As the title states, I just got home from having the Dinan stage 2 ECU flash.

Before I give my thoughts, let me say that I know I could have gotten more power through other means (JB3, etc), but I really wanted the comfort of knowing my warranty is intact. Based on a quick discussion with other local owners, it appears that my dealer is true to their word - they fix the car if there's ever a problem, and work it out with Dinan separately.

So on to the flash. I'm very, very pleased. The car remains totally drivable in normal conditions, but when you stomp on it, it pulls much, much harder. On the highways, the 80 - 140 (km/hr) pull is much faster than before. In midday traffic, I couldn't really let it out, but as I approached 160 km/hr, the car was still pulling very strongly. Off the line performance is also improved - it jumps off the line more quickly, but I actually think some of that is due to the remap of throttle response. When you hit the gas, the throttle response is much more immediate. As with the non-flashed car, putting it in DS makes a huge difference, and makes the most of the additional power.

At the end of the day, the increase in torque is what you really feel. I imagine that the rear wheel drive models are even more fun since you can break them loose a little bit. Before getting the flash, I test drove a 335i with the flash, and it pulled like a freight train! Clearly, the larger, heavier car with X-drive has an impact, but I'm still very, very happy.

This is my daily driver so I have no intention of shooting for ultimate power (I'm looking for an S2000 for that ), but once I get my suspension and wheels, I think this car is going to be a blast to drive just about every day!

 

congrats. I've had Stage 2 for awhile. I recently took my Sprintbooster off, what a difference!

 

You got yours done at Budd's ? I got mine done there last year .... and today, I have the Dinan exhaust installed. It is a bit louder than I am used to, I was told by the SA the sound will mellow out after about 3,000Km.

 

That's awesome.

While I was getting it done, Brent mentioned there was someone getting the exhaust done. He actually said he was going to introduce me to you, but I guess he got distracted. The test vehicle I drove had the exhaust, and it sounded good. I don't know how long it's been on the car, but it wasn't super loud.

I'm all tapped for this year with my other mods, but next spring, I'll be looking for an exhaust - probably RPI, but I'll also consider the Dinan.

Hope you like it!

 

While I was waiting at Budd's, I did see someone drove the white 335 witht the Dinan out for a test run. I believe you went with a buddy and I think your E60 is the blue color ?


If you are ready to do the exhaust next year, you can certainly PM me here and will try to get together to let you hear/experience the Dinan exhaust ... if you like.

 

Yep, that was me.

My 535 is Lemans Blue. What colour is yours?

Once the bank account is refilled, I'll see if we can coordinate servicing at the same time so we can meet at the dealership. Also check out the meet and greet section - there's some talk of a GTA meet in the next month or so.

 

The wifey is not liking the Dinan exhaust, saying the deep exhaust note giving her a headache .... I may have to take it the exhaust off to please the wifey!

 

Yikes!!

I hope it mellows out enough that you don't have to remove it. That's an expensive trial.

Of course, if you do remove it, give me a shout...

 

Not much I can do if she wants it removed. I told her give it couple of weeks ...

If it does end up being removed, I will give PM you first to see if you are still interested, with the Dinan exhaust still on and you can decide if it's your liking.

 

FYI, RPI won't fit an Xi. Try dinan.