[AWC-F87]

2018 M2 LCI ultimate track/street beast build https://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1778533


First and foremost that's my build thread. I have a ton of helpful tips in there. I don't post every little detail to what I do but I post answers to questions I have that sometimes I don't find through my research before doing something.

Modding a car does take a lot of research and piecing together of information. If you can't turn a wrench, don't have a good amount of tools and knowledge of stuff then it's best to pay a good shop.

IN OTHER NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!! ECUTEK AND BEND CALIBRATION!!!!!!!!!!

For anyone looking to go this route or do any kind of custom tuning I 100% recommended Bend Calibration! Between Ian and Joseph they have been extremely helpful! Joseph especially! I am very OCD and literate. So I ask a lot of questions and hold people to a high standard. I am in the automotive Industry and work on peoples "babies" day in and out. So I have a high standard for people that I turn to for services. No one except my alignment guy touches my car or turns a bolt on it except me. So when I say bend calibration is the freaking bomb you can rest assured they are! The products they are building are 100% great quality!

They have Google drive documents that walk you through the ECUTEK process click by click. And trust me when I say I am not computer savvy at all! So it may seem more "complicated" than bootmod3 but ecutek is 100% worth it. They have great instructions for their flex fuel kit and installing the zeitronix ethanol box. Detroit_M2 also has a helpful video on YouTube! Thank you for that!

I ran bootmod3 for a long time and it's very user friendly. But one of the things that drove me nuts was that data logging on my phone using the wifi agent or using Ethernet was always really weird. Programming in the IP for Ethernet was touchy and worked like 50% of the time. The wifi agent was also touchy for me. Idk. Like I said I'm not that computer savvy. So most of the time I'd data log with my computer in the car which doing so alone was annoying.

For Ecutek bend sells a bad ass harness to tap the canbus and then run a high speed data logging obd2 port right off the can bus.
I didn't know about the harness before I ordered. So I just received an obd2 port with 16 wires sticking out of it. As per the Google doc instructions and some help from Joseph I understood what to do. In the Google doc there's a picture and it shows you what pins on the obd2 harness you need to wire into the car. I used a multimeter and check the continuity and located the four wires for power, ground, can high/low. I wired that and the zeitronix Ethanol box into the canbus.

The car is now on a true flex fuel tune with multi mapping and anti lag. And I have 3 maps loaded into the car which I can switch in the app or via the cruise buttons. Just like bootmod3.

The connection between the high speed port and the Bluetooth Ecutek obd2 plugin works amazing. It connects right up and works really simply. The app is very easy to learn. It's simple and does everything you could want to do very simply. I honestly like the Ecutek app a lot more then the bootmod3 app.

We're going to continue pulling logs and making tweaks until I have a perfect flex fuel track tune and flex fuel max power tune.

BEFORE I get crucified by bootmod3 lovers!!!!!! I made this switch to ecutek for one reason! The reason is that I wanted to work with the best to dial in my setup. I've spent a TON of money on hard parts for the car to build it up. Especially with the addition of the pure stage 2 and possibly a different turbo in the future. I wanted to future proof the car and work with a great tuner that can support my tuning needs long into the future. Joseph spent ample amounts of time going over all the options for the tuning capabilities of ecutek. As I continue to do more, change stuff or conditions change we can quickly make custom revisions to my maps.

NOW for anyone looking to just keep stuff on the easier side having access to bootmod3's awesome OTS maps then bootmod3 is great. And I ran 3 of their maps for a long time. I was also lucky to run my PS2 on the e30+ ots map and the logs looked pretty darn good and it pulled like a SOB. But like I said, I wanted to be able to work with an amazing tuner truly dialing in my setup 100% custom and perfectly and bend calibration will get me there!

I really hope you guys appreciate this and it helps some people out! I post important stuff and try to post the answers to stuff I have trouble finding. I also feel not enough love goes to Ecutek and custom tuning. But I can assure you it's 100% worth the money!

[AWC-F87]

I wanted to open the door for Ecutek discussion because I feel there isn't much love out there.

Another thing that came to mind is that like I said most bootmod3 OTS maps are great. But I like that now with custom tuning the tweaks are being made to totally custom tune for my setup. My tunes will be proprietary to my car, my mods, my atmospheric conditions around where I live. I drive this car hard so I want to know everything is working perfectly together. I feel the custom tune route will nail that.

For my "track tune" we are dialing power back. This tune will designed to make power as early as possible and then remain very safe for when I beat the car on track for 20min sessions.

Then I will have a "full power" tune that still will remain safe and make sure it cuts if there's even a blip of a problem but max everything out to lay down the best numbers possible. This tune I will probably rarely use….unless a silly mustang wants to play on the freeway haha

[Commanderwiggin]

Glad you're as thrilled with your Bend Calibration - Ecutek experience! I'm lucky enough to know Ian and Joseph. I will say the the work that Bend Calibration has done on my M2C and E46 Turbo has been nothing short of amazing. I've had the Bend Calibration tune for 2 years now and the fuel kit since it was released a year ago with no issues. Anyways, big fan as well and glad you're having such a great experience.

[boldy1]

Originally Posted by AWC-F87

I wanted to open the door for Ecutek discussion because I feel there isn't much love out there.

Another thing that came to mind is that like I said most bootmod3 OTS maps are great. But I like that now with custom tuning the tweaks are being made to totally custom tune for my setup. My tunes will be proprietary to my car, my mods, my atmospheric conditions around where I live. I drive this car hard so I want to know everything is working perfectly together. I feel the custom tune route will nail that.

For my "track tune" we are dialing power back. This tune will designed to make power as early as possible and then remain very safe for when I beat the car on track for 20min sessions.

Then I will have a "full power" tune that still will remain safe and make sure it cuts if there's even a blip of a problem but max everything out to lay down the best numbers possible. This tune I will probably rarely use….unless a silly mustang wants to play on the freeway haha

I'm having some issues with my Ecutek map at the moment and its taking a long time for them to fix which isn't making the experience the best for me.

hopefully all will be sorted soon

[AWC-F87]

Originally Posted by boldy1

I'm having some issues with my Ecutek map at the moment and its taking a long time for them to fix which isn't making the experience the best for me.

hopefully all will be sorted soon

What's going on?

[cecaa850]

Originally Posted by boldy1

I'm having some issues with my Ecutek map at the moment and its taking a long time for them to fix which isn't making the experience the best for me.

hopefully all will be sorted soon

Which tuner are you using?

[MTWO]

Just get a BM3 custom map from a reputable tuner problem solved.

[MetalM2]

I went with ECUTEK and Bend Calibration as well, and have no complaints or regrets. It did take a little while from the start of the process until the final map was produced, but that was partly due to bad timing as they went through some infrastructure/logistics issues in the middle of it all. The final map(s) have been outstanding and the car has been running them seamlessly. As others have said, it feels very OEM-like (just with more power/faster) in its operation. I'm not very computer-skilled at all, and when I had a question during the actual install of the base map from Bend, Joseph got on the phone with me and talked me through it in real time. I would recommend ECUTEK and Bend to anyone.

I have nothing bad to say about Bootmod3, I know others on here have achieved outstanding results with them. I just felt that ECUTEK seemed like the more comprehensive program that would be able to achieve the most OEM-like functionality. I think the most fundamentally important issue for consumers though, is to ensure you're dealing with a reputable tuner regardless of their chosen tuning platform (eg Cary Jordan dramas).

[AWC-F87]

Originally Posted by MTWO

Just get a BM3 custom map from a reputable tuner problem solved.

Some of the beat tuners, like bend calibration, don't use BM3. Trust me, I tried tooth and nail to get bend to tune for me with BM3. But it's no comparison on the tuners end apparently. What they told me is with Ecutek the tuner can just fine tune way more. With how built my setup is and is going to keep getting I needed every bit of tuning solution as possible.

I will say. We are only on revision 2 of my tuning and my setup feels night and day better over the BM3 e30+ map. My PS2 turbo is spooled by 2800rpm! The SOB is pulling like a freight train.

