Stage 1 remap on 20i

Blurredman

Blurredman

Member
Anyone had a stage 1 remap done on an E89 20i? Specifically by MobileEco Tuning, and - even more specifically - by SW Vehicle Repairs in Stourbridge (I appreciate that is very specific!)

Tempted by the 90+ HP increase on what is otherwise a fairly modest performance car.

I've read with other remaps that they can be assigned to the Sport button so that you can turn it on/off. Anyone done this?

Car has done ~60K. From what I am told there is no other modification needed - standard engine can take the extra power.

Give me your best and worst stories.
 
Couple of things:

1. Check the turbo inlet pipe, they wear and become split - the increase demand may make this part fail faster. It’s a fairly easy job to replace yourself.

2. Timing chain guides - if it’s got the orange guides and you plan on keeping the car, then you should get those changed before a remap.
 
The power gains are about what you should expect as the 20i has the same engine as the 28i (and the 18i for that matter).
Not sure how someone would do a map to the sport button so I would not pay attention to that.
But as Mr Skateboard says above, there are things to be checked before you go adding more power and the first is the timing chain guides.
If they go - and apparently they can If they are the earlier version (pre 2015 I think) - then the engine internals are not going to be a pretty sight.

Turbo inlet pipes do fail, I would replace it anyway for peace of mind.

Make sure the engine oild is fresh and the right spec.
Check when the plugs and coil packs have been done. A remap will highlight things like this very quickly.

And finally, do your background checks on the installer.
A proper remap should take time and be tested and tweaked on the road, not on a set of rollers.

That said, it does transform the 20i completely! 😎
 
Remap will require one or two step colder plugs and some..uhrmmm.. performance coils.. that’s pretty much the basics.. the rest.. well is up to you..
 
Vanne said:
Remap will require one or two step colder plugs and some..uhrmmm.. performance coils.. that’s pretty much the basics.. the rest.. well is up to you..
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I'm no N20 expert, but I wouldn't have thought you'd need either of those for a standard remap? Does the 28i use upgraded plugs and coils?
 
OP's spend increases circa 5 fold if all the advise here is heeded!

Isn't Stage 1 adding about 33 bhp? If so, can't see how that requires anything radical be done outside of common sense maintenance.
 
tiglon said:
I'm no N20 expert, but I wouldn't have thought you'd need either of those for a standard remap? Does the 28i use upgraded plugs and coils?
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Dunno, I’ve gone up about 50-60 from 28i, and was told and , is selectable in the software , told that colder plugs is a must as are performance coils.. nfi really, it’s my first turbo car.. so iam walking in the dark a bit, but seems to be good.
I know a bit about SC, but f-all really about turbos.. mine is running like a bloody charm though.. hoping to grab a bit more hp, as I have a new stainless downpipe, intake and intercooler ready to go when I fix the roof. It’s never going to be a quick car, but def a bit of fun to stuff round with.. (esp if I can get the roof to work :)
 
So for a n20 on 99/100 ron fuel 270-295 is the normal range on a proper dyno tune basis..the issue with non dyno flash is you don't know whether your leaving power on the table or over cooking it..

A decent tuner on a dyno see's how the power changes with boost/ignition timing/ fuel pressure/ vanos timing...and based on his experience where to call it a day..maybe swapping low end boost for top end..

Personally I'd always do it on a dyno..far to many horror stories of flash with no dyno...my first flash was exactly that..dyno run with before and after (must have both) is the gold standard..

FWIW on a N20 there are very very few gains for new h/w...10-15 bhp tops ..unless you buy a bigger turbo..again UK FMIC issues matter way less than say Dubai!
 
Fady said:
Isn't Stage 1 adding about 33 bhp?
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On an 18i it's adding around 90bhp and on a 20i around 60bhp.
The 'stage 1' nonsense usually just means no hardware additions. So just a new boost/fuelling set of instructions.
Then you spend thousands more on 'upgrading' intercoolers, air filters, pipes, etc for not a lot more on the 'bigger' stages.
 
Most of these 'remappers' or 'tuners' just buy software files under licence. The vast majority don't write the files. IT geeks did that many years ago now!

The N20 was designed and built by BMW to be the 28i 'spec'. So the 18i and 20i specs were just marketing ploys with new software files to 'downgrade' the engine; mainly by reducing turbo boost pressure via the wastegate.

The 'headline figures' quoted by most N20 remaps only are around 280bhp and 350nm. However, they will be rather 'optimistic' and quoted from one engine that was remapped years ago with the best fuel they could find. Marketing again. More power equals more sales!

BMW's figures for the 28i (the standard N20 spec) are lower because they are based on crap fuel (mainly the USA), as they were sold globally.

Basically; a bog-standard 'stage 1' remap only will give around the same power to an 18i or 20i as a factory 28i.

If you look at the factory fuel consumptions of the 18i (156bhp), 20i (184bhp) and 28i (245bhp) they are identical across all three. Why? Because the two lower power outputs are just less efficient than the 'proper' one.
 
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