N52 valvetronic remaps

[Drawn05]

Hi all (n52 owners)

Has anyone else been paying attention to the OE/Active Autowerke remaps? I am very interested in these as they are claiming to actually adjust the valvetronic valve lift, which seems to me to be the main culprit in the nerfing of the 125i.

AA has dealers in oz though after speaking to (both of) them they dont have the tune or dont want the tune for the N52b30 yet.

[Jeef Beef]

Originally Posted by Drawn05

Hi all (n52 owners)

Has anyone else been paying attention to the OE/Active Autowerke remaps? I am very interested in these as they are claiming to actually adjust the valvetronic valve lift, which seems to me to be the main culprit in the nerfing of the 125i.

AA has dealers in oz though after speaking to (both of) them they dont have the tune or dont want the tune for the N52b30 yet.

I know of a friend who has organised the AA tune to be flashed onto his car which has the N52B25.

bmwroxm5, your input here?

[Drawn05]

Just saw this.

http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=475141

Those are some good gains (for N/A). Goodbye Powerbox.

[wmj73]

sounds interesting, keen to hear more re this

[Drawn05]

I have spoken to OE tuning about the EZ flash system. With this you dont have to send your ecu overseas, they send you an OBD flash module and you load the new maps yourself.

Not as advantagous as having a tuner and workshop to do it but as no tuner in Oz is doing it, might be the only way for a while. Besides, it would be easier than the installation of the BMS PBX.

They said they dont offer it for Oz, but if 5 people (125i/325 owners) are willing to do a group buy they might be able to assist us.

I have asked for more info on this and I will post it here for anyone interested in this.

From my understanding, the EZ flash system would allow for the stock/performance tune to be interchangable at your leisure.

Edit: http://oetuning.com/index.php/produc...-128i-3-0.html

This is the link to their website. They are stating 255hp/190kw peak. That would be a 30kw gain if we could expect the same as the x28i!!!!!!

[Jeef Beef]

Originally Posted by Drawn05

I have spoken to OE tuning about the EZ flash system. With this you dont have to send your ecu overseas, they send you an OBD flash module and you load the new maps yourself.

Not as advantagous as having a tuner and workshop to do it but as no tuner in Oz is doing it, might be the only way for a while. Besides, it would be easier than the installation of the BMS PBX.

They said they dont offer it for Oz, but if 5 people (125i/325 owners) are willing to do a group buy they might be able to assist us.

I have asked for more info on this and I will post it here for anyone interested in this.

From my understanding, the EZ flash system would allow for the stock/performance tune to be interchangable at your leisure.

Edit: http://oetuning.com/index.php/produc...-128i-3-0.html

This is the link to their website. They are stating 255hp/190kw peak. That would be a 30kw gain if we could expect the same as the x28i!!!!!!

There are mechanical differences between the 25i and 28i engines, it's not just software so you won't be getting the same gains.

There is in fact a tuner in Sydney, like I said bmroxm5 has already organised his car to be done by a local workshop. If he posts here he can give you guys more details.

[Drawn05]

Originally Posted by Jeef Beef

There are mechanical differences between the 25i and 28i engines, it's not just software so you won't be getting the same gains.

There is in fact a tuner in Sydney, like I said bmroxm5 has already organised his car to be done by a local workshop. If he posts here he can give you guys more details.

Having looked through the all the parts for the 125i and 128i on realoem, I can only see 1 engine difference - 3 stage intake.

Your friend has a N52b25, which is a 2.5 litre for the 325i from 05-07. This engine was only ever rated to 160kw in production vehicles. European Autotech in Sydney has a tune for that engine, but not for the B30.

Since 2008 the N52B30 3.0 litre has been used in x25i, x28i and x30i models, producing 160, 172 and 195kw respectively. The b30 x25i and x30i share the same intake manifold with 2 adjuster units for DISA - the x28i does not. People in the US are retrofitting the x30i intake manifold to take advantage of this. We already have it.

As far as I can see, the only thing producing the differing power outputs is the valve lift by the Valvetronic software. But I am willing to be proven wrong.