[-Eidos]

Originally Posted by AWC-F87

For Ecutek bend sells a bad ass harness to tap the canbus and then run a high speed data logging obd2 port right off the can bus.
I didn't know about the harness before I ordered. So I just received an obd2 port with 16 wires sticking out of it. As per the Google doc instructions and some help from Joseph I understood what to do. In the Google doc there's a picture and it shows you what pins on the obd2 harness you need to wire into the car. I used a multimeter and check the continuity and located the four wires for power, ground, can high/low. I wired that and the zeitronix Ethanol box into the canbus.

This is what pushed me to Bend's camp. I didn't see anyone else offer this and when you think about the concept, it makes sense. The more data points that you have, the more precise your tuning strategy and implementation can be. Joseph always verbally kicked me in the ass (light heartedly of course) if my logging rate ever went below 12hz when logging 65+ parameters. When logging less parameters, I've seen my logging rate be in the high 30-40hz range (This is all via bluetooth).

Originally Posted by AWC-F87

I will say. We are only on revision 2 of my tuning and my setup feels night and day better over the BM3 e30+ map. My PS2 turbo is spooled by 2800rpm! The SOB is pulling like a freight train.

The Bend innovation special sauce continues .

I've never heard of a PS2 spooling by 2,800rpm! It must be a new tuning strategy, which is a game changer and eases the concerns of many who fear the late spool of the PS2.

This should apply to my EFR as well so I guess I'll bug Joseph now!

[AWC-F87]

Originally Posted by -Eidos

This is what pushed me to Bend's camp. I didn't see anyone else offer this and when you think about the concept, it makes sense. The more data points that you have, the more precise your tuning strategy and implementation can be. Joseph always verbally kicked me in the ass (light heartedly of course) if my logging rate ever went below 12hz when logging 65+ parameters. When logging less parameters, I've seen my logging rate be in the high 30-40hz range (This is all via bluetooth).

The Bend innovation special sauce continues .

I've never heard of a PS2 spooling by 2,800rpm! It must be a new tuning strategy, which is a game changer and eases the concerns of many who fear the late spool of the PS2.

This should apply to my EFR as well so I guess I'll bug Joseph now!

Yeah dude it was insane to hear the PS2 whistlen' low in the rpm range. Cause on the e30+ tune I never heard it even spool. I honestly thought I installed it wrong lol. Cause by the time it spooled the exhaust was so loud I couldn't hear the turbo. Now I hear and feel it very early.
Joseph did say it was a new strategy. But so far it's working great and we're only at 20psi lol. This was revision 2!!! By the time we're done it's going to be insane.

I can't imagine how fast your car is lol!

[boldy1]

Originally Posted by AWC-F87

What's going on?

its surging at mid to high rpm. i am getting a lot of error codes also that were not present before the tune.

Ecutek know of the problem and are working through the tables to sort it im running a gt35 which amplifies the issue

[AWC-F87]

@boldy1 ahh well obviously you're running a very custom setup with that turbo so I'm sure it'll just be some tweaking to dial it in.

[MTWO]

Originally Posted by AWC-F87

Some of the beat tuners, like bend calibration, don't use BM3. Trust me, I tried tooth and nail to get bend to tune for me with BM3. But it's no comparison on the tuners end apparently. What they told me is with Ecutek the tuner can just fine tune way more. With how built my setup is and is going to keep getting I needed every bit of tuning solution as possible.

I will say. We are only on revision 2 of my tuning and my setup feels night and day better over the BM3 e30+ map. My PS2 turbo is spooled by 2800rpm! The SOB is pulling like a freight train.

That’s not true. BM3 is right on their website not to take anything away from this shop but there are tons of far more well known names in custom tuning on this platform such as Jordan Tuned, Paul Johnson, Twisted Tuning, Wedge and others. Custom map especially for an upgraded turbo is a good idea and of course it should do better than an OTS map or what’s the point in paying all the $$$

[-Eidos]

Originally Posted by MTWO

That’s not true. BM3 is right on their website not to take anything away from this shop but there are tons of far more well known names in custom tuning on this platform such as Jordan Tuned, Paul Johnson, Twisted Tuning, Wedge and others. Custom map especially for an upgraded turbo is a good idea and of course it should do better than an OTS map or what’s the point in paying all the $$$

Well known does not equate to quality. I question your opinion when half the names on your list are notorious for providing incomplete tunes with misfires or blowing motors.

