Back for another update and this time it's about the Active Autowerke 8 piggyback tune. I'll start off by saying that I got this used from the classifieds section, so the price I paid colors my feelings about this unit. I've been saving up for a Fabspeed down pipe to match my exhaust, but I saw this deal and couldn't pass it up. I eventually want to go with a Bootmode ecu/dme tune, but my car still has 3 years of warranty left. I figured that a piggyback would be a decent stop-gap until then. On to the review....
I put it on and less than a week later took it off lol. That's probably not what you expected me to say. I will added that I did reinstall it after a day. Here's the thing. Whenever I saw ppl talking about piggyback tunes (including this one) they'd say things like "I could really feel the difference" or "after X rpm the power would really kick in". They were saying "Really!", so when I installed it I was like "Really?"
I think I set my expectations a bit too high. After all, this is like a stage 1.5 tune at best. The best way I can describe it is to imagine the difference you feel today between the comfort and sport modes on your car. Now imagine that sport+ had the same throttle response improvement over sport. However, the bump isn't as drastic as the difference between comfort and sport. In other words, if comfort is your car at 70% and sport is your car at 90% then the AA8 is your car at 100%.
Apparently the module needs time to "learn" your car and after living with it for a couple of weeks I'd have to agree. When I first installed it I felt like sometimes the car was being held back. Other times I'd get a weird surge of power. Power delivery is still a bit schizophrenic and a bit unpredictable, but it's evening out. I'm running it on setting 6 which is the default. I've read the setting 5 has smoother power delivery, but at the cost of power as each setting is .3 bar of boost. In fact, I started at setting 5 which I think added to my disappointment in the module.
In sport mode there's just not as much "lag" as there is without the module. I feel like it moves when I want it to and i don't have to let power build up aka forced to climb up to 4k+ rpm in stock form. Since the tune is rpm based you don't feel too much of a difference below 2,500 rpm which is nice when you've got wifie and kiddos in the car. However, this tends to making you feel like you really have to get on it in order to get the most out of the tune. I wish more difference was available even if that meant driving in comfort mode when others are with me. That said, it's made passing and/or getting out of the way of trouble a breeze and frankly quite fun. There's just an added immediacy to the car. Remember when I said that I uninstalled the module? Well, the car felt sluggish when I removed it. It was only then that I was able to see the benefit that the AA8 was affording me. So, yeah, the car "really" moves now when you hit 2,500 rpm.
Hyperbole aside, it does make a difference and is quite intoxicating.....I just need more and lower in the rpm band.
Downsides? Well, when I first installed it I got at CEL which I was able to clear with the Torque app. I checked the codes and I had two faults even with the CEL off. Both codes pertained to the intake temp gauge which I believe is on the boost pressure sensor that you connect the module to. This is also one of the reasons why I removed the module. To my dismay, I still had the codes with the module uninstalled. Now I'm not sure if I had these faults before the install and now I'm a tad worried that the dealer will see this as indication that I have a tune even if I remove the module before taking the car in for service. Andrew at AA was great though and answered my PM's even though it was a Saturday morning and despite the fact that I bought the unit used.
Installation is pretty easy aside from the cam position sensor. I bought a cheap pick from an auto parts store which made disconnecting the OEM connections a billion times easier. The issue with the cam position sensor came when actually trying to plug the AA8 harness into the sensor. So little room for your fingers. :/ Now that I know what I'm doing I'd say that I could install one of these in about 15 mins easy. Andrew also suggested some 90* needle nosed pliers. That would definitely make installing the cps connector a lot easier.
So, is this mod worth it? If I didn't have the faults and given the price I paid I'd say absolutely. Even with the faults I lean more towards yes despite my lingering fear of being flagged at the dealer. I would be a bit disappointed if I had paid the full retail price though. Especially if I was out of warranty. The Bootmode tune is either less or right about the same as the AA8 at retail and that allows you to load various inexpensive tunes.
All in all I'm happy, but I'm really itching for a down pipe now. Oh, side note, this seems to have made my exhaust a tiny bit louder, but that could be in my head. :|