Alex Alpine ECU Tune

[Dpc2u]

I have Alex's stage 1, and oem exhaust other than a 2.5 pipe mod on factory axle back. All of my readiness checks are fine and I went through emissions here in TN with no issues at all.

[M3LOLJK]

My car passed NYS inspection with the Stage 1 tune.

[DavidZ]

Originally Posted by //steve\\

This doesn't make a lot of sense to me. A stage1 tune should be for a totally stock car and therefore I don't see why it wouldn't be possible for all the readiness monitors to be "ready" I'd think stage1 is just tweaking fueling/ignition tables a bit and likely leaving anything that might fail emissions alone.

That's what I thought too but I could not get my O2 sensors to report as ready. I had been driving on the tune for several months. I reflashed stage 1, cleared codes and drove the specific OBD readiness cycle - watching all sensors as they returned to ready - all except no O2 ready. I asked Alex about it and he reiterated to always flash back to stock for emissions.

Originally Posted by Dpc2u

I have Alex's stage 1, and oem exhaust other than a 2.5 pipe mod on factory axle back. All of my readiness checks are fine and I went through emissions here in TN with no issues at all.

Originally Posted by Dpc2u

I have Alex's stage 1, and oem exhaust other than a 2.5 pipe mod on factory axle back. All of my readiness checks are fine and I went through emissions here in TN with no issues at all.

Did you verify yourself that your O2 sensors were reporting as ready? Not all states have the same emissions check standards. It's possible some states allow 2 not ready, including O2.

Anyways, it seems we've had different experiences. I know for a fact that I could not pass MD emissions with stage 1. It was just a couple months ago.

[Dpc2u]

To answer your question, yes. All of my readiness checks show as complete. I just verified that again, though I had already checked that after I did the stage 1 tune over a year ago. As to TN emissions requirements, it allows for only 1 incomplete monitor. No clue why our experiences differ. :

[sdbmwcoding]

Got some graphs to post! One of my customers running Alex's E85 tune and test pipes dyno'd today and made some impressive numbers. I dyno's on this exact dyno last year running Gintani 91 octane stage 2 and same with my buddy who was also stage 2 91 octane but with BPM Tune. This isn't really about peak numbers but it's a good baseline to see how much the tune makes a difference. Will list the results below with mod list.

Car 1: Gintani 91 octane stage 2. Stock x pipe with test pipes and secondary cat delete. 340 whp



Car 2: Alex Alpine e85 tune. Stock x pipe with test pipes. 375 whp



Car 3: BPM stage 2. Akrapovic gt4 x pipe. 340 whp (dyno sheet coming soon, just waiting on my buddy to send it to me).

[RYDEM3]

So, highly looking into this tune.. currently have a cel due to secondary air valve bank1 error (p0491) Possible to rid cel if I were to get the stage 1 tune? I only have a catback exhaust system and intake NJS inspections allows 1 monitor readiness I believe, think I can get by passing?

[pbonsalb]

E85 is magic if you have it available and buy a tune for it, but unless a flex fuel sensor is integrated into the E85 tune, you can run only E85 and should drain your tank if flashing back to pump gas. Some of the extra power is coming from raising the ignition timing targets to levels that could be damaging on pump gas (relying on the knock sensors is not advised). And E85 adds a few percent more power because it is oxygenated fuel — you can get that few percent gain with an AFD or similar flex fuel kit that does use a flex fuel sensor to allow the use of E85 whenever you want or any blend of pump and E85 but does not change the factory timing targets.

If test pipes and pump gas tune add 25 rwhp, I’d expect test pipes and E85 tune to add 35 rwhp.

While E85 gains noticeable power over 93 pump, it will gain even more over 91 pump. I live in a state with 93 but would run E85 in my turbo E36M3 if it was available. Unfortunately the nearest station with E85 is 75 miles away. I would not run it in my E90M3 because if I went on a 1500 mile road trip, I might not find it and don’t want the hassle. Some of you live in areas where E85 will be more readily available wherever you drive.

Beware E85 loses its potency over time. If you are one of those people that mostly parks your car and drives it only occasionally, E85 with an E85 tune is not the best choice since your E85 might end up E50.

