What mode do you have to use to get the full potential of the tune- or part-potential, I guess. I asked Chris this question and I think he misunderstood what I was asking.

I installed my new VAP tune, but there are several driving modes for the car, and I'm not 100% sure which one to use that triggers the tables that VAP has edited for more torque/power. There are at least four sets of tables in the ECU that are sort of "grouped" for different driving modes, so to speak. Does anyone know which modes are tuned? Does it matter if you have DTC on or not- what I mean by that is if traction control is on, does the ECU use a different set of timing/fuel/airflow tables than if it is off? There are three DCT modes- regular, track, and off. Do all three modes all use the same table "groups"?

Chris says he tests his tunes in Dynamic mode, Sport mode (gear lever to the left), and manual shifting, no traction control. But my question is, if you leave it in Drive (right side shifter) and in automatic, will the ECU use the same high performance tables?

I'm pretty sure the sport mode and regular mode are functions of the transmission rather than the engine, but I wanted to run it by you all here. Thanks!!

 

The tuning is applied to every mode on the vehicle. All of the 'modes' are multipliers of the base maps that are edited, so they all remain present and differentiated.

 

I understand that- and thanks for replying, Stuart. But the ECU has different tables for each mode. Are the values in these tables all the same now with my tune, or are they different? Stock, the tables are different because the car is meant to have more power under sport/dynamic than "normal". I can see some of these tables with my HPTuners (though not nearly as many as you can with WinOLS....) Looking at the tables I can see with my new tune installed, it appears that they all remain differentiated with the higher RPM bands increased a bit. But the "performance" table timing, for example, still appears to be different than the table for "normal". This may not be true in actuality since I'm using HPTuners to look, which is why I pose the question- which "mode" will provide the most power/torque, or are they all the same now?

 

I haven't looked into the tables, but stock I was able to get a trap speed of 122 in snow/ice mode via dragy even though that mode has the world's gentlest throttle response. Since that was within the error bars for what I was getting in comfort in dynamic, I was assuming the same performance is on tap, but how it is delivered (dynamic/comfort/snow) is what varied.

 

I get what you're saying now, Stuart. I spent pretty much all day Saturday looking at the tune and tuning my transmission, and found that things are not quite what they seem in so far as the buttons and indications go. I'm still not 100% sure about how things actually work vs what the buttons and dashboard indications say, but I do know that the TCU, or Transmission Control Unit, has a lot to do with performance of the car. Simply upping the torque limit in the TCU made the car quicker, and made the middle torque much more prominent. As far as I can tell, the car only really uses two shift pressure tables, one for Drive mode and one for Sport and paddle shift modes. There are, I think, 8 different shift schedules, but all use the same upshift schedule- only downshifts vary. Torque management between the two shift pressure modes are very different as well. I think winter mode is in the ECU and uses a different timing table and throttle schedule. I've never driven my car in the snow, so I'm not 100% sure what that feels like.

Anyway, I specifically programmed the transmission the way I want it, so the best mode for my car is actually regular drive mode (dynamic on) right now. What I found is that the TCU and ECU work hand in hand to determine total power output to the wheels.

 

So sport mode is slower for you

 

Yes, and no. 0-90 or so (I don't have any safe place to do a full 1/4 pull), sport mode is slower. In a road racing environment, sport mode would be faster due to the shift schedule (sport mode keep the engine revs in the torque band at all times). What I did was try to maintain drivability for putting around town in "normal mode" while integrating much higher aggression when engine torque is over 50% or so. It is a little bit more aggressive down low now, so much so that I will probably try to smooth it out a bit, but I wanted to have full "sport mode" available when I stomp it after some dumb kid in his hopped up Honda wants to race at the traffic light....