Ken Keith

Just wanted to give OE Tuning huge props for an excellent product and customer support.

I purchased the MyGenius handheld and a tune from OE Tuning during their black Friday sale.
I wasn't necessarily looking for a tune but at the offered sale price, I couldn't turn it down. It's the cheapest HP increase for the $ on an Cls550 and made a immediate, very noticeable difference in acceleration. I also gained 2-3 miles per gallon on the highway

I did have so issue during the install. 1st my battery was weak which caused communication issues during the install and my 21 year old battery charger couldn't keep up.
After a few calls to OE they very patiently helped me diagnose the issue and walked me through the reinstallation process step by step.
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I will say, any of the instructions I found for mygenius where a little spotty and confusing at times. I would recommend reading the instructions several times, watching a few videos and making sure the handheld AND the installation app are fully updated.

JettaRed

iTrader: (1)

Valuable feedback, especially about the battery.

GregW_

Thanks for the feedback Ken. I've been on the fence about purchasing this myself. Not really a need but would be a fun first upgrade for my CLS.
After reading your review and seeing how well they supported you and seeing their support for the community in other threads I may have to pull the trigger on this myself.

Ken Keith

My issue was while the tune is uploading, it kicks the radiator fan on ultra high. It sounds like a prop plane taking off. Which caused excess drain on an already older weakened battery.
Their solution was to simply unplug the cooling fan, turn off all lights, radio and climate control. Worked perfectly. Just remember to plug the fan back in when your done.
Lots of good info here about uploading a tune using mygenius.
The connector is easy to acess.

carlosinseattle

Thanks for sharing yoiur experience on the OE tune. I've been on the fence for almost a month about this. Their sale price makes it almost irresistable...almost. My main hesitation is the CPO warranty, also want to feel safe since the tune is octane dependent, at least I think so. We have 92 octane here and I can't figure out exactly how that would affect things.

Ken Keith

From my experience OE asked what mods I currently had and what octane I ran specifically. I believe they have different tunes available for 91,92 & 93 octane. They also include a tune for race gas and valet mode.
As far as warranty, you are able to revert back to the factory tune anytime with the MyGenius handheld. Then after your visit reinstall the tune at your convenience.
Iirc they actually recommend reverting back to oem tune for dealer visits. Apparently if the ecu is running the tuned program and the dealer tries to do an update, it could potentially cause problems.

Maduro

I'm in talks with them myself and considering this for my 2012 CLS 550 (W218). I'm interested in a Stage 1 and changing my air filters. Seems like a great bang for your buck per HP. This process of using MyGenuis is new to me (VS sending in your ECU) but it makes sense to me now that it was explained by one of their reps. I'm pretty tech savvy and like the idea of being able to go back & forth. Ken, I'm curious though why your fan went into overdrive during the upload and if this is normal.

Ken Keith

Yeah, for these non forced induction MB's, the cost per HP is unbeatable. The next closet thing would be paying a few thousand for an exhaust and intake which I'd be willing to bet, wouldn't make as much of a noticeable difference as the tune does.
As far as the fan, I can't speak for exactly why it happenes but was told it was a normal process of the programming for my vehicle. I would expect it to happen on most models of this generation. I assume they use similar ecu's and programing.
After your purchase they'll email you instalation instructions. Mine made a note of the fan operation tuning on. I just didn't expect it to go to max for several minutes.

I should note that I recently bought my cls550, the battery is 6 years old and it sat for most of the day that time so it wasn't in good shape to begin with.
OE Tuning recommended a 40+ amp battery charger to eliminate any power fluctuations. Mine maxed 20 amps and was an 18 year old Walmart special. I was able to loan 50 amp from the auto parts store for a few hours. Might be worth looking into if you don't already have one.

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Maduro

I recently replaced my battery and because it's not a daily driver I keep it on a 'smart trickle charger' so it's in excellent shape but I don't have a high amp charger in my garage, only a NOCO Battery Jump Starter which, with the high amperage, I think should do the trick. https://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/n...c=ds#store=266

GregW_

So because of Kens experiences I went ahead and placed my order with OE Tuning as well.
These guys are on the ball. Any time I reached out to them throughout the process I always received a response promptly which really made me feel like the most important customer they ever had.

Definitely take the time to read through the emails that are sent as they contain several warnings that really do ensure the process goes smoothly.
After reading Kens experience and seeing the warnings about having a stable voltage I ended up borrowing a 40amp charger. My brother works for a dealership (sadly not Mercedes) and they use it specifically for updating ECUs in their cars.
I did ask him if the warnings were true and if it was safe to use my jump pack or 8v charger. His response was just "I've seen bad things happen" which was enough for me.
I was prepared to have a similar experience during the update as Ken did so I made sure everything was turned off but I didn't disconnect the fan. Turns out the fan in my car never turned on during the update process. Possibly just a difference in year?
Everything went smooth, not a single hiccup.

As far as the tune itself, it really did make a very noticeable difference. I could be crazy but I think even the exhaust note changed. It really woke the car up and made it how I imagined it should have been to begin with.
10/10 would do it again.

Maduro

Order placed late last week. Expecting my 'MyGenuis' tomorrow. Will post back my experience....

Maduro

Is anyone familiar with the proper steps for re-installing MyGenius Software on your PC (after a reformat) when your tool has already been setup/flashed? The initial install of the PC software prompts you to connect your MyGenius tool for an update but the instructions from OE stated to never run the update more than once.

Ken Keith

I would email or call OE tuning just to avoid any possible issues. I believe there was an option to update the app software only but obviously has to be installed first.

Maduro

Well that's part of my problem. I sent an email exactly 1 month ago and a follow up recently and not a peep from them. They went from being very prompt to ghost.

Ken Keith

Yeah, that's odd considering they were responsive in the past. I'd give them a call tomorrow, tk to an actual person.
I believe you'll be fine as long as the handheld device isn't reset. Do you have the tune file saved anywhere other than one the handheld unit?

If it where me, I'd plug it in, try to update the software only. I have the tuned files save on a USB so worst case scenario OE would have to send me new unlock code for the handheld if for some reason the update would erase it.

Maduro

Ya I have all files saved elsewhere. So you're saying that even though the PC Software is prompting me to "plug in my device for an update" it will still give me the option to select software update only thereafter?

Ken Keith

Did you get anywhere or have any luck contacting OE Tuning?
On mine, the PC program has a drop down menu that you can select what you want to update. The handheld, pc program or both. As far as I remember, it asks if you want to do an update which you can decline.

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