Review - Bootmod3 (BM3)

[t5pilot]

Right. So I have been running an Alpine MSS tune on my car for over a year now. I initially went that route as BM3 was getting some bad press at the time. These two tunes were the last two on my shortlist after lots of research & reviews etc. I was also able to have unlimited maps at no additional cost with Alpine, which, at that time, BM3 did not offer. You had to buy every one you wanted.

Fast forward to now.
I've always been relatively happy with my Alpine tune. It was smooth, with power in abundance.
But for the second winter now, I've struggled a little. Mostly with general driveability in crap, cold conditions, on crap, slippy roads.

Like your usual car-obsessed bloke, I read various forums & keep a general eye on what's happening in the world of mapping etc. I've had mapped every car I've owned since it became available to the masses.

I think most would agree (if they follow at all), that the BM3 platform has advanced significantly in the last few months. This was particularly highlighted to me with a review by Rick448 over on Cutters, which I found extremely helpful.
It hit the nail on the head for me, with BM3 now offering all the OTS tunes for free, in addition to your one time purchase map of your choice.
Couple that with their latest user platform, allowing all manner of 'tweaking' & it makes a very good case to give it a go. I've been on the fence the last couple of weeks.

So, Saturday morning, I thought 'what the hell'. I fired off a message to Tom at tomwrigleyperformance who had me sorted with a BM3 licence in no time at all. Thank you!

Activation was simple. Web-based user console is clear & easy to understand.
The OBD Agent was a pain for me. I'm running the latest OS Mojave on a Macbook Pro. OBD agent installed fine. It just wouldn't run! Whenever I tried to open it, it said it was already running (it wasn't, honestly).
So I fired up Win7 Pro through the VM instead. OBD agent ran no problem on there. So no great loss, i've no doubt BM3 support will sort my Mac issue, support ticket already submitted.

I have downpipes & MPE, so my natural map of choice was Stage 2. I got their 93 Octane version as I use nothing other than Shell V-Power or Tesco Momentum99. Download was instant.
I took the opportunity to peruse the other available maps & save them into my maps. The CS, CS+, CSL & GTS tunes. Why wouldn't you?

I already had the GTS DTC transmission flash on my car, but flashed it again in case it was a newer version. If I hadn't of already had it, what a bonus!
Saturday was a lovely day (for a change), sunny, 12 degrees, with a good forecast for sunday as well. This being the case, I decided to just go ahead with the Stage2 flash. Had it been cold, wet & miserable I'd probably have chosen the CS map. Or even stock if it had been proper dire!
But doing the Stage2 straight away would give me the best back-to-back comparison with the Alpine tune I'd been running up to this point (their Stage2+ high-power).

Flashing was a doddle, as was the adaptations reset. I really do have to praise again the web user interface with BM3. It makes things sooo easy.

The car's been well used this weekend. Bear in mind it's been relatively warm, and I'm still on my winter wheels/tyres, with skinny 265's on the back & 235's on the front.

So, what's it like? Firstly, let me say, I wasn't dissatisfied with my Alpine tune. It was & is epic. This being the case, BM3 certainly had a lot to live up to...

And, IMO, it does. And more.

From driving these tunes back-to-back, outright power seems indistinguishable between the two. One certainly doesn't feel more powerful over the other. It's the way the power is delivered that impresses with BM3 over the Alpine. The initial scrabble for traction I had previously is vastly reduced with BM3. As is the sensation of consciously having to be careful coming out of a corner under moderate to hard acceleration.
Don't get me wrong, the TC light does flash still, but the grip doesn't seem to give up, so gone is that woeful feeling that the back end's just about to let go. That's the best description that springs to mind.

Hard, straight-line acceleration is mirrored with the above. The TC light is flickering, but it doesn't translate to a feeling of having to back off. You're just propelled forward with very little fuss.... And obviously, very, very quickly. These cars, especially tuned, are so capable, you're well into three figures in no time.
Mid-range & higher speeds, there's very little between the two tunes, certainly too close for me to say one's better than the other, or indeed different.

