Unitronic Stage 1 Vs Stage 2 - worth it?

[ZuMBLe]

Have two data zap logs. One of just one pull, 3rd in the series, and one of two pulls. First I let off early, second is true till 4th shift and so is the third.

Started a new thread on it
https://www.golfmk7.com/forums/index.php?threads/ie-stage-1-91-octane-3rd-gear-pulls.381143/

Reasonable timing curve with minimal timing correction. Probably won't be great on ethanol though cuz timing is low up top. It's safe.

 

[StorableComa]

Reasonable timing curve with minimal timing correction. Probably won't be great on ethanol though cuz timing is low up top. It's safe.

Good to know. IE doesn't support flex fuel or E85 at the moment, at least on the 1.8T, so 91/93 are tops. Being in CA, 91 is about all I can get. Though I planned a mild DD build, stopping at an IS20 so 91 works for me.

 

[ZuMBLe]

Good to know. IE doesn't support flex fuel or E85 at the moment, at least on the 1.8T, so 91/93 are tops. Being in CA, 91 is about all I can get. Though I planned a mild DD build, stopping at an IS20 so 91 works for me.

The 1.8 with a IS20 is about perfect for a worry free DD.

 

[BlueAnthracite88]

The 1.8 with a IS20 is about perfect for a worry free DD.

Do you think it's necessary to do a DP with the IS20? At least right away?

I ask because I got a 70k miles IS20 for $250. So a good downpipe is 3x the cost of the turbo and I can stay budget for now. I want to be able to start with a Stage 1+ tune and then eventually go with IS20 + intercooler. Then I can decide DP or DP + IS38.

Lastly I made up my mind yesterday to go with Unitronic tunes... I like the idea of being able to flash whenever I want for inspection or if I have engine troubles. I'm a dad so being able to do this stuff at home when the kids are asleep is a HUGE win.

I know it's higher entry price due to the Uniconnect but also the Stage 2 IS20 and Stage 2 DSG upgrade is $350 versus $200 or so for APR because APR doesn't have a Stage 2 TCU tune.

 

[Dog Dad Wagon]

Do you think it's necessary to do a DP with the IS20? At least right away?

I ask because I got a 70k miles IS20 for $250. So a good downpipe is 3x the cost of the turbo and I can stay budget for now. I want to be able to start with a Stage 1+ tune and then eventually go with IS20 + intercooler. Then I can decide DP or DP + IS38.

Lastly I made up my mind yesterday to go with Unitronic tunes... I like the idea of being able to flash whenever I want for inspection or if I have engine troubles. I'm a dad so being able to do this stuff at home when the kids are asleep is a HUGE win.

I know it's higher entry price due to the Uniconnect but also the Stage 2 IS20 and Stage 2 DSG upgrade is $350 versus $200 or so for APR because APR doesn't have a Stage 2 TCU tune.

no, do not go Unitronic. Don’t do that, they suck. I wasted $1350 or so on their tunes on my GTI, hated it.

you're much better off going Cobb + EQT and purchasing their IS20 DP tune, which will include every tune underneath it (including your non-DP IS20 tune). You will have a better, more engaging experience at all tune levels with better customer support and more power. Unitronic is just outdated and a snoozefest.

 

[BlueAnthracite88]

no, do not go Unitronic. Don’t do that, they suck. I wasted $1350 or so on their tunes on my GTI, hated it.

you're much better off going Cobb + EQT and purchasing their IS20 DP tune, which will include every tune underneath it (including your non-DP IS20 tune). You will have a better, more engaging experience at all tune levels with better customer support and more power. Unitronic is just outdated and a snoozefest.

Cobb doesn't have any support for the 1.8T though, only 2.0T. And do they have DSG tunes?

Interesting take on Unitronic. I know I read that a lot of people consider it "safer" which could mean boring.

Looking at their dyno charts they aren't bad.

Edit: I know JB4 is other popular home tuning but I have a P3 V3 gauge. I prefer reflashing the car.

 

[Dog Dad Wagon]

Cobb doesn't have any support for the 1.8T though, only 2.0T. And do they have DSG tunes?

