1.9 Tdi- Tune Up- More POWER! Help and ideas needed!

[Jum1]

Hi,

I've recently bought a Passat 1.9 Tdi S Auto. I reckon it has 90 Hp.
How can I increase the power and torque safely without damaging the engine, turbo or gearbox. I've read about various electronic chips that can be added to the cpu etc but I'm worried I am venturing into problem land where money is spent by the bucket load! :(

So, how is it possible to get that increased power? And where can it be done on a modest budget?

Kindest regards

Jum

[devonutopia]

Hmm, my usual area of expertise but I'm not much good with the non PD engines. Firstly, there are uprated nozzles from the 110 engine which are an easy straight swap, which will see you to 110bhp. This is safe power, very safe. :) Then you could look into perhaps getting a front mounted intercooler. Not cheap, but it will be safe power as it will cool down intake temps nicely, which means less stress on the engine, and more reliable power, without harming the engine life. Then, remove the cat and the backbox - get that "zorst" down to barely anything if possible (in terms of fittings, etc) - Will pass MOT with no cat as well... ;) Once this is done you may as well just go for a remap somewhere and you will hopefully run at around 140bhp - Not bad for a 90hp baseline. Your engine/turbo/gearbox will easily cope with this (bearing in mind I'm planning to run a 130hp PD engine at 300bhp)

[Jum1]

Hey thanks for that devonutopia!

Forgive my ignorance but these nozzles, what are they and where are they?
I think changing them seems straight forward and something I could have done locally. As for the intercooler, i don't think I could afford just yet.

The remap you mentioned, is that the reprogramming of the CPU to produce more power or is it an additional device? I'm not sure if my car is the 90 hp or the 110 hp, how do I find out? My log book doesn't say. (well, truthfully I only have half. I'm waiting on DVLA for my new V5).

Are you serious about the 300 hp? You're mental!! Lol On a diesel as well, I'd love to see that.

Take care and thanks again

[devonutopia]

Oooh, I'm very serious about my 300 horsies. ;)

Nozzles are basically injectors, and on the VE engines, they're just sat on top of the block, and can be undone with a spanner. If you trace the fuel line going from the fuel filter to the engine, you should see it split into 4 pipes going into the top of the engine, in equal sizes. A remap is simply a chip which tells your ECU to up the fuelling and turbo boost a little bit to give more power. It is usually done within safe tolerances to protect clutch, etc.

If you don't know which engine yours is - go out and look on the block for the engine number. If it is a 110 engine I think it will be an ALH engine, so the number on the block will be ALH1234 (for example) Your logbook might say which engine it is, sometimes it says the KW in the front of the service book.

[minty0_10]

so the only diffrence between a 90 and 110 bhp car is the injectors?
ive driven both cars where the extra torque come from with the 110

[Jum1]

Thanks Jason, Very kind dude!

I think I wanna get the remap done. Seems like the obvios choice. How much does it cost. Shouldn't imagine it would cost more than £250. Is this a permanent thing? Ie if i wanted to reduce the power to normal, i would have to get another remap done.

Regards

Jum

[ini]

The 90 brake cars have a normal turbo with a waste-gate.

The 110 cars have a variable vane turbo, which deals with excess boost internally, giving less lag & bigger boost.

Having your car rolling road tuned (or even generic map) is definitely the best option for most power v money.

Or

Go 2 sizes bigger on the injectors, with no re-map.

Or

The simplest but dirtiest mod, a tuning box.

[devonutopia]

As said above, you could do with the better turbo as well, and whilst looking for 2nd hand turbos, you may as well look for a vnt-17 turbo off a pd130, which will fit straight on. :) Should be able to pick up a 2nd hand one in good nick for under £200, then around 4 or 5 hours to fit I reckon. :)

[Jum1]

I'm not keen on mechanical changes ie changing turbo or injectors for 2 reasons:
1. Cost (new baby on the way!) which then means I should do it myself........
2. I don't have the tools or the experience in ever having changed anthing apart from a wheel or airfilter.
My preference veers towards electronic changes and the remap seems an ideal choice.
I think I may also get the Bently owners book thinghy, I reckon it's a good time to learn. Besides, I need to install some speakers in the doors as they're knackered! Havin trouble takin the panel off :( :(

Oh yeah tell me, How does the tuning box work? Which is the best one to go for?

Again, thanks guys for all your help. You're proving very very informative. :) :) :)

Jum

[pesky]

I'm not keen on mechanical changes ie changing turbo or injectors for 2 reasons:
1. Cost (new baby on the way!) which then means I should do it myself........
2. I don't have the tools or the experience in ever having changed anthing apart from a wheel or airfilter.
My preference veers towards electronic changes and the remap seems an ideal choice.
I think I may also get the Bently owners book thinghy, I reckon it's a good time to learn. Besides, I need to install some speakers in the doors as they're knackered! Havin trouble takin the panel off :( :(

Oh yeah tell me, How does the tuning box work? Which is the best one to go for?

Again, thanks guys for all your help. You're proving very very informative. :) :) :)

Jum
Hi Jum 1 I am not clued up on this either but after reading lot of info on this site Iam booked for a re-map on July 26 on my 115bhp passat,increase to 153bhp with 80nm torque £275 .....also I bought a haynes manual off amazon for £13.17 delivered:beerchug:

[devonutopia]

Please don't get a tuning box - their effect is limiting, but the way they get that power is very bad - by faking the car into thinking it's colder than it actually is, and dumping more fuel in. This is not good for the engine in the long term and could end up costing more (a lot more) than a decent remap for say £250 or £300. If you plan no mechanical changes at all (I would at least do the injectors as they're a doddle to swap) then you'd be looking at no more than perhaps 115bhp. With the injectors, 130 is more feasible.

[Jum1]

Advice taken and shall keep away from tuning box's.

regards

[devonutopia]

Advice taken and shall keep away from tuning box's.

regards

I should say that on the PD engines there are very good tuning boxes you can get for £200 odd - Dragon digital is a name which springs to mind. Just steer clear of the £5 resistor tuning boxes.