[shortseller]

So I've had my Dinan flash now for a while and have been pretty happy for the most part. I know it's fairly conservative compared to others available but I wanted something that would compliment my BMW warranty and since I was not looking to go FOB, I though it to be all around less potentially troublesome.

Let me start by saying i am happy with the Dinan tune but I have noticed this flash at times has a couple of personalities. One day it can be a bear but the next day it might be considered even a bit less motivated than stock! I've gone through some threads here and at other BMW site and find that I am not alone with this experience.

So why is this tune not "all it can be" everyday of its life?

Are other flashes like this? Gas and weather seem to be the biggest factors but then again everyday can't be low humidity and upper 60's. RE; gas, I always use Shell 93 V-Power.

So a little helpful insight as to what's going on would be greatly appreciated.

PS; Dinan bashes restrain yourselves please, if you can't offer objective no bias comments...don't respond. Thanks.

[LAE92]

How many miles are on your car?

[Ænema]

It sounds like you've already figured out one of the main causes: weather. High CATs and high humidity kill these cars. If you don't already have a BT I recommend picking one up and do some data logging to compare the differences in how the timing looks on a hot day and then a cool night. Timing follows a correction table determined by CATs and can be a very significant performance hindrance.

[shortseller]

Originally Posted by LAE92

How many miles are on your car?

Just hit 25K.

[shortseller]

Originally Posted by Ænema

It sounds like you've already figured out one of the main causes: weather. High CATs and high humidity kill these cars. If you don't already have a BT I recommend picking one up and do some data logging to compare the differences in how the timing looks on a hot day and then a cool night. Timing follows a correction table determined by CATs and can be a very significant performance hindrance.

BT scan tool, good suggestion - thanks! And yes turbo spool sounds anemic on hot humid days but I had no idea it could cause so much timing retardation. As I remember the stock software handled it better but is that because boost was at stock levels also? Where as flash tunes run boost much higher and thus need to reduce timing under certain conditions for engine safety?

[secretsquirrel]

You're gonna need an aftermarket FMIC to give your car a fighting chance during the summer months.

[Ænema]

Originally Posted by shortseller

BT scan tool, good suggestion - thanks! And yes turbo spool sounds anemic on hot humid days but I had no idea it could cause so much timing retardation. As I remember the stock software handled it better but is that because boost was at stock levels also? Where as flash tunes run boost much higher and thus need to reduce timing under certain conditions for engine safety?

The factory tables still have CAT correction tables, however the stock boost really levels help to keep the CATs down. As squirrel said, you'll need an upgraded FMIC to even make an attempt at consistency.

Just for example, I have logs of a Cobb map where a tune should be seeing ~9 degrees of timing, however the IATs where north of 140F and climbing so it was only getting to ~3 degrees.

[georgelb]

I definitely noticed that my Dinan tune seemed inconsistent and, aside from hot days, I'm pretty sure it was the stock FMIC getting heat soaked, as it usually started out strong.

[benzy89]

+1 for IATs/Weather Conditions killing your performance. If you can, get an aftermarket FMIC in there. It'll help give you more consistent performance, reduce your IATs & be less susceptible to heatsoak then the OEM core

[shortseller]

Well, looks like an FMIC is in my future. I had noticed they were pretty popular here amount e90 users, now I understand why.
Supporting mods - who knew!

Thanks guys.

[ihc95]

Originally Posted by shortseller

Well, looks like an FMIC is in my future. I had noticed they were pretty popular here amount e90 users, now I understand why.
Supporting mods - who knew!

Thanks guys.

So are you gonna go All-Dinan here or try other aftermarket intercoolers such as Helix, ETS, etc?

[shortseller]

Originally Posted by ihc95

So are you gonna go All-Dinan here or try other aftermarket intercoolers such as Helix, ETS, etc?

The site is filled with many reviews and consensus seems split as to which is better. My guess is you cannot go wrong with most FMICs.

For me, Dinan a Spearco based design seems an obvious good starting point to look at.