In short
ECU remapping means modifying the tables in the engine control unit's software (known as maps) that decide how much air, fuel and torque the engine delivers in each situation. No device is added: the factory software is read, a copy is saved and a version tailored to that engine is written. The stage depends on the car: Stage 1 if it's standard, Stage 2 if it has upgraded intake or exhaust parts, Stage 3 if the turbo or injection system has been changed, Eco if you're after everyday use and fuel economy, and individual functions for specific needs. It starts from from €200 + VAT (€242 including VAT) and we do it in Alcalá de Henares or wherever the vehicle is, within the Community of Madrid (the Madrid region).
What is ECU remapping?
The engine control unit (you'll also see it called the ECU) is a small computer that takes data from dozens of sensors — temperature, air pressure, throttle position, engine speed — and decides instantly how much fuel to inject, how much turbo boost to ask for and how much torque to let through. It does this by looking up tables of values, which in the trade are called maps: at this engine speed and this load, this much fuel; at this temperature, this much ignition advance.
The manufacturer fills in those tables with every market in mind at once. Remapping means editing some of those tables for a specific engine in the condition it's in, and writing them back to the ECU. No device is added and the electronics aren't changed.
There are three ideas worth being clear on before going any further:
- A map is not the same as a generic file. The same model can have several software versions depending on the year or the update the dealer gave it. That's why we work from the read of your ECU, with WinOLS and our EVC WinOLS licence (verifiable at evc.de), and not from a file downloaded for "that model".
- Limiters are maps too. Much of what gets adjusted isn't "more turbo", but torque limits by gear, by temperature or by speed that the manufacturer left with some margin.
- A power module is not a remap. Those boxes that plug in between a sensor and the ECU send it false data (for example, lower pressure than the real figure) so that it injects more. The ECU is working on false information and its protections lose accuracy.
Which stage do you need?
The word "Stage" isn't an official standard: it's the way the industry classifies remaps according to how much the car has been changed. To work out which is yours, the key question isn't how much power you want, but what's fitted to your car and what you use it for.
| If your car… | What it needs | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| Is standard and you want more shove | Stage 1 | Only the software |
| Has an upgraded intake, intercooler or exhaust | Stage 2 | Software made for those parts |
| Has a larger turbo, injectors or pump | Stage 3 | A complete project with the tuner |
| Works every day, carries weight or covers a lot of miles | Eco | Low-down torque and relaxed driving |
| Needs something specific (pedal response, launch control…) | Custom functions | Only that function |
| Is an automatic or DSG | Also look at the gearbox control unit | Torque the gearbox will accept |
If you're torn between two, send us what's fitted to the car and how it's used. With that information it's quick to see: a car with only the rear silencer changed is still, as far as the software goes, practically a Stage 1; one with a new turbo never is.
What don't we do, and why?
Saying no to certain jobs is what allows us to stand behind the ones we do:
- We don't load generic files. A file made for another software version may seem to work at first and cause problems weeks later.
- We don't remap cars with unresolved faults. Electronic diagnostics come first: a sensor giving wrong readings or a turbo with play can't be fixed with software.
- We don't do deletes on cars that are driven on the road. Removing the DPF (diesel particulate filter), the EGR or the AