[Shrike360]

So, I’ve had the Alpine tune on my car for about 2 weeks. Got the cable quickly after ordering (despite the attempts of USPS), and the tuning software and maps shortly after.

Ran into some initial problems after installing the tune, got an error and the car went into limp home mode. This may have been an issue with the map and the car, or maybe I didn’t install it quite right. Regardless, I texted Alex after this happened, and he replied back immediately and gave me a call. Did another test, and he sent out a fresh map for me to test. This map worked fine, and I ran it for about a week. Alex mentioned this map had the top end reduced a bit to make sure it’s not something on the car being affected by the changes. He sent me a new map with the typical parameters after a little while. He was a little slow to respond on this map, but it was a holiday weekend during spring break, so it’s reasonable for him to take a break. He got me a new map after the weekend, and everything has worked well ever since. I’m not sure if there was a big difference in the maps, so the initial problems may just have been an install issue.

Onto the tune options. It’s just a stage 1 tune with a few options, right now. I’m planning on getting test pipes soon, and will get a new map for it. Haven’t tried the launch control (or VMAX), as I’d feel like a dick revving up at a stop light in town (queue Grand Tour skit). Servotronic is something I’m on the fence about. When basically stopped, it’s similar to the normal/sport setting of stock, but quickly removes power assist once you’re moving. It gets quite heavy with a 275 up front, so be aware of it when doing tight maneuvers around town. If you’re used to the stock steering, it can be a shocking change of effort. However, it is perfect once you’re moving. Makes it easy to keep the car tracking well on the freeway (that 275 wants to follow any rut it finds, probably should get an alignment done at some point), and on the back roads, the response is perfect. It’s very linear and predictable, and the weight is perfect. So, I think this is a worthwhile option, and if you don’t like it, you can just change the car settings. I asked for the increase rev limit, he set it at 8500. I’m not sure if he’ll set it to 8600 like other tunes, I’ll ask him to set it to that once I have test pipes. He also seems to lower the cold rev limit, even though it is not mentioned.

Driving on the tune, there is a lot more low-end pick-up. It feels peppy around town, though people will still move away from the light harder unless you actually try. When you rev it out, it pulls noticeably harder when driven back to back with the stock settings. It may not be significantly faster, but is noticeable. Just don’t expect to be shoved harder into your seat like you would when tuning an N54. The drivability is improved in the normal power mode, and the car responds better (none of that weird delay when letting off the throttle that sometimes happens stock). I haven't tried other power settings, as I haven't felt the need. I had an issue on the first map with the cold start behaving really roughly, the issue went away on the new map.

Do I get better fuel economy? When the road opens up, I’ve been driving like an ass to try out the tune, so it’s a little difficult to judge. For now, I’m not seeing a change. As I settle down with the car, it may start going up. I do use a little less throttle in town, at least.

So, is the tune worth it? No tune on the S65 is going to have the value of a turbo car, which can pick up 30-60 whp for less than $300 (gotta love the value of MHD). But, from the perspective of the S65, Alex offers a very good tune for the best price on the market by a good margin. And from what I have seen, you lose nothing in quality while picking up an excellent service. Plus, when you decide to add test pipes, just get back in touch with him and he’ll set you up with a new map, no additional charge. The way I see a tune on this platform is that it acts as additional support for mods you may do. Launch control and better throttle behavior to help manage additional power, servo to help manage wider tires, hiding emissions errors with test pipes. Plus, the optimizations will pick you up at least a few whp. So if you plan on remaining stock except for the tune, I’d think about how much you want these changes and if it’s worth the money to you. But if you’re already planning a few bolt-ons, make sure you throw Alex’s tune onto the list.