Interesting take on Unitronic. I know I read that a lot of people consider it "safer" which could mean boring.

Looking at their dyno charts they aren't bad.

Edit: I know JB4 is other popular home tuning but I have a P3 V3 gauge. I prefer reflashing the car.

I literally always forget we can’t go Cobb on our cars. Sorry about that lol. Cobb offers custom tunes via the ECUTek platform for 1.8 customers, but still very different as they’re not building off of 2+ years experience on the Cobb tuning platform.

So ECU/TCU tunes are about way more than power figures. To me, one of the most frustrating issues with the factory tune is less about power, and more about throttle ramping. If you’ve seen a pedaltuner’s throttle amplification graph, that’s what I’m talking about.

The factory tune has an exponential growth curve, meaning throttle ramps up more and more the more you press, rather than being flat where it’s a 1-1 increase. Then there’s exponential decay where you get a lot of throttle for a little input, and it tapers to a flatter curve towards the middle/top.

I have had a stock-ECU GTI with a JB1, stock-ECU GTI with JB1 and pedal tuner, stock-ECU GTI with just pedal tuner, and I’ve had a stock GTI with Stage 1 ECU/TCU tunes from Uni, and finally I currently own a Stage 1 APR Plus (87 octane stock turbo low torque tune) 6MT Alltrack.

the two best setups I’ve had were the stock ECU GTI with pedaltuner and the APR Stage 1 6MT Alltrack. The Unitronic tunes were complete garbage, I couldn’t believe I wasted my money them. They were THAT unsatisfying. Uni tunes are essentially overpriced JB4 tunes that void your warranty. It’s like choosing the worst of both worlds. You get none of the throttle ramping/responsiveness of an ECU tune, and you get less power too, while Still getting TD1’d.

I strongly, strongly suggest anyone, even APR over Unitronic. APR is like the Apple of the VW tuning world. They make pretty good stuff. United Motorsport also does good work and they have staged IS20/IS38 tunes for the 1.8’s. Just don’t give your money to Uni, they really don’t deserve it compared to the more active tuners that actually care about the platform.

 

[BlueAnthracite88]

I literally always forget we can’t go Cobb on our cars. Sorry about that lol. Cobb offers custom tunes via the ECUTek platform for 1.8 customers, but still very different as they’re not building off of 2+ years experience on the Cobb tuning platform.

So ECU/TCU tunes are about way more than power figures. To me, one of the most frustrating issues with the factory tune is less about power, and more about throttle ramping. If you’ve seen a pedaltuner’s throttle amplification graph, that’s what I’m talking about.

The factory tune has an exponential growth curve, meaning throttle ramps up more and more the more you press, rather than being flat where it’s a 1-1 increase. Then there’s exponential decay where you get a lot of throttle for a little input, and it tapers to a flatter curve towards the middle/top.

I have had a stock-ECU GTI with a JB1, stock-ECU GTI with JB1 and pedal tuner, stock-ECU GTI with just pedal tuner, and I’ve had a stock GTI with Stage 1 ECU/TCU tunes from Uni, and finally I currently own a Stage 1 APR Plus (87 octane stock turbo low torque tune) 6MT Alltrack.

the two best setups I’ve had were the stock ECU GTI with pedaltuner and the APR Stage 1 6MT Alltrack. The Unitronic tunes were complete garbage, I couldn’t believe I wasted my money them. They were THAT unsatisfying. Uni tunes are essentially overpriced JB4 tunes that void your warranty. It’s like choosing the worst of both worlds. You get none of the throttle ramping/responsiveness of an ECU tune, and you get less power too, while Still getting TD1’d.

I strongly, strongly suggest anyone, even APR over Unitronic. APR is like the Apple of the VW tuning world. They make pretty good stuff. United Motorsport also does good work and they have staged IS20/IS38 tunes for the 1.8’s. Just don’t give your money to Uni, they really don’t deserve it compared to the more active tuners that actually care about the platform.

Thanks. So I'm pretty conflicted. I think the ease of Unitronic is worth it but anecdotally I've read posts from people on both sides of the fence with them.

