"SlickMcRick" (slickmcrick)
07/04/2020 at 09:30 • Filed to: None
2
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"SlickMcRick" (slickmcrick)
07/04/2020 at 09:30 • Filed to: None | 2
| 7 |
Honestly I had no intention on going this route so soon. I’ve just created the 8k mile mark and love the car for what it is. I’ve surprised quite a few vehicles with my ability to keep pace and sometimes overtake them. But after a series of ties and crushing defeats it is time to “level up”. A tuned First gave me fits and a Frost with a downpipe and exhaust got me good. I’m not going to even begin speaking on those HR Swapped Altimas .
I’ve been considering what my first mod will be for a while now. Initially I was thinking intake, lowering springs and exhaust (the car is ridiculously quiet). After those runs with local gas station crew I knew I had to pick performance over style and sound.
The thing about VWs especially with the EA888 motor is that there are soooo many times available. Almost too many if you ask me. So I did some research, of course APR was the first I thought about but didn’t want to just bite at the first thing I saw. Also I’m still running a stock clutch and the general consensus is that there tune isn’t too kind to stock clutches so I would have to budget money for that almost immediately because they really up the boost dramatically.
Next I researched piggyback tunes such as Racechip and JB4. They have there advantages in that you can easily remove the device for warranty work and they would be untraceable. Racechip sounded great for the price but I felt it was too good to be true. The reviews on the product were split down the middle, either extremely satisfied or tremendously disappointed. Therefore I shied away from that option. The JB4 has decent basemaps but also offers custom maps if you should choose to go that route. Currently I’m not in that market to intricately fine tune every detail about my car. There are too many maps to choose from, some can increase boost pressure to 8psi+. Sounds fun but I know I’d get carried away and probably blow something up .
At the end of the day I ended up going with Unitronics Stage 1+ and purchased the U Connect device so I can tune it myself or revert back to stock if I so choose. I can even add no lift shift and launch control at no extra cost. Speaking of which the tune is $100 off until July 10th if anyone is considering diving in. The key thing I like about Unitronic is that they don’t strictly focus on boost pressure. There main focus is ignition timing and drivability. Therefore they use boost by gear until you get to third. I will try to get to a Dyno for before and after results.
According to their site:
Needless to say this should be a good jump in the fun department.
Also it didn’t cost too much and with the $100 off it made purchasing the programming tool seem just a $50 purchase all things considered.
When the mod bug bites, it bites HARD!
404 - User No Longer Available
> SlickMcRick
07/04/2020 at 09:46 |
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I guess they didn’t think the name through. The name would sound funny to a medical doctor... someone’s uro needs some tuning.
Tripper
> SlickMcRick
07/04/2020 at 09:52 |
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Neeto. I did the APR+ tune on my Alltrack. Really happy with it, getting much better gas milage, a lot more room to breathe in each gear making it more drivable as well.
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SlickMcRick
> Tripper
07/04/2020 at 10:02 |
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That tune was also high on my list. Slightly because of warranty concerns but I've done at least 2 months of thinking and research before I pulled the trigger on this tune. The boost by gear is what really sold me on it. Eventually I will go stage 2 clutch but it won’t have to be something immediate and also won't eat tires like a stage 1 high torque file APR tune.
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Tripper
> SlickMcRick
07/04/2020 at 11:15 |
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Yeah I heard the internet boogie men about the clutch... willing to wager that it’s just that plus a few bad drivers.
Discerning
> SlickMcRick
07/04/2020 at 14:45 |
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Nice. Unitronic makes a good tune from what I have heard and the EA888 is a sweet engine.
I know it’s too late, but if you eventually go down the c ustom tuning route I would look into the Cobb Accessport before I went with the JB4. Now that you are flashed, you might as well stick with flashing going forward. The accessport is pretty cool and has lots of independent support too.
Can you use the unitronic tuning software to get a custom tune from other builders? Or is it just canned tunes like APR?
MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
> SlickMcRick
07/07/2020 at 08:38 |
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I researched Racechip a bit as well when I came across it and came to same conclusion as you. It seems a little too good to be true and reviews are hard to find or split. Didn’t seem worth the risk.
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SlickMcRick
> Discerning
07/07/2020 at 23:29 |
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Some people stack tune and use a Cobb or JB4 on top of the flash. I'm not going that deep until I pay the car off or run out of warranty. I definitely thought about custom tuning but I'll cross that road when I get there.