ViktoR6

I took a quick look at the available performance mods for the 2.0T to see what was available and how much it would roughly cost. The engine configuration has only been out for a year so there aren't many options yet. I'm just going to list a few vendors that have posted dynos of the mod so I know I'm missing other vendors out there (like Stasis).

APR ECU upgrade: +40 HP +74 TQ@2250rpm (with exhaust)
GIAC ECU upgrade: +34 HP +34 TQ (with exhaust)

AWE FMIC: +21 HP +20 TQ (with upgraded chip and exhaust)

AWE Single Outlet Exhaust: +9 HP +7 TQ (standalone)

Turbo Kits: None available at this time.

A word about the chip upgrades. These seem to be the best value with some solid performance gains for around $500. The APR chip has a very "peaky" torque curve that occurs early while the GIAC dyno shows a much smoother curve but with lower peak torque. What's interesting is the claimed benefit from the FMIC in the A5. Usually FMIC upgrades only yield an additional 10-13 HP like in the A3 and older A4 models but this one seems to offer significantly more. However I bet actual performance varies depending on how hot your local climate is. Not suprisingly a standalone exhaust only offers a tiny gain and is probably more of an acoustic upgrade than a performance one.

So here is what I would gain if I packaged the GIAC chip, AWE FMIC, and exhaust together ($2294):

HP: 211-> 266 (+55)
TQ: 258-> 312 (+54)

Fairly modest gains at a modest cost (about $42 per horse). At some point there will be an upgraded turbo kit that will cost a LOT more but should yield the greatest gains in power. Just for reference turbo kits for the B7 A4 cost $5-7k and provides between +118-177 HP and +110-121 TQ over stock.



Dyno References:
GIAC/AWE: http://www.awe-tuning.com/pages/info...cfm?content=84
APR: http://www.goapr.com/products/ecu_up...sivl_long.html

ayecarumba

266? why not getting a 3.2 in the first place!

cabriolow

1) much cheaper
2) lighter
3) better gas milage
4) KICK *** TORQUE

ViktoR6

5) 3.2L is no longer available in manual.

ItsDubC

IIRC, stock B7 A4s have SMICs instead of FMICs, so I don't think we can expect similarities in that regard. Not so sure about the A3.

Apparently, the OEM FMIC is just barely sufficient, and is prone to heatsoak even during spirited driving on a stock setup. This is of course more of an issue in hotter climates and w/ an ECU tune. A larger FMIC core will cool air much better of course, but there have been some heated (punnage!) debates about whether cores that are too large can cause flow disruption and therefore make the turbo work harder.

kmjmrq

I had FMIC installed before APR Chipped.. with FMIC, didn't see much improvement over stock.. now with APR.. whole new beast..

ViktoR6

Most tuners are recommending the ECU upgrade first followed by the FMIC. The dynos for AWE's FMIC was tested with the chip upgrade already installed. I guess the OEM FMIC is sufficient for stock performance so it's probably a marginal benefit without chipping the car first.

The FMIC probably comes into play once you tune the engine at which point rising temps start to overwhelm the tiny OEM cooler at high rpms. If you look at the Audi S3 and TTS, they both come with an FMIC that is much larger than the ones found in regular models like the A5. If we believe the dynos, a 20+ HP bump with an FMIC upgrade on a chipped A5 is probably a reflection of how the stock FMIC was barely adequate, as mentioned above.

My guess is that if you swapped back your stock FMIC now, you'll have a noticeable drop in high-end performance compared to before you flashed the ECU.

ItsDubC

Interesting observation. I'm waiting on the Eurocode and/or RaceTec offerings to be released for the B8 A4 before upgrading my FMIC, and was hoping that the upgrade would produce noticeable gains on the butt-dyno. I find it weird that more ppl have been choosing to upgrade their exhaust before upgrading their FMIC, when FMIC is supposed to produce at least twice the performance boost at a 3rd of the cost. The sound of the car is obviously more important to ppl than I had thought.

btw the wheels are holding up great and I still love the look Thx again man.

kmjmrq

ViktoR6, you might be right on that.. I had APR chipped 2 days after FMIC install... so I can't comment on ECU upgrade by itself compare to ECU upgrade with FMIC. But what I can tell you is that if you upgrade ECU, then FMIC is a must....


Chris, great to hear the wheels are holding up nicely..