I have just fitted a TuningBox to my company demonstrator and just thought I would let everybody know the results. I have spoken to many people in Europe, where VAG TDi's seem to rule the roost - many talk about their Golf/Ibiza etc TDi fitted with a TuningBox. Having owned many Diesel cars over the past few years I was quite interested in this supposed 'Box of tricks'
Anyway, it arrived on Thursday morning all the way from Belgium, nicely packaged and not broken(!)
Fitting the unit entailed removing the engine acoustic cover and unplugging the wiring loom to the Fuel Injection Pump and connecting in the unit by means of a 'T' joint. Took less than five minutes and only needed a screwdriver.
Ran the car up the road and WOW! what a difference!
It's difficult to explain the driving characteristics here but when the standard engine used to run out of puff @ 3750rpm ish, but now there is now another powerband, useable right up to the 5000rpm red line - to this effect I can be on the motorway at 95mph, put my foot down and the car accelerates rapidly. The car also feels much more tractable at low revs. There is no increase in engine noise or exhaust emissions. It is a little early to guage fuel consumption, but early impressions point towards a slight increase, but that is due to my new-found eagerness with my right foot!
So I now have a two litre diesel car with nigh-on 130BHP and 330Nm of torque (It's the +60Nm torque that gives the car the performance boost) I just need better brakes now..........
Any of you sceptics out there, go to their website at www.tuningbox.com - it's full of performance data & information etc. The car will be performance-tested on a rolling road soon to see the 'real' gains.
I can honestly say it is the best £425 performance add-on you could have
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David,
So what model is it?
Plus is the torque boost at the top end or do you also see it @ the bottom end as well. This might be a nice solution to the 75 manual's hole in torque low down. Still fancy an auto though, (I know I know, got to get out more!)
B rgds,
Stuart
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David,
Here is the voice of misery.
Top man that your are I'm sure you are giving a fair assessment. If it is so good and easy to fit why has the car maker not done so? If it was part of the car from new perhaps no extra costs involved.
Long term engine reliability issues??
David
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I would be interested in the answer to this, I'm thinking of getting a 75 Tourer diesel, but what I'm hearing about low speed torque is not very positive although fuel consumption sounds good.
At the risk of starting an entirely new thread, does anyone know of a Rover approved upgrade to the 75 CDT?
Mike
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Take it to a BMW dealer and get him to fit the bits that give a 320D a lot more power and torque.
HJ
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The car it is fitted to is a 2001 Rover 45 Diesel
This engine is the L series direct injection diesel used previously in the 220/420 Diesels since late 1995. It is uprated from the factory in 25 and 45 models by fitment of the latest Bosch VP44 Fuel Injection Pump and six hole injectors to enable the engine to meet strict EU3 exhaust emission standards. This pump delivers fuel at a higher pressure and has resulted in a real flyer of an engine. It is by far our best seller. If you don't believe me pop into your nearest dealer and test drive one - you will be impressed. That's also why we run a 25 Diesel as a courtesy car!
As with most diesels, there is still a spot of turbo-lag at the bottom end, but the real benefits are to be had in the mid-range - at 2500rpm there is a real surge of torque and it remains useable up to the red line. It makes for effortless overtaking and easy hill climbing work. I'm now flying up hills in 5th gear which before needed the use of 4th gear.
Mike, at the moment MG Rover do not approve of any TuningBox fitment, but it is so easily removeable, then who's to know? With the advent of MG models (38 days to go!) some of which will be diesels, who knows what MG Rover have up their sleeves?
I personally don't think this modification will affect short or long term engine reliability - just abide by the sensible oil & filter changes etc. Looking back at the earlier thread regarding TuningBox, a comment was posted upon the cambelt life - I for one cannot see any link between cambelt durability and this box of tricks.
I'm also very sure that TuningBox will give Rover 75 drivers BMW 320D performance, the same applies to the six cylinder BMW diesel unit in Vauxhall and Land Rover applications, which is detuned in these vehicles.
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I can't help it but my probably old fashioned cynicism comes to the fore when I hear of such add ons to an engine such as the Tuning box on this thread.
Questions comes to mind such as why for example do Vauxhall/Opel with their superb Ecotec DI engines not fit a box of electronics to their engines to increase the BHP. Instead they fit an intercooler and increase the turbo boost to give 100ps for the DTi as against 83ps for the DI.
This is achieved at 4300rpm for both engines. Surely a little box of electronics which they could cobble together for a few quid would be the road down which GM would travel if it was deemed satisfactory from an engineering point of view.
Anyone with a few tools can adjust the fuelling and wastegate settings on a diesel engine to increase fueling and boost pressure with increased power (and smoke) being the result.
But common sense tells me that if the gains were achieved without any downside the manufacturer would do it for you.
We all know that diesel pumps incorporate a governor to prevent the engine revs going above a preset level, as the optimum power band is well below this setting I cannot see any gain by revving above this level anyway even if it were possible.
is there something I am missing with this add on magic box and would one of you guys please explain why the mighty GM, Ford, etc etc don't stick them on to all their cars. My gut reaction is that it is another one of the hundreds of gimmicks we have seen advertised over the years which promises so much for so little. Youv'e all seen the old western films with Dr Good selling his cure alls in little bottles from the back of a wagon..............
Come to think of it I once bought some!!!! didn't work.
Alvin
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I read a quite substantial article in either Car or Performance Car back in the 80s about this very point (relating to chipping petrol GTIs). Gist was manufacturer tunes for a specific computer controlled test profile for official mpg/emission figures. This profile doesn't actually relate well to a real user in traffic etc. etc. So along come people who crack the profile from the chip and then rework it given some knowledge of what "real" drivers do/want. Upshot of this is a v small penalty in consumption but redistributed torque characteristics allowing use of higher gears, which offsets the increased fuelling, or better full bore performance which is only used sparingly, usually just for overtaking, again which means consumption is not massively increased. However, drive it like the gas peddle is a switch (off/on the rivot) regularly and the increased consumption could be very noticeable.
Seems plausible, but never had one to play with so I'll have to side with the "experts" until advised otherwise.
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As I've reported on earlier threads, the TB has completely transformed my Focus tdi's performance & 'Fun-factor', in all thge ways claimed by others above. Fuel consumption 'with TB' is not significantly worse than 'without', although I seem to have got a particularly thirsty car!
I did have a duff TB for a while, so if you buy one & it doesn't 'perform', talk to the (v friendly/helpful) importer.
Roger
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