[icyspikey]

Hi Everyone,

This is my first performance mod on my car. It's a 2010 Figo Diesel.

You can check out the review of my car here :

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...0k-review.html

After months of accumulation of vitamin M , I finally took the plunge 18th July'13. I mailed the RD guys and they pointed me towards Raghav @ Ignite.
Now before that i asked some people for their opinions on my decision Thus began the biggest confusion in my life. Remaps Vs. Tuning Boxes. So i'm trying to make that decision easier for you.

Tuning Boxes :

Boxes Considered :

1)PSI ( Petes )
2)Race Dynamics - Diesel TRONIC
3)Racechip - Germany

There are many other boxes out in the market but for me Reliability and service comes first than any performance gains. Now reliability is a VERY big factor as we are going above OE's Rail Pressure and the FOS ( Factor OF Safety ) is coming down.

But Racechip is just getting a mention here for the sheer number of people across different forums who are having it without any issues . Controlling the rail pressure requires you to open up the box and change it. Racechip also makes pretty tall claims @ 91 HP & 235 NM (Which is actually higher than a Kiirus remap ) But then again i guess this is the max limit and Racechip defaultly comes in a tuned down version. But as the saying goes " Shit Happens ". And when it does one cannot travel to germany or keep on mailing them to get a solution. So Thumbs down here.

Now Pete's box seemed a very safe bet considering their reputation in the tuning scene and its an Injection Modulation type too ! Which is supposed to be better than pressurizing the rail ( Which the other two do). But while surfing i found a Fiesta 1.6S with injectors gone kaput where Pete's refunded him (Might be an one -off thing i guess ). At 40K ( Approx.) to just get some steroids seemed way above my budget. Considering the fact that i'm still in college rules out the one-off splurging option too. I'll probably be done saving this amount when i graduate. So Thumbs - CRASHING- down.

Now Race Dynamics will be reviewed last. Obvious Enough Reasons.

Remaps

1) Kiirus
2) Tune - o - Tronics ( TOT )

There are many other people who remap but these are the names which came up again and again in various forums. There is a Figo on T-BHP running on TOT ( Search ). Reviews were highly impressive. Even while speaking from an Engineer's point of view Remaps seemed to be the way to go. It's wholesome and less risky in a way actually.

If you are either wondering what i meant by Wholesome or new to all this like i was before. Read the italics else skip it.

IM - Injection Modulation type: These tuning Boxes are those which alters the Duty cycle of the injectors. That is the ratio of time to which the injector remains open to the total time current is applied to the injector.
There is always chance that the ECM can detect foul play in readings and then what happens is the IM box gets bypassed meaning it suits idle and sends actual data to actuator and ECM. Hence this forms the basic safety feature of IM box.
2) Rail Pressure modulation type : Here the rail pressure is modulated and the box is actually pushing the limits to the max. pressure which can be handled by the engine. As pressure is increased the amount of fuel going in at every injection cycle is increased.
Source : Internet



There were threads where people had shifted from a kiirus map to a TOT Map and were highly satisfied.
Kiirus Maps are supposedly MAD.While TOT Remaps gave the maximum consumer satisfaction.

Ground Reality : So this is what i said to myself " You own a Ford Figo not a Mustang . Not even a Focus for that matter. So spending 40k to shave off a second in your 0- 100 timings is out of question. At Least until you earn.
And the engine itself cannot handle too much more power / torque too.
But you are enthusiast and matching up with your MJD owning friends is understandable.Decide keeping all this in mind "

A TOT remap costs me 28k approx. with unlimited number of fine tunings. IMHO thats a fair deal. I've never driven a remapped car before nor a chipped. So i only know theoretically remaps should fetch you better gains. They do so even in practical scenarios but the question is how much more than a tuning box.

I came across a Figo which had DieselTRONIC and later shifted to a remap ( Code 6 Tuning if i'm right ) as he was a bit disappointed with the power increase in the former.

My car is more than 3 years old so i need not care about warranty. But i still do care about my engine .

The Deal Breakers :

1)BUy the dieseltronics box and i can sell it afterwards (resale value ) while the remaps cant be sold.
2)When i go for higher studies i can probably fit it to dad's Rapid and he'll still more enjoy the car
3) Unlike the RaceChip where its a pain to change the boost ( pressure) settings , in RD's box this can conveniently be done on a remote on the fly. Of Course you only have 4 choices here.

