How are the EQT OTS / base Accessport tunes?

[jimlloyd40]

Just wanted to follow up on this after trying a couple things.

First, I first swapped in some NGK RS7's gapped to 0.024". Here's how they compared to the originals:
View attachment 206080
I've never done plugs before so I have no point of reference for how good or bad the old ones may have been. I wanna say maybe the car ran smoother after the swap but it's hard to rule out placebo effect.

I tried some pulls on Mobil 93 on the Stage 1 91 tune (still v2.50) and everything looked great. I then popped the Stage 1 93 tune (also v2.50) back on. The KR numbers were exactly the same, so we can rule out both bad plugs and Costco 93 as the issue. Maybe it is just lousy winter blend after all. We'll be running the 91 tune for now...

The old spark plug looks fine.

 

[zoominms3]

Just to input to the original question, I ran EQT Stage 2 OTS map for around 4 months and had lots of knock retard and other issues, felt like the engine was really straining itself. I referred to Jon at 5150 and his THOTS Stage 2 tune and the car feels like it should have come from the factory this way. The power is smooth and usable, not overly aggressive and harsh (my experience with the EQT map). Not sure if im an outlier but the 5150 map has been far superior than the EQT.

I came here looking for this info! I have been getting lots of knock on EQT and everyone just says “glovebox”. Sorry. Knock across all cylinders @ WOT is an issue. Switching to 5150

 

[PowerDemon]

I came here looking for this info! I have been getting lots of knock on EQT and everyone just says “glovebox”. Sorry. Knock across all cylinders @ WOT is an issue. Switching to 5150

So you were searching for what you wanted to hear so you could justify switching tuners? Did I read that right?

Nobody here says a lot of knock at WOT is normal. A little pull every now and then is pretty normal. You get guys asking all the time (especially on FB) if 1*KR on one cylinder for ~300rpms is safe which is why everyone’s knee jerk reaction is to say “glovebox”. That being said if you are having sustained knock across multiple cylinders I think there might be another cause. I would attempt to troubleshoot with your current tune before switching. My 2c.

 

[jimlloyd40]

I came here looking for this info! I have been getting lots of knock on EQT and everyone just says “glovebox”. Sorry. Knock across all cylinders @ WOT is an issue. Switching to 5150

Did you log it to see the knock?

 

[El_bigote_AJ]

I came here looking for this info! I have been getting lots of knock on EQT and everyone just says “glovebox”. Sorry. Knock across all cylinders @ WOT is an issue. Switching to 5150

Real question is have you put any efforts into diagnostics of WHY you’re getting higher knock retards in all cylinders?

 

[sterkrazzy]

Usually when people see knock on a stage 1 or 2 tune it's because they didn't verify the gap of their plugs, they aren't running 1 step colder, or they've got bad gas.

I've seen too many people ignore the recommendations for spark plugs and then they wonder why they have knock. I went a little overboard and installed NGK R7437-8's before I installed my tune. The gap was a little different for each plug so I had to gap them to .024 myself, but after a year and a half I've had 0 problems with knock between every revision I've ran.

I don't take chances with that kind of thing anymore. When I had my mk6 it was recommended to upgrade the coilpacks, but nobody told me it was a requirement. You know what happened when I was trying to drive home the day I tuned the car? I blew a coilpack. I was left stranded in a parking lot and only 1 auto part store in town had any coilpacks. After that I would tell everybody coilpacks are a requirement. I'd say the same goes with spark plugs and tunes on the mk7s. A tiny bit of knock shouldn't leave you stranded, but you might as well upgrade your car properly and do things right, so I consider plugs a requirement even if it's just a stage 1 tune.

 

[zoominms3]

So you were searching for what you wanted to hear so you could justify switching tuners? Did I read that right?

Nobody here says a lot of knock at WOT is normal. A little pull every now and then is pretty normal. You get guys asking all the time (especially on FB) if 1*KR on one cylinder for ~300rpms is safe which is why everyone’s knee jerk reaction is to say “glovebox”. That being said if you are having sustained knock across multiple cylinders I think there might be another cause. I would attempt to troubleshoot with your current tune before switching. My 2c.

I guess maybe I didn’t word that right. I was between eqt and 5150 from day one. I went with eqt and haven’t been impressed. I did reach out to eqt and was told to put the AP in the glovebox even showing a log with knock in all 4 at WOT in the upper rev range and it wasn’t a blip, we’re talking like -4°.

Did you log it to see the knock?

Yes I did. Between 5000ish and 6500ish knock across all 4 While WOT

Real question is have you put any efforts into diagnostics of WHY you’re getting higher knock retards in all cylinders?

Yes. I’ve run logs. Switched fuels. Tried adding E. Running step colder plugs. Contacted my tuner.

