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APR Stage 1 or Stage 2?

Is the APR Stage 2 tune worth it or is Stage 1 enough


  • Total voters
    20

RapGameBlueberryWaffle

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Philadelphia, Pa
Car(s)
2016 Golf R
With APR discontinuing the Stage 2 I have very little time to decide whether or not it's worth the investment. The car isn't ready for Stage 2 but the idea was purchase Stage 2 now, but install Stage 1 and then when I'm ready install the Stage 2. I'm personally fine with what Stage 1 appears to offer but I do want to eventually install a downpipe and intercooler but the mechanic at the shop suggested Stage 2 if I were to go that route. Is the Stage 1 enough and will it work with a downpipe and intercooler upgrade, or is Stage 2 necessary?
 

reallypeacedoff

Ready to race!
Location
Los Angeles
With APR discontinuing the Stage 2 I have very little time to decide whether or not it's worth the investment. The car isn't ready for Stage 2 but the idea was purchase Stage 2 now, but install Stage 1 and then when I'm ready install the Stage 2. I'm personally fine with what Stage 1 appears to offer but I do want to eventually install a downpipe and intercooler but the mechanic at the shop suggested Stage 2 if I were to go that route. Is the Stage 1 enough and will it work with a downpipe and intercooler upgrade, or is Stage 2 necessary?

Stage II is necessary if you go DP route. Don't let people say it isn't. You will lean the car out and eventually grenade it.

Stage I is a big jump from stock. Stage II isn't as big jump from Stage I. But IC will allow you to have more fun over and over and Stage II is an animal when you learn the intricacies of it.

Stage I is great. If you went IC, you could keep it at Stage I. If you go DP, then you will need to do Stage II to sort out the differences in fuel/air etc.
 

new R Fan 2018

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Oviedo, FL
Car(s)
MK7.5 R
Stage 1 wakes the R the fck up very nicely!
Stage 2 wakes the R the fck up a tad MORE nicely!

I was very happy with my Uni 1+ stage 1 for a good 4 months but then just wanted that lil' xtra bump to stg. 2 and loved it even MORE! Good luck as you WON'T be disappointed whichever you decide.
 

Al_in_Philly

Autocross Newbie
Location
Philadelphia USA
It's all about what you want. Let's be real: for virtually any driving need on the street, a box-stock Golf R is already overkill. Going either stage 1 or stage 2 only gratifies wants. Bumping up the power on an EA888 is certainly doable, especially on the somewhat beefed up version found in the R; but any time you start increasing the pressure inside of an ICE's combustion chambers, reliability potentially is lessened, as well as the likelihood of blow-by past the rings and ultimately depositing carbon on one's intake valves. Then there's the drive train. Manual R's start out with a clutch which won't stand up to much abuse. Add a tune and you have to go for a stronger clutch which requires more pressure against the pedal. How much stronger of a clutch depends on how much stronger of an engine it has to transmit the power from. And let's not forget that your Haldex unit wasn't designed to happily handle the nearly 40% added torque of a strong stage 2 tune--will it die any earlier because of this? That's very likely; the big question is will the decreased longevity be very slight or painfully pronounced. DSG? They're more robust, especially with a TCU tune that increases the clamping force of the clutch plates; but still, more power means potentially greater wear.

What I'm saying here is that both a stage 1 or a stage 2 tune will give your R serious added oomph--the stage 2 just gives you even more, especially on the top-end where the increased exhaust flow provides added benefits. Just does that extra added power offset the increase in potential reliability issues in your mind--it all depends on what you want, and perhaps how long you plan to keep your Golf R.

Me? My R is my wife's and my daily driver. I was making this very decision last month, as my warranty will soon lapse. I've decided to go the Stage 1 route, as the relaibility aspect is maybe more critical to me than for many others with multiple cars. Plus, with "just" going stage 1, I can forego (at least for the time being) the cost of an intercooler upgrade as well as the downpipe, and instead spend that money on some suspension upgrades.

PS: Downpipe = Stage 2, as Reallypeacedoff already said.
 
Last edited:

ZuMBLe

Autocross Champion
Location
NY
Car(s)
Alltrack 6MT
Stage II is necessary if you go DP route. Don't let people say it isn't. You will lean the car out and eventually grenade it.

Stage I is a big jump from stock. Stage II isn't as big jump from Stage I. But IC will allow you to have more fun over and over and Stage II is an animal when you learn the intricacies of it.

Stage I is great. If you went IC, you could keep it at Stage I. If you go DP, then you will need to do Stage II to sort out the differences in fuel/air etc.

Sorry, but there is A LOT of bad information here. The only thing that is actually accurate is that Stage 1 is a big jump from stock.
 

ZuMBLe

Autocross Champion
Location
NY
Car(s)
Alltrack 6MT
With APR discontinuing the Stage 2 I have very little time to decide whether or not it's worth the investment. The car isn't ready for Stage 2 but the idea was purchase Stage 2 now, but install Stage 1 and then when I'm ready install the Stage 2. I'm personally fine with what Stage 1 appears to offer but I do want to eventually install a downpipe and intercooler but the mechanic at the shop suggested Stage 2 if I were to go that route. Is the Stage 1 enough and will it work with a downpipe and intercooler upgrade, or is Stage 2 necessary?

Don't bother with Stage 2. If you get an itch, upgrade to an IS38 turbo and run a DP file for it. </end thread>
 

ChrisMk77

Autocross Champion
Location
Sweden
Car(s)
2018 GTI Performance

JerseyDrew77

Autocross Champion
Location
Virginia & NC
Car(s)
2016 TR GTI S 6MT
I've heard much better things about APR stage 1 compared to Cobb Stage 1. Cobb Stage 2 is only $699 so in a year or two I won't mind spending the money. Plus the APR tune is being professionally done on a dyno, which for me is worth the experience.

APR is a canned tune. They are not using the dyno to tweak the tune like what a protune would do on a dyno. They are just using it to make sure everything is normal. GIAC did the same thing to my MKIV GTI back in 2004. I brought my car to a GIAC dealer, they threw it on a dyno and flashed my car and did one pull just to see if everything was operating normal.
 

ZuMBLe

Autocross Champion
Location
NY
Car(s)
Alltrack 6MT
I think what I decided is to go with the APR Stage 1. If I eventually choose to get a Stage 2 tune, I'll just uninstall the APR and get a Cobb or something.

Didn't catch that you had an R. Get a good tune from a Cobb tuner. When you get the itch pay for an ethanol tune. </thread again?> haha

APR won't do you wrong either, but you have more options with Cobb. The Accessport device itself is great!
 
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