bhp

im looking for an S70 T5 at the moment which produce 240bhp. i was looking at so many tuning companys that deal with volvos. im looking for about 290-300bhp mods. some companys say they can get me that bhp with just a remap (rica, ppc etc).... how true is this? has anyone had a remap and had 290-300bhp proven on rolling road? could someone help?

[foggyjames]

Hehe...a hot potato. I'm of the opinion that software alone cannot achieve the magic 300bhp figure. 270-280 is probably more realistic for one of the 240bhp-stock models. A nice upgrade, for sure, and good value too.

On 'my' pet dyno (Power Engineering, Uxbridge), for a long time the only T5 to have hit 300 crank hp was Hedley's former S70R, which had a 19T turbo, large all-alloy intercooler (probably not directly contributing to the peak figure, but prevents heat-soak for extended high-power hooning), 3" exhaust from the turbo-back, and (IIRC custom-mapped) MTE software.

If you can only do one upgrade beyond the chip, do the turbo...but be aware that you'll not make the most of it without the exhaust. Adding the IC is about making it a more rounded package, and it's something many people here don't bother with, as it's non-essential.

cheers

James

[Dan F]

Originally Posted by foggyjames

Hehe...a hot potato. I'm of the opinion that software alone cannot achieve the magic 300bhp figure. 270-280 is probably more realistic for one of the 240bhp-stock models.

Hi James.
Quick question....
A guy on another thread on here has said he has 220BHP with just a remap on his 1.8T VW Passat. (standard @ 150BHP)
No-one questioned the veracity of this statement, and yet a lot of people out there say they have gained 70BHP with a chip alone.
So why is it possible on the VW 4 pot but not the Volvo 5 pot? Any ideas?
Cheers bud,
Dan.

[foggyjames]

Well I don't know a damn thing about the VW 20v lump for a start, so it would be foolish of me to comment!

The limitations on the Volvo engines seem to be put in place by the factory hardware....specifically the small turbos (even a 19T is a pretty small turbo for the size of the engine...although that does make it nicely 'streetable').

Volvo have historically had a policy of de-tuning their engines on a hardware level...and that is true of the T5s, too. Not sure about the latest generation...but that rings true for all the 'P1' cars.

cheers

James

[Rooster]

All tuning companies are going to spout a certain amount of crap,

70bhp from a 20v turbo lump with just a chip, yeah it might be making that power but how long will it last before it lets go,

In my opinion i carn't see one chip been a great deal differant to another, yeah maybe odd bits will be differant but on hole it will be same on a standard car anyway,

BHP means sod all anyway, its torque that wins races, eg civic type R's, yeah they have 200bhp but you have to sit them nearly on pin to get anywhere,

[foggyjames]

Oh no, not the bhp vs torque minefield.

As I understand it, a torque figure by itself is actually rather meaningless. BHP is a measure of 'work', as it's a function of time. As long as you quote peak BHP at the RPM point where it's achieved, you can work out the rest for yourself. I.e...
CTR: 200bhp @ 8500rpm or whatever
T4: 200bhp @ 5800rpm or whatever
...it speaks for itself how the two engines will behave.

Without short gearing, the CTR will be slower (my 360's problem at the moment...mismatched power delivery/gearing)...and even with that gearing, it'll have a restricted top speed (without having lots of gears) and be nasty to drive on-road.

As far as I can tell, assuming the gearing is matched to the engine powerband and test road speed window, a pair of cars with the same power curve (but different location relative to RPM) ought to be as quick as each other, regardless of where they make that 200bhp.

The other way of putting it is that my 360 with 145lbft of torque can get its ass handed to it by the (heavier) CTR, which also has 145lbft....as the CTR is able to apply that torque at a higher RPM, and thus do more 'work'.

cheers

James

If a ECU upgrade is really the way you want to go then ...

Why don't you choose a tuning company that has access to a rolling road whilst they tune, do a 'before' rolling road to get a bench mark figure and then have the car tuned, pop it back on the rollers and do an 'after' run - you can't get more accurate than that. Some companies may charge you extra but if you are generally worried about claims it would be money worth spent, wouldn't you agree? If you don't get the figures you want ask for the upgrade to be removed and don't pay for it! (you might have to pay for the rr though).

Nat xx

[daves60rr]

Originally Posted by Dan F

Hi James.
Quick question....
A guy on another thread on here has said he has 220BHP with just a remap on his 1.8T VW Passat. (standard @ 150BHP)
No-one questioned the veracity of this statement, and yet a lot of people out there say they have gained 70BHP with a chip alone.
So why is it possible on the VW 4 pot but not the Volvo 5 pot? Any ideas?
Cheers bud,
Dan.

i used to have a seat cupra, that had the same 1.8T engine, there were certain companys claiming they achieved x power from that engine, but alot of hot air really, i think u get with all marques.

[RT Mechanics]

Originally Posted by Rooster

All tuning companies are going to spout a certain amount of crap,

70bhp from a 20v turbo lump with just a chip, yeah it might be making that power but how long will it last before it lets go,

In my opinion i carn't see one chip been a great deal differant to another, yeah maybe odd bits will be differant but on hole it will be same on a standard car anyway,

BHP means sod all anyway, its torque that wins races, eg civic type R's, yeah they have 200bhp but you have to sit them nearly on pin to get anywhere,

Hi not All tuning companys talk crap ! ,if you want to go to dead accurate rolling road i would only ever go to a dyno dynamics RR,you will not find a more accurate one.

Have a look at there web site for info.

Russ

[pyaap]

Originally Posted by RTMECH

if you want to go to dead accurate rolling road i would only ever go to a dyno dynamics RR,you will not find a more accurate one.

Hi Russ,

What are your views on Rototest equipment? (www.rototest.com)
I believe there are very few companies in the UK who use Rototest equipment (I presume due to the high cost of purchasing one) but there is one in London:

http://www.tdi-plc.com/rrpage.html