Usually when people see knock on a stage 1 or 2 tune it's because they didn't verify the gap of their plugs, they aren't running 1 step colder, or they've got bad gas.

I've seen too many people ignore the recommendations for spark plugs and then they wonder why they have knock. I went a little overboard and installed NGK R7437-8's before I installed my tune. The gap was a little different for each plug so I had to gap them to .024 myself, but after a year and a half I've had 0 problems with knock between every revision I've ran.

I don't take chances with that kind of thing anymore. When I had my mk6 it was recommended to upgrade the coilpacks, but nobody told me it was a requirement. You know what happened when I was trying to drive home the day I tuned the car? I blew a coilpack. I was left stranded in a parking lot and only 1 auto part store in town had any coilpacks. After that I would tell everybody coilpacks are a requirement. I'd say the same goes with spark plugs and tunes on the mk7s. A tiny bit of knock shouldn't leave you stranded, but you might as well upgrade your car properly and do things right, so I consider plugs a requirement even if it's just a stage 1 tune.

It’s running one step colder plugs gapped to 0.24 & I can pull them and check the gap on them again. See if maybe one is incorrect, but I gapped them myself with a feeler gauge.

 

[aaronc7]

If E didn't fix the knock, it's probably false knock. Some other noise or vibration causing it. At least in my experience. I see you're running RMM, that could be part of it, or some other part vibrating or something (downpipe for example).

Even running something mild like E20 basically makes my 91 tune knock proof

 

[jimlloyd40]

Running a colder plug can cause misfiring on a street driven car.


https://gensportunited.com/need-colder-spark-plugs/

 

[zoominms3]

If E didn't fix the knock, it's probably false knock. Some other noise or vibration causing it. At least in my experience. I see you're running RMM, that could be part of it, or some other part vibrating or something (downpipe for example).

Even running something mild like E20 basically makes my 91 tune knock proof

I never used to have these issues. I thought it was a crap tank of fuel so I added two gallons of e85. Still having the issue. I will recheck everything and make sure everything is torqued to spec!

 

[Ed @ EQT]

I never used to have these issues. I thought it was a crap tank of fuel so I added two gallons of e85. Still having the issue. I will recheck everything and make sure everything is torqued to spec!

As others have said, you have something else going on. If you added 2-3 gallons of E and it had no affect on the knock, you need to diagnose the problem. No tune will magically fix that unless you want to go custom and pull power out... and even then you may still have problems.

You could try running an injector cleaner through. I prefer Seafoam... 1 can to a full tank of gas.

 

[zoominms3]

As others have said, you have something else going on. If you added 2-3 gallons of E and it had no affect on the knock, you need to diagnose the problem. No tune will magically fix that unless you want to go custom and pull power out... and even then you may still have problems.

You could try running an injector cleaner through. I prefer Seafoam... 1 can to a full tank of gas.

Thanks Ed. I will try seafoam. I’ll try anything. I would like to iron this out and not have to worry about it all the time! I would love nothing more than to glovebox my AP and only take it out for updates. I was very disappointed in the glovebox response after posting a log on the fb group and then having the post locked. Clearly whoever it was didn’t even bother to look at the log or acknowledge the knock @ wot. I will update after seafoam is complete. These plugs have only 5k on them but if I need to scrap them to see if they’re the issue then I will do that as well.

 

[Doge]

If I'm thinking about going stock IS38 turbo for my GTI, do I have to do custom tune or can I use OTS tune for Golf R instead?

 

[jimlloyd40]

If I'm thinking about going stock IS38 turbo for my GTI, do I have to do custom tune or can I use OTS tune for Golf R instead?

Just get an EQT OTS tune for it if you don't want a protune.

See @PowerDemon 's post below my response. It sounds like you'll be stuck with the Cobb OTS tune for the GTI IS38 tune. So a protune would be your only option unless another Cobb tuner has an OTS GTI tune for the IS38.

 

[PowerDemon]

Thanks Ed. I will try seafoam. I’ll try anything. I would like to iron this out and not have to worry about it all the time! I would love nothing more than to glovebox my AP and only take it out for updates. I was very disappointed in the glovebox response after posting a log on the fb group and then having the post locked. Clearly whoever it was didn’t even bother to look at the log or acknowledge the knock @ wot. I will update after seafoam is complete. These plugs have only 5k on them but if I need to scrap them to see if they’re the issue then I will do that as well.

The FB groups (for the most part) consist of children. You are talking about a group of people who love nothing more than straight piped stage 1 cars with a "pops and bangs" tune. You should treat them as such.

You are more than welcome to post those logs here. We have several members here who I consider to be very well versed in interpreting datalogs.

If I'm thinking about going stock IS38 turbo for my GTI, do I have to do custom tune or can I use OTS tune for Golf R instead?

Yes. EQT does not offer OTS IS38 tunes for the GTI. R tunes will not work with a GTI.