[SeanWRT]

I did it. "burning 1K+ USD for no reason" and desipte of fact I myself told everyone that Pure Stage 2 is the thing to do pursuing serious power and look no further. Yet I "screwed" myself with a stage one upgrade, where there isn't much gain to be expected with an EWG, a fact I'm well aware of.

But it's just me - my goal has never been the big peak power number. 450~500whp or more, no thanks, is the type of power our RWD F platform would struggle putting down on 1st, 2nd and maybe 3rd gear. What I'm after is more top end with minimal loss in turbo responsiveness, just so I don't have to short shift to have the maximum accelaration. It's really painful having to do so with a stock N55 and more so with a tuned one.

Knowing all stage one turbos are no different in term of power, I reached out to Pure, Dinan and Vargas. In the end I decided to go for Dinan, as I have more faith in their build quality and customer service.

Having finished a 3 week business trip in USA, I brought the Dinan turbo back to Shanghai. The install was very straightforward if your mechanic step by step follows Dinan guide. There is no need to take off any of the exhaust components - exhaust manifold, turbine housing, downpipe and catback - they stayed on the car the entire process. Though you will want to pay attention to:
1) The coolant tank would be drained when water pump was off. So prepare 5-6L coolant in advance. Some extra cost to factor in.
2) Wastegate adjustment to ISTA is required.

See below comparison picture of EWG stock and Stage One turbo. The only visible difference is the compressor Inducer diameter. STG1=52mm, EWG stock is 50mm. FYI, PWG=46mm.

Compressor exducer (not to be confused with turbine wheel) is inside of compressor housing and thus can't be checked. I am boldly assuming (correct me if I am wrong, I certainly can) that Dinan doesn't change compressor exducer.
Compressor side:
PWG: Exducer=62mm (fact), Inducer=46mm (fact), Trim=55
EWG: Exducer=67mm (fact), Inducer=50mm (fact), Trim=55.7
STG1: Exducer=67mm (assumption), Inducer=52mm (fact), Trim=60

Edit - EWG Exducer = 67mm, known as a fact

Turbine:
PWG, EWG and STG1 are the same. Inducer=53mm (fact), Exducer=46mm (fact), Trim=75

Dinan turbo has a marginally bigger compressor trim than EWG. No much of a gain seems to be expected.

I'm currently running Dinan turbo on BM3 stock turbo map (no OTS for stg1 turbo at this point). No idea what kind of improvement to get with proper tuning in place. PTF will be dialing in my car based on my datalog. I spent my last few days doing as many WOT as I can for DME adaptation to new turbo. In doing so, I already felt a little bit more pull up top, but that could be only all in my mind.

I'll do more datalogs tomorrow. See what DzennoproTUNING Freaks can do with that

[No Boost]

Now you can enjoy the last 1500 rpm that the N55 has to offer.

[SeanWRT]

Originally Posted by Stage IV

Now you can enjoy the last 1500 rpm that the N55 has to offer.

More like 500-700rpm.

According to our extensive tests, tuned m2 accelerates fastest, when shifting at 6500rpm from 3-4 gear, and 6300rpm from 4-5&5-6.

You should leave it to 7k on 1-2 and 2-3.

Above applies to m2 DCT stock turbo, other EWGs automatic should do 200-300rpm earlier, tuned.

I still believe there is some trick BMW has done to m2 exhaust manifold to make it a freer flow one.

[SeanWRT]

Originally Posted by CornFEDscb5

Nice, dyno?

Will do when the tuning is done.

And it's going to be a same day same dyno comparison including a 335i PWG on PS2/meth/E30/PI (the n55 1/4 world record 11.1s holder), a 435i EWG PS2 on AKI93, a stock m2 and a stock m4.

Could be fun.

[mike@x-ph.com]

Congrats!

[FSociety]

World Record STG1 Turbo coming soon!

PTF ftw

[Jadar]

Originally Posted by SeanWRT

Will do when the tuning is done.

And it's going to be a same day same dyno comparison including a 335i PWG on PS2/meth/E30/PI (the n55 1/4 world record 11.1s holder), a 435i EWG PS2 on AKI93, a stock m2 and a stock m4.

Could be fun.

Nice sounds fun, keep us updated, I really like my pure stage 1 but I am PWG so for me it was a good deal of boost to be had up top. Did you do the GFB DV+ if not thats something you should consider, the stock diverter valve loves to fail and tear.

[Jadar]

Originally Posted by FSociety

World Record STG1 Turbo coming soon!

PTF ftw

I hope so for my sake as well. Dzenan sent me a whole new map under the new revised configuration and he basically on his 1st try basically matched my ACF file. I say in 2 to 3 revisions I will be enjoying a bad ass map more boost and be jb4 free for ever.

[Motivate]

Nice, how much power will this set up yield and what's your ultimate target?

[SeanWRT]

Originally Posted by FSociety

World Record STG1 Turbo coming soon!

