Tuning Boxes - Yes or No

[jaygee]

There are literally hundereds of tuning boxes for Volvo diesel engines but if I were to go down that road which one do I choose.

Speaking to a friend his opinion is - yes they work but they only up the amount of fuel going into the engine, they do not change the dynamics of the ECU to improve the performance.

I found this one http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VOLVO-DIES...ht_2852wt_1016 and it "claims" to improve the performance and MPG.

That being so then if it is essentially increasing performance by pumping more fuel into the engine, how is MPG increased.

I am tempted to get this one but have been told about a company called DTUK who are famous for their tuning boxes.

There are many others to speak of, do they actually increase performance and MPG?!

Opinions please!

[iainmd]

Very few of these tuning boxes do anything other than overfuel the engine to increase performance. The chances of achieving better MPG are slightly fanciful. There are some good tuning boxes available that actually connect to the ECU and/or injector loom that do actually work properly but they are about the same price as a proper remap in many cases.

Rarely will you find a tuning box that's as good as a remap.

[jaygee]

Originally Posted by iainmd

Very few of these tuning boxes do anything other than overfuel the engine to increase performance. The chances of achieving better MPG are slightly fanciful. There are some good tuning boxes available that actually connect to the ECU and/or injector loom that do actually work properly but they are about the same price as a proper remap in many cases.

Rarely will you find a tuning box that's as good as a remap.

AS I mentioned before DTUK are reputable and actually connect to the ECU.

I found this one on t'bay -

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DTUK-GREEN...#ht_500wt_1033

Think I'm gonna give it a go and see.

[noney82]

Can't you just get a remap? I don't understand all this but lol

[Ninja59]

a better idea is to remap by a long way IMHO.

[jaygee]

Originally Posted by Ninja59

a better idea is to remap by a long way IMHO.

I do agree with you but the boxes can be cheaper and the DTUK one does alter the ECU, which is essentially what a remap is going to do.

[t5frankie]

i used a tuning box on a citroen xantia 2.0 hdi 10, it was brilliant mate, could take roundabouts slowly in 3rd instead of 2nd, took 1.5 seconds off the 0-60 time and an extra 3mph top end but mid range had much more pull, meaning less gearchanges, mpg is up cos you have your foot down less hard on the throttle to achieve the same results

[Daim]

Those boxes are crap and again crap.

Why? Simple answer:

They "fake" some values/data the engine needs to run with. So it will say "Look, you didn't inject enough, add more!" and the ECU injects more. This does produce more power, but to produce that power, more fuel is used. If you have a DPF, it will clog that up even quicker causing it to more frequently regenerate and that costs? Yes! Fuel

A remap doesn't fake data. It changes the entire settings of the ECU. The programmed power and torque are changed/altered without faking anything. The engine CAN run, if driven without use of the extra power, more efficient. CAN because most people make use of the power they gain. Turbo boost, injection points, injection amounts, duration etc. are all altered to do this.

Tuning boxes are always a gamble. NON really work PROPERLY. They all CLAIM to do things but these CLAIMS are more or less impossible to achieve by simply adding an additional box to the engine.

[SonyVaio]

My thoughts can be found here at post #9:

LINKY!

[jaygee]

Just have to save up for a remap I guess.

As mentioned in the same post - there is a good local company to me that are renowned for getting good results and have a good reputation.