[Jeef Beef]

Originally Posted by Drawn05

Having looked through the all the parts for the 125i and 128i on realoem, I can only see 1 engine difference - 3 stage intake.

Your friend has a N52b25, which is a 2.5 litre for the 325i from 05-07. This engine was only ever rated to 160kw in production vehicles. European Autotech in Sydney has a tune for that engine, but not for the B30.

Since 2008 the N52B30 3.0 litre has been used in x25i, x28i and x30i models, producing 160, 172 and 195kw respectively. The b30 x25i and x30i share the same intake manifold with 2 adjuster units for DISA - the x28i does not. People in the US are retrofitting the x30i intake manifold to take advantage of this. We already have it.

As far as I can see, the only thing producing the differing power outputs is the valve lift by the Valvetronic software. But I am willing to be proven wrong.

Yep, the 3 stage intake is what I'm referring to. I guess if you can put that in and retune the ECU then you should have similar power.

I'm aware that he has the N52B25, but his tune is from the guys at AA through a vendor in Sydney. No way affiliated with Euro Autotech

[Stuart@BMRAutowerkes]

Originally Posted by Jeef Beef

I know of a friend who has organised the AA tune to be flashed onto his car which has the N52B25.

bmwroxm5, your input here?

I contacted andrew@southernbm who is an AA reseller (in Melbourne). He has referred me to Sonny @ Marranos based in Croydon, Sydney for my performance needs.
I have since spoken to Sonny and he reckons he can get me a bit more power through the usual culprits of air intake, freer flowing exhaust and tune. I am not sure of the brand of tune, can only speculate that it is AA afterall Andrew did refer me to him, however he's not listed as an authorised reseller. He has some videos of dyno runs he's done on cars URL="http://www.youtube.com/user/sonnymad#p/u/47/bXkMS4VQNP0"]Youtube channel[/URL] and says he is currently working on an E46 330 so will let me know of the results (even though the engines are different).
I'm planning on going to have a chat to Sonny to see what he can offer me, I will report back here!

Originally Posted by Drawn05

Having looked through the all the parts for the 125i and 128i on realoem, I can only see 1 engine difference - 3 stage intake.

Your friend has a N52b25, which is a 2.5 litre for the 325i from 05-07. This engine was only ever rated to 160kw in production vehicles. European Autotech in Sydney has a tune for that engine, but not for the B30.

Since 2008 the N52B30 3.0 litre has been used in x25i, x28i and x30i models, producing 160, 172 and 195kw respectively. The b30 x25i and x30i share the same intake manifold with 2 adjuster units for DISA - the x28i does not. People in the US are retrofitting the x30i intake manifold to take advantage of this. We already have it.

As far as I can see, the only thing producing the differing power outputs is the valve lift by the Valvetronic software. But I am willing to be proven wrong.

That's correct I've got the N52B25 with the 3stage intake manifold already.

I believe the 125i's are producing 160kw from their 3litre displacement which initially leads me to believe that they don't have the 3stage intake manifold/DISA actuators. However from your intial research Drawn, it sounds like they do?

Here is a pic of my engine bay where you can see the DISA actuator, can you confirm if your engine bay has this?


As for the AA tune altering the valvetronic timing I can not remember if the AA is responsible for altering timing or lift.

There is plenty of info here, feel free to read ahead as I've forgotton a lot of stuff as I've realised I can't do the 3stage intake mod (already have it) and will instead have to look at increasing my 2.5L engine to a 3L
http://www.e90post.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=35 (note the sticky thread titled Tech Info: 3 stage manifold) and there's always a few threads near the top named "325i to 330i conversion" or "Three stage intake manifold conversion"

[Drawn05]

The 08-current 325i/125i has the 3-stage intake as stock. The 328/128i dont. There is no need for Australian x25i owners to retro-fit the 130i manifold like those in the US have to.

125i (with 2 adjuster units as stock)- http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...56&hg=11&fg=40

130i (also with 2 adjuster units as stock)
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...56&hg=11&fg=40

128i (no adjuster units as stock)
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...56&hg=11&fg=40

(Actually the N51 128i has the 3 part intake manifold as well)

[Stuart@BMRAutowerkes]

Originally Posted by Jeef Beef

Yep, the 3 stage intake is what I'm referring to. I guess if you can put that in and retune the ECU then you should have similar power.

