Proud New Owner of 2014 Q5 TDi

[Pittdawg]

Hi all I just purchased a pre-owned Q5 TDI. Despite the fact I just love this vehicle, I've never left any engine completely stock so I'm quite eager to get a tune. Unfortunately, there appears to be a dearth of reviews on the few available tunes. I've found a lot of praise for Malone Tuning but there are no Malone dealers in my area. I've read some mixed reviews on the APR tune for the TDI where the main complaint seems to be a blanket statement that APR has a history of tuning gas engines but don't have enough experience tuning diesel engines. So, do any 2013+ Q5 TDI owners have a tune? If so, from where and how do you like it? Thank you in advance for your responses and I look forward to contributing to this forum!

[bomb39]

Don't have a TDI, yet....
...but have looked into tunes. I would go APR or REVO. REVO has lots of experience in Europe with this engine, slightly less power than APR, but more than enough.

[rarsop15]

That's great man. I'm the same way. I went through the same thing last year with my TDI Q7. I ended up digging real deep and finding 'the kingpin' of the tuning world. His name is Daz Dillinger. PM me, I will send you his info... He will build you a custom tune for the car specific to your elevation, etc.


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[QUBE5]

Congrats on the new TDI.

So, do any 2013+ Q5 TDI owners have a tune?

In the US, the 3.0L TDI only became available for the Q5 with the MY2014.

Some things to be aware of:
- If you go back to the dealership, make sure the Tune has been removed and your ECU has been flashed back to stock programming.
- A Tune can have a dealership flag your vehicle TD1.
- A Tune can impact your warranty( keep this in mind, since the diesel emissions scandal will require the TDI to be brought back to the dealership for a future recall)

Raven Motorsports in Long Beach was a dealer of Malone Tuning, but I heard they recently closed down. Malone can still flash your ECU, but it would require you to ship it to them(which isn't really convenient).

APR seems to be the most popular right now in the US for the TDI, but there are a lot of options. Eurocode Tuning in Torrance is a dealer for APR, if your interested in that tune.


Let us know how the tune turns out.

[Pittdawg]

Went with the APR tune. It's quite good. Seems to have moderately reduced both throttle and turbo lag and has a noticeable bump in power. Only con is the diesel clatter is a bit louder with the tune.

[IinsureU]

Went with the APR tune. It's quite good. Seems to have moderately reduced both throttle and turbo lag and has a noticeable bump in power. Only con is the diesel clatter is a bit louder with the tune.

Who did your tune, have been stalling on this of a while ?!?

[Pittdawg]

Who did your tune, have been stalling on this of a while ?!?

Same location QUBE5 mentioned, Eurocode in Torrance. Should be well worth the drive for you from Thousand Oaks. Whole process took about 45 minutes.

[BarryT82]

A friend of mine recently tested an obd2 flash tune for his Jetta TDI. He may have a flash tune for the Q5.

[Pittdawg]

Here's a quick pic I snapped walking back to the Q5 at the beach.

[SQive]

Peelers...classic!

[QUBE5]

Went with the APR tune. It's quite good. Seems to have moderately reduced both throttle and turbo lag and has a noticeable bump in power. Only con is the diesel clatter is a bit louder with the tune.

Sounds awesome. Thanks for the description.

Have you noticed any change in fuel efficiency?

[Pittdawg]

Sounds awesome. Thanks for the description.

Have you noticed any change in fuel efficiency?

No but I had her tuned two days after I purchased her so I don't have much of anything to compare it against. Been averaging mid-20s around town with some spirited driving.

[BarryT82]

What tune did you get? Did it make much of a difference?

[bomb39]

A friend of mine recently tested an obd2 flash tune for his Jetta TDI. He may have a flash tune for the Q5.

What grey is that?

[BarryT82]

What grey is that?

Huh? It's a tune from Malone.

[bomb39]

Haha, wrong reply box :)


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[bomb39]

Here's a quick pic I snapped walking back to the Q5 at the beach.

What grey is that?


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[Pittdawg]

By the way, the shop had a pamphlet detailing the exact rwhp dyno figures for the 3.0T tunes, interesting stuff!

[QUBE5]

No but I had her tuned two days after I purchased her so I don't have much of anything to compare it against. Been averaging mid-20s around town with some spirited driving.

That fuel economy sounds about normal for spirited city driving. That's great to hear. Thanks!

[Pittdawg]

By the way, the shop had a pamphlet detailing the exact rwhp dyno figures for the 3.0T tunes, interesting stuff!

Does anyone know why the website has so drastically higher numbers than the physical pamphlet? Compare the two yoursel:
https://www.goapr.com/products/ecu_u...30tfsi_q5.html

[BarryT82]

I tried the Chipwerke module and it had a lot of chatter/knocking at low rpm's during acceleration. I ended up sending it back.

[R y an]

I'm teetering on another APR tune as well. How much louder is the clanking that was tough for me to get used to in the factory form?

[DanMontgomery]

Pittdawg,

Congrats on the new Q5....I have 2 and love both of them.



I have been looking at the APR, Darkside, and Malone tunes...just not exactly sure which one to get just yet either. Really leaning on the Malone...just waiting for the EPA Crap to be done with.

However, on a good note....the Audi gift card they gives us will make the tune pretty cheap?

V/r
Dan

[TDI Brad]

Malone stage 2 and I recommend to get the Flashzilla box so you can install and uninstall whenever you please so if you have to go for service or a recall you can take it back to stock. That's what I used on my VW and what I plan using for my Q5 TDI whenever I can order a new one. I have considered a used one in the area with 24k on it but I'm waiting to see what happens with emissions fix also. Plus I really want to see what kinda NF of awesome tech Audi has planned for the 2017 model, I hope it's as cool as the Q7.


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[Pittdawg]

By the way, I recently had the Q5 serviced by the dealer who installed a brand new revision to the ECU, thus requiring a reinstall of the APR tune. I now appreciate the APR tune even more, really quite a big difference between how it ran with the dealer's tune vs. APR's. Almost feels like two different engines.

[DanMontgomery]

Pittdawg,

What was the revision for?

V/r
Dan

[BarryT82]

Was there an issue with your ecu? Mine was in the shop for an alignment a few days ago and they didn't mention anything.

[Pittdawg]

No specific issue with the ECU, dealer just said their database showed there was a software update for all TDI models.

[SQive]

...of course...

[Qumag]

Nice! I'm actually on a fence with APR or Malone tune. I think I will wait till this diesel scandal is over and jump into getting a tune. I can't imagine the torque feel of a tuned TDi! Do you plan on dynoing the Q?

[Pittdawg]

Nice! I'm actually on a fence with APR or Malone tune. I think I will wait till this diesel scandal is over and jump into getting a tune. I can't imagine the torque feel of a tuned TDi! Do you plan on dynoing the Q?

No plans to dyno as of right now but based on my personal experience I would say APR's dyno graph is quite accurate:

https://www.goapr.com/products/ecu_upgrade_30tdi.html