Tdi-Tuning Box

[Uncle Buck]

Having owned my SR180 for almost 6 months & got used to how it drives, I decided to look into tuning boxes in the hope of bettering it's MPG figures. After much research & reading other people's experiences, I plumped for the TDI-Tuning box a few days ago. Although it's too early to report on any MPG improvement, I can confirm that it was easy to fit (taking 10 mins in total).

Initial findings are that the engine seems to run pretty much as normal, with only a slight change in the noise it makes (slightly louder at a certain rev frequency). Surprisingly I've only been able to notice a smoothing out of the rev range ie. it doesn't have a lump of torque low-down, it just seems to have a more linear feel. Revving it a couple of times to 3k rpm just to feel any difference, it actually feels less pokey than before which is odd. However, rather than suffer a knee-jerk reaction I'm going to leave it alone for this week & see how things go. I guess it may have to settle down properly yet.

As it came with a 14 day money-back guarantee, if it fails to deliver any meaningful MPG improvement over the next week then I'll be sending it back. It's currently set on the default level provided, which is level 10 out of 30 (meaning a supposed small increase in power/torque & 4-5 more MPG). Time wil tell . . . . . .

Before anyone suggests that I won't get any fuel consumption improvement by booting it, I'll be driving absolutely as normal this week. I didn't buy it for performance, just the hope of better MPG. It's also much safer to know how your car will respond in an overtaking situation, so those 3k rpm try-outs were essential.

[DazT180]

Any improvement on the mpg? Can i ask how much you paid for this?

[Uncle Buck]

Okay - a little update. Here's my observations so far ;

First 9 days - engine runs fine, still smooth, a little pokier now it has 'settled in' but MPG improvement was minimal. Driving completely as normal only achieved 0.5 MPG difference.

Not being happy with that, I contacted TDI directly & was given advice. Along with an email with adjustment instructions, I changed the default setting from programme 10 to 12.

So far this has released a little more overtaking oomph & seen an improvement to 41.5 MPG. I expect this to get a little better as it's only been on that setting 2 days.

I was also given an extra 3 days on the 14 day money back guarantee to give the adjustment time to work.

This cost me £289 inc p+p & so far has been a little disappointing, but you can tell the difference in pulling power. If the average MPG continues to improve then I'll be keeping it. I'll report back again in a few days :)

[mrpj]

As you didn't buy it for "performance" then it's surely going to take years to get your money back with the small increase in m.p.g.?

Fortunately there's the 14 + 3 day period during which you can reject it. Be careful they might deny allowing the extra 3 days grace! From what you write, to date, it would appear to be a waste of £289 to obtain a bit of "pulling power"? Are you sure that's not psychological and you're not unconciously giving it a bit more right foot?

[Uncle Buck]

I just wrote a long reply to this, only to be kicked offline & lose the whole dialogue - very annoying !

Average fuel consumption now stands at 41.7 MPG - a steady improvement over the previous figures & that's with extra torque. No, I didn't imagine it Mr PJ. I took it to a rolling road today to back up my hunches with fact.

It achieved 273.7 lb/ft of torque @ the wheels - not to be confused with the manufacturers figure of 295 lb/ft @ the flywheel. There is always an approx 15-20% loss from engine to transmission to wheels, so that first figure is definitely up on standard and feels it. It peaked at just 2552 rpm, showing how keeping the revs below 3k rpm helps economy & allows easier overtaking. This tune is mainly the result of slightly higher turbo boost pressure.

Interestingly, the power peak was 169.4 bhp @ 3709 rpm - showing no more than standard, so obviously the lower scale setting on the box is concentrating on improved torque & not power. Not too fussed about that as I very rarely use those kind of revs. Some people turn the adjuster up to get over 200 bhp, but you're not going to save any fuel there unless perhaps at a steady speed on a motorway.

So the differences from standard are there to see with factual results - not just the 'placebo' effect. :)

[Uncle Buck]

Time for a little update.

I decided to keep this tuning box in the hope that a longer term test would be worth it. Does it deliver what it claims, well here's my findings ;

1. If you're looking for massive gains in MPG (like the 10-15% they claim), then you'll be disappointed. I've managed to get a maximum of 2.5 MPG better overall since it was fitted. It's an improvement but not a big one.

2. If you regularly tow a caravan, boat or trailer of any sort then this box will definitely give you a boost in pulling power (or torque as it should be known).

3. If you want more outright performance, then I'm sure it'll deliver that too. I haven't had the setings anywhere near maximum, but the tuner who dyno-tested my car said they almost always do. He was very confident of a figure over 200 bhp if the settings were raised.

My plan now is to keep this box at least until this autumn/winter & then assess whether to keep it or sell it. I'll also be having a look at different settings, to see what differences they make.

I hope this has been of some help to folks who've been thinking of buying one of these tuning boxes. Or at the very least, some general interest for those inquisitive. :)

[Markham90]

hi mate,

I just purchased the exact same tuning box.

my intensions are slightly different. I want more power and more torque in day to day driving.

I'm by no means a dangerous boy racer, but i LOVE the feeling when somebody tries to get up your **** on the dual carriage way.

Most of the time the Auris is able to pull away and leave them way behind, and wondering what the hell is under my bonnet in an AURIS!!!?? well, now i want to be able to do that with the smug little BMW drivers who have a slight edge on me as standard.

i dont want to race, i just love the surprise factor it gives other drivers!

anyway it should arrive tomorrow, and i think i'll go for a higher setting than standard but no the full 30!

how did it feel uncle buck when you tried the higher settings?

[Markham90]

Mine arrived today. The female connector doesn't fit on to the car. Was yours a tight fit (impossible to click on) or have I been sent the wrong cable??

Not happy so far..

[Parts-King]

We all drive differently and we all drive in different situations. Although our manufacturer claims up to 25% better MPG, I never make those claims to anyone, notice they always say "up to" as a bit of a get out clause. Most of my customers get 3-6 better MPG, which on some cars might be 10-20%. Whilst a lot of people say they want better MPG, what they really want is the fantastic delivery of all that extra torque you get with a diesel

With any decent kit you should be able to feel a right kick in the pants for torque. Forget what the dyno says, it's how it drives that matters. On a T180 Ive never seen one make the claimed 177, usually about 166, but with one of our kits, Ive seen 201 BHP. Now at that amount of power, it is awful to drive, the power is on / off, so we set ours at mid 190 ish which makes for a much smoother ride.

I get lots of calls from people saying there is no power over 3K revs, well the max torque is about 2,500 revs so you should drive it correctly within the torque band (as Uncle Buck says) otherwise you just waste fuel, see dyno graph we took from a T180 that had the 212 BHP in it

[Uncle Buck]

Mine arrived today. The female connector doesn't fit on to the car. Was yours a tight fit (impossible to click on) or have I been sent the wrong cable??

Not happy so far..

Didn't have a problem with mine at all Lee, it was very easy to fit & took minutes to tie-wrap in place for safety.

As for the higher settings - I only took mine as far as Level 15 because it started smoking (ie. regenerating) much more frequently. When I spoke to TDI's customer service, the guy told me to turn it back down a little so I moved it to Lvl 13 & all was fine.

[Markham90]

Hi mate.

Mine doesn't have levels. It opens with 2 screws the. You position the little green clip over 2 prongs. I think there's only about 7 setting but they aren't numbered.

My female connector didn't click on to the cars origin male socket on the fuel rail. It stayed on and now works but never clicked in like the original. I was seriously pushing it on hard but no joy. I put the setting down to the lowest and tried again , seemed to work as it the engine light didn't come on. I increased the setting and I still seems fine.

I guess your box is slightly different...

[Uncle Buck]

It must be mate. Mine opened at the end via 2 screws as well, but then had 32 levels of tune - adjustable via the position of 2 little blue caps which fit on the prongs. I downloaded the level settings from an email TDI sent me & adjusted the cap position from there. The wiring loom extension had 3 connectors - 1st to the tuning box, 2nd to the original engine connector & the 3rd on the loom extension.

[Markham90]

My engine light come on when i go on to the last 2 settings. Did that happen to you?

It's simple to correct. Just move he pin back a space and disconnect the negative Battery terminal. Took me 5 mins in pitch black.

[TheSensibleCookie]

Remapping especially from one size fit's all boxes aren't going to do your car any justice.

The problem with more torque and power is that you're more likely to utilise it, thus your MPG won't improve greatly.

I'm just surprised you paid £289 which seems a bit steep. Is this the only option for Toyota owners?, as I know with my Golf I had live mapping done.

[Markham90]

There's cheaper options. But usually just a cheap component that fools the ecu.

This box uses the cars ecu and work within this models parameters.

The company claim they could get 240bhp outa this car. But they wouldn't as exceeds toyota buffer limits. I'd never get this car remapped. A box is plug in and unplug. Plus toyota a are notoriously hard to remap as the ecu is tough to crack and only works 50% of the time. This box can give up to 219bhp and 369lb ft of torque! Of

Course I'm going to utilise that lol.

The £280 box has a 3 year Warranty also.

[Markham90]

The box is not one size fits all its bespoke for the SR180

[Uncle Buck]

The box is not one size fits all its bespoke for the SR180

Correct - it's mapped specifically for the SR180 Auris. That's why it has to go back to TDI for a remap if you sell the car & want to use the box on another.

[Phil_1985]

What lingers over my head is if it's specific for the 2.2 180 why does it cause the engine light to come on when at it's upper settings?

[Markham90]

Because it uses the cars own ecu parameters

The car needs to learn the new map hence why you start on a low setting and gradually build up. Go on to tdi tuning website and look. It's programmed for each model. You can select all types if auris avensis yaris etc with different engine types. An auris 2.0 wouldn't work ok the 2.2.

According to tdi tuning the system should be able to be increased a level after the car has become used to running increased performance.

[Parts-King]

There's cheaper options. But usually just a cheap component that fools the ecu.

This box uses the cars ecu and work within this models parameters.

The company claim they could get 240bhp outa this car. But they wouldn't as exceeds toyota buffer limits. I'd never get this car remapped. A box is plug in and unplug. Plus toyota a are notoriously hard to remap as the ecu is tough to crack and only works 50% of the time. This box can give up to 219bhp and 369lb ft of torque! Of

Course I'm going to utilise that lol.

The £280 box has a 3 year Warranty also.

They are just figures and never really available in the "Real world" You could not drive the SR180 on a setting of 219 BHP, it would be horrid and most likely cause premature clutch or driveline failure very quickly

The Toyota ECU cannot be cracked, you cannot re-map it, the only way to go is with a piggy back tuning box

Kingo

[pedro9474]

I also looked into puting a tuning box on and did a wee bit of research into until i phoned and asked the insurance company if it would make much of a difference to my policy and direct line refused to insure me if i added one to the engine.Other insurance companies i got quotes from showed my insurance would be nearly double what i am paying now.

So i think i will stick with the standard power for now

Pedro ....

[Uncle Buck]

I don't want to appear like an advertising board here, but try Adrian Flux as I've found them to be reasonable for mods.

[Thumperzz01]

I got a good quote from them when I considered re fitting the Tunit box with a true 190 bhp at the wheels!

The Tunit site features my ex Redline white SR180 so may one day may get round to putting it back on -however I have no complaints with the standard power output.

Pete

[D4HELL]

Ive been comtemplating the dtuk tuning box for my 2.0 d4d, one of my friends who owned a BMW E46 320d had one installed on his car, didnt notice too much at first, not until a week or so after installing. Noticeable gains, no improvement on mpg (but this is a bmw after all).

Considering getting one, but in no real rush atm.

[StevieH888]

Ive fitted my Lindop toyota tuning box last night, apart from the cam shaft RPM plug which was tight to get to, it was easy to fix. I am absouloutely delighted with it, just serenely takes off, before you know it theres just a horizon with feint dots (of the guy that was up your rear a few seconds before) in your rear view mirror.