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Sportwagen Tune Options IS20 or Not

D

dareo

New member
Location
Utah
I paid off my 16 sportwagen 5MT, put 20k miles on it, and i'm ready to void the warranty. I have a nice IS20 sitting around. Plan was APR IS20 tune during the current sale.

Problem: My gaskets won't be here in time to install it before the sale ends. What would be the harm in getting it flashed (87 IS20 OEM DP) and just babying it back to my garage with the IS12? If i stay out of boost the car won't know the difference IS12 vs IS20 even tuned right?

Talked to a guy at APR who said they would not pre sale a tune and the car had to have the IS20 or no tune. Local dealers suggested i have the turbo on first as well.

Solutions: Sell IS20, do APR 87 stage 1 and be happy. I've been good with the stock power since 2015, but the IS20 is well within reach. I suppose i could install the IS20 and then go pay full price for the APR tune but i would be bitter about it.

JB4 Route: JB4, wireless, app, ect nearly $600.00, savings of $100 or so vs APR installed cost.
Slightly cheaper and i can mess with it to get the power band i want. What i don't like is having the extra stuff plugged in along for the ride. Self install is a great feature. APR dealers are like 40 miles away and M-F only.

I use the car as my primary commuter and typically stay under 60 mph, have no plans to drag strip or track the car. For these reasons the power of APR 87 would be enough for the traction i have. Why 87? Headroom, I figure the 87 tune on 91 will not stress the engine long term.

Is there any other good tuning options i should be looking at?

Thanks!
 
Jedimk7

Jedimk7

Drag Race Newbie
Location
Cali Red Triangle
You have APR, unitronic, maestro, United motosport for is20 tunes, others if you stay stock turbo like giac[emoji41][emoji106]

Sent from my Gavin Belson black box signature edition
 
tigeo

tigeo

Autocross Champion
Location
Richmond, VA area
For your use why not a Unitronic Stage 1+ (93) and skip the IS20...plenty of power and great DD/commuter. I actually think running any tune on 87 is potentially more risky than a premium fuel tune.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
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D

dareo

New member
Location
Utah
I always fuel up with 91 octane even stock. I just dont want to push the car as hard with the advanced timing of the 91 and 93 tunes. 87 tune doesnt leave that much power behind imo. I inquired about Maestro but was told they only support the AWD DSG golf wagons so far.
 
PLF8593

PLF8593

Drag Race Newbie
Location
Philly
Car(s)
19 Alltrack 6MT
dareo said:
I paid off my 16 sportwagen 5MT, put 20k miles on it, and i'm ready to void the warranty. I have a nice IS20 sitting around. Plan was APR IS20 tune during the current sale.

Problem: My gaskets won't be here in time to install it before the sale ends. What would be the harm in getting it flashed (87 IS20 OEM DP) and just babying it back to my garage with the IS12? If i stay out of boost the car won't know the difference IS12 vs IS20 even tuned right?

Talked to a guy at APR who said they would not pre sale a tune and the car had to have the IS20 or no tune. Local dealers suggested i have the turbo on first as well.

Solutions: Sell IS20, do APR 87 stage 1 and be happy. I've been good with the stock power since 2015, but the IS20 is well within reach. I suppose i could install the IS20 and then go pay full price for the APR tune but i would be bitter about it.

JB4 Route: JB4, wireless, app, ect nearly $600.00, savings of $100 or so vs APR installed cost.
Slightly cheaper and i can mess with it to get the power band i want. What i don't like is having the extra stuff plugged in along for the ride. Self install is a great feature. APR dealers are like 40 miles away and M-F only.

I use the car as my primary commuter and typically stay under 60 mph, have no plans to drag strip or track the car. For these reasons the power of APR 87 would be enough for the traction i have. Why 87? Headroom, I figure the 87 tune on 91 will not stress the engine long term.

Is there any other good tuning options i should be looking at?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

I like the way you think a lot. Definitely go APR 87, or even APR 91 (imo). If you plan on running 91/93 anyway, might as well get the bang for your buck.

