going stage one soon

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FreddyG
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going stage one soon

Post by FreddyG »

Once i get my accessport and my cai (getting hopefully tomorrow), I plan on going stage one but I was doing a ton of research as the best way to tune my car. Cobb has ok generic maps but I was also looking at torqued performance, alot of people bragged about their tune but I just wanted to get all of your opinions. I dont want to do open source because I like the convenience of having the accessport there in the car and how small it is and its ability to store the stock tune.
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Mr Kleen
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by Mr Kleen »

You can store the stock map with OS tuning. :wink:

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drwrx
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by drwrx »

I have seen numerous Dyno Charts of Torqued Performance's tunes and they have looked pretty impressive. Early on they used to post logs of their tunes and I never remember anyone calling out any issues. There are also a number of folks who sell OTS or custom staged maps:
The ones that I have seen (and purchased as well as used in some cases) that I thought were quite decent are:
XPT Tuning: www.xpttuning.com (I've purchased and seen a number of these maps)
PDX Tuning: www.pdxtuning.com (These as well)
PhatBotti Tuning TKR: http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthr ... ?t=2200994 (One of the most active tuners and posters on NASIOC)

The folks above are active on the Opensource forums (most are developers) and post-up their dyno and log info on NASIOC / IWSTI and others and are very helpful and service oriented. Any will likely serve you well.
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by avriette »

FreddyG wrote:Once i get my accessport and my cai (getting hopefully tomorrow), I plan on going stage one but I was doing a ton of research as the best way to tune my car. Cobb has ok generic maps but I was also looking at torqued performance, alot of people bragged about their tune but I just wanted to get all of your opinions. I dont want to do open source because I like the convenience of having the accessport there in the car and how small it is and its ability to store the stock tune.
Out of curiosity why no downpipe/TBE?
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FreddyG
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by FreddyG »

money lol, i will eventually
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drwrx
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by drwrx »

avriette wrote:Out of curiosity why no downpipe/TBE?
A Shorty down-pipe makes a huge difference, and can be had pretty cheap.
For the 02-07 wrx a stromung is only $18-$190.
For 08-12 WRX or STi there are some even cheaper. (Julian can you find that NASIOC post?)
FreddyG
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by FreddyG »

i know about the shorty pipe but i still have the stock exhaust, can i run stage 2 on the stock exhaust with a dp? and will the shorty limit my power since it'll allow the second cat to be there?
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by drwrx »

I used XPT stage 2 on my 04 WRX with a shorty down pipe / STi up-pipe and IC Y-pipe.
And we still added timing across the board and leaned the mix back a bit.
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by FreddyG »

haha it sounds too good to be true lol im hesitant
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Sabre
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by Sabre »

Did I hear my name? :lol:

Cheap long and short downpipes

Yep, you can keep your original map from your car if you do an Open Source tune. You just need to flash it back if you want to run it. I believe the case is the same for the COBB Access Port, so you really don't gain much (besides a lighter wallet) from running the AP...
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by FreddyG »

hmm do you guys run opensource? im just confused as to how it works and the ap seems way easier to use and more convenient. Does a map change the amount of boost or do i need a boost controller? Sorry for all the questions guys i read on nasioc and anywhere on the internet a lot, and I'm learning but there's just still things I can't find a straight answer for.

Looks like a Kartboy sts will be my next mod sorry to go off topic but do you guys recommend replacing all the bushings even though the car is practically brand new? And does anyone have a snap ring pliers i could borrow :)
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by Sabre »

FreddyG wrote:hmm do you guys run opensource? im just confused as to how it works and the ap seems way easier to use and more convenient. Does a map change the amount of boost or do i need a boost controller? Sorry for all the questions guys i read on nasioc and anywhere on the internet a lot, and I'm learning but there's just still things I can't find a straight answer for.

Looks like a Kartboy sts will be my next mod sorry to go off topic but do you guys recommend replacing all the bushings even though the car is practically brand new? And does anyone have a snap ring pliers i could borrow :)
No problem, trust us, we understand. There are a lot of opinions out there and sometimes it can be hard to tell who to trust!

I've tuned numerous cars with Open Source software, namely ROMRaider. Both Open Source tuning and the Access Port do the same exact thing: They reflash, ie reprogram, the computer in the car. The COBB has taken the time to develop various stages for almost every turbo'ed Subaru out there, and that is what you are buy with the Access Port. Both can swap maps very easily, it just takes about 2-3 minutes.

Both the Access Port and Open Source software such as ROMRaider can change your boost levels through changes in the boost maps. Figure 15HP for every PSI of additional boost. Large gains can also be made by advancing timing and leaning out the fuel maps.

If you're in there replacing the shifter, you might as well do the bushing too. Just be aware that it will make the shifter very notchy and stiff. If you want to feel what this feels like, I would ask Happy Idiot to bring his nice red WRX wagon to the next meet :)
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by FreddyG »

i'll definitely have to get in contact with him, seriously thanks for the information julian. Now with opensource tuning with rom raider and whatnot, can you actually tune the car yourself manually changing the maps or do you just log and send it away to someone who has the right software to create a map for you? And all you need with open source tuning is a tactrix cable and a computer with rom raider correct? If i did an opensource tune do you think it would be wise to get gauges to monitor my car or do you think i would be safe if i didn't if i did go stage 2.
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by Sabre »

Yes, with ROMRaider you can either load maps you've bought (see DRWRX's post above. This is highly recommended!) or you can change the maps (tune) yourself. This last option is really not recommended unless you know what you are doing. It is actually very easy to kill your engine, so I highly recommend just loading maps that you buy until you are comfortable with tuning yourself.

If you buy a map, a lot of times you can contact the author to have the map tuned further. You do this by taking logs (they will tell you how) and sending the logs to the author. Once they get it, they will change the map and send it back to you. All you need to tune/load maps from Open Source is a Tactrix cable (we have a couple of them if you want to borrow one) and RomRaider/ECUFlash.

If you go with the maps that you can buy from XPT for example, you shouldn't need gauges as the maps will be safe for your car. That being said, it's always good to have a boost gauge.
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by Mr Kleen »

I had an AP 1.0 running the stage 2 map. Once I did a turbo swap I sold the AP, went open source and never looked back. All this on my only car.
FreddyG
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by FreddyG »

haha ok just saw that he adjusted timing and fuel. I think I'm going to acquire that shorty dp, aem cai, and spt exhaust and see where I want to go from there. Opensource just seems a little scarier when it comes to tuning and ap seems a little more convenient, but then again when I first got the car I didn't even want to tune it lol plus you guys know way more than me so I think i should just go for it and hope for the best. And how often do you guys reflash because I've read some doing it seasonal and some doing it almost never unless the battery gets disconnected.
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by HappyIdiot »

Sabre wrote:
If you're in there replacing the shifter, you might as well do the bushing too. Just be aware that it will make the shifter very notchy and stiff. If you want to feel what this feels like, I would ask Happy Idiot to bring his nice red WRX wagon to the next meet :)
I'll be bringing mine out to the next HT meet. I also have a clutch shortening kit installed that I highly recommend.
Mr Kleen wrote:I had an AP 1.0 running the stage 2 map. Once I did a turbo swap I sold the AP, went open source and never looked back. All this on my only car.
And I'm still thoroughly enjoying it :D
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Mr Kleen
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by Mr Kleen »

FreddyG wrote:Opensource just seems a little scarier when it comes to tuning and ap seems a little more convenient, but then again when I first got the car I didn't even want to tune it lol plus you guys know way more than me so I think i should just go for it and hope for the best. And how often do you guys reflash because I've read some doing it seasonal and some doing it almost never unless the battery gets disconnected.
One good tune is all you need, no reason to run a tune so agressive you have to reflash seasonally.

When you reflash the basemap it's saved in non-volitile memory within the ECU so disconnecting the battery won't wipe that out, just the "learned" map.
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Re: going stage one soon

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Mr Kleen wrote:
FreddyG wrote:Opensource just seems a little scarier when it comes to tuning and ap seems a little more convenient, but then again when I first got the car I didn't even want to tune it lol plus you guys know way more than me so I think i should just go for it and hope for the best. And how often do you guys reflash because I've read some doing it seasonal and some doing it almost never unless the battery gets disconnected.
One good tune is all you need, no reason to run a tune so agressive you have to reflash seasonally.

When you reflash the basemap it's saved in non-volitile memory within the ECU so disconnecting the battery won't wipe that out, just the "learned" map.
beautiful, looks like im going open source then, seems like the better choice i think I'll just hold off until after winter. thank you everyone for the awesome help and understanding of how this all works.

*EDIT* is this the only thing i need besides a computer hardware wise?
http://www.tactrix.com/index.php?option ... &Itemid=53
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by Sabre »

^^^ Yep, that's it :) As I said, we have a couple of them around, so if you don't want to buy one, we can flash the map for you.
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FreddyG
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by FreddyG »

I think I may just save up and buy a cheap laptop and a tactrix cable, but maybe after i get back from christmas at the folks house I could meet up with someone and get my car flashed by you guys?
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by Sabre »

Sure, just let us know :)
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by zaxrex »

Pacific Geek has some cheapo dell laptops for sale in their nooner offers. Bare bones refurb units w/o OS, they just might fit the bill.
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by FreddyG »

Alright so I have my laptop with ecuflash and rom raider and all the proper definitions, just ordered my tactrix cable and i already have a tune for my car with aem cai, does anyone want to help me once i get it all in? I get the basic idea of how to do it along with instructions but I would love a little directions the first time I tune my car.
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Re: going stage one soon

Post by Sabre »

Sure :) As soon as you get the cable, I'll help you flash it (or if I get my cable back first, I can do it for ya!)
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