The pops, bangs & burbles are probably about right for me (for now, lol). I was getting a bit fed up with the aggression of the Alpine-tuned soundtrack if i'm honest, but to be entirely fair, it's what I had asked for, and they would have re-done it if I'd have requested it.

And there, I suppose, is the real crux of the matter. I don't have to email/message anyone any longer, or wait.

BM3 allows you to tweak this yourself... With any of their maps. Adjust a slider or two, check a box, and presto. Re-flash in about 40 seconds. It really is that easy.

It's a godsend for dealer visits too. I can flash the stock tune back on, tick the box for CAT delete (so no CEL warning), and re-lock the DME. Child's Play wizardry!

At some point I may have a play with the CS or CS+ map, but at the moment I see little point. Stage2 is so compliant, I really don't need to. It's just nice to have the option.

I really can't wait to get rid of the winter rubber & get my 763's back on. I'll re-evaluate when this gets done & I've had some proper playtime!

But even after such a short time, I'm happy as larry with my decision to move to BM3. Lol, what's not to like?
Money well spent IMHO.

[BostonM235xi]

Originally Posted by t5pilot

Right. So I have been running an Alpine MSS tune on my car for over a year now. I initially went that route as BM3 was getting some bad press at the time. These two tunes were the last two on my shortlist after lots of research & reviews etc. I was also able to have unlimited maps at no additional cost with Alpine, which, at that time, BM3 did not offer. You had to buy every one you wanted.

Fast forward to now.
I've always been relatively happy with my Alpine tune. It was smooth, with power in abundance.
But for the second winter now, I've struggled a little. Mostly with general driveability in crap, cold conditions, on crap, slippy roads.

Like your usual car-obsessed bloke, I read various forums & keep a general eye on what's happening in the world of mapping etc. I've had mapped every car I've owned since it became available to the masses.

I think most would agree (if they follow at all), that the BM3 platform has advanced significantly in the last few months. This was particularly highlighted to me with a review by Rick448 over on Cutters, which I found extremely helpful.
It hit the nail on the head for me, with BM3 now offering all the OTS tunes for free, in addition to your one time purchase map of your choice.
Couple that with their latest user platform, allowing all manner of 'tweaking' & it makes a very good case to give it a go. I've been on the fence the last couple of weeks.

So, Saturday morning, I thought 'what the hell'. I fired off a message to Tom at tomwrigleyperformance who had me sorted with a BM3 licence in no time at all. Thank you!

Activation was simple. Web-based user console is clear & easy to understand.
The OBD Agent was a pain for me. I'm running the latest OS Mojave on a Macbook Pro. OBD agent installed fine. It just wouldn't run! Whenever I tried to open it, it said it was already running (it wasn't, honestly).
So I fired up Win7 Pro through the VM instead. OBD agent ran no problem on there. So no great loss, i've no doubt BM3 support will sort my Mac issue, support ticket already submitted.

I have downpipes & MPE, so my natural map of choice was Stage 2. I got their 93 Octane version as I use nothing other than Shell V-Power or Tesco Momentum99. Download was instant.
I took the opportunity to peruse the other available maps & save them into my maps. The CS, CS+, CSL & GTS tunes. Why wouldn't you?

I already had the GTS DTC transmission flash on my car, but flashed it again in case it was a newer version. If I hadn't of already had it, what a bonus!
Saturday was a lovely day (for a change), sunny, 12 degrees, with a good forecast for sunday as well. This being the case, I decided to just go ahead with the Stage2 flash. Had it been cold, wet & miserable I'd probably have chosen the CS map. Or even stock if it had been proper dire!
But doing the Stage2 straight away would give me the best back-to-back comparison with the Alpine tune I'd been running up to this point (their Stage2+ high-power).