PTF ftw

Thanks for your kind words. I'm flattered. But this world record stg1 isn't remotely going to happen - I'm not even pushing it with meth and ethanol. I will go as far as stock fuelling allows.

Originally Posted by Jadar

Nice sounds fun, keep us updated, I really like my pure stage 1 but I am PWG so for me it was a good deal of boost to be had up top. Did you do the GFB DV+ if not thats something you should consider, the stock diverter valve loves to fail and tear.

I did GFB DV+, mainspring not installed. And I confirm it's the N20 version of it that fits M2.

Originally Posted by Motivate

Nice, how much power will this set up yield and what's your ultimate target?

FBO (DP, IC and inlet) on a proper tune net you around 50rwhp. Stg1 Turbo allows for another some 20 up top with stock fueling. So my best guess would be 70rwhp over a stock m2.

However, my ultimate target isn't really quantifiable - but a M2 that's noticeably faster than stock, and is a happy high revver.

[SeanWRT]

Update: I finally managed to data log Dinan turbo on my current map (BM3 OTS for stock turbo). Below are findings compared to stock turbo log:

1) Boost peaks at 18.5psi and tapers to 14psi at redline, pretty much on target throughout the band. This is the same as stock turbo apparently because same map are being used.
2) I was expecting 200-300rpm spool up loss with bigger turbo but to my surprise spool up is even slightly faster. Floor it from 1500rpm 3rd gear off throttle, stock turbo hit boost target 17psi @ 2700rpm from previous logs, but now STG1 turbo does that 100~150rpm earlier repeatedly. Kudo to Dinan Dinan_Engineering for building great compressor
3) Timing is as good as always.
4) I noticed throttle closure happens most of time, even when I'm not overboosting. It was 100% fully open all the way up with stock turbo though. Checking this with PTF.
5) WGDC is 5% lower on average. It can mean a greater flow potential or can mean nothing, because waste gate adjustment was performed after new turbo was installed.
6) IAT holds up good. I did 7 repeated run on a 80F day. Each run starts from 15mph (1500rpm 3rd gear) and ends at 105mph (4th gear 6k rpm), 10~20s breaks in between runs. IAT was 90F on 1st run and was 110+ by the end of last run.

All of those runs are on 98RON(93AKI), no meth, no PI.

I'm hoping for some 2 more psi up top if possible with minimal timing loss from new map that PTF is working on.

[Yellowflash21]

Dyno it mate!

[SeanWRT]

Guys, I tested the V1 map for stg1 turbo with 11 back to back runs and got some amazing results. It surprised me.

I deliberately asked not to make 21-22psi down low, which the car is well capable of, only to make power at meaningless rev range and thus excessive heat. So 18ish peak boost it is. The boost is on target throughout the band and is holding 18psi all the way to redline. It is the serious 7000rpm redline that I am talking about, no joke no exception! The timing is close to 10 up top.

I dont see any other EWG n55 on STG1 can do anything remotely like this on 93OCT, no meth no ethanol. I am much inclined to believing M2 has a freer flow exhaust manifold (the pipe upstream of turbine housing).

In addition, cooling is easier because impeller is bigger so it revs less for the same amount of boost/air. IAT started with 85F on 1st run and ended up 100+ when I finished all 11 repeated runs. The ambient temp was 70F.

However, I am still seeing throttle closure and is consulting with Dzenan on this. There is a decision to make if it is the right thing to do to keep it 100% open.

The drivability is stock silky smooth, because according to Dzenan, they didnt touch the stock tune under light load.

I will definitely dyno it when this custom tune is finalized.

Check out log of these runs below and please comment.

http://www.bootmod3.net/log?id=59d64104d10b4372c4b51dac

[Jadar]

Originally Posted by SeanWRT

Guys, I tested the V1 map for stg1 turbo with 11 back to back runs and got some amazing results. It surprised me.

I deliberately asked not to make 21-22psi down low, which the car is well capable of, only to make power at meaningless rev range and thus excessive heat. So 18ish peak boost it is. The boost is on target throughout the band and is holding 18psi all the way to redline. It is the serious 7000rpm redline that I am talking about, no joke no exception! The timing is close to 10 up top.

I dont see any other EWG n55 on STG1 can do anything remotely like this on 93OCT, no meth no ethanol. I am much inclined to believing M2 has a freer flow exhaust manifold (the pipe upstream of turbine housing).

In addition, cooling is easier because impeller is bigger so it revs less for the same amount of boost/air. IAT started with 85F on 1st run and ended up 100+ when I finished all 11 repeated runs. The ambient temp was 70F.

However, I am still seeing throttle closure and is consulting with Dzenan on this. There is a decision to make if it is the right thing to do to keep it 100% open.

The drivability is stock silky smooth, because according to Dzenan, they didnt touch the stock tune under light load.

I will definitely dyno it when this custom tune is finalized.

Check out log of these runs below and please comment.

http://www.bootmod3.net/log?id=59d64104d10b4372c4b51dac

Nice keep it coming his is very good Info.

