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Stage 1 and Performance Remapping in Nuneaton
If you drive the same roads out of Nuneaton every day, you already know precisely how your car behaves on them. That is the best reference point anyone could ask for, and it is why a performance map is judged here on feel and usability rather than on a number somebody printed out.
You already know exactly what you want changed
Ask most drivers what they want from a map and you get a power figure. Ask somebody who drives the same route twice a day and you get something far more useful: the pull out of that roundabout is lazy, it will not hold a gear on that climb, it goes flat when you need to get across at that junction. Those are specific, repeatable complaints about specific bits of road, and they are much easier to write a calibration around than an abstract target.
It also means you will know within a couple of miles whether it worked. Somebody who drives a route occasionally has to guess whether the car feels different. Somebody who has driven the A444 in both directions several hundred times does not have to guess at all. That cuts both ways, and we prefer it that way, because it keeps everybody honest about what actually changed.
So when you ring, describe the road rather than the spec sheet. Where the car disappoints you, in which gear, at roughly what speed, and whether it is worse loaded or worse cold. That conversation is worth considerably more than any headline figure we could quote at you over the phone, and it is most of the difference between a file written for your car and a file written for a category of car.
What a Stage 1 map is really doing
Manufacturers calibrate conservatively because they have to. One piece of software has to survive poor fuel, hot and cold climates, neglected servicing and every market the car is sold into, so there is deliberate headroom left in it. A Stage 1 map is written for one vehicle, on the fuel actually available here, with no hardware changes, and it works within the tolerances the engine and drivetrain were designed around.
The part you notice is almost always mid range torque rather than peak power, and on a commute that is the only part that matters anyway. Nobody merging onto the M6 at junction 3 is using the top of the rev range. They are using the middle of it, from a standing or rolling start, on a slip road that is shorter than they would like. Filling that in is what makes a car feel quicker on real roads.
We read the original calibration off the ECU and save it, log the engine on the road, adjust fuelling, boost and timing for how the car is genuinely used, then log again to confirm the change did what it was supposed to and that nothing is sitting outside sensible limits. That second set of logs is what separates a written map from a downloaded one, because it is the only real evidence that the file and the engine agree with each other.
Know exactly where your car disappoints you?Describe the road and the gear rather than a power figure. That tells us far more about what the map needs to do.
Call 07773 694570When Stage 2 is not the answer
Stage 2 assumes supporting hardware, usually improved intake and exhaust flow. Writing a Stage 2 file for an otherwise standard car is selling a label rather than a result, and we will say that rather than take the order. If you have already fitted parts, tell us what and we will write around them. If you are thinking about fitting parts, talk to us first, because the order you do things in changes what is worth spending money on.
There is also the question of whether more is the right ask at all. On a car that spends its life commuting, extra top end is the least useful thing you can buy. Better response and stronger mid range on the roads you actually use is a bigger improvement to your week, and it usually costs less. If you want both a livelier car and a cheaper one to run, an economy biased map is worth a conversation too.
How we keep it sensible
Everything is written for the engine, gearbox and state of tune in front of us, kept inside what the drivetrain was built to cope with. Your original file is saved before anything is written, so the car can go back to exactly how it left the factory whenever you want, whether that is for a sale, a lease return or a conversation with a dealer.
A remap is not a repair, and it will find an existing weakness for you at the worst possible moment. If the car has a fault light, a boost leak, a tired clutch or a part blocked filter, that gets dealt with first or the job does not go ahead. The car is road tested before you get the keys back, and on an automatic we will usually mention whether the gearbox software is worth looking at so the two are working together.
Performance Remapping in Nuneaton: your questions answered
What is a Stage 1 remap?
It is a map written for a car with no hardware changes, adjusting the factory software to release the headroom the manufacturer deliberately left in it. On a modern turbocharged engine that headroom is often considerable, and it is the largest single improvement available before you start spending money on parts. It is what the majority of road cars get.
How much power will my car gain?
It depends entirely on the engine, and any figure quoted before we have seen the car is a guess. A modern turbocharged engine has far more available than a naturally aspirated one. What we will do is give you a realistic expectation for your specific vehicle before you commit to anything, rather than an average that may have nothing to do with it.
Will I notice it on my normal commute or only when pushing on?
On your normal commute, if the map is written properly. The useful change is in the mid range, which is where all ordinary driving happens. Pulling away, getting up to speed on a slip road, holding a gear on a climb and overtaking on a single carriageway are all mid range jobs, and those are the parts of a familiar route people notice first.
Is it safe for the engine and gearbox?
When it is done properly, yes. The work stays well inside the tolerances the engine and drivetrain were designed around. The risk comes from generic files loaded without any regard for the individual vehicle, its condition or its mileage, which is not how this is done. Every file is written for the car in front of us and logged afterwards.
My car is on finance. Should I still do it?
Tell us at the enquiry stage and you will get a straight answer. Finance, lease and warranty all change the calculation, and a manufacturer warranty can be affected if a fault is traced back to the map. Because the original file is saved, returning the car to standard is always possible, but it is better to have the conversation before the work than after it.
Do I have to tell my insurer?
Yes. A remap is a modification and should be declared in the same way as any other change. Most insurers deal with it without difficulty once they know. An undeclared modification is the version that causes problems, and it tends to cause them at exactly the moment you need the policy to work.
Will it make the car worse on fuel?
Not automatically. Driven the same way afterwards, many cars use the same or slightly less, because the engine is working less hard for the same result. Driven enthusiastically because it is now more enjoyable, it will use more. That is a decision made with your right foot rather than something the calibration forces on you.
Can it be taken back off?
Yes. The original calibration is read and saved before anything is written, so the car can be put back to the factory file. That matters when you sell, when a lease ends, or when a dealer wants the vehicle standard before they will discuss something.
How long does it take and do I need to bring the car anywhere?
Usually around an hour to ninety minutes on site, longer on some vehicles depending on how the ECU has to be accessed. We come to you in Nuneaton, so it can happen on your drive or wherever the car sits during the working day. The workshop in Lutterworth is available if you would rather bring it in.
Does the car get road tested?
Yes, and that is part of the job rather than an extra. Logging on the road before and afterwards is how we confirm the engine is behaving the way the file intended and that nothing is running outside sensible limits. You get the keys back after that, not before.
Somebody has already mapped it. Can you work on it?
Tell us when you ring and we will read what is currently on the ECU. Depending on what turns up, we may suggest returning it to standard first so that we are building from a known starting point rather than layering work on top of a file nobody can account for.
What if you think a map is not worth doing on my car?
Then that is what you will be told. Some engines have very little in them, some cars are not healthy enough to take it, and on some vehicles the money would be better spent elsewhere. We would rather lose the booking than write a file that leaves you disappointed and out of pocket.
A map written for the roads you drive in Nuneaton
Custom written, road tested and fully reversible. Ring with the vehicle and what you want it to do better.
Call 07773 694570