Featuring on Remapping

mark.s

MBO Forum Staff - CLS 320 (W219)
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CLS 320 CDI remapped (W219)
Hi All,

Mercedes Owner magazine, the official magazine of the Mercedes-Benz Owners (MBO) are seeking your feedback following ECU Remaps.

If you have had this done and have some feedback, please include the details below.

Maybe you have made your car into a "rocket" and have a story to tell about the work you have got done?

We will be closing this thread at the end of March, so we have time to create the feature..

Look forward to your thoughts.
 

daveenty

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2019 AMG S Class Coupe
I'll write a little report on my last one when I get on my main PC where all the details are Mark.

A bit more than mapping to get to the end figures (728bhp & 791lb/ft at the wheels), but it started with a map...
 

LostKiwi

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'93 500SL-32, '01 W210 Estate E240 (RIP), 02 R230 SL500, 04 Smart Roadster Coupe, 11 R350CDi
I had a map installed on my little Smart Roadster (okay its not a 'proper MB' but you do buy all the parts from MB :)
They come out as 80hp standard and the map took it to 102hp (which given its only 700cc makes it about 145bhp/litre).
It now has far more punch in the mid range and revs very readily to red line (it could actually do with another 1000rpm before the limit now it feels so good). Fuel economy is untouched and since the remap its done 64,000 miles with no issues at all other than a worn clutch (which would have been worn anyway).
On the Roadster a remap is a very worthwhile thing to do.
 

bembo449

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Mercedes Cl500, shitron dispatch
had my 216 5.5 remapped , K+N filters , exhaust modified for better flow , been 2 years since it was done , the car responded very well , much crisper throttle response especially in 'C' gearbox mode , slightly improved economy too , money well spent imo
 

daveenty

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I promised you a reply Mark so here are my experiences with the last car: -

The car: 2013 E63 with an M157 5.5 twin turbo

The work below was all done by MSL Performance.

It all started with a limited slip diff and went downhill from there really. Whilst I was having it fitted I was asked if I wanted to try a tuning box which had just been made available in the UK. As there was no charge and it was pretty much an invisible (and removable) modification I agreed.

Once the box was fitted I drove a good few miles to let it go through the learning process and, whilst it did increase the power, I decided it was a bit on the harsh side though kept experimenting with the different settings till I got it something like.

Another couple of mods followed, initially a resonator delete replaced with an X Pipe, though I still felt the car was lacking something. Around this time (Mid 2014) Weistec had just introduced their turbo back downpipes which were going down a storm in the States so I ordered a pair and eventually had them fitted. This was the mod I'd been looking for, it really opened the engine up letting it breathe a lot easier and you could actually hear the turbos spooling up. Unfortunately it kept throwing a check engine light due to the missing cats so I had no option but to have it mapped and, at this time, the only people offering this service on the M157 engine were in the US.

The ECU was sent across to Weistec (temporarily replaced by a clone) and, after a long wait, it arrived back in the UK and was fitted back on the car along with the removal of the tuning box. The difference was immediately noticeable. Much more low down power and torque giving us figures of 630bhp and 775lb/ft which I considered more than adequate.

I then ran it for a year and loved it, though the gearbox was starting to show a bit of slip, probably due to the increased torque, so it was decided at that time to remove it and ship it across to the States for modifying. While it was there it seemed logical (to me at least) to get the turbos upgraded at the same time, so Weistec were instructed, the old ones packed up with the transmission and off they went. The ECU was also shipped over for Weistec to map again as they understood and knew the car. When everything eventually arrived back it was put back together but not put on the dyno as it was felt a little running in may help with things so, after about 500 miles it was back down and tested.

I must admit to being a little disappointed with the initial figures as there wasn't too much of an increase, though it was driving relatively smoothly but a bit harsh, a bit like an on/off switch. As it happened, when it did go on the dyno, Jerry from Eurocharged was at MSL and he removed the ECU, checked the map and reckoned that it was good but the new transmission hadn't been taken into account. His words were "I reckon I can get another 50bhp out of that thing."

With a bit of fettling and things we ended up with 728bhp and 791lb/ft out of it. From there on it was a totally different animal, a lot smoother than the Weistec map yet with considerably more power.

At this stage it was a dream to drive, docile around town/traffic yet on an open road or, ideally, a runway, it was an absolute beast, throwing you back in the seat at 150mph+.

I then ran it about for another year or so but eventually decided that the time had come to part company as I couldn't really do much more with it, certainly without it costing me an awful amount of money. The new owner is very pleased with it and is doing what I should have done really, having little tweaks done to the map to smooth all the curves out.

I miss the car still, though felt it was time to swap it out as I needed a different sort of challenge as opposed to just making cars go faster and faster.

Incidentally, all the quoted figures were done on the same dyno and are at the rear wheels. The last set would equate to approximately 860bhp and 935lb/ft of torque at the crank which was plenty for me.
 

John Laidlaw

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Bit early for me , I’m having my first ECU remap 11th April Mark - at MSL as recommended by Daveenty and others.
I will resist going monster like Daveenty though !
 

V6Matty

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Had my previous E270 mapped, exhaust mod on some intake work done, ended up being quicker than a mapped 320 but was still averaging over 42mpg over a few thousand miles (slightly up to before the work), ran it for over 80k like that without any issues,
 

daveenty

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Matter of interest regarding my old car mentioned above.

