Best tuning options for S5 V8

[a4ced]

I have been shopping some tunes, and it looks like in the states the best N/A tune is from Unitronic. I would love an MRC tune but that's not going to happen. Anyone using a Unitronic tune on their 4.2? Is there anyway to get more out of this car without a super charger set up? I already have AWE non res downpipes and awe track exhaust. Its a 2009 S5 4.2 V8.

[Avantmaniac]

Most here would probably refer to JHM but REVO/APR also good options.

[a4ced]

Most here would probably refer to JHM but REVO/APR also good options.

Did a little digging along with your answer and looks like JHM is the way to go

[doug97gxe]

waste of money

[a4ced]

waste of money

I realize that with the NA motor a tune really isn't going to improve things with any tremendous gains, just want to get as much out as I can until it can be supercharged. Plus if I'm not mistaken JHM does upgrade pricing on the tuning so it will offset the cost in the future.

[Sazexa]

JHM does do offset pricing. Their "all motor" build takes the car down to like a 12.6 1/4 mile time, where as stock from the factory is around 13.1/13.2. Their Stage 1 supercharger kit can get you down into the 11.7-11.9 range with proper shifts.

If you do flash/tune it now, when you install the supercharger kit you'll need a new tune, which they offer "for free" since you already bought one by taking the price off the kit.

[Section31]

JHM does do offset pricing. Their "all motor" build takes the car down to like a 12.6 1/4 mile time, where as stock from the factory is around 13.1/13.2. Their Stage 1 supercharger kit can get you down into the 11.7-11.9 range with proper shifts.

If you do flash/tune it now, when you install the supercharger kit you'll need a new tune, which they offer "for free" since you already bought one by taking the price off the kit.

I have their supercharger installed.

It took JHM 3 months to get a "correct" tune for my car and I still get a check engine light if I push the car hard.

JHM is a great option if you love headaches and/or don't plan on keeping the car very long.

[Sazexa]

I have their supercharger installed.

It took JHM 3 months to get a "correct" tune for my car and I still get a check engine light if I push the car hard.

JHM is a great option if you love headaches and/or don't plan on keeping the car very long.

I saw you going back and forth with the representative for a while. From what I've heard other people have had better luck with just one or two issues. Have you considered getting a tune outside of JHM?

Aside from CEL's, how's the reliability of the kit? Do you like the added power? It's unfortunate APR's is no longer offered.

[Section31]

I saw you going back and forth with the representative for a while. From what I've heard other people have had better luck with just one or two issues. Have you considered getting a tune outside of JHM?

Aside from CEL's, how's the reliability of the kit? Do you like the added power? It's unfortunate APR's is no longer offered.

It's not great. I think it would have been a much better choice to have just bought a stock RS5. The price difference between S5+Supercharger and vanilla RS5 isn't that large now, and you have the full backing of a real company (Audi) if something goes wrong with the car, not a couple guys in a garage in the middle of nowhere that may or may not get back to you depending on how they're feeling that day.

[a4ced]

I saw you going back and forth with the representative for a while. From what I've heard other people have had better luck with just one or two issues. Have you considered getting a tune outside of JHM?

Aside from CEL's, how's the reliability of the kit? Do you like the added power? It's unfortunate APR's is no longer offered.

I have found similar information in my searches, seems like JHM supercharger issues are limited to a select few. I will try their N/A tune first and see how working with JHM is on something less involved, and form an opinion before I make the big purchase.

[Sazexa]

I have found similar information in my searches, seems like JHM supercharger issues are limited to a select few. I will try their N/A tune first and see how working with JHM is on something less involved, and form an opinion before I make the big purchase.

Their stage 1+ kit is releasing soon. Perhaps it's best to wait for that.

Honestly though, I think I still might prefer to have the APR Stage 3+ kit. I know that's daily drive-able reliable as the owner of NGP racing daily'd his for several years with the kit, he said. But a more shallow reason being that I simply like the fact that you'll see the APR kit once the hood is propped. The JHM kits are only visible once the bumper skin is removed. I go to a lot of shows, and, aside from some obvious work done under the hood, the S5 just doesn't attract a lot of attention. Until I turn it on that is, lol

[Section31]

I have found similar information in my searches, seems like JHM supercharger issues are limited to a select few. I will try their N/A tune first and see how working with JHM is on something less involved, and form an opinion before I make the big purchase.

Yeah, you'll notice that they don't publish numbers anywhere for what you'll actually get with regards to increased power. It's kind of telling that the people that have not had problems with the kit are so anxious to get stage 1+ and more HP. The stage 1 JHM kit is just not that fast. It's faster than stock, but it won't blow your mind.