The E mode isn't a deal breaker for me as i really wouldn't spend 20k to drive in a much more sedated car (Read many posts where E mode is practically undrivable)

Why the Box over Remaps ?

I had gained enough confidence about TOT and Sid to do a remap.
For me 8k more is a lot of money and i decided though a remap would be better i would not get the VFM as much as the box.

So guys if your budgets can be little stretched and are looking for the pinnacle of performance then Remap is the way to go.

But if you value the VFM criteria and you are okay if you are a tiny bit slower than a remapped car then go for DieselTRONIC eyes shut.

Better drivability is what one should be looking for not the Sprint run timings. If you are looking like that, trust me you have a mild surprise. But if you are looking for something like a Nitrous kind of performance mod, disappointment awaits.

THE ACTUAL REVIEW

The P2 map was customised a bit and the box finally arrived on Saturday Morning . I was doing speeds of 80 -120 while driving to Ignite to get the boxed fixed. Thus the engine was very hot and the Rail Pressure sensor connector could not be reached before the engine had cooled down. This translated into a 40 Minute wait . Finally the box was fixed and a TD was done with Mr.Raghav . The car was began in S mode. Then P1 came in. Then the P2 . Now Raghav was driving the car and warned that the P2 is wild enough and i could feel the pull whenever he floored it and that I should refrain from continuous usage in the same. Then i was behind the wheel.

I drove in stock for a few metres and pressed P1 :

The car accelerates excellently till 50 in stock mode . I did not find much change till 30 . Cross 40 and the turbo begins its song . For the past few seconds i am feeling the 0 to 50 Surge , So i glanced up @ the Speedo. It was hitting 100 + . Now Figo owners will know what i'm talking about. 100 comes slow and 120 crawls in. Now i'm @ 100 + and i've not even floored it.

Then i dropped off Raghav and he parted with " Drive Safe and a wink ".

So my home is in velachery. So i've got little of ECR + Good amount of OMR + excellent road which connects to OMR from Kovilambakkam.

Mode P2:
Gears slotted. Accelerator Floored.
Now the thing is, to actually know the difference between P1 and P2 you have to cross 30 KMPH / Turbo Spooling. Go past 60 to let P2 amaze you. The car goes on pulling until you let go of the accelerator.
The 0-40 Surge of the Figo is continued right into 130s . The car gets a sense of impatience and has this urge to keep pulling. Yeah Getz Feeling. Drivability is AWESOME. Almost on par with my stock Rapid. A remap might put it on par though.

Now i don't down shift much . The car doesn't shudder when it does 40 in 5th gear. The car has definitely become smooth. So smooth that when you upshift late ( say @ 3.5k) you don't jerk the car. At All.

Now that i was really satisfied in the performance department i pressed E.

This might come as a shocker but i kind of find E is actually as good as stock. Infact I like driving at E when i'm not power hungry. There is good power. It's a little better than stock infact. Mileage Figures need to looked at soon.

At the end of the day I really did not expect this much change from a tuning box. Excellent work by Race Dynamics. One of the very few indian products which are better than their foreign competitors. VFM product. The saved 8k ( in comparison with a TOT remap) is translating into a Front Windscreen film (3M Colour Stable SP35) And the an arrowhead filter.(Does anyone use them ?)

Some Pictures :





The Box is fitted behind the red circle.



Decals :




Tints :

[Rehaan]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

[alphahere]

Do you still use the RD box on your Figo? I am interested to know if you experience engine stall when you switch to E mode while accelerating strongly in P2 mode? This happens on i20 with the dual channel box.

[Racedynamics]

Originally Posted by icyspikey

At the end of the day I really did not expect this much change from a tuning box. Excellent work by Race Dynamics. One of the very few indian products which are better than their foreign competitors. VFM product.

Thank you for a very well written review of our product and for the appreciation!

Originally Posted by alphahere

Do you still use the RD box on your Figo? I am interested to know if you experience engine stall when you switch to E mode while accelerating strongly in P2 mode? This happens on i20 with the dual channel box.