[FSociety]

Very good back to back WOT logs, impressive!
Bootmod3 Custom Tuning ftw

[JaredG_F30]

Nice!! Can't wait to see the dyno results.

[Oxymoron]

Originally Posted by SeanWRT

Guys, I tested the V1 map for stg1 turbo with 11 back to back runs and got some amazing results. It surprised me.

I deliberately asked not to make 21-22psi down low, which the car is well capable of, only to make power at meaningless rev range and thus excessive heat. So 18ish peak boost it is. The boost is on target throughout the band and is holding 18psi all the way to redline. It is the serious 7000rpm redline that I am talking about, no joke no exception! The timing is close to 10 up top.

I dont see any other EWG n55 on STG1 can do anything remotely like this on 93OCT, no meth no ethanol. I am much inclined to believing M2 has a freer flow exhaust manifold (the pipe upstream of turbine housing).

In addition, cooling is easier because impeller is bigger so it revs less for the same amount of boost/air. IAT started with 85F on 1st run and ended up 100+ when I finished all 11 repeated runs. The ambient temp was 70F.

However, I am still seeing throttle closure and is consulting with Dzenan on this. There is a decision to make if it is the right thing to do to keep it 100% open.

The drivability is stock silky smooth, because according to Dzenan, they didnt touch the stock tune under light load.

I will definitely dyno it when this custom tune is finalized.

Check out log of these runs below and please comment.

http://www.bootmod3.net/log?id=59d64104d10b4372c4b51dac

What are your thoughts on how this setup would perform with a switch to e85 and the necessary fueling mods to suit? I have e85 readily available so i'd love to make the switch but it seems pretty pointless with the stock turbo. The ease of the S1 upgrade apeals to me, and your results are looking great on pump fuel.

Cheers

[NO_USER_]

Sub'd!!

[SeanWRT]

Originally Posted by Oxymoron

What are your thoughts on how this setup would perform with a switch to e85 and the necessary fueling mods to suit? I have e85 readily available so i'd love to make the switch but it seems pretty pointless with the stock turbo. The ease of the S1 upgrade apeals to me, and your results are looking great on pump fuel.

Cheers

Honestly nobody knows for sure. As you see, STG1 turbo isn't a popular choice for EWGs, and more often, meth is considered first as a much more effective solution with N54/55 platform.

HPFP can easily break at 370~380whp (330 being stock benchmark) on stock turbo and pump gas, should tuning isn't properly calibrated. So fueling upgrade is a requirement with Ethanol. Fuel-it PI kit and LPFP will do.

Since fuelling and ethanol is on the table, you may as well jump right into PS2 and make 480~510whp@20~22psi. Beyond that, cooling and octane can't keep up and meth becomes a requirement. And then you'll be maxing out PS2 doing 530~550whp@24~25psi. Be noted, 1) Ethanol helps spool-up a lot, you don't have to worry about spool-up loss with PS2. 2) EWG N55 doesn't seem to like as much as 85% ethanol, E40-50 would be the sweet spot.

Speaking of meth, it helps fueling as well, so you can max out STG1 turbo on meth without using PI. But in doing so, your system reliability is subjective to meth. Should it fail, your HPFP is overload and can fail in a single WOT pull.

Ethanol gives you octane, which means more consistency and reliability paired with PI (comparatively speaking), but you lose flexibility - can't go back to pump gas without switching map and regapping spark plug.

Meth gives you everything (octane, fuelling and cooling) and thus is the single greatest power upgrade to any N55 build, but when it fail your fuel pump can break.

If your mind is set on either STG1 or stock turbo for the simplicity, my suggestion would be doing meth on a map that's not overly aggressive for none meth build. Meth would act as cooling and octane bonus and still net you extra 20-25whp or 430-440whp on stg1 turbo, which is about the same as ethanol numbers (if that's the number in my opinion that you wanted to know). The point is when meth breaks, your car still runs fine.

Alternatively, you can take BEF+JB4 route on BMS meth kit. You're still safe as JB4 is able to adjust boost when meth doesn't work.

[Oxymoron]

Great info, thanks for the reply. For whatever reason Meth is never really used in Australia, but e85 is very common.

I'll take your advice and hold off until i'm ready for Stg 2 with PI and LPFP all together.

[Yiruna]

What exact mods do have?

[SeanWRT]

It's been a while since I last shared my tuning progress. proTUNING Freaks and Halim@HCP stayed with me for the past few months. Thru tons of datalogs, they dialed up and dialed back, did flat load and made progressive boost. We had map that does 19psi at 7000rpm with acceptable timing. We also tried 16psi flat map that looks gonna last forever on road course. On the other side of planet, they've done all a tuner can possibly do and more. Nothing short of amazing customer service!

I very much enjoy my newest one which best serves my need. It's smooth and strong and is as far as my hardware and octane allows. I think this is going to put down strong number on dyno

BTW, ambient temp is now 50F, boost would be 1~1.5psi higher in summer (90F).