Performance improvements through software upgrades

[Steve Lyle]

Hi, I am thinking of improving the performance of my 981 Boxster S and wondered if anyone has any experience of having a software upgrade done (on any naturally aspirated modern 6 cylinder Porsche)? In particular I am thinking of DMS and Superchips (and any others you may have tried).
Thanks, Steve

 

[dpoynton]

I can't help with your query, but if you proceed don't forget to inform your insurance company.

 

[CFo]

No direct experience, but when I've looked at the possibility for other non-turbo cars I've had (Jag, Alfa), software alone doesn't seem to produce much gain.

 

[Craiglm68]

Hi Steve,

I've had experience of DMS recently (December time), waters muddied a little as I had a new air filter (K&R) and cat back exhaust upgrade (via Carnewal) installed a few days before visiting DMS. All I would say it that the work has made a material difference to performance as per "The Butt Dyno" (I was only expecting circa 6-8 extra HP from the 1st 2 mods alone)....happy to share thoughts , msg me directly

Cheers

 

[Briggy]

Try MRC tuning in Banbury. See http://www.mrctuning.com/index.php/remapping/

They are the go to place for Audi RS models and list Porsche as on one the other brands of cars they work on. They remapped my RS4 from 420bhp to 440bhp, but don't be fooled by the meagre gains as the difference was night and day. For example they remove the torque limiter in the first 3 gears, allow sport to be engaged all the time instead of only when exceeding 3,000rpm, ported manifold, gutted pre-cats etc. I really don't know what they can do for your car, but I do know that what they do, they do very well.

Cheers,

Bryan

 

[Steve Lyle]

Hi Craig,

Not sure how to "message you directly" but interested to know which model you have, what DMS did, how long it took and what it cost? How has the improvement manifested itself?

Hi Briggy,

Thanks for the lead - I have emailed MRC.

Regards, Steve

 

[turbo jonny]

FVD are well worth checking out . They are one of the best with proven and safe results .

The 981 S is a detuned motor and responds very well for moderate cost . On my list

if i keep this car .

 

[MrDemon]

I would avoid the VAG boys tuning shops on Porsche tuning.

but really a 981 will get you 10bhp as most so it's not worth the risk

you need to delete some cats and increase air flow then you can get 380BHP from the 981.

only people really tuning the 981 is COBB and Jens, leave everything else well alone.

 

[CLIFFWILKINS]

Don't forget if you have a Porsche Warranty any Mods may invalidate your warranty.

 

[Steve Lyle]

Hi Cliff, it is because my Porsche Warranty has run out (and they would not renew - but that is another story!) that I feel free to start tinkering. Given your role and obvious extensive Porsche experience, have you found them to be reliable even when tuned?

 

[Tracy_Wilkins]

Sorry Steve we have never tuned a Boxster because of the warranty I think at best I once changed the air filter to a K&N.

I think from my understanding on Normal Aspirated engines its small gains unless you start spending big money.

Obviously a different story on Turbo models I suspect.

Probably better off upgrading brakes and suspension if that's your bag especially if tracking or even going on a driving course.

Most Porsches I have owned are more than capable on todays roads or the occasional light track day.

Might be worth a call to our Technical Boxster advisor Steve Winter at Jaz Porsche in St Albans.

Cheers.

 

[rich mich]

I work in a engine test lab on dynos for ford and jaguar, n/a engines can be tuned but as said above you will only get small gains,turbo engines you will get good gains just by increasing boost and fuel.and timing, if you look at a 981 boxster engine it is less powerful as a 981 cayman engine I bet the base engine is the same it is all done in the mapping ,same as some ford vvt engines ,a few years ago we had a 1.6 vvt sigma engine which could have 115 ps,125 ps or 136ps base engines were all same,just maps were different.

 

[turbo jonny]

FVD Brombacher's tune safely pumps the 981 Boxster S from 315 hp to 352 hp/291 tq. I'm not normally an advocate for tunes since most aren't the product of actual automotive software engineers, but Germany's FVD Brombacher's software engineers were actually trained and worked for Bosch and Siemans in Germany and have extensive factory expertise in writing software code for Porsche. They also don't remove ANY of the OEM software safety features. Win-Win.

