I have the Depo Racing intercooler. I recommend going with the PRL intercooler due to not reading about any issues with it and their reputation. My intercooler is great and exactly what I wanted. However some of the bands were to small and one actually came off my turbocharger outlet. I've since put my own band on it. I wouldn't want to see anyone else in that situation. The intercooler, piping, etc is awesome though and works very well. If I had to do it all over again, I'd purchase the Depo Racing Intercooler.....again (In case anyone asks).
Good data points on the intercooler. I know the 90-100F days here in GA have really taken the edge off how well the Si's version pulls. In the winter, I feel like the car pretty much has the perfect amount of power for the platform. In the summer... it leaves me wanting a bit.
Not 100% sure... but i think the difference was either quick spool being disabled or partial throttle boost wasn't at the most aggressive. It makes for a more linear power delivery but that would have been my only real criticism on my Si version as well. The 23# basemap was snappier... but it ran out of steam over ~5000 RPM.
I guess the bottom line here is that the only way you'll get a tune that's perfect is with a custom tune. The TSP tune clearly fixes the fizzled out top end of the KTuner base maps. But those user adjustable spool, turbo and part throttle tweaks on the base KTuner tunes give it a punchier feel down low.
A little background for those who haven't kept up with my postings. I was the guy who made topics like...
https://www.civicx.com/threads/second-class-citizens-lack-of-aftermarket-cvt-tunes.30667/
and this... https://www.civicx.com/threads/aftermarket-tunes-for-the-cvt.29655/
My basic beef being that the owners of tuned CVT's weren't getting much love from the pro tuners. I was definitely jealous seeing MAPerformance and TSP creating their own off the shelf tunes for the Si. And look, I understand why this was the case. Sure we have a turbo but the Si is the performance variant. I knew I was fighting an uphill battle, but in the end TSP and DRob stepped up and made my wish come true. Huge props to them.
I ordered the TSP Stage 1 tune yesterday. The process is very quick and painless. Just check off whether you have a street or race maf setup, your ECU software and then add your tuner unit's serial number. TSP emailed me the tune in just an hour or two. Great service from them as always.
My car: 2017 EX-L CVT 1.5 Turbo / PRL silicone intake hose and aFe Pro Dry S drop-in / KTuner V2.
The plan was to be patient and wait til this heat wave passed but I couldn't wait and decided to upload the tune and test it this morning while it was cooler (but still 85+ degrees out). The upload to the ECU went flawlessly and my TSP tune test started. I have a loop I use which has a bit of everything. Curvy back roads, steeps hills, highway straightaways and city stop and go. Here are my observations after spending an hour behind the wheel:
First off, one thing was rather interesting. I noticed idle speed was slightly higher than before. And actually that was a good thing. The car has a tendency to idle really low (650-ish rpm) and it can sometimes feel shaky in the cabin at a stoplight. The TSP tune seemed to hover around 700+ rpm and it definitely smoothed things out.
I tested Map 1 and 2 and they were just as expected. Solid, smooth and with lower boost levels than the real star of the show Map 3. I love the option of being able to go from one map to the other on the fly and these reduced power tunes save a bit on wear and tear. I call them my "commuter tunes". This is the one feature that separates KTuner from Hondata.
But you probably don't care about Map 1 and 2 so here's what you've been waiting for... the full TSP Stage 1 tune impressions. Let's just say it was worth the wait.
Around town and at lower RPM, it feels SMOOTH. The power is there, no question, but at first I was surprised it didn't feel more "snappy". Again just an initial observation. Driving a bit more I began to get a better feel for the tune. Basically, you press the throttle around town and it goes nicely (and seemingly with little to no discernable lag). Under 3500 rpm it basically feels like a smoother version of the Ktuner 21 with aggressive adjustments. Put your foot into it a bit deeper and away she goes.
The tune really wakes up above 3500 rpm and especially after 4000 rpm. You go from a smooth and polished low rpm feel to a bit of a monster. It's very impressive. Fun and confidence inspiring at the same time. I never pushed the tune too hard but I can tell you a nice little pull I did from 55-100 mph put a smile on my face!
During the entire one hour loop, K. Control basically was rock solid at .49, which is perfect. At the end of the loop, I checked my MPG's and I was at 40 (I did take it easy for a good portion of the drive). One thing I noticed was that fuel trims pretty much were in the minuses most of the drive. The numbers were decent enough (LTFT at - 4) so maybe I was running a bit rich due to the high ambient temps? No biggie, really.
For $80, this is a must have for anyone with a 1.5T non-Si looking for something beyond a base tune without the expense of a full-on custom. It definitely gets arating from me.
Honestly, I drive in D most of the time. I do use S from time to time but it kills mpg's a bit. Is S faster? Well, it does keep the revs higher so it does tend to feel a bit quicker.Hey gtman! Just curious, does the cvt go faster in d or s? Im deciding if I should buy the ktuner v1.2 with the tsp stage 1 non-si ( my sport hatch is hitting 30k miles soon)
“S” drive accelerates a little faster and has a little more throttle response, as well as keeping the RPMs higher and imaginary gear ratios tighter. Also enables the use of the paddle shifters if you have them. With the higher RPM you'll engage boost a little quicker and it'll feel more aggressive since you're starting out closer to the power band.Hey gtman! Just curious, does the cvt go faster in d or s? Im deciding if I should buy the ktuner v1.2 with the tsp stage 1 non-si ( my sport hatch is hitting 30k miles soon)
I actually haven't datalogged that yet. Hopefully others can chime in who have.
26.1 for me.