Flashing was a doddle, as was the adaptations reset. I really do have to praise again the web user interface with BM3. It makes things sooo easy.

The car's been well used this weekend. Bear in mind it's been relatively warm, and I'm still on my winter wheels/tyres, with skinny 265's on the back & 235's on the front.

So, what's it like? Firstly, let me say, I wasn't dissatisfied with my Alpine tune. It was & is epic. This being the case, BM3 certainly had a lot to live up to...

And, IMO, it does. And more.

From driving these tunes back-to-back, outright power seems indistinguishable between the two. One certainly doesn't feel more powerful over the other. It's the way the power is delivered that impresses with BM3 over the Alpine. The initial scrabble for traction I had previously is vastly reduced with BM3. As is the sensation of consciously having to be careful coming out of a corner under moderate to hard acceleration.
Don't get me wrong, the TC light does flash still, but the grip doesn't seem to give up, so gone is that woeful feeling that the back end's just about to let go. That's the best description that springs to mind.

Hard, straight-line acceleration is mirrored with the above. The TC light is flickering, but it doesn't translate to a feeling of having to back off. You're just propelled forward with very little fuss.... And obviously, very, very quickly. These cars, especially tuned, are so capable, you're well into three figures in no time.
Mid-range & higher speeds, there's very little between the two tunes, certainly too close for me to say one's better than the other, or indeed different.

The pops, bangs & burbles are probably about right for me (for now, lol). I was getting a bit fed up with the aggression of the Alpine-tuned soundtrack if i'm honest, but to be entirely fair, it's what I had asked for, and they would have re-done it if I'd have requested it.

And there, I suppose, is the real crux of the matter. I don't have to email/message anyone any longer, or wait.

BM3 allows you to tweak this yourself... With any of their maps. Adjust a slider or two, check a box, and presto. Re-flash in about 40 seconds. It really is that easy.

It's a godsend for dealer visits too. I can flash the stock tune back on, tick the box for CAT delete (so no CEL warning), and re-lock the DME. Child's Play wizardry!

At some point I may have a play with the CS or CS+ map, but at the moment I see little point. Stage2 is so compliant, I really don't need to. It's just nice to have the option.

I really can't wait to get rid of the winter rubber & get my 763's back on. I'll re-evaluate when this gets done & I've had some proper playtime!

But even after such a short time, I'm happy as larry with my decision to move to BM3. Lol, what's not to like?
Money well spent IMHO.

Great write up bro, BM3 is the top of the food chain in my opinion as well. 9 months with Stage 2 zero issues and a million smiles 👍🏻

[F80Dreamer]

Great comparison, thx for sharing.

[AnthonyR]

Lovely write up....Iv had my for about 5months now

[f8xdct]

Nice review, i need to make the jump

[Mmvic]

great write up, I felt the same way when I flashed the stage 2 tune until..... I got drug by an m6 on the highway. that night I contacted CaryTheLabelGuy and flashed his e85 tune. I wasn't sure what to expect but wow it feels like a different engine. amazing actually... just in case you were curious.

[rhm_SIIM4]

Originally Posted by t5pilot

Right. So I have been running an Alpine MSS tune on my car for over a year now. I initially went that route as BM3 was getting some bad press at the time. These two tunes were the last two on my shortlist after lots of research & reviews etc. I was also able to have unlimited maps at no additional cost with Alpine, which, at that time, BM3 did not offer. You had to buy every one you wanted.

Fast forward to now.
I've always been relatively happy with my Alpine tune. It was smooth, with power in abundance.
But for the second winter now, I've struggled a little. Mostly with general driveability in crap, cold conditions, on crap, slippy roads.

Like your usual car-obsessed bloke, I read various forums & keep a general eye on what's happening in the world of mapping etc. I've had mapped every car I've owned since it became available to the masses.