Though I do 100% understand and also subscribe to the same thought process about modding. I'm in the land of 93 and I'm getting a 91 tune soon.
 
PLF8593

PLF8593

Drag Race Newbie
Location
Philly
Car(s)
19 Alltrack 6MT
tigeo said:
For your use why not a Unitronic Stage 1+ (93) and skip the IS20...plenty of power and great DD/commuter. I actually think ruining any tune on 87 is potentially more risky than a premium fuel tune.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

He said 87 tune, running 91/93. So definitely not risky, since the tune would be for low octane and he'd be putting in high octane for maximum headroom.
 
tigeo

tigeo

Autocross Champion
Location
Richmond, VA area
Yes sorry understand but i think this train of thought is overly risk-adverse...may as well enjoy the extra power from the higher octane tune...they are safe snd the worry is unfounded. But sure, for this use, the 87 tune will be fine. Final thought, the issue with APR (who is the only one with a 87 tune) is the dealer issue...with Unitronic, you can do it in your garage but their base-tune is a Stage 1 91.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
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D

dareo

New member
Location
Utah
I got it worked out to get the IS20 tune, and the sale price. I think the 87 tune is all about the timing and having more conservative timing will result in fewer detonation events over the life of the car. It's only 7lb torque difference, (19hp in top end) and it will be very unlikely to knock and pull timing. Would the 91 tune on my 91 octane knock and pull timing? Possibly. I bet that 91 tune runs worse than 87 tune with any knock.
The lower torque will help my clutch last longer and keep me out of the elite club of broken 5 speed transmissions on here.
If i want more power i'd go downpipe, and reflash to 91 at same time.
Thanks for the inputs!
 
T

TXBDan1

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
MA
Cool, let us know how the 87oct APR IS20 goes. I"m sure it'll be awesome.


I have the 87oct APR Stage 1 and its great. It turns out APR knows what they're doing.
 
tigeo

tigeo

Autocross Champion
Location
Richmond, VA area
For sure on the timing, that's really it. The 91/93 tunes just advance the timing more which allows more power. Unitronic's tune from what I understand uses more timing vs. boost like APR. Interested to hear your impressions!
 
D

dareo

New member
Location
Utah
I got it flashed, still on IS12, drove it home at light throttle, 40 miles. It drove just like it wasn't tuned but maybe 2 more highway mpg. Now i have to tackle the turbo swap!
 
TwinDad

TwinDad

Autocross Newbie
Location
Fort Lee, NJ
Mrc5z said:
87 OCT IS20 tune?
Click to expand...

I don't get it either. Even the 93 tune is very conservative on the timing. They are ots tunes, not a protune that is maximizing everything for the 91 octane. They have plenty of safety cushion in them to run the 91 octane tune on 91 octane without issues. I still don't even get why 87 and tune should even be grouped together. It's like, I want to spend money to get more power, but I don't want to spend more on gas to protect my engine. not his case here, but it is with the guys who want to run 87 still.
 
D

dareo

New member
Location
Utah
Yes, 87 octane IS20 with OEM downpipe tune. The dealer didnt even know it existed. I just want it to last as long as possible. I am about 1/3 of the way through the turbo install. Working on VWs sucks, i shoulda bought the special pliers for those hose clamps!
 
Z

ZuMBLe

Autocross Champion
Location
NY
Car(s)
Alltrack 6MT
You will enjoy it. You'll probably notice the car will be a little laggier down low once the IS20 goes in, but you'll get used to it. I use my car to haul a lot of gear up and down mountains. The IS20 really makes the car a pleasure to drive at altitude and just pulling up hills. You may need to downshift, but it will pull real good at part throttle.

dareo said:
Yes, 87 octane IS20 with OEM downpipe tune. The dealer didnt even know it existed. I just want it to last as long as possible. I am about 1/3 of the way through the turbo install. Working on VWs sucks, i shoulda bought the special pliers for those hose clamps!
Click to expand...
 
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