[Alex@Alpine]

Originally Posted by pbonsalb

E85 is magic if you have it available and buy a tune for it, but unless a flex fuel sensor is integrated into the E85 tune, you can run only E85 and should drain your tank if flashing back to pump gas. Some of the extra power is coming from raising the ignition timing targets to levels that could be damaging on pump gas (relying on the knock sensors is not advised). And E85 adds a few percent more power because it is oxygenated fuel — you can get that few percent gain with an AFD or similar flex fuel kit that does use a flex fuel sensor to allow the use of E85 whenever you want or any blend of pump and E85 but does not change the factory timing targets.

If test pipes and pump gas tune add 25 rwhp, I’d expect test pipes and E85 tune to add 35 rwhp.

While E85 gains noticeable power over 93 pump, it will gain even more over 91 pump. I live in a state with 93 but would run E85 in my turbo E36M3 if it was available. Unfortunately the nearest station with E85 is 75 miles away. I would not run it in my E90M3 because if I went on a 1500 mile road trip, I might not find it and don’t want the hassle. Some of you live in areas where E85 will be more readily available wherever you drive.

Beware E85 loses its potency over time. If you are one of those people that mostly parks your car and drives it only occasionally, E85 with an E85 tune is not the best choice since your E85 might end up E50.

Definitely not convenient for long trips but you can always use your laptop to switch back to a regular map in 5-7min

[pbonsalb]

Most tuners say not to mix unless you have a flex fuel sensor. I suppose the risks are minimized if you run to near empty and then switch. 2-3 gallons of E85 with 14 gallons of premium gas is fine for a pump gas tune, and 2-3 gallons of pump gas with 14 gallons of E85 is fine for an E85 tune. But the tuner will be depending on the owner to be intelligent and reliable. Unfortunately a lot of owners are neither, and the tuner gets blamed.

[CSL V8]

Originally Posted by M3LOLJK

My car passed NYS inspection with the Stage 1 tune.

same here

[Route 16]

Originally Posted by Alex@Alpine

Definitely not convenient for long trips but you can always use your laptop to switch back to a regular map in 5-7min

I moved to Germany, can't find my OBD cables. Can I order replacement cables?

[tigermack]

Originally Posted by Route 16

I moved to Germany, can't find my OBD cables. Can I order replacement cables?

whoa what!

[Alex@Alpine]

Originally Posted by Route 16

I moved to Germany, can't find my OBD cables. Can I order replacement cables?

Send me an email

[Aries326]

Alex,
I sent you an email about setting up a time for the GTS DCT flash. Can we set up a time? Thanks!

Everyone else, how much difference is it with a test pipe and stage 2 e93 tune vs. just stage 1 e93 tune? Getting my test pipe installed now. I can't wait.

[Route 16]

Originally Posted by tigermack

whoa what!

you didn't know? I've been here for 8 months already

[tigermack]

Originally Posted by Route 16

you didn't know? I've been here for 8 months already

Might not have recalled. Lots happened in 8 months man. lol

[wyatth]

Hey Alex, it possible to run your Euro MDM, Servotronics, DCT, coding, etc. with another DME tune (either OEM 240E or otherwise)? Or are some of these other software features integrated into the engine tune?

[christoepurrr]

For anyone interested, Alex is currently running another group buy.


Alpine | E9X Motor Tune Group Buy 2020 https://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1703066

Don't miss out!

[Longboarder]

Update for those in CA. I flashed my Stg 1 tune back to stock and my OBD II oxygen sensor readiness was active and passed the smog test.

[neilum]

I just flashed to stg 1 & GTS DCT. I notice the DCT flash way more than the slight power bump. I'm happy with it, the trans feels way different now and is worth the price of admission all by itself.

No more delay between R and D, on startup, the car reverts to auto mode now in d2 which makes sense compared to starting in manual mode before and it definitely shifts with more authority now when pushing it. It feels closer to how my F80 used to shift at WOT, like it wants to push you back in your seat when it shifts.

I honestly can't tell the power difference yet but the throttle pedal feels slightly harder now which i like.




Ok its been a week and had more seat to time push her. I can definitely feel the difference in power, it feels more immediate all around and of course, it really feels great way up top, above 6K. I am surprised honestly. I wasn't expecting to feel any appreciable difference with just a stg 1 tune. I'll report back when I get test pipes installed and flash to stage 2.

[RE36TRO]

Sorry if I missed this info but is there any fuel system upgrades needed to run E85? It's pretty plentiful in my area and would consider this option.

[Alex@Alpine]

Originally Posted by RE36TRO

Sorry if I missed this info but is there any fuel system upgrades needed to run E85? It's pretty plentiful in my area and would consider this option.

No fuel system adjustments required