I think most would agree (if they follow at all), that the BM3 platform has advanced significantly in the last few months. This was particularly highlighted to me with a review by Rick448 over on Cutters, which I found extremely helpful.
It hit the nail on the head for me, with BM3 now offering all the OTS tunes for free, in addition to your one time purchase map of your choice.
Couple that with their latest user platform, allowing all manner of 'tweaking' & it makes a very good case to give it a go. I've been on the fence the last couple of weeks.

So, Saturday morning, I thought 'what the hell'. I fired off a message to Tom at tomwrigleyperformance who had me sorted with a BM3 licence in no time at all. Thank you!

Activation was simple. Web-based user console is clear & easy to understand.
The OBD Agent was a pain for me. I'm running the latest OS Mojave on a Macbook Pro. OBD agent installed fine. It just wouldn't run! Whenever I tried to open it, it said it was already running (it wasn't, honestly).
So I fired up Win7 Pro through the VM instead. OBD agent ran no problem on there. So no great loss, i've no doubt BM3 support will sort my Mac issue, support ticket already submitted.

I have downpipes & MPE, so my natural map of choice was Stage 2. I got their 93 Octane version as I use nothing other than Shell V-Power or Tesco Momentum99. Download was instant.
I took the opportunity to peruse the other available maps & save them into my maps. The CS, CS+, CSL & GTS tunes. Why wouldn't you?

I already had the GTS DTC transmission flash on my car, but flashed it again in case it was a newer version. If I hadn't of already had it, what a bonus!
Saturday was a lovely day (for a change), sunny, 12 degrees, with a good forecast for sunday as well. This being the case, I decided to just go ahead with the Stage2 flash. Had it been cold, wet & miserable I'd probably have chosen the CS map. Or even stock if it had been proper dire!
But doing the Stage2 straight away would give me the best back-to-back comparison with the Alpine tune I'd been running up to this point (their Stage2+ high-power).

Flashing was a doddle, as was the adaptations reset. I really do have to praise again the web user interface with BM3. It makes things sooo easy.

The car's been well used this weekend. Bear in mind it's been relatively warm, and I'm still on my winter wheels/tyres, with skinny 265's on the back & 235's on the front.

So, what's it like? Firstly, let me say, I wasn't dissatisfied with my Alpine tune. It was & is epic. This being the case, BM3 certainly had a lot to live up to...

And, IMO, it does. And more.

From driving these tunes back-to-back, outright power seems indistinguishable between the two. One certainly doesn't feel more powerful over the other. It's the way the power is delivered that impresses with BM3 over the Alpine. The initial scrabble for traction I had previously is vastly reduced with BM3. As is the sensation of consciously having to be careful coming out of a corner under moderate to hard acceleration.
Don't get me wrong, the TC light does flash still, but the grip doesn't seem to give up, so gone is that woeful feeling that the back end's just about to let go. That's the best description that springs to mind.

Hard, straight-line acceleration is mirrored with the above. The TC light is flickering, but it doesn't translate to a feeling of having to back off. You're just propelled forward with very little fuss.... And obviously, very, very quickly. These cars, especially tuned, are so capable, you're well into three figures in no time.
Mid-range & higher speeds, there's very little between the two tunes, certainly too close for me to say one's better than the other, or indeed different.

The pops, bangs & burbles are probably about right for me (for now, lol). I was getting a bit fed up with the aggression of the Alpine-tuned soundtrack if i'm honest, but to be entirely fair, it's what I had asked for, and they would have re-done it if I'd have requested it.

And there, I suppose, is the real crux of the matter. I don't have to email/message anyone any longer, or wait.

BM3 allows you to tweak this yourself... With any of their maps. Adjust a slider or two, check a box, and presto. Re-flash in about 40 seconds. It really is that easy.

It's a godsend for dealer visits too. I can flash the stock tune back on, tick the box for CAT delete (so no CEL warning), and re-lock the DME. Child's Play wizardry!

At some point I may have a play with the CS or CS+ map, but at the moment I see little point. Stage2 is so compliant, I really don't need to. It's just nice to have the option.

