4.8i chiptuned to 390hp
 

Chiptuned my 08 4.8i last month.
Old 355hp 475nm
New 390hp 515nm

Engine sounds just a little better.
0-100kmh car reacts just a little bit faster (not a big difference -maybe 0.5sec faster).

Biggest difference I feel from 100kmh-200kmh.
The car is much faster, much!
No more top speed limit - when the snow melts will try.

Consumption worse when I floor it, better when I take it easy.
Average no difference.

All in all was well worth for EUR 300.

How is this even remotely possible with this motor? I just dont see it. Is there anything you've seen to verify those claims like a dyno sheet or something? It just doesnt sound right.....

What tuning company?

in order to get the accurate results, you should dyno test it.... plz share with us ur results if you do the test...

and what tuning did you do?

The guy remapped my ECU and he added only 10% of power. He said that is maximum allowance.
I will seaarch for a dyno in the area these days and post the graph.

One thing is for sure, the car feels more powerful.

I think that is what they do to the X6 5.0 with the performance package. Increase the power to exactly 10% by remapping. Try to calculate. Its exactly 10%.

That isn't really how engines work...

You can tune for power and efficiency by optimizing the fuel and ignition curves, but the factory maps are pretty close with an err on the safe side - especially with electronics nowadays that constantly revise the mapping for given variables.

Power is gained by leaning out the fuel mixture and advancing timing, but this isn't a "10% across the board" sort of thing. It has to be tuned for every RPM and throttle position under the sun, among other things. It could be 10% less fuel in one spot with 2 degrees of timing advance, 5% less with 3 degree advance in another, etc

I'm sure he was just oversimplifying things for you, but saying he only added 10% of the power is very misleading. It should be described as "optimizing the fuel and ignition mapping allowed for a 10% increase in power."

But even then, he would have no way of knowing how much power was gained unless he did before and after dyno runs...

Frankly I doubt there was anywhere near a 35hp gain. Turbocharged vehicles are the only ones that can get that sort of gain from tuning, and that is because they can increase the amount of air going through the engine by adding boost.

Although 390hp seems a bit optimistic it might not be far off. Remember this engine is the same one used in say 550i and 650i but in a slightly lower state of tune. These engines are rated at 270kw which is approx 368hp. Gains for a naturally aspirated engine typically can be around 5%. Add 5% to 368hp and you're at approx 386hp. I know it's not as simple as this but due to this engine being in a detuned state to begin with there are theoretcally bigger gains to be made than the usual 2-5%.

My 91 M5 started out stock w/ 314HP, but the D'Sylva chip I have bumped it to 340HP, so while 35 is a decent jump, I wouldn't necessarily rule it out. A before and after dyno on the same day of installation will guarantee to show if there are any positive or negative results, as there is really no other way to prove it otherwise.

Very Good explanation and Very true!

Boost is your friend! :D

I'm curious to hear what software that he used to tune it.

OP: Thanks for posting this up! :beerchug:

I agree, good explanation. I would just change one word in the final paragraph; forced induction engines (turbocharged or supercharged) are the only ones that can get significant gains from tuning.

I left out blowers because they usually require a pulley or some other mechanical way of increasing boost pressure - unless I am overlooking something?

But yea they are equally easy to get power out of, usually just requires that $100 pulley and a tune to get gobs of power from one - especially strong bottom-end cars like an 03-04 Mustang Cobra etc

After my post above I happened to read an advertisment by DMS automotive, a very well respected ecu tuning company based in England uk.

They claim 400hp for the e70 4.8 with just simple flash.

I have read enough about them to know that these are not idle claims. Also I have a dms tuned 135 and have dyno results to back up their claims.

So, to the op: 390hp can be very realistic.

Back in the day of your M5, you could gain a lot of horse power with a chip on N/A engines. Those sort of gains just aren't as big these days on newer models. Generally speaking anyway. I agree with others that it seems very optimistic and find it hard to believe that BMW left that much on the table with the original electronics. Forced induction is another story of course.

Their web site lists ECU flashes for only the M models, and turbocharged models. Maybe it is just out of date.

Your 135 has twin turbos, which makes that particular engine very easy to tune. There are multiple tuners getting 400 hp out of it. Not exactly an apples to apples comparison with a naturally aspirated e70 4.8.

Maybe all what u guys said is true.
Been driving the car for a year and I know its soul, but the car is flying now.

Will try dyno and post a vid of the acceleration to vmax next week.
THE CAR IS MORE POWERFUL!

I agree that the twin turbo is a lot easier to tune.

I am not making a direct comparison between TT and NA 4.8. I think you misunderstood.

The point I am making is that DMS are a very good and respected company. They claim 400hp for the NA 4.8i engine in the E70 X5. Their claims are to be believed is what I am saying, and as part of the evidence they claimed 270kw for the 135 and when I did the dyno that is exactly what I got, supporting their claims here as well as adding credibility.

They have vast R+D and have dynos/rolling roads to test their products. They deal with porsches, BMW, ferrari, Audi, and mercedes both NA and turbos.

I think the link you are referring to is quite old. I have their most recent advertisment from a UK car magazine and it lists all the above makes as well as NA and turbo cars within each make.

So the point I am making is that the OPs 390hp may actually be kosher (real) because if DMS are able to make 400hp then 390hp may well be attainable by another company.

Here is the advertisment I saw with current tunes available (I correct myself in a previous post, this is actually an Australian advert not a UK one but tunes all originate from the UK).

Remember the outputs quoted are in kw and to get an approx bhp reading to times by 1.36

Attachment 40710

I understood your point, that your experience made them credible. I pointed out that your single example of experience with DMS was with a turbocharged engine. Perhaps you can forgive the confusion, as it sure looks like a direct comparison.

I used DMS's corporate website in the UK. The advertisement you posted shows an AU website for the same company. There are no power claims on the UK website (which has the same format as the AU site). I find it interesting that a UK company isn't claiming power increases in their home country, just in another country. Is that perhaps because modifications in the UK are being frowned upon (emissions legislation)? Or perhaps there are different rules about advertising in the UK, I don't know. Maybe I am just a natural skeptic.

I would be interesting in seeing before and after dyno tests from an independent party for the DMS product for the X5. I am not saying they can't get more horsepower out of a naturally-aspirated engine, just that significant gains aren't likely without doing more than flashing the ECU.

To resurrect this thread; Has anyone done the DMS ECU Upgrade? I'm going to try it, link here for the info.

BMW ECU Tuning, remapping, upgrades

Saying 392 HP, 406TQ. Looks worth a shot!

Input?

Highly unlikely you'd get that much improvement.


Call Mark at VCM Auto on Government St in Victoria. VCM Auto | Sales and Service

He is an Active Autowerke dealer and he can flash your ECU with a custom map. In fact, he should have a file ready to go as I wasn't able to get my E70 flashed before I had to head back up North.

what are the Hp and Tq claims for VCM? and how is he flash?

thanks

I can't recall the increase off the top of my head.

He has all the proper software and hardware to flash BMWs. He's done quite a few flashes and supercharger kits. Including my M3. :)