ECU Tune for Boxster S - Why no info online?

[nuvolari]

I saw the Vivid racing ECU tune for my car and at $600, it's much cheaper than most other HP mods so why has no one done these tunes?

I searched and literally could not find anything on here about this mod. Has anyone done this? Any other tuners that offer better tunes? I've been reading about how the 3.2 is quite a bit less powerful than the 3.4 996 engine and one of the reasons is attributed to the tune so I would think a better tuning should be a good and easy mod.

Also, VR charges $200 more for the OBD cable to do this but will the Durametric allow this to be done?

Please post any info you guys have, good and bad, or any links to previous threads appreciated as well.

[Morph_986]

I too have been looking at this a bit. There are three or four common choices, all about $800 by the time you get it all done. I am looking at http://softronicsoftware.com/

The big thing with the normally aspirated Boxster engines is how little there is to be gained with the stock setup. Another way of stating this is the Porsche squeezed about as much as they felt comfortable with at the factory. Generic out the box tunes can really only get about 5-8 hp without stepping into a risk space the responsible tuners are not comfortable with. Many other engines I have owned previously can safely be dialed up 25-50hp with minimal risk and so this is a bit of a surprise to most 986 owners.

Reduced pulley conversions get about the same gain, an expensive exhaust might get 5-10 in the real world. Other tweaks and mods perhaps 5 hp real world. More than that you have to look at major mods to the engine internals and consequently possible reduced reliability or drivability under anything other than race conditions.

For this reason, there seems little appetite among many 986 owners to go this route. Instead some wait until they have done all the engine mods they are going to do and then get a custom tune at a dyno center to wring out everything available for that custom setup. At a reputable shop and you are placing all you trust in the ability of the tuner. Good ones know their stuff, bad ones wreck engines. Even if I wanted to go this route the population density in my part of the country would necessitate a very long drive to entrust my engine to a tuner with specific experience of a 986 and a hard earned reputation to maintain.

I might take another contributors suggestion and put the cost towards driving lessons once my engine is back to factory output. That should be worth more than 5-10 hp.

[Cunningr]

I just received the tune from FVD for my 2000 S. They have a progressive tune program if you buy the mods from them at the moment I am waiting on my plenum throttle body to arrive. So my tune will be for FVD bromcher sound muffler ipd plenum if I go ahead with headers they will provide update to the tune free of charge.

[ike84]

These tunes are not a good option for increasing power output. Please remember what a "tune" is and how an internal combustion engine works. About all you can do to squeeze out more power on a NA engine from a tune standpoint is to modify spark timing. Our stock tune is already plenty aggressive here, and pushing timing forward further will only result in detonation. This in turn will either cause the ecu to pull timing once the knock sensors pick it up, or you'll do some serious damage to your internals.

The main power output difference between the 3.2 and 3.4 is the INTAKE, not the tune. The 996 intake uses an 82mm TB, the 3.2 uses the same 68mm TB that the 2.7 uses.

My base 2.7 now has an 82mm TB and 3.5" short ram intake with catless headers and a 2.5" exhaust with 100cel cats. Combined with a 996 tune and UDP, my LTFT data suggest my power output is somewhere around 245 hp. Pull the clutch sensor so you stop having timing cut back during shifts, and you now have a formidable setup.

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[nuvolari]

Originally Posted by ike84

My base 2.7 now has an 82mm TB and 3.5" short ram intake with catless headers and a 2.5" exhaust with 100cel cats. Combined with a 996 tune and UDP, my LTFT data suggest my power output is somewhere around 245 hp. Pull the clutch sensor so you stop having timing cut back during shifts, and you now have a formidable setup.

Is the intake a 996 part? Or do you mean your stock intake? I'm trying to find more details about the 996 intake while my engine is out but there is very little info anywhere.

And more explanation on the clutch sensor would be appreciated also?

[ike84]

Here's a link to my intake writeup

https://986forum.com/forums/diy-project-guides/79420-82-mm-throttle-body.html

The manifold runners are stock 986. They are plenty big enough. Everything else is scrapped together.

The clutch switch is is detailed in my build thread, about halfway down
https://986forum.com/forums/show-tell-gallery/82209-project-renegade.html

"For bonus points, yank out the clutch switch while you're there. There are 2 in there - one for the ignition sequence on US cars, and another that is a signal for the ecu to know when the clutch is depressed while driving. This is important because the ecu pulls timing while shifting to protect the clutch, aid in smoother shifts, yada yada. It also hurts acceleration while shifting and is a reason why you have to dig so deep to blip the throttle on this car when heel toe shifting.

To remove this is stupid easy - disconnect the wiring harness, twist 1/4 turn, and pull out (that's what she said). I actually did this before removing the assist spring housing just to free up a bit of space in there. Once the switch is out you can open it up and you find a series of contacts, a spring, and a ratcheted plunger. Remove the spring and reassemble. Then push the plunger all the way down and put it back where it belongs. Bingo Bango, the ecu will now always think your clutch is not engaged while driving and will not subsequently do all the aforementioned silliness. Remember though, shift responsibly or else..."

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