Cobb , as mentioned above , are at least as good and offer the same gains for 981 S .

 

[ratedrkstevo]

Thinking about doing the same myself.

At the moment, I'm looking at 3 options:

DMS - seem to have had the best reviews in regards to just a tune

Celtic - good history of tuning but figures quoted are less than DMS but are half the price

Cobb - most expensive

If I can get a Cobb Accessport with PDK flashing for a decent price, I think I will go for that. Tempted to give DMS a go though.

 

[white944]

On a normally aspirated petrol motor you're likely to see an increase of 3-5% on the headline BHP figure. However a decent remap can be tailored to iron out a lot of the legislative emissions related compromises in the software improving drivability massively in some cases and scoring a huge gain on the seat of the pants dyno. If you want to speak to someone reputable about this, I can recommend Iggy at Zensport. He's on 01376335947.

 

[ratedrkstevo]

OP - Hope you don't think I'm trying to hijack the thread, just updating on my last post.

After a lot of online research and talking to a few guys across the Atlantic who have experience with Cobb, I am going to take the plunge and order the Accessport with PDK flashing.

The map itself doesn't give massive gains - 5/6% at best. It's the extras that have swayed me... PDK relearn and being able to flash the PDK in addition to the map is proving really good in terms of extra performance. Some of the figures posted are excellent. I can have a custom tune through the Cobb if desired and the biggest plus point is that I can put the car back to standard at any point. Will report back when I have fitted it to the car.

 

[ratedrkstevo]

All fitted now, super pleased with the results. If anyone is interested PM me for details etc.

OP - Hope you don't think I'm trying to hijack the thread, just updating on my last post.

After a lot of online research and talking to a few guys across the Atlantic who have experience with Cobb, I am going to take the plunge and order the Accessport with PDK flashing.

The map itself doesn't give massive gains - 5/6% at best. It's the extras that have swayed me... PDK relearn and being able to flash the PDK in addition to the map is proving really good in terms of extra performance. Some of the figures posted are excellent. I can have a custom tune through the Cobb if desired and the biggest plus point is that I can put the car back to standard at any point. Will report back when I have fitted it to the car.

 

[ratedrkstevo]

On a postive note...

Had the Cobb now for a month. Tested on rolling road, 20bhp gain and around 30lb ft torque in the mid range. PDK flashed to Cobb Sport, which gives it race start. Ran some timing tests and also tested the car versus my friends cars through the peak district. The car has been transformed. Acceleration 0-100kph is seriously quick and on B-Roads I left my group of friends for dead. Considering my car is seriously underpowered compared to the cars my friends own, everyone was shocked at how quick the Boxster is now.

On a negative note...

My growing family means I might be selling the car, which means the Cobb is up for sale. Details in the 'For Sale' section. For anyone with a Boxster/Cayman S, I would say this is a must have product. If I do sell my car, I will return to the Boxster in the future and the Cobb will be my first purchase.

 

[Boris the spyder]

Be interested to know a brief description of why they would not renew warranty, this happened to me even though it passed its 111 check with flying colours.

 

[Steve Lyle]

Mine failed the 111 point check on three counts: 1) non "N" spec Continental tyres 2) driver's full harness belt fitted & 3) additional grills fitted behind radiator vents in wheel arches to prevent stones jamming the cooling fan (which happened 4 times in 18 months!).

All the above were done whilst the car was already under warranty and no comment was made even though I did have some warranty claims. I contacted Porsche UK head office and was told that if I returned the car to standard and thereby obtained a warranty I could then put everything back without invalidating the warranty! The only caveat was that if any subsequent claim could be proved to be as a result of the specific modifications then any such claim would be invalid. I can possibly understand an overheating claim relating to the grills (although they have actually made a negligible difference) but tyres and the full harness - really?!!