stage 3 with stock TCU?

[Eos]

Anyone running a stage 3 setup with factory TCU programming? How bad is the driving experience with this?

[AldermanToffee]

Many of us used to run Stage 3 without a TCU a few years ago.

Personally I’d say it’s a waste and you’re better off waiting for the TCU to be unlocked.

Not sure if the modern OTS tunes will work with stock TCU due to limiters in the TCU. You can “hack” around this in the ECU but I don’t think this is done anymore since the majority of cars have TCU available. I could be wrong.

[Eos]

034 offers a patch for the locked tcu on the newer cars so that everything functions correctly. I'm sure it works fine on stg 3, my main concern is day to day drivability with the larger turbo and factory shift points. I've owned cars with larger turbos before so I'm aware of how this impacts the power delivery down low, but they were always manuals so pretty easy to keep the rpms a bit higher. If I knew a TCU unlock was on the horizon for the newer b9.5 cars I would wait, but I doubt this is a priority.

[AldermanToffee]

034 offers a patch for the locked tcu on the newer cars so that everything functions correctly. I'm sure it works fine on stg 3, my main concern is day to day drivability with the larger turbo and factory shift points. I've owned cars with larger turbos before so I'm aware of how this impacts the power delivery down low, but they were always manuals so pretty easy to keep the rpms a bit higher. If I knew a TCU unlock was on the horizon for the newer b9.5 cars I would wait, but I doubt this is a priority.

Ah fair enough.

Honestly they drive fine without the TCU but there is a very noticeable difference once you’re able to get the TCU flashed. Drive in S and it will hold gears for as long as possible essentially, it still drives nice as a daily.

But yes, I wouldn’t count on a TCU unlock anytime soon to be honest.

[jtdbsr]

That is just it, no one can tell me how they work around it, not just 034, but APR, IE etc. I was told recently by 034 that you still get the full rated power output without the TCU file, however, found their video on YouTube talking about this exact issue and they have stated that the engine will absolutely derate due to the TCU's factory parameters.. So, which is it?

Would love to know what the ECU patch file does exactly.

[AldermanToffee]

That is just it, no one can tell me how they work around it, not just 034, but APR, IE etc. I was told recently by 034 that you still get the full rated power output without the TCU file, however, found their video on YouTube talking about this exact issue and they have stated that the engine will absolutely derate due to the TCU's factory parameters.. So, which is it?

Would love to know what the ECU patch file does exactly.

It sends a lower torque reading to the TCU, and multiplies any readings coming from the TCU. Essentially scales it so the TCU thinks the car is running stock torque.

As far as I’m aware.

[Eos]

That is just it, no one can tell me how they work around it, not just 034, but APR, IE etc. I was told recently by 034 that you still get the full rated power output without the TCU file, however, found their video on YouTube talking about this exact issue and they have stated that the engine will absolutely derate due to the TCU's factory parameters.. So, which is it?

Would love to know what the ECU patch file does exactly.

I haven't noticed any derating with 034s stg 1 e85 tune + bolt ons. At least thats what the butt dyno says. Launches just fine as well.

[034Motorsport]

Anyone running a stage 3 setup with factory TCU programming? How bad is the driving experience with this?

We have plenty of customers with locked TCU's that are running our Stage 3 ECU software with our included TCU patch file. With the patch file, you can run up to Stage 3 ECU software without issue just without the shift optimizations that come with our typical Stage 2/3 TCU software.

Our patch file allows the ECU to safely increase and manage torque output accordingly, so you can still drive your car as normal.

-Justin@034

[jtdbsr]

Can the ZF8 handle the higher torque as far as the clutch packs, slipping etc?

[AldermanToffee]

Can the ZF8 handle the higher torque as far as the clutch packs, slipping etc?

Yes it's fine.

[Diokhan]

In the Q&A a couple weeks ago, Nate mentioned that the locked TCU could be "unlocked" by swapping a mechatronics unit from a 2021 into the car. What is all involved besides the part itself? I'm assuming programming with something like ODIS so I'd need to have a shop do the swap?

That comment has me thinking about this.

[AldermanToffee]

In the Q&A a couple weeks ago, Nate mentioned that the locked TCU could be "unlocked" by swapping a mechatronics unit from a 2021 into the car. What is all involved besides the part itself? I'm assuming programming with something like ODIS so I'd need to have a shop do the swap?

That comment has me thinking about this.

Yes, you’ve pretty much summed it up. Swapping a mech is easy enough, it’ll just need to be programmed. I imagine you’ll need an IMMO solution for it too.

[034Motorsport]

Can the ZF8 handle the higher torque as far as the clutch packs, slipping etc?

We have tested extensively our TCU Patch Files with our Stage 1-3 ECU Tuning and have found the transmission to hold up great. We do not recommend using the High-Output Stage 3+ files with the TCU patch, but you could utilize the standard Stage 3 Standard Output files without issue.

-Justin@034

[Eos]

In the Q&A a couple weeks ago, Nate mentioned that the locked TCU could be "unlocked" by swapping a mechatronics unit from a 2021 into the car. What is all involved besides the part itself? I'm assuming programming with something like ODIS so I'd need to have a shop do the swap?

That comment has me thinking about this.

I was curious about this as well. Wonder if it's actually been done.

[Eos]

We have tested extensively our TCU Patch Files with our Stage 1-3 ECU Tuning and have found the transmission to hold up great. We do not recommend using the High-Output Stage 3+ files with the TCU patch, but you could utilize the standard Stage 3 Standard Output files without issue.

-Justin@034

Do you have the hp/tq numbers and dyno graphs for the regular output maps for the 810? Preferably e85/e60 and 93.

[034Motorsport]

Do you have the hp/tq numbers and dyno graphs for the regular output maps for the 810? Preferably e85/e60 and 93.

For 91 and 93 octane, power output is the same for both Standard and High Output files, with the only variation in power being our ethanol files. You can check out our dyno charts here.

-Justin@034