Superchips Bluefin, once bitten twice stoked!

[asa572]

Bought a second hand Bluefin from ZortoN (newbie here) over vwgolf.net last week.
Went through the process of getting the tune and putting it in only for it to do absolutely zilch!
I was pretty pissed off and on Friday night I gave Superchips a call in the UK.
Spoke to a Michael over their and he asked why I thought it did nothing.
I pretty much just told him that I know my car and it is no different with the tune installed.
He said he would look into it further and I will be sent an updated tune in about ten minute.
10 minutes later and the new tune arrives, I put it in my car and f#@k me, if that wasn't the best $500 I have ever spent on a car.
I don't know what happened first time around (I suspect I was given a standard tune, although they said I didn't) but all is forgiven.
I would have been just as happy with it at the RRP.

[brad]

I have to give two thumbs up for Superchips customer service.

They also have a very responsive rep in Melbourne & New Zealand.

[Ryeman]

I have to give two thumbs up for Superchips customer service.

They also have a very responsive rep in Melbourne & New Zealand.

I'm looking at a DNA upgrade for my 103TDI Yeti, now I'm not so sure.
Does anyone know how they compare .....bang 4 buck etc?

[Lucas_R]

I'm looking at a DNA upgrade for my 103TDI Yeti, now I'm not so sure.
Does anyone know how they compare .....bang 4 buck etc?

Having had both tune brands on my Golf R - i can give you the following feedback:

Superchips have faster service but weaker tune.
DNA slower to respond but more personalised service from John. Stronger/better tune.

My stage 1 tune from Superchips was ok and gave me a power increase (approx 20kw at the wheels) but the car was using alot of fuel. I spoke to the UK head office and tried several revised files (including a stage 2 file) but neither of them fixed the issue. The car was using about 2-3L of fuel more than it should have been and was blowing it all out the back.

I changed over to a DNA tune and the fuel issue was gone. My car was back to 9L per 100km (instead of 11-12L like it was with the Bluefin) and the tune was more powerfull.

Initially i decided against the DNA tune to try and save some money, but in the end i should have just gone straight to DNA as they were by far the better option on my car.

My brother also had the DNA tune on his 103TDI Octavia and it went like a bat out of hell for a stock TDI.

[brad]

I've only ever had Bluefin so my opinion of other tunes comes from the same sources that are also available to you.

The Bluefin is a very safe, "generic" from my experience. They send the same tune all over the world. I've asked several times & there's never been any type of update for my tune since 2009(?) which surprises me. I think the fact that I've been running for 80,000km without any tune related issues speaks volumes.

As a company, Bluefin have always answered my queries promptly. I believe DNA also have a good reputation for customer service. There are a couple of other tuners with a similar reputation that also produce good tunes.

What you should be thinking about is:
What type of power delivery are you after? (ie: the tune with the biggest peak numbers isn't necessarily the most drivable tune).

Can I get some dyno charts of customer cars with similar engines/drivetrains to see the changes in the torque & power curves?

Are you trying to achieve better economy in like-for-like driving?

Where/how do you drive?

Do you need a hand-held device to remove/add the tune? (and is this possible on your ECU)

Where is the nearest dealer?

If VW write over your tune, how do you recover it & what does it cost?

Can you get a trial period tune? How long is the trial?

If I don't like the tune can I get my money back? How long do I have to decide if I like the tune?

[BrettD]

Damn how'd I miss that deal..

[brad]

Damn how'd I miss that deal..

What deal?

[Lucas_R]

I put it in my car and f#@k me, if that wasn't the best $500 I have ever spent on a car.

What deal?

^ that one id say.

[brad]

Might put out an EOI on mine & try something different.

[Lucas_R]

Might put out an EOI on mine & try something different.

If you are happy with the Bluefin then perhaps its not worth the trouble. In my case, i wasn't happy and they couldn't get the tune right - so i moved on to the other option i was considering.