Hi Alphahere, we would not recommend switching between P2-E under hard acceleration in your car. That said, do get in touch with the dealer you purchased the box from and we will have this issue sorted out.

[icyspikey]

Originally Posted by alphahere

Do you still use the RD box on your Figo? I am interested to know if you experience engine stall when you switch to E mode while accelerating strongly in P2 mode? This happens on i20 with the dual channel box.

I've sold my Figo and the box is up for sale . Nope that doesn't stall the car .

[auto_enthusiast]

Is the box still on sale ?
Though tight on budget, but I may still consider buying it
Can u PM me the details please.

[icyspikey]

Originally Posted by auto_enthusiast

Is the box still on sale ?
Though tight on budget, but I may still consider buying it
Can u PM me the details please.

Yes ! I have sent you the details

[stuntfreak]

Wow thats a nice review. Is the box really worth it though frankly? And how reliable is it? I am thinking one for my Diesel Captiva. Is there one available? (There should be as there is one for the cruze. Both share the same engine)

Hemank

[icyspikey]

Originally Posted by stuntfreak

Wow thats a nice review. Is the box really worth it though frankly? And how reliable is it? I am thinking one for my Diesel Captiva. Is there one available? (There should be as there is one for the cruze. Both share the same engine)

Hemank

It was for me. If you want to be really sure do ask for a demo before you fit it. As for reliability, it is as reliable as your car is. Yes! I think it should be available, The dual channel one!

[Chitta Pradhan]

Originally Posted by icyspikey

I've sold my Figo and the box is up for sale . Nope that doesn't stall the car .

Why are you selling the box ? Are you not going to use it on your Punto-90 or do you have other plans for Punto?

I am considering the box for my Fluidic 1.6 CRDI. What's your advise ? It seems that no Fludic owner has experienced the box yet. The lag below 1500 rpm is the concern for me in my car.

[icyspikey]

Originally Posted by Chitta Pradhan

Why are you selling the box ? Are you not going to use it on your Punto-90 or do you have other plans for Punto?

I am considering the box for my Fluidic 1.6 CRDI. What's your advise ? It seems that no Fludic owner has experienced the box yet. The lag below 1500 rpm is the concern for me in my car.

Yes Punto has other plans in the pipeline. I think a dual channel should be available for the Verna! Will definitely improve the bottom end power but not as much as the improvement in the mid and top!

[Chitta Pradhan]

Originally Posted by icyspikey

I think a dual channel should be available for the Verna! Will definitely improve the bottom end power but not as much as the improvement in the mid and top!

This is precisely what I want, improvement in bottom end performance ie below 1500 rpm. I am very much satisfied with mid & top end performance of my car. Will P1 make a significant improvement, since I am averse to P2 for seemingly more clatter, more smoke & more pressure on the engine block. Did you get better FE from your boxed Figo?

[icyspikey]

Originally Posted by Chitta Pradhan

This is precisely what I want, improvement in bottom end performance ie below 1500 rpm. I am very much satisfied with mid & top end performance of my car. Will P1 make a significant improvement, since I am averse to P2 for seemingly more clatter, more smoke & more pressure on the engine block. Did you get better FE from your boxed Figo?

As i said it's better to demo the product. 'Significant' is a very relative term.
Well P2 does not produce higher 'clatter'. Smoke when you are flooring the gas pedal is inevitable ! Figo smokes quite a bit in stock itself.

Commenting on the F.E is hard as I have driven mostly in P2 and shifts don't happen under 3k.

[Chitta Pradhan]

Originally Posted by icyspikey

As i said it's better to demo the product. 'Significant' is a very relative term.
Well P2 does not produce higher 'clatter'. Smoke when you are flooring the gas pedal is inevitable ! Figo smokes quite a bit in stock itself.

Commenting on the F.E is hard as I have driven mostly in P2 and shifts don't happen under 3k.

No scope here to have a demo. Choice is go for it blindly or get used to the lag. Let me wait for some more time till I get a feed back from a fludic Owner.

[icyspikey]

Originally Posted by Chitta Pradhan

No scope here to have a demo. Choice is go for it blindly or get used to the lag. Let me wait for some more time till I get a feed back from a fludic Owner.

Where are you from ? Do check their site for their list of authorised dealers !