[cookiesowns]

Originally Posted by MTWO

That’s not true. BM3 is right on their website not to take anything away from this shop but there are tons of far more well known names in custom tuning on this platform such as Jordan Tuned, Paul Johnson, Twisted Tuning, Wedge and others. Custom map especially for an upgraded turbo is a good idea and of course it should do better than an OTS map or what’s the point in paying all the $$$

There’s a reason why BM3 quickly added map switching, flex fuel, and the new map editor. There’s also a reason why we’ve added BM3 in our portfolio but still many customers decide to go to ECUtek.

I can’t comment on “well known names”, but I can ask you, do those people have a team of 3+ professional motorsports calibrators, in house software engineer, and a calibrator that used to own an actual shop that has built very many fast cars?

BendCalibration does more than just BMW tuning, they tune various high end cars on various standalone ecu platforms. Motec and Syvecs being one.

[F87source]

Originally Posted by -Eidos

Well known does not equate to quality. I question your opinion when half the names on your list are notorious for providing incomplete tunes with misfires or blowing motors.

+1

Do a google search with those names and issues concatenated at the end of the search and you'll see. Not sure why people don't do this before getting a tune.

[MTWO]

Originally Posted by F87source

+1

Do a google search with those names and issues concatenated at the end of the search and you'll see. Not sure why people don't do this before getting a tune.

To be fair do a search with any big name very popular tuner and you’ll find something because of the sheer number of cars done and the fact that people always write about issues more than when things actually work out great as they should. Just human nature.

[F87source]

Originally Posted by MTWO

To be fair do a search with any big name very popular tuner and you’ll find something because of the sheer number of cars done and the fact that people always write about issues more than when things actually work out great as they should. Just human nature.

I agree issues do happen, but there is a tuner with a huge history of engine failures after getting a tune from them. That's not minor issues like stumbling etc.


Then there's another popular tuner that tunes like garbage on that list, just maximum agressiveness and then doesn't respond to messages because he's onto the next.


This is what I keep seeing when googling for them, and it seems to be extremely prevalent and common. Either way I won't mention any names, just Google carefully before you pick a tuner.

[AWC-F87]

My only goal with starting this thread was to bring awareness to fruition that ecutek is a great route and their offerings are as good and better in ways over BM3.

[ebisu8]

I'm still working through some things but I should have my base map from Ian soon. I will also vouch even though I'm on the S55 side, Ian and team have been great thus far and the new harness for the CAN is night and day better than their old one.

[MTWO]

Originally Posted by cookiesowns

There’s a reason why BM3 quickly added map switching, flex fuel, and the new map editor. There’s also a reason why we’ve added BM3 in our portfolio but still many customers decide to go to ECUtek.

I can’t comment on “well known names”, but I can ask you, do those people have a team of 3+ professional motorsports calibrators, in house software engineer, and a calibrator that used to own an actual shop that has built very many fast cars?

BendCalibration does more than just BMW tuning, they tune various high end cars on various standalone ecu platforms. Motec and Syvecs being one.

You keep propping up Bend like someone is talking down on them If you’ll talk about “there’s a reason why this or that” then same can be said that there is a reason why Ecutek is adding phone flashing. There is a reason they’re adding map upload to cloud. There’s a reason they ask people to install an extra OBD port in the car so logging and flashing are a little quicker albeit still slower than both MHD and BM3 that just use the built in OBD port. MHD has had flashing from phones since like 2010 or something. They had it first on E series BMWs. BM3 has this as well and cloud stuff too like 5 years running now or something. Each company is adding whatever they feel like adding to make customers happy and I’m all for that and benefits the customer in the end. This argument really doesn’t make much sense. I’ll leave it alone here as its pretty boring talking about this instead of just the usual shop talk.