It's just been on the dyno again today for some selective mapping and managed figures of 767bhp & 896ft/lbs. It was taken substantially higher but then pulled back for smoothness apparently...

These are rear wheel figures. :D
 

John Laidlaw

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Bit early for me , I’m having my first ECU remap 11th April Mark - at MSL as recommended by Daveenty and others.
I will resist going monster like Daveenty though !
Changed to 20th April now....
 

oigle

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2003 ML270 sold but not forgotten. 2022 Kia EV6 RWD LR
Mapped my ML270 130000km ago as I considered it was dangerous to drive with horrible throttle lag off the mark. Didn't look for great HP gains, just response. Did get noticeable gains in torque as a bonus and a lovely warble from the motor under heavy throttle. Main thing is it now responds to throttle almost like a naturally aspirated petrol engine. Economy seemingly unaffected.
 

Yugguy

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C220CDI W204 Elegance Comand
Haven't mapped the Merc but I have mapped a Bora and a Focus, so I can comment generally.

IMO a decent generic map is fine, especially on a diesel, if you have no other modifications.

On both cars cruising mpg was improved, and also driveability. The torque was not only increased but available over a longer rev range so there was less need to change down to get some acceleration.

Care MUST be taken to respect the limits of the gearbox. On the Bora I could have installed a more aggressive map but that would have taken the torque way over the gearbox limit. An uprated clutch would have been required.
 

00slk

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2002 SL55 AMG, 2005 E320 CDi, 2014 SLK250 CDi, 2003 SLK200
Our 500 has had a remap which compared to other 500's I've driven it is much more responsive low down in the rev range and also find it preforms stronger at motorway speeds for overtaking.
The 55 doesn't need a remap as it's mental anyway. :D
 

JBell

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C350 CDi Estate (GAD Edition)
My C350 CDi was mapped by GAD, made a fast car into a very fast car. In gear acceleration is superb, utterly effortless and retains all the smoothness you expect with that engine / gearbox combination.

It is so responsive in all gears and pulls like a train, the map was done specific to my car, power is up to around 300bhp and 700Nm of Torque and fuel economy is the same as before so all good.

Anthony's attention to detail was excellent, you have to remove the ECU on 350CDi engines and split them apart, I watched him "operating" on mine with great care, can't recommend him enough
 

John Laidlaw

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Our 500 has had a remap which compared to other 500's I've driven it is much more responsive low down in the rev range and also find it preforms stronger at motorway speeds for overtaking.
The 55 doesn't need a remap as it's mental anyway. :D
I didn’t think there was too much to be wrung out of the 5.5 n/a car Peter? I checked around when I had mine and it was less than 10% useful gain. Then again it may well have helped the Low down grunt as you are experiencing
 

00slk

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I didn’t think there was too much to be wrung out of the 5.5 n/a car Peter? I checked around when I had mine and it was less than 10% useful gain. Then again it may well have helped the Low down grunt as you are experiencing

Not sure John, maybe the 5litre was more readily available for extracting more hp, the 5.5 could have already been fitted with an up rated ecu, though I always thought that due to eu regs all ecu cars from new were fitted with s 50/50 rating?
 

John Laidlaw

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Not sure John, maybe the 5litre was more readily available for extracting more hp, the 5.5 could have already been fitted with an up rated ecu, though I always thought that due to eu regs all ecu cars from new were fitted with s 50/50 rating?
Oh yeah of course yours is the 5l, forgot!
 

Bubble

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E350 Coupe CDI / Land-Rover Discovery 4 / Nissan Skyline 650bhp R.I.P.
GAD remapped both my ML270 cdi and CLK320 cdi.

The ML was an unresponsive slug before it was mapped, but afterwards it was light and day. The lag was so much better and transformed it into something that was much more fun to drive. It was also a limited edition, so had the 275 wide tyres and it would go round corners like it was on rails. Pretty impressive for a two ton suv.

The CLK felt quicker and had more torque. Not such a dramatic improvement as on the ML, but certainly worth doing.

The remap didn't seem to change the mpg on the ML, but it did tend to chuck out even more black smoke than before. The CLK had no more smoke, but there was more diesel knock on light throttle. The mpg was slightly worse, but I put that down to my right foot. .......
 

oigle

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2003 ML270 sold but not forgotten. 2022 Kia EV6 RWD LR
GAD remapped both my ML270 cdi and CLK320 cdi.

The ML was an unresponsive slug before it was mapped, but afterwards it was light and day. The lag was so much better and transformed it into something that was much more fun to drive. It was also a limited edition, so had the 275 wide tyres and it would go round corners like it was on rails. Pretty impressive for a two ton suv.

The CLK felt quicker and had more torque. Not such a dramatic improvement as on the ML, but certainly worth doing.

The remap didn't seem to change the mpg on the ML, but it did tend to chuck out even more black smoke than before. The CLK had no more smoke, but there was more diesel knock on light throttle. The mpg was slightly worse, but I put that down to my right foot. .......

Mine did too until I deleted the egr. No more smoke....
 


AMF Automotive - We are an independent Mercedes-Benz and AMG specialist located in Paddock Wood, Kent, with full Mercedes Diagnostic equipment. We offer a full portfolio of tuning options for AMGs and can cater for all your Mercedes needs.
Tel: 0203 384 4644www.amfmercedes.com/
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