I think if I go Unitronic I'll be very assertive and advocating with them just to make sure I have total grounds for a refund if it goes wrong.

If I go APR I'm at the mercy of my local dealer rep.

I did just hear back from Uni that they require a DP for their 93 octane IS20 tune so that's also a bit annoying.

 

[Daks]

Thanks. So I'm pretty conflicted. I think the ease of Unitronic is worth it but anecdotally I've read posts from people on both sides of the fence with them.

I think if I go Unitronic I'll be very assertive and advocating with them just to make sure I have total grounds for a refund if it goes wrong.

If I go APR I'm at the mercy of my local dealer rep.

I did just hear back from Uni that they require a DP for their 93 octane IS20 tune so that's also a bit annoying.

I'm running a Stage 2 91 file on my GTI.

 

[Dog Dad Wagon]

I'm running a Stage 2 91 file on my GTI.

We're talking about 1.8T w/ IS20 upgrade, stock 1.8DP.

 

[ZuMBLe]

Do you think it's necessary to do a DP with the IS20? At least right away?

I ask because I got a 70k miles IS20 for $250. So a good downpipe is 3x the cost of the turbo and I can stay budget for now. I want to be able to start with a Stage 1+ tune and then eventually go with IS20 + intercooler. Then I can decide DP or DP + IS38.

Lastly I made up my mind yesterday to go with Unitronic tunes... I like the idea of being able to flash whenever I want for inspection or if I have engine troubles. I'm a dad so being able to do this stuff at home when the kids are asleep is a HUGE win.

I know it's higher entry price due to the Uniconnect but also the Stage 2 IS20 and Stage 2 DSG upgrade is $350 versus $200 or so for APR because APR doesn't have a Stage 2 TCU tune.

IS20 with a stock DP and a conservative tune is going to be really good. This is the one time I would actually say Uni is the way to go. They use less boost in their tunes which makes the lack of DP more "optimal"?

With that said, I'm a big fan of the APR Stage 1 tunes. I ran APR Stage 1 IS20 for quite a while and it was absolutely trouble free.

 

[tigeo]

no, do not go Unitronic. Don’t do that, they suck. I wasted $1350 or so on their tunes on my GTI, hated it.

you're much better off going Cobb + EQT and purchasing their IS20 DP tune, which will include every tune underneath it (including your non-DP IS20 tune). You will have a better, more engaging experience at all tune levels with better customer support and more power. Unitronic is just outdated and a snoozefest.

You say this all the time in these threads. You had a GTI and didn't like Uni. Great...you aren't alone there....however...the 1.8 tunes however are v. good, lots of folks running them happily. Talk to me about my OTS Uni tuned Sportwagen with a 12.1/113.4 1/4 mile and 3.9 0-60 on their software and bolt-ons only. It's one of the fastest OTS Sportwagens I've seen in the MK7 Dragy spreadsheet. Hardly a snooozefest. Not sure what the issue is with the GTIs but for the wagons, their tunes are v. good. And obviously, no Cobb so that's out the door. United or Reflect for more customized options. APR is also v. good.

 

[Martin398]

I was Uni for 2 years. Only reason I switched is I went down the rabbit hole of a turbo upgrade and wanting custom tuning. In hindsight I wouldn't go Uni again but not because I was unhappy with it. It was an expensive stop gap while I himmed and hawwed about upgrading the turbo.

Uni was fine for me. No complaints. I knew what I was getting into. For a set it and forget it, flash at home tuning solution it fits the bill.

 

[Daks]

We're talking about 1.8T w/ IS20 upgrade, stock 1.8DP.

I understand.

I was told that a 91 file was unavailable for a GTI, but then I called and they sent me one.

 

[Daks]

I was Uni for 2 years. Only reason I switched is I went down the rabbit hole of a turbo upgrade and wanting custom tuning. In hindsight I wouldn't go Uni again but not because I was unhappy with it. It was an expensive stop gap while I himmed and hawwed about upgrading the turbo.

Uni was fine for me. No complaints. I knew what I was getting into. For a set it and forget it, flash at home tuning solution it fits the bill.

This is exactly it.