I really can't wait to get rid of the winter rubber & get my 763's back on. I'll re-evaluate when this gets done & I've had some proper playtime!

But even after such a short time, I'm happy as larry with my decision to move to BM3. Lol, what's not to like?
Money well spent IMHO.

Great review - really tempting - what’s the price of BM3 - and are there any issues with the latest PPF models (that I have)? I’m completely stock but the option to go to a more aggressive tune and back again undetected is quite appealing!!

Rich.

[t5pilot]

Tom Wrigley Performance had an introductory offer, don't know if it's still on. I believe generally the UK price is £450 or slightly lower.
I believe there's several forum sponsors on here that offer it, as well as over on Cutters.
I don't believe having the new PPF filters will make a difference. The vendor you choose will be able to give you a definitive answer I expect. With those & CAT's in situ, I believe you'd be fine with the stage1 map as your 'freebie' map.
But of course you have free access to all the 'standard' maps I mentioned.

[DannyM4]

Really informative write up and great review. Well done....

As you sound like you know your stuff with regards to tuning can I ask you a bit of a silly question.

I've just got my M4 and would like a bit more of a raw noise from the exhaust when the flaps are opened...as it stands at the moment I don't really want to put a new exhaust muffler on the car (currently standard), but have considered changing the midpipes or a decat.. My question is, if I was to do this would I get a engine management light from the O2 sensors with out a tune or map?
Hope you don't mind me asking
Cheers

[SteveChester]

I think it's great as well - I need to have a play with it over the weekend as I just flashed and went

I've got the Stage 2 map - what's the difference on the CS/GTS maps to this one? t5pilot

[t5pilot]

Originally Posted by DannyM4

Really informative write up and great review. Well done....

As you sound like you know your stuff with regards to tuning can I ask you a bit of a silly question.

I've just got my M4 and would like a bit more of a raw noise from the exhaust when the flaps are opened...as it stands at the moment I don't really want to put a new exhaust muffler on the car (currently standard), but have considered changing the midpipes or a decat.. My question is, if I was to do this would I get a engine management light from the O2 sensors with out a tune or map?
Hope you don't mind me asking
Cheers

Thanks!
Unless you mod your exhaust, PCW for example, or without a software change, I don't think you're going to improve the sound.

If I was having Paul's mod done, I'd keep the secondary CATS in situ. That way, if you have downpipes further down the line, the car should still scrape through a legitimate MOT.
This is also where you're going to gain some extra power.

But you'd have to put up with the CEL light unless you properly code out the primary CATS, which can only be done (I believe) by mapping, as it's controlled by the engine ECU.

Secondary CATS aren't monitored in this way, so I believe removing them won't throw up any errors.

Even if you left your exhaust system completely standard & got BM3 (as an example), you have the option of changing the exhaust burbles yourself. Longer, louder, whatever you want.
Which isn't much more cost than modding the exhaust to be fair.

In your situation I'd probably go BM3 stage1 and play with the burble settings.
Then go downpipes if you still want more.

Hopefully that makes sense & has been of use to you

[t5pilot]

Originally Posted by SteveChester

I think it's great as well - I need to have a play with it over the weekend as I just flashed and went

I've got the Stage 2 map - what's the difference on the CS/GTS maps to this one? t5pilot

I don't know Steve. Like you I went straight to stage2.

I've saved the other maps, but TBH don't think I'll try them until next winter. And then only if conditions dictate.

I daresay the CS+ map would be great for tracking. If I track it this year I might try it.

For now though I'll keep the 'full fat' stage2 on. It's so addictive!

[SteveChester]

Ok just wasn't sure if they were just noise related maps or power.

[SteveChester]

The CS/CSL/GTS maps are all marked as stage 0+ so this is better than 1 or 2?

[t5pilot]

Originally Posted by SteveChester

Ok just wasn't sure if they were just noise related maps or power.

