Beachproducer

Hey all,

I've seen mentions in some commentary on various threads that leads me to believe some members have tuned the M278 in the GL450...
Have you?

Did you do Renntech or CE?

Considering the cost to me would be about $2K difference, I'd love some input on either or both and the pros & cons.

I know the upsides to the Renntech are it would tune up to the peak potential of 530hp, and that my dealership has a tech on staff who does these, and would do all the work & test drive post-upgrade.

So, save two grand, and rely upon an indy garage (that I don't now of yet) who will install the CE program for me, and hope it all goes okay?

Thanks in advance for any and all advisers!

DaveW68

OE Tuning will do it for $1k. You need to take out the ECU and overnight it to them. In all cases with all tuners, the ECU has to come out and needs to be bench tuned. You can remove it in about 10 minutes. I believe they claim to get 550 hp and around 640 lb/ft out of the V8 motor with their standard tune with no mods to the engine or exhaust. Removing the speed limiter and better torque management is supposed to be part of the tune, but they can custom tune it for you.

srfrboy

Eurocharged also has a tune for around the $1000 mark. I have had their tune on my GL550 for over a year now with zero issues. Like the previous poster, you much removed your ecu and send it to them to bench flash it.

DaveW68

How about explaining the differences in performance with their tune.

srfrboy

I guess I can state what they claim with their Stage 2 file. They claim to get to the crank close to 600 hp and 706 trq. Each ecu is slightly different.

With my particular vehicle, I can say that the car from a roll, 30 to 120 mph, I am just as fast as a Porsche 911 GTS. From a stop, I am much slower with all the weight of this SUV.

DaveW68

I would imagine stage 2 means that it was customized for mods. What kinds of mods have you done to your truck? Is it mind-blowing quicker than stock with the tune? And how much of a dip have you taken in gas mileage under normal driving?

srfrboy

Other than the tune, I am completely stock. Under normal driving conditions, I haven't noticed a dip in fuel milage. And yes with a gain of that much hp and torque over stock, the SUV is mind-blowing faster that stock.

Beachproducer

Looking at their website I'm seeing $2k, so I guess they've found their price point in the market -- so $1k, $2k, or $3k -- at least Jeremy from OE tuning has been all over this thread and already has reached out in messaging...

SO! That Stage 2 programming is purely tuning rather than combining their Stage 1 with physical mods like exhaust and downpipe changes..? From the OE page on this tune the impression
I got was that Stage 2 involved the exhaust mods: http://oetuning.com/blog/stage-2-cls500-m278-biturbo-cls550-in-usa-tuning-results/
(interesting dyno screen shots there btw)

Thanks for this back & forth btw Surferboy and DaveW,

srfrboy

No worries, you are correct, with Stage 2 I should have downpipes and an exhaust. I believe with Stage 2, there is some programming difference, but I am no expert. Since this is a family hauler, I don't want all the excessive noise that would come from those mods. With Stage 2, I am going to run into the issue of replacing my catalytic converters at some point. I'm willing to risk that instead of going with downpipes and exhaust.

The dyno numbers that come from individual tuners will differ due to the fact that they are using different dynos in different conditions. All playing a huge part in what numbers to display to the public. Choosing a tune is more about your comfort level with an individual company more than the numbers the post on their website. Just my opinion.

black06c230

thaiedwin

srfrboy

I am sorry, but I know nothing about a piggyback chip. I thought those were popular with the BMW crowd, but not sure about here...

thaiedwin