[JoshDub]

I have their supercharger installed.

It took JHM 3 months to get a "correct" tune for my car and I still get a check engine light if I push the car hard.

JHM is a great option if you love headaches and/or don't plan on keeping the car very long.

It only took months because you went through a non JHM distributor who flashed your car with the wrong software, per your own thread. Stop trying to drag their name through the mud because you picked an inexperienced shop.

[Section31]

It only took months because you went through a non JHM distributor who flashed your car with the wrong software, per your own thread. Stop trying to drag their name through the mud because you picked an inexperienced shop.

1. I purchased the kit from an authorized distributor
http://excelerateperformance.com/

2. The shop that worked on the car is probably the best shop in northern california.
https://www.yelp.com/biz/tomas-sport-tuning-berkeley

3. JHM didn't make the "correct" software available for 3 months. They straight up dropped the ball. I say "correct" because the car still throws CEL lights when pushed hard.

JHM is selling a mediocre. half-baked product with 1 guy doing customer support... assuming he shows up that day. If the kit were amazing, they'd proudly be publishing dyno results.

[Sazexa]

1. I purchased the kit from an authorized distributor
http://excelerateperformance.com/

2. The shop that worked on the car is probably the best shop in northern california.
https://www.yelp.com/biz/tomas-sport-tuning-berkeley

3. JHM didn't make the "correct" software available for 3 months. They straight up dropped the ball. I say "correct" because the car still throws CEL lights when pushed hard.

JHM is selling a mediocre. half-baked product with 1 guy doing customer support... assuming he shows up that day. If the kit were amazing, they'd proudly be publishing dyno results.

You purchased the kit from a shop in CT, but live in California? That store you linked is about 15 minutes from my house.

[a4ced]

It is not uncommon for our tunes to need extra work because of the different coding used on different computers. That's a some what common occurrence. Even off the shelf tunes like Unitronic, their N/A tune for my S5 still has a warning about the box codes on the page. Idk. Not bashing anyone. But looks like I'll have to try it out to find out. Everyone's experience is different.

[Jake@JHM]

Quick search:

Here is a supercharger review from last month.. http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...1#post12621237

Here is some info from earlier this year.. http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...M-supercharger

Both with dyno info.



OP - Let me know if you have any questions. I would be happy to answer them! Software on the S5 is a bigger difference than many expect it to be.

[a4ced]

Quick search:

Here is a supercharger review from last month.. http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...1#post12621237

Here is some info from earlier this year.. http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...M-supercharger

Both with dyno info.



OP - Let me know if you have any questions. I would be happy to answer them! Software on the S5 is a bigger difference than many expect it to be.

You already have me covered haha I found a dealer nearby. Once I finish the rest of my "preventative maintenance" I'm gonna head over to APtuning for the software.

[Jake@JHM]

You already have me covered haha I found a dealer nearby. Once I finish the rest of my "preventative maintenance" I'm gonna head over to APtuning for the software.

Haha right on!

[Section31]

You purchased the kit from a shop in CT, but live in California? That store you linked is about 15 minutes from my house.

I purchased from a distributor because Dru couldn't find the time in his golf schedule to reply to his email.

[JoshDub]

You purchased the kit from a shop in CT, but live in California? That store you linked is about 15 minutes from my house.

He wanted to circumvent JHM for on reason or another. It was mostly laid out in his temper tantrum thread. From the sounds of it he used a different name, possibly due to customer history, and chose a shop unfamiliar with JHMs products to install his kit. The shop, due to their unfamiliarity, flashed the car with a NA tune instead of the boosted one which is why the car wouldn't run right. It took a while for JHM and the shop to trouble shoot, and then convert the tune for his ECU since they didnt have that box code on file yet, and he did not provide the box code to JHM when he purchased the kit.

TL:DR had he not been a dbag about his whole transaction and actually went through JHM to purchase and install a JHM developed product then his car would probably run.

[Sazexa]

I purchased from a distributor because Dru couldn't find the time in his golf schedule to reply to his email.

He wanted to circumvent JHM for on reason or another. It was mostly laid out in his temper tantrum thread. From the sounds of it he used a different name, possibly due to customer history, and chose a shop unfamiliar with JHMs products to install his kit. The shop, due to their unfamiliarity, flashed the car with a NA tune instead of the boosted one which is why the car wouldn't run right. It took a while for JHM and the shop to trouble shoot, and then convert the tune for his ECU since they didnt have that box code on file yet, and he did not provide the box code to JHM when he purchased the kit.

TL:DR had he not been a dbag about his whole transaction and actually went through JHM to purchase and install a JHM developed product then his car would probably run.

If you hate the kit/JHM so much, go back to stock. I'll throw you a few bucks for a kit.

[Section31]

He wanted to circumvent JHM for on reason or another. It was mostly laid out in his temper tantrum thread. From the sounds of it he used a different name, possibly due to customer history, and chose a shop unfamiliar with JHMs products to install his kit. The shop, due to their unfamiliarity, flashed the car with a NA tune instead of the boosted one which is why the car wouldn't run right. It took a while for JHM and the shop to trouble shoot, and then convert the tune for his ECU since they didnt have that box code on file yet, and he did not provide the box code to JHM when he purchased the kit.

TL:DR had he not been a dbag about his whole transaction and actually went through JHM to purchase and install a JHM developed product then his car would probably run.

That's a cute writeup, but hardly accurate.

I ordered the kit in January. As of April 28, JHM still didn't have their shit together. Quote directly from Dru:

Fri 4/28, 3:02 PM: I have spoken to Jason and the calibration team regarding your ECU File. They are working on getting this file around and on the server for TST to flash to your car. This should happen sometime within the next week.

It's one thing to fuck up. We're all only human. It's a completely different thing to completely fuck up and then swear up and down that the fuckup never happened, and then go straight into attack mode to avoid taking responsibility.

Not stellar customer service, to say the least.

[Deleos]

That's a cute writeup, but hardly accurate.

I ordered the kit in January. As of April 28, JHM still didn't have their shit together. Quote directly from Dru:



It's one thing to fuck up. We're all only human. It's a completely different thing to completely fuck up and then swear up and down that the fuckup never happened, and then go straight into attack mode to avoid taking responsibility.

Not stellar customer service, to say the least.

What date did you contact JHM and provide them with the required car information so that they could create the necessary files coded to your car since each car requires custom files? Was this before or after your shop had already installed it?

[a4ced]

What date did you contact JHM and provide them with the required car information so that they could create the necessary files coded to your car since each car requires custom files? Was this before or after your shop had already installed it?

Not trying to be that guy but regardless 1 bad JHM complaint with the situation unclear isn't a deterrent. Looks like error on both ends. There is a whole thread I think full of people arguing with Section31 if you'd like to continue this over there. If we could keep this to tuning options as well as positive and negative experiences without debating how one person or the other should feel about that particular experience I'm interested. Please move all continuations about JHMs lousy or not customer service back to the original thread.

[a4ced]

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showth...percharger-Kit

Thats the original thread. Anyone without any further relevant input direct your hate there.

[Section31]

What date did you contact JHM and provide them with the required car information so that they could create the necessary files coded to your car since each car requires custom files? Was this before or after your shop had already installed it?

- I placed the order on 1/9/17. The order included all the information about the car (VIN, transmission, year, manifold style, etc). They need this information to put the kit together.

- JHM shipped the kit on 2/11/17.

There's no legitimate reason for them to be scrambling around in April/May trying to get things in order unless they're totally incompetent.

[Section31]

Not trying to be that guy but regardless 1 bad JHM complaint with the situation unclear isn't a deterrent. Looks like error on both ends. There is a whole thread I think full of people arguing with Section31 if you'd like to continue this over there. If we could keep this to tuning options as well as positive and negative experiences without debating how one person or the other should feel about that particular experience I'm interested. Please move all continuations about JHMs lousy or not customer service back to the original thread.

I'm just relaying my experience. If you want to do business with a group of people that don't respect you, respect your time, or respect your property, that's up to you.

[fstr n u]

Sorry as i'm late to this thread and in talks with JHM about a supercharger setup.

Section 31, did JHM come through and fix the tune for your car? Is everything running to your liking? When you say the kit won't blow your mind, are the performance gains in terms of "seat of pants feel" at least enjoyable enough?

I know there are times where an experience can start off negative and remain negative....then there are times where things start off negative but work out in the favor of both parties. Which scenario are you in? I previously went though a similar issue with forced induction from STS turbo on my 1998 Camaro. 7 years later and a whole bunch of wasted time and money, my car is finally running the way i want it to....all in all it wasn't worth it considering the time/money put into what should have been a much simpler install and tune.

Just curious.

PS: overall i have seen more positive responses from people about JHM...which from an automotive enthusiast perspective is reassuring. There will always be one off issues.....

Ryan