JB4 vs. Tune

[minn19]

Originally Posted by Andrew115

Hey Bud,
Hope your doing well and enjoying that M4.

I have been keeping my eyes on performance upgrades also and have experience with JB4 on my F30.

My research has lead me to a few basic conclusions Ill share below.

I don't see a tune "or flash" being a super popular item for quite awhile. I think the piggybacks are much cheaper and easier to produce, change/update and install (any consumer can install or remove in 5min). Could be proven wrong here any day now with so many people claiming they have the solution, if one comes I would follow its customers for a bit before I jump on that wagon.

Burger and ESS seem to have very good piggyback options.

Burger - seems to have the most power available for a plug and play option. The argument if it's usable power or not seems to be heavily related to the drivers expectation of how much you should need to modulate the throttle to keep the tires planted. They also have many maps available to suite your need or additional mods you may add in the future. It appears they have great customer support and client satisfaction. Not to mention the phone app to allow you to select different maps etc. Only downside I see with JB4 currently is with stage 2 - according to the install guide you need to tap a wire with POSI-TAP connectors. I am not huge fan of this since you will leave evidence of the tune - if worse case happens and you need any dealer work they could find this. I guess many people don't care about this but for me it's worth thinking about.

ESS seems to have a nice option also that appears to be more of a "set it and forget it" tune. Forgive me for the Ronco line there. From what I have read here the goal for ESS is to have a tune that is very usable and not as peaky as others. The only thing I really like here is that you don't need to tap into any existing wiring and it seems that the power delivery would be a little more manageable/predictable on the street. This is only speculation based on the posted dyno results.

Dinan Tune - For 4x the cost of the others you can get Dinan and have less power than the other two listed but maybe more piece of mind. They claim to not void warranty however if you read the small print it isn't so clearly defined.

Good luck with the decision and if you buy let us know what you get and how you like it.

This is my question. It sounds like people are already having traction issues with the stock power levels. I'm not against tuning, just wondering if it is worth it considering this issue.

[Andrew115]

Originally Posted by minn19

This is my question. It sounds like people are already having traction issues with the stock power levels. I'm not against tuning, just wondering if it is worth it considering this issue.

It's most definitely very useful doing hwy pulls or stabbing the throttle moving a decent speeds. It will absolutely run away from a stock car. If your looking to hit the throttle at low speeds then traction control will be lit up in a big way and yield little gains, DSC off then your going to need to be sharp to correct.

What ever your need or desire is for increased performance there is an option, just depends on what you want I guess.

[NorCal f80]

Originally Posted by JNoSol

shit, then no need to spend $1k on an Awron unit. But it is cool that you can open/close your exhaust valve with that unit though. I rather save money for real performance parts...

I use Sport+ for that.

[JNoSol]

Originally Posted by 0-100 nga real quick

I use Sport+ for that.

I did the OEM exhaust mod. Drive it in Sport+ for 10min, turn the motor off, then unplugged the connectors to the exhaust valve. Now she sounds like an M3 in any driving mode.

[minn19]

Originally Posted by Andrew115

It's most definitely very useful doing hwy pulls or stabbing the throttle moving a decent speeds. It will absolutely run away from a stock car. If your looking to hit the throttle at low speeds then traction control will be lit up in a big way and yield little gains, DSC off then your going to need to be sharp to correct.

What ever your need or desire is for increased performance there is an option, just depends on what you want I guess.

That makes sense, thanks. I'm coming from a 335 xDrive equipped with MPPK and that put out decent power, but I rarely had to worry about losing traction. This is a whole new ballgame and it's gonna be fun!

[jc05e46m3]

Originally Posted by minn19

This is my question. It sounds like people are already having traction issues with the stock power levels. I'm not against tuning, just wondering if it is worth it considering this issue.

I can see your concern. With stock wheels and tires, I really only had issues on Map 7 and occasionally map 2 when the tires were cold.

Now that I have 305 rears and an 11inch wheel, it gets some grip. I'm 6MT FWIW.

[zosoboogie]

Originally Posted by Andrew115

Hey Bud,
Hope your doing well and enjoying that M4.

I have been keeping my eyes on performance upgrades also and have experience with JB4 on my F30.

My research has lead me to a few basic conclusions Ill share below.

I don't see a tune "or flash" being a super popular item for quite awhile. I think the piggybacks are much cheaper and easier to produce, change/update and install (any consumer can install or remove in 5min). Could be proven wrong here any day now with so many people claiming they have the solution, if one comes I would follow its customers for a bit before I jump on that wagon.

Burger and ESS seem to have very good piggyback options.

Burger - seems to have the most power available for a plug and play option. The argument if it's usable power or not seems to be heavily related to the drivers expectation of how much you should need to modulate the throttle to keep the tires planted. They also have many maps available to suite your need or additional mods you may add in the future. It appears they have great customer support and client satisfaction. Not to mention the phone app to allow you to select different maps etc. Only downside I see with JB4 currently is with stage 2 - according to the install guide you need to tap a wire with POSI-TAP connectors. I am not huge fan of this since you will leave evidence of the tune - if worse case happens and you need any dealer work they could find this. I guess many people don't care about this but for me it's worth thinking about.

ESS seems to have a nice option also that appears to be more of a "set it and forget it" tune. Forgive me for the Ronco line there. From what I have read here the goal for ESS is to have a tune that is very usable and not as peaky as others. The only thing I really like here is that you don't need to tap into any existing wiring and it seems that the power delivery would be a little more manageable/predictable on the street. This is only speculation based on the posted dyno results.

Dinan Tune - For 4x the cost of the others you can get Dinan and have less power than the other two listed but maybe more piece of mind. They claim to not void warranty however if you read the small print it isn't so clearly defined.

Good luck with the decision and if you buy let us know what you get and how you like it.

Andrew...good to hear from you....M4 is awesome i installed some cosmetic mods de-chromed it and added the BMW spoiler and the BMR drop in air filters as a start. LOVE the car as it is for me faster than the super modded G8 I had but in pure stock form. Handles like a dream. I tried some drifting in it on Thanksgiving in an empty lot and it was awesome! Very frowned upon by security however they liked the show. LOL

We picked up the car on the same day and i just hit 1800 miles. I'm busy as hell but love some of the spirited driving once in a while. I have some traction issues in stock form as well. However I do want to work on a little better sound in the long run.
The Dinan is over priced..I feel like my BMW advisor is cool and has mentioned that if an issue arises just remove the questionable mods for him it was the downpipes and the piggyback so that would be what I would do. My BMW dealership doesn't work with Dinan either so I think that is out.
I plan on tracking the car maybe next year at Sebring, Homestead and Daytona. And on my wish list is trailer-ing it to COTA which would be amazing.
I have been following the EAS Austin Yellow M4 and it looks like I might just copy their mod list as that is plenty power for me.

Let me know what you decide to do as I am curious. I am planning on a second round of mods soon; that BMW steering wheel with the blue line @ 12 o'clock, wheel spacers, some more cosmetic mods, Stainless Steel Brake Line then lastly the last round would possibly be the Akrapovic full exhaust, downpipes (not sure which ones), KW suspension Spring system and after i wear the rotors possible some Carbotech pad or Brembo.

For me that would be it however I wish to keep the warranty if I lose the warranty at some point (as i was black flagged with GM for the mods on my G8, I lost the warranty at 8,000 miles) then it might be my last m4 and back to the drawing board and go with a GT3. But we will see.

Andrew PM me on what you decide to do.