I'm aware that he has the N52B25, but his tune is from the guys at AA through a vendor in Sydney. No way affiliated with Euro Autotech

Jeff still waiting to see if the tune offered is AA or a custom in house one.

Also what's the consensus on European Autotech? I haven't heard of them before and just checked out there website, their stuff looks OK.

[Stuart@BMRAutowerkes]

Originally Posted by Drawn05

The 08-current 325i/125i has the 3-stage intake as stock. The 328/128i dont. There is no need for Australian x25i owners to retro-fit the 130i manifold like those in the US have to.

125i (with 2 adjuster units as stock)- http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...56&hg=11&fg=40

130i (also with 2 adjuster units as stock)
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...56&hg=11&fg=40

128i (no adjuster units as stock)
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...56&hg=11&fg=40

(Actually the N51 128i has the 3 part intake manifold as well)

Ok given that both have the 3 stage intake manifold as stock then the power deficits compared to an E90 330i with 190kw or 130i hatch with 195kw stock comes from:
325i - less displacement
125i - tuning. I am surprised that if the 125i has the three stage intake manifold stock already then a simple AA tune isn't available to lift power to the 190kw+ levels. Afterall your engine is identical to a US 128i WITH the 3stage intake retrofitted??

[Drawn05]

Originally Posted by bmroxm5

Jeff still waiting to see if the tune offered is AA or a custom in house one.

Also what's the consensus on European Autotech? I haven't heard of them before and just checked out there website, their stuff looks OK.

I sent Andrew at SouthernBM an email regarding info on their AA tunes, he flicked my email to the AcitiveAutowerke.com.au guy (forgot his name). He said he didnt have anything for E90/E82 etc. so I left it at that.

European Autotech was referred to me by someone I know on another forum. They cant do anything for b30 but they do for b25 (15kw or so which isnt bad). The guy who refered me is pretty knowledgable and decent but I cant comment personally.

In your photo, it is one of the Intake adjuster units (there is another on the other side of the engine). Whether they are engaged on the B25 I am not sure.

[Drawn05]

Originally Posted by bmroxm5

Ok given that both have the 3 stage intake manifold as stock then the power deficits compared to an E90 330i with 190kw or 130i hatch with 195kw stock comes from:
325i - less displacement
125i - tuning. I am surprised that if the 125i has the three stage intake manifold stock already then a simple AA tune isn't available to lift power to the 190kw+ levels. Afterall your engine is identical to a US 128i WITH the 3stage intake retrofitted??

There is an AA tune that gives comparitive results to the OE/Gitani tune that I mention in one of the above posts (approx. 190kw). OE states over on a e90 thread that they do infact adjust the valve lift and this has increased power.

In Aus, no tuners seem to have either the AA or OE tune or even seem interested in getting it. Though I have spoken to OE tuning in the states and if at least 5 people are interested, they might arrange for the EZ flash software to be available to us (which would mean not having to send your ECU anywhere). The in-house OE tune costs $399 US, so I am not sure how much the EZ flash version will be. At the moment I am just trying to gauge interest.

[Stuart@BMRAutowerkes]

Originally Posted by Drawn05

There is an AA tune that gives comparitive results to the OE/Gitani tune that I mention in one of the above posts (approx. 190kw). OE states over on a e90 thread that they do infact adjust the valve lift and this has increased power.

In Aus, no tuners seem to have either the AA or OE tune or even seem interested in getting it. Though I have spoken to OE tuning in the states and if at least 5 people are interested, they might arrange for the EZ flash software to be available to us (which would mean not having to send your ECU anywhere). The in-house OE tune costs $399 US, so I am not sure how much the EZ flash version will be. At the moment I am just trying to gauge interest.

If things don't work out at Marranos, then I'll be interested as long as it's applicable to me.

The European Autotech software is DMS, and they charge $2.4k for 335i software, even if the 325i one is cheaper, I'm imagining it will be quite expensive.

I was planning a trip to the states in the next coming months and was tempted to bring my ECU over with me to get it flashed lol.

I'm getting confused as to why AA doesn't offer anything for the E90 or E82, especially cause I PM'd the AA guy on here, who referred me to Andrew... whereas Andrew referred you to the AA guy who said there was nothing

[Drawn05]

Originally Posted by bmroxm5

If things don't work out at Marranos, then I'll be interested as long as it's applicable to me.

The European Autotech software is DMS, and they charge $2.4k for 335i software, even if the 325i one is cheaper, I'm imagining it will be quite expensive.

I was planning a trip to the states in the next coming months and was tempted to bring my ECU over with me to get it flashed lol.

I'm getting confused as to why AA doesn't offer anything for the E90 or E82, especially cause I PM'd the AA guy on here, who referred me to Andrew... whereas Andrew referred you to the AA guy who said there was nothing

Yeah its weird. He called me yesterday and just said 'yeah, nah, got nothing for e90/e82". I have asked many tuners in Oz about tunes for my 125i and basically they have no interest. Why they cant get this tune if they are dealers of AA, I dont know?

I was in the states 2 months ago and was thinking that I should take my ECU with me, but I didnt want to carry a funny box full of electrical components and wires onto a plane or through US customs. I mean if you explain yourself well beforehand you might not get any dramas but the US customs guys were uptight as it was.

Have a look at the OE vs AA tunes on the e90 mods section. Some guys with b25 have been getting them so maybe it might suit you.

Basically for me, the EZ flash tune option would be good because I wouldnt need to touch my ECU, just download and keep a copy of my stock map through the OBD and load the new tune. The OBD module that comes with it locks to your VIN and cant be used on other cars, but you can reload stock/new map as much as you like when you like.

Edit: Pricing for the OE tune (done in-house) is $399US, so hopefully it would not be too much more than that.

[Stuart@BMRAutowerkes]

Yup, given the price of the tunes overseas even with a generous 50% mark up (like on all Aussie products) hopefully I can get a tune for $600 and gain about 10rwkw but more importantly a boost in low down torque.

I'll definitely be doing a dyno before and after.

In the meantime to increase my performance I ordered scoops on an impulse lol

[Stuart@BMRAutowerkes]

Also Drawn, I've emailed Sonny @ Marranos to see what he can do for me but also asked if he can do anything for a 125i, I'm planning on going to visit him at his workshop in Croydon this Saturday morning unless he says he doesn't have anything for a 125i maybe you want to come along as well?

[Drawn05]

Thanks for the offer. Croydon isnt that far for me but I suspect that they wouldnt do the valvetronic remap that I want. It would most likely be the air/fuel tweaks and throttle lag removal that my BMS powerbox does already. Had a look at their site and all their dyno charts are for holdens so I assume thats what their primary focus is.

Let us know how it goes.

[Stuart@BMRAutowerkes]

I still have to look into if the AA tune alters valvetronic or not, I think a lot of people have assumed it does but then from memory I think some people say it only adjusts timing or lift or something.

Didn't you see the dyno sheets for all the euro cars? Well the youtube vids at least? 335s, CLK, 1series diesel, E46s and a Lambo recently.

Will let you know how I go.

[Drawn05]

Originally Posted by bmroxm5

I still have to look into if the AA tune alters valvetronic or not, I think a lot of people have assumed it does but then from memory I think some people say it only adjusts timing or lift or something.

Didn't you see the dyno sheets for all the euro cars? Well the youtube vids at least? 335s, CLK, 1series diesel, E46s and a Lambo recently.

Will let you know how I go.

This is what has been said by an OE tune resller in the states....

Some of the things we change are:

AFR's
Throttle response
Valve Lift/Drop for Intake/exhaust
and Timing

For them to alter anything with the valves they would need to alter the valvetronic software.

[Stuart@BMRAutowerkes]

Here's a dyno run of a recent E46 330ci they did.

Made 100kw at the wheels stock (less than I was expecting) and after intake mods, freer flowing exhaust and tune the car made 133rwkw.

http://www.youtube.com/user/sonnymad.../1/t9E-dwRw1mg