E93 335i auto - 129k miles - would you do the Evolve remap?

[wax lyrical]

Hi All, I'm in a quandary as I want more performance from my 2008 335i and am thinking about a stage 1 remap (to 370bhp) but am slightly concerned that doing this to a high mileage car may not be wise and also I still have the monthly Mondial warranty on it.

Evolve can provide a box that allows you to remove/replace the remap at will and my car has been serviced by BMW and maintained very well. Turbos replaced twice over the past 4 years, plus the water pump and HPFP.

Should I do it and if so, would the remap ruin the traction of the car (I currently don't have any issues)?

All advice appreciated!

[Monty Python]

Does a remap invalidate the warranty?

I was under the impression that even tuning boxes can be detected after removal since the fuelling would be different when it's fitted.

[Badgerboy]

If you map the car and it goes to the dealer for warranty work, they will most likely not honour any engine/power train faults.

They can tell that the car has been flashed in the past, but it's ultimately down to how far the dealer goes digging if you have returned it to a stock map.

[FurtiveFreddy]

I think the OP is talking about a piggy back remap box, like the Burger JB4 I have on my 335i.

As long as the box and wiring is all taken off the car and any diagnostic codes in the ECU's memory are cleared, I can't see a dealer being able to prove anything had been fitted, in the same way as if you buy a used car and the previous owner had one fitted, you would never know either.

[wax lyrical]

Thanks for all the input so far. I am actually considering (from the Evolve website):

'...we now offer the Evolve-r remote tuning tool. The Evolver is the latest hardware release from Evolve, enabling customers to load our industry leading ECU software upgrade directly into their vehicles themselves, at home...'

I have spoken/ emailed the guys at Evolve a few times and they seem very clued-up and professional. No hard sell at all and good advice. Lots of great reviews on the web too.

It WOULD invalidate the engine/drive-train warranty I'm sure but that's why I was hoping this tuning box would allow me to get around the issue.

[FurtiveFreddy]

So the Evolve-R looks to be a way to re-flash the car's ECU via the OBD port and not a piggy-back device.

So, you'd need to re-flash back to the standard map if the car was going back to a main dealer for any engine repair work, just to be sure they didn't discover it.
That's fine if you're OK with that way of doing things.

One reason I went with the piggy back hardware option is that I could remove it at any time, without any tools if I had to and put the car back to it's standard state. I was also concerned that if the ECU developed a fault (unlikely I know, but if it's being remapped there is a chance) and I couldn't get back into it to reset the mapping, the dealer would inevitably find out.

But it's personal choice. I would still recommend taking a look at the JB4 before making a final decision. I've had it on the car for a couple of years and it's been faultless. I run it on the map which automatically adjusts to the fuel being used and on Tesco Momentum it's gone from 308bhp standard to 363bhp.