Both. The various maps mimic the 'stock' equivalent with regards power & noise.
By all accounts, the CS map is really good, coming from standard or CP. currently being run by someone over on Cutters, he really rates it, specially in the poorer road conditions.

[Smee]

can someone confirm something for me...

you buy a licences for 1 map i.e stage 1 or stage 2 and you get the GTS etc free i understand that part but if i have bought stage 1 and then decide to go stage 2 do i have to buy another complete licence???

so based on the figure quoted above it would cost me £900? or is the second map cheaper??

[t5pilot]

Originally Posted by Smee

can someone confirm something for me...

you buy a licences for 1 map i.e stage 1 or stage 2 and you get the GTS etc free i understand that part but if i have bought stage 1 and then decide to go stage 2 do i have to buy another complete licence???

so based on the figure quoted above it would cost me £900? or is the second map cheaper??

Lol, no mate. You've bought your license.
You get one map of your choice included, along with all the "stock" offerings.
So yours is stage 1 then? Your map of choice?

If so, you can still buy, say, stage 2 map. Think it's $100.

All the pricing is on the main ProTuningFreaks site I believe.

Just don't buy your initial license from them. As it's cheaper using a UK vendor.

[DannyM4]

Thanks very your informative reply.
So just by getting the BM3 you can adjust the burbles and sound of your exhaust etc with no other mods?
Cheers

Originally Posted by t5pilot

Thanks!
Unless you mod your exhaust, PCW for example, or without a software change, I don't think you're going to improve the sound.

If I was having Paul's mod done, I'd keep the secondary CATS in situ. That way, if you have downpipes further down the line, the car should still scrape through a legitimate MOT.
This is also where you're going to gain some extra power.

But you'd have to put up with the CEL light unless you properly code out the primary CATS, which can only be done (I believe) by mapping, as it's controlled by the engine ECU.

Secondary CATS aren't monitored in this way, so I believe removing them won't throw up any errors.

Even if you left your exhaust system completely standard & got BM3 (as an example), you have the option of changing the exhaust burbles yourself. Longer, louder, whatever you want.
Which isn't much more cost than modding the exhaust to be fair.

In your situation I'd probably go BM3 stage1 and play with the burble settings.
Then go downpipes if you still want more.

Hopefully that makes sense & has been of use to you

[t5pilot]

Originally Posted by DannyM4

Thanks very your informative reply.
So just by getting the BM3 you can adjust the burbles and sound of your exhaust etc with no other mods?
Cheers

This is what you use to adjust exhaust noise....

[Tengocity]

Great write up 👍🏽

Sounds great, but I'm still managing to resist!

[t5pilot]

Originally Posted by SteveChester

The CS/CSL/GTS maps are all marked as stage 0+ so this is better than 1 or 2?

Stage 0's are all forms of stock tunes. So like OEM.
Stage 1 is a high performance map for an unmodded car. More power & torque than any of the Stage 0's.
Stage 2 is a high performance map for a modded car, primarily with cars with downpipes and/or air intake mods.
Then obviously there's a choice of fuelling, 91 or 93 octane. Equivalent to our 95RON regular & 98RON super.

Interestingly, ProTuningFreaks say you can run stage2 safely with no mods. If you've still got your primary CAT's you can just 'tweak' the map to turn on cold start & enable the sensor. Then you've already got the right map if/when you go the downpipe route. Saves the cost of upgrading from stage 1 to 2 at the very least...

The other maps available are for upgraded turbos, meth, ethanol etc. Which I doubt i'll ever do TBH... Lol, never say never though.

[t5pilot]

Originally Posted by Tengocity

Great write up ����

Sounds great, but I'm still managing to resist!

Lol, I know I don't know you personally Terry, but have followed your posts for several years...

As such, I think i'm fairly safe in saying you know resistance is futile! Don't resist, just give in, it's probably the best value for money mod/add-on available.

There'll always be something else to resist instead - Whilst you're enjoying your choice of maps to flash at will