sniperftw
Guest
My whole search for a company who provides a better remap began since i have been experiencing troubles with my current remap. As many of you know , i have been suffering from a problem known as "lean on idle" which threw my car into a soft limp mode. After numerous calls with Revo HQ, to sum up their response “it’s you, not us"! Suggesting that it was my hardware and not their software. Now for me, it’s not just solely about the product you receive it’s also about the customer service a company offers. This lack of product support left me at a loss of what to do. I spent countless hours and hundreds of pounds trying to diagnose the faulty part that Revo were positive was the cause of my problem. I spent almost £150 travelling down to JBS and getting them to look over my engine for any boost leaks, they even inspected my fuel pump for seizure and found nothing. So I eventually gave up and reverted to resetting the fault code every 25 miles using VAGCOM. Once I reset the fault code, the car ran like new for 25 miles, which lead me to believe that if I’d had a seized HPFP, it wouldn’t run like new just because I reset the fault code.
It eventually clicked that I’m looking at software issues, rather than hardware. Another call to Revo and I was fobbed off with another excuse. The very least I would expect is “well bring it in, we’ll check the software and see if we can find the problem” I began searching for a company to take my custom elsewhere, which is where I stumbled across APR. I knew they were dominant in the states and so I began investigating some of the work they had been up to. This is where I learnt about the Revo/APR scandal. So the thought crossed my mind that if Revo can do what they do with software that doesn’t belong to them, imagine what the original Software calibrators can do. I proceeded to exchange emails with an employee of APR HQ in Milton Keynes, my initial contact was with Evan Light, who was the sales and operation manager for the UK. You can tell that APR are giving a good crack at the UK market as Evan has been flown in from the states, along with a great team of engineers and calibrators. I made an offer for him to switch me from Revo to APR, in a hope to solve the fault code I was plagued with. So…What was in it for them? Well they got to compare their rival’s software with their own, revise some older calibrations with new techniques and of course the publicity that would come of it, should they prove to be better. Also I offered to write a review (be it good or bad) detailing the difference that I found. This proposition was met with such enthusiasm and interest that it generated a new love and excitement for my car that I had once lost. Due to this being a FOC publicity stunt, I thought that it would be on the back burner for a while, but the next email from Evan was asking me to bring it down that week to redevelop the K04 software that hasn’t been visited since 2009.
So I awoke on the Wednesday Morning, ridiculously excited as I’m sure all of you are when you’re about to have some work done to your pride and joys. I began the drive down to Milton Keynes which for me was about an hour and a half away. After day dreaming about a car with no fault codes, I arrived and was greeted by Evan himself. After getting the pleasantries out of the way, he began to show me around the unit, showing me some of the projects they were currently working on, introducing me to the team etc. etc.
Fabia 1.4 TSI testing a turbo that shall
remain nameless!
All Stage 3, including the little black sleeper
From just the first walk around, you could tell that this was a serious workshop with people who knew exactly what they were doing, as you’d hope. The engineers were happy to discuss what they were working on and you could see the enthusiasm emanating from what they were saying. They didn’t seem bored with what they were doing and this just solidified the fact that my car was in good hands.
Stage 3 TTRS (awesome APR badging)
Now, to get down to business, APR are using a top of the range Maha dynometer which is arguably one of the best. Now due to the noise produced from the dyno they are limited to how many runs they can do in the day, but fear not because their determination means they enjoy...yes, enjoy, working until 1.30am…Every night, getting those all-important dyno runs in.
So, what did I do whilst I was there? I was taken for a ride in this… a stage 1 Rocco, now I can’t remember the exact figures (sorry Evan) but I know it was stage 1 and just feeling the smooth delivery of raw power, just put my heart at rest.
Now, I didn’t get to ride in this one, but boy did I want to! I think this is Stage 2+ but Keith, correct me if I’m wrong. So along with the blood pulsing joy ride, I also got a chance to speak to Keith Lucas, who is the Managing Director (also flown over from the U.S). I got to have a really good chat before I left for the night, speaking about what his aim’s and expansion plans were for the UK. Thankfully he said his main aim was to provide a service that wants to HELP, its customers, a service that is as enthusiastic about your build as you are and most of all a service that provides a product that is comparable to none. Needless to say I was more than excited about what was about to happen to my car over the next 24 hours.
I began the Journey home, with my mind focussed on one thing only. At about 21:30 that night I received a picture message showing why all of us Revo users notice a dip in performance around the 5,500 mark, which for me resulted in premature gear change to stay in boost. This is the best run that APR managed to get out of the Revo tuned car, which is respectable in power scales, but when you look at the “curve” you’ll be severely disappointed, not to mention concerned.
I should mention that this is taken just after the fault code is reset, so is running at optimum!
Shortly later, I received another message showing how the standard, 2009 APR K04 software was running, I’ll let you be the judge…
So, yes if you’re a figure chaser, we see that it’s an extra 6 BHP but the biggest change of all is overall smoothness of the power curves and how that it doesn’t fade off towards the end, which in reality will result in a smooth pull all the way through the gears with no fade off at the end.
So, this is where they got down to work, the lead calibrators worked late into the night doing extra runs, to revitalise the k04 software, which was the whole point of this exercise. So at 01.00 (at my request) I was sent the final run of the new v2.0 run on my Leon.
So here we have it, an overall increase of 18bhp, not exactly much of an increase on torque, but the final curve on this graph is absolutely outstanding. On retrospect I wish I hadn’t have asked to see these before I could drive my baby, because now this was all I was thinking about.
After a night of little sleep, I journeyed back down to the factory where dreams are made of, and Evan once again greeted me with a smile almost as big as mine, with the words “ tell me how she feels” as he handed me my keys back. The car drove exactly as it looks on the graph, smooth, insane delivery of power. Power that still holds you in your seat, but this time, it’s all the way through the gears, not just through the 2,500-4000 revs. It is indescribable the way this tune delivers the power. Once you drive the car with this new tune, you understand how APR have so easily dominated the states and are known as the No.1 VAG tuner over there.
So what I must mention is that the map itself did not solve my running lean code. After some time, the APR guys were able to pinpoint the problem, which is the MAF section of my ITG intake. Not sure why all ITG customers don’t experience this. Maybe they do and we don’t hear about it. Either way, they explained to me the benefit of running an induction kit with minimal-to-no changes to the MAF housing section.
I received an earful from Jyrki Repo who is the Director of Operations for Finland and lead calibrator for APR UK. Trust me when I say that you’ve not spoken to a tuner until you’ve spoken to Jyrki. Now 95% of the things he said went way over my head, however what I did pick up was that a lot of companies turn off certain protocols that means they can create more power, however the software that APR have available allows them to go deep enough into the ECU and modify(not switch off) certain modules to achieve their results, resulting in safer tuning.
It’s safe to say, I definitely feel part of the APR family and I have the power and badging to prove it!
So, what are the benefits to choosing an APR map over any of their competitors?
All 2.0T cars are £499+VAT
That’s not all, it’s free upgrades on all the stages up until Big Turbo!
You also can cycle through maps using an OEM stalk, so no need to be fiddling around with additional handheld devices.
Finally, and arguably most important it has now proven its results over its lead competitor.
So I have one question… What are you doing still reading this? GO APR
It eventually clicked that I’m looking at software issues, rather than hardware. Another call to Revo and I was fobbed off with another excuse. The very least I would expect is “well bring it in, we’ll check the software and see if we can find the problem” I began searching for a company to take my custom elsewhere, which is where I stumbled across APR. I knew they were dominant in the states and so I began investigating some of the work they had been up to. This is where I learnt about the Revo/APR scandal. So the thought crossed my mind that if Revo can do what they do with software that doesn’t belong to them, imagine what the original Software calibrators can do. I proceeded to exchange emails with an employee of APR HQ in Milton Keynes, my initial contact was with Evan Light, who was the sales and operation manager for the UK. You can tell that APR are giving a good crack at the UK market as Evan has been flown in from the states, along with a great team of engineers and calibrators. I made an offer for him to switch me from Revo to APR, in a hope to solve the fault code I was plagued with. So…What was in it for them? Well they got to compare their rival’s software with their own, revise some older calibrations with new techniques and of course the publicity that would come of it, should they prove to be better. Also I offered to write a review (be it good or bad) detailing the difference that I found. This proposition was met with such enthusiasm and interest that it generated a new love and excitement for my car that I had once lost. Due to this being a FOC publicity stunt, I thought that it would be on the back burner for a while, but the next email from Evan was asking me to bring it down that week to redevelop the K04 software that hasn’t been visited since 2009.
So I awoke on the Wednesday Morning, ridiculously excited as I’m sure all of you are when you’re about to have some work done to your pride and joys. I began the drive down to Milton Keynes which for me was about an hour and a half away. After day dreaming about a car with no fault codes, I arrived and was greeted by Evan himself. After getting the pleasantries out of the way, he began to show me around the unit, showing me some of the projects they were currently working on, introducing me to the team etc. etc.
Fabia 1.4 TSI testing a turbo that shall
remain nameless!
All Stage 3, including the little black sleeper
From just the first walk around, you could tell that this was a serious workshop with people who knew exactly what they were doing, as you’d hope. The engineers were happy to discuss what they were working on and you could see the enthusiasm emanating from what they were saying. They didn’t seem bored with what they were doing and this just solidified the fact that my car was in good hands.
Stage 3 TTRS (awesome APR badging)
Now, to get down to business, APR are using a top of the range Maha dynometer which is arguably one of the best. Now due to the noise produced from the dyno they are limited to how many runs they can do in the day, but fear not because their determination means they enjoy...yes, enjoy, working until 1.30am…Every night, getting those all-important dyno runs in.
So, what did I do whilst I was there? I was taken for a ride in this… a stage 1 Rocco, now I can’t remember the exact figures (sorry Evan) but I know it was stage 1 and just feeling the smooth delivery of raw power, just put my heart at rest.
Now, I didn’t get to ride in this one, but boy did I want to! I think this is Stage 2+ but Keith, correct me if I’m wrong. So along with the blood pulsing joy ride, I also got a chance to speak to Keith Lucas, who is the Managing Director (also flown over from the U.S). I got to have a really good chat before I left for the night, speaking about what his aim’s and expansion plans were for the UK. Thankfully he said his main aim was to provide a service that wants to HELP, its customers, a service that is as enthusiastic about your build as you are and most of all a service that provides a product that is comparable to none. Needless to say I was more than excited about what was about to happen to my car over the next 24 hours.
I began the Journey home, with my mind focussed on one thing only. At about 21:30 that night I received a picture message showing why all of us Revo users notice a dip in performance around the 5,500 mark, which for me resulted in premature gear change to stay in boost. This is the best run that APR managed to get out of the Revo tuned car, which is respectable in power scales, but when you look at the “curve” you’ll be severely disappointed, not to mention concerned.
I should mention that this is taken just after the fault code is reset, so is running at optimum!
Shortly later, I received another message showing how the standard, 2009 APR K04 software was running, I’ll let you be the judge…
So, yes if you’re a figure chaser, we see that it’s an extra 6 BHP but the biggest change of all is overall smoothness of the power curves and how that it doesn’t fade off towards the end, which in reality will result in a smooth pull all the way through the gears with no fade off at the end.
So, this is where they got down to work, the lead calibrators worked late into the night doing extra runs, to revitalise the k04 software, which was the whole point of this exercise. So at 01.00 (at my request) I was sent the final run of the new v2.0 run on my Leon.
So here we have it, an overall increase of 18bhp, not exactly much of an increase on torque, but the final curve on this graph is absolutely outstanding. On retrospect I wish I hadn’t have asked to see these before I could drive my baby, because now this was all I was thinking about.
After a night of little sleep, I journeyed back down to the factory where dreams are made of, and Evan once again greeted me with a smile almost as big as mine, with the words “ tell me how she feels” as he handed me my keys back. The car drove exactly as it looks on the graph, smooth, insane delivery of power. Power that still holds you in your seat, but this time, it’s all the way through the gears, not just through the 2,500-4000 revs. It is indescribable the way this tune delivers the power. Once you drive the car with this new tune, you understand how APR have so easily dominated the states and are known as the No.1 VAG tuner over there.
So what I must mention is that the map itself did not solve my running lean code. After some time, the APR guys were able to pinpoint the problem, which is the MAF section of my ITG intake. Not sure why all ITG customers don’t experience this. Maybe they do and we don’t hear about it. Either way, they explained to me the benefit of running an induction kit with minimal-to-no changes to the MAF housing section.
I received an earful from Jyrki Repo who is the Director of Operations for Finland and lead calibrator for APR UK. Trust me when I say that you’ve not spoken to a tuner until you’ve spoken to Jyrki. Now 95% of the things he said went way over my head, however what I did pick up was that a lot of companies turn off certain protocols that means they can create more power, however the software that APR have available allows them to go deep enough into the ECU and modify(not switch off) certain modules to achieve their results, resulting in safer tuning.
It’s safe to say, I definitely feel part of the APR family and I have the power and badging to prove it!
So, what are the benefits to choosing an APR map over any of their competitors?
All 2.0T cars are £499+VAT
That’s not all, it’s free upgrades on all the stages up until Big Turbo!
You also can cycle through maps using an OEM stalk, so no need to be fiddling around with additional handheld devices.
Finally, and arguably most important it has now proven its results over its lead competitor.
So I have one question… What are you doing still reading this? GO APR
