Hi guys!

I hope your holiday season is fantastic!

I want to give a big shoutout to @Stuart@VelocityAP and Chris at Velocity AP, on their professionalism. I have called Stuart a few times and spoke about the ECU flash and he was extremely knowledgeable and provided excellent feedback. I was very impressed with Chris. Chris is the tuner. He is very busy. Most impressive thing about it he picked up the phone and spoke with me about 25-30 minutes multiple times in the span of 2 weeks. Extremely knowledgeable and kind. Stuart and Chris are very passionate about the product they have and work hard to provide customer service and a fantastic tune to customers like you and I. Chris and I spoke multiple times on the safety of the tune. I was pleased to hear that Chris has spent hundreds of hours perfecting the tune before Velocity released it to the public.

If you are on the verge of getting a flash ECU TUNE from VAP here is why I did it:
1. I wanted better pedal/throttle response. I have a Jaguar XJ with 340hp. Lets be real, the car is an amazing ride. It's comfortable and wonderfully made. The truth is, it lags a bit. When you step on the gas, it doesn't really go as it should. Without the stock tune the XJ was limited to 50% throttle (I'm not sure if it is the same with the F-types, or XF's). With the ECU FLASH tune it is 100% throttle at idle. It is excellent. The stock ECU was pushing 12-13 pounds of boost with a peak at 15 pounds of boost. The ECU FLASH is running 15 pounds of boost at all times. The car was already making 15 pounds of boost, but maybe for 10-15 seconds and it would cut off. One of my questions to Chris was how much boost will be added. Truth is, no boost was added. It was just made more efficient and longer in the power band that is where the 75hp/25tq come from. Just so no one will be confused things about it as a software update.
2. I wanted better performance between 2,000 and 5,500 RPM. It is excellent. It does exactly what I wanted. The car feels great. It moves well. I don't beat on the car. I'm not too interested in 5,500-6,500 RPM. The car rarely sees that range.

I am interested in the Crank Pulley tune. The stock ECU made 340 hp / 332 tq. The VAP Flash ECU makes 415hp / 355 tq. The Crank Pulley Tune makes 450 hp and 440 tq. That is an addition 35hp and 85 pounds of torque. The extra 85 pounds of torque will turn the XJ into a new level of joyful driving. With the VAP Flash it is quick, it is great. It is night and day compared to the stock ECU. I am loving it. With the extra 85 pounds of torque is will be fast.

Is there anyone that can comment on the Crank Pulley Tune from VAP? Thank you very much for your time. It is much appreciated.

Happy Holidays from me to you!

My kindest regards,

XJ

 

Great write-up. I can't wait to get my V6 tuned! That lag is my biggest peeve. So glad to hear it solved that issue.

How does it effect the gas mileage?

Also what is the cost of the software tune...as well as the crank one you mentioned. 450HP sounds amazing 😍

 

Hi,

Thank you very much for the encouraging words. I had concerns and questions before I got the tune as well. My heartfelt hope is that thru this write-up others can have a clearer picture and a first hand detail. The other week I drove the car about 200 miles to and from a location. It was city and highway driving. I didn't take it above 4500 rpm. Trip computer showed 22.6 mpg average. I believe the Flash ECU TUNE is $995 from Velocity AP website. I choose to do just the Flash ECU Tune because I wanted to see if it'll solve my lag and increase power significantly between 2,000 and 5,500 RPM and both were true. I also chose to do the ECU Flash Tune first because I wanted to understand the car. In steps, in my opinion, is always better than all at once. I hope this helps!

My kindest regards,

- XJ

 

Hi,

For others of you interested here i@RGPV6S said in November of 2022:

"I have the tune and crank pulley and installed the tune first and ran it without a crank pulley for a year. Just the tune wakes up the car and allows it to pull to redline - before the tune the power rolled off quickly as redline approached. It is a very noticeable but not a crazy improvement. The addition of the crank pulley and revising the tune to take full advantage of it was a big step change. Way more low end torque, way more SC whine and way more need to be more careful with the throttle. Definitely worth the $."

@RGPV6S How many miles did you have on the car when the crank pulley and tune have been installed? How many miles on the car now? How many years have you ran the crank pulley and tune? Thank you kindly for your time.

My best regards,

- XJ

 

Hi guys,

Merry Christmas! I wanted to take just a second and shine a bit more light driving the car in "S" (sport mode) on the gear box and the "dynamic mode" activated. It is a whole new driving experience with the Velocity AP ECU Flash Tune. 100% throttle at idle feels fantastic. The car moves. It holds the RMP and it's got plenty of go. Night and day difference from stock. I normally drive the car in "D" and dynamic mode not activated. It's got plenty of go in "comfort" mode as well.

My thought is that the Crank Pulley Tune will give you "power on command". The extra 35 hp will be great. The 85 pounds of torque is a substantial add.

For those of you that have done the Crank Pulley Tune, what is it like? What's the differences in "comfort mode" and in Sport mode "S" & "dynamic mode activated"? Does the engine sound louder? Is the supercharger louder? Where are you seeing the biggest benefit between the ECU Tune and the Crank Pulley Tune?

Thank you so much for your time.

My kindest regards,

- XJ

 

I have already answered most of your questions but I'll add some more comments:
The torque bump of the "pulley and tune" feels much greater than the tune only bump. It may not be much bigger on paper but it sure feels bigger.
Most of the bump is where you want it, in the low/midrange.
I drive in Dynamic all the time, I never use normal D and I rarely use S mode, so I can't really comment on the differences.
There IS a substantial increase in SC whine with the "pulley and tune". The tune only increased the SC whine from almost nothing to "now I can just hear it at low RPM" while the pulley and tune took it a sizeable step further. It does this by changing how the SC bypass valve works, with the "with pulley" tune the bypass valve opens later and doesn't open as far so less bleeding off of boost.
If you really want a big increase in SC whine then on the XJ (and XF and XE) you need to replace the stock air filters and filter boxes with cone filters, BUT this will result in a "hot air intake" (from the engine bay) and a loss of power/torque/performance, so you pays yer money and you takes yer chances.
I got a yuge increase in SC whine on my F-Type by replacing the the stock air filters and boxes with a Mina Gallery lower intake system (ie cone filters), but the F-Type (and XK) set-up is very different to the XJ set-up, with the air filters and boxes not in the engine bay but down low in front of the front wheels, so no loss of power/torque/performance on the F-Type and if anything a small bump in all of these things.

 

Thank you to @OzXFR for the added comments!

I hope this thread provides a clear picture for those interested in the Velocity AP ECU FLASH TUNE. It is absolutely worth it. The VAP TUNE gets rid of the lag that the stock has by 70%. The extra 30% is not so much lag, as is the driver understanding that the car has so much more potential. The crank pulley adding 85 more pounds of torque and 35 more hp, I believe is the missing piece. That will be the "more potential go" between 2,000 - 5,500 RPM.

Merry Christmas to all!

Kind regards,

- XJ

 

Great info! I have a 2016 XJL w/ 340 HP that needs a bit more torque! Is this a good candidate?

 

I reckon it's more than a good candidate, it's the best candidate!

 

One more question. How long does the actual "tune" remap takes? I'm asking because someone mentioned flashing back to oem prior to service. I'm curious on the time since I would most likely have to do so a few times.

 

I've done it 3 or 4 times now - flashed a tune on, flashed back to stock, flashed another tune on etc etc - and IIRC each time it took about 10 or 15 minutes.
And yes VAP strongly recommend you flash it back to stock before any dealer work or service as it's possible they will try to install a software update which could brick the system if the VAP tune is still on the car.
Also flashing back to stock does NOT stop the dealership from detecting that a tune had been applied and the code P167F - non-oem calibration detected - will be found if they check for codes. That code will now be permanent and there is no way to get rid of it, some dealers will make a fuss about it but most will not, and some don't even check for codes.
Last but not least flashing a tune on will result in a few error codes but they are not permanent (other than the P167F) and they will disappear after some 4 or 5 drive cycles, or else if you have a reasonably decent code reader you can clear them straight away.

 

Thank you for the info! You covered all of my concerns.

 

@parnelli Yes, absolutely! It is a night and day difference! Send me a message and I will connect you directly with Stuart and Chris. They are wonderful caring people. You will be very happy!

 

@Meanmugga Send me a message. I will connect you directly to Stuart and Chris. The VAP Tune will bring lots of smiles : )

 

I finally got some time to sit down and read this link a bit more extensively and am now quite excited .

I've got a 2016 XJL with 340 HP. The "lag" on it is a bit disappointing.

I've been looking for a XJR 575 sedan but obviously they are quite rare and difficult to find so it sounds like I am the perfect candidate for this upgrade.


A few quick questions:

1) Can I go straight to the Crank Pully Tune (450 HP/440 torque) and skip the step of ECU Flash tune with 415 HP and 355 torque?

2) who "installs" this? I am NOT mechanically inclined in any way

3) Price range of the Crank Pully Tune ? About how much $$ to install it?

4) Any potential harm to the car by doing this?

Thanks!

 

1) Yep, you can go straight to pulley plus tune.

2) Installing the pulley takes proper tools and some mechanical experience / knowhow, plenty here have DIYed it, but it is not a job for a beginner so you would need to get a mechanic/shop to do it. Then you can pay the mechanic/shop to install the tune or do it yourself for free. I and many others here have had the pulley installed at a shop then driven back home GENTLY and then DIY installed the tune. As long as you keep the revs under 3,000 and don't use more than say 1/2 throttle on the way home you will be OK but if you romp on it it will go into limp home mode (what JLR call "restricted performance").
DIY tune install is easy, VAP send you an instruction sheet with the tool.

3) $1939 US for the pulley plus tune, see here: https://www.velocityap.com/product/3...26-ecu-tuning/
Not sure how much a mechanic/shop would charge to fit the new pulley.

4) Zero reports of any mechanical problems caused by the pulley plus tune, VAP have put a lot of R&D and testing into these products.

 

@parnelli That is the way to go. Thank you @OzXFR for answering this!

@parnelli let me know if you are interested. I can directly connect you with Chris from Velocity AP.

 

Thanks guys....you both have helped a lot!

I would definitely have a professional do it. As I mentioned I am not at all mechanically inclined. Even when it comes time to software etc.

You wouldn't even ride in a car that I changed a tire on

 

@parnelli My pleasure, enjoy the 450 hp and 440tq. Come back and let us know how you like it. I will put you in contact with Chris from Velocity AP. @VelocityAP_Chris introducing you to @parnelli . Chris is the tuner from Velocity AP. Extremely knowledgeable and helpful.

 

i have stage 2 and zf8 transmission tune in this video i talk about it