software and internet, the device begins uploading the map to Bluefin servers, and a modified map is emailed to the user’s specified address. Though the software states that the new map can take up to 8-hours to receive, mine was emailed almost instantaneously. The new map is then loaded onto the handheld after which the device contains both stock and stage 1 map. It is now able to load these maps onto the car and the user is able to switch between the two as they see fit. The whole process took me 20 minutes and toggling between the maps only takes around 5 minutes with no computer necessary. The handheld can run diagnostics on certain vehicles, however, I was not able to find this function on the Golf.


Day to Day Experience –

Upon starting the car, I was greeted by a slightly smoother running engine with less of the Diesel chug that I was accustomed to, no roughness, and no knock. Otherwise, it was a very familiar experience when driving modestly until the oil was at optimal operating temperature. Low-end torque was improved by a fair degree making the car more liveable in start/stop traffic, especially as the car tends to hold higher gears for economy. Where the car felt dead above 3rd gear, the Stage 1 Golf pulled confidently in 4th and even 5th above 1500 rpm. This was very welcome as I find the 6 speed DSG seems to hesitate for a second before downshifting one or two gears when acceleration is needed, producing an aggressive lurch that is unpleasant to passengers. With the tune, the car is able to hold gears longer which contributes to an appreciably smoother driving experience.


Economy & DPF –


The ability to hold gears longer and produce the same amount of power at lower throttle input is also the logic behind claims that tunes can increase economy, approximately 10% according to Superchips. In real-world testing, I was able to achieve similar results, however, not in all circumstances. In fact, initially, I was seeing increased consumption during city driving, with an average of 6.8L/100km stock, yielding 665km of as opposed to 7.1L/100km and 625km of range with the map. Both times, I ran the car until the low fuel light came on and refilled 54L into the tank. Considering the boost in power, the increase in fuel consumption is negligible; for reference, that’s a 15% increase in power for a 5% increase in fuel consumption. Additionally, though my drives tend to be routine, the increased consumption could also have been due to increased traffic or perhaps greater usage of the AC given Australia’s recent heatwave. Take this with a grain of salt.

That said, the map did deliver during mixed city and freeway use where I saw average fuel consumption, as reported by the ECU, drop from 6.1L/100km stock to 5.4L/100km mapped representing higher savings than the 10% quoted on Superchip’s website. I am personally very pleased with this result and honestly wasn’t expecting any economy benefits at all. As a takeaway, don’t expect the same benefits when driving around the city, especially on Diesel vehicles with a DPF as I noted increased regens which does increase fuel consumption to some degree. The car still burns off the soot effectively and I didn’t find its function to be impaired by the tune so reliability is not affected. I also didn’t notice soot on the rear bumper as some users had mentioned on older PD vehicles. The map is designed to pass MOT emission tests and work within the parameters of the Volkswagen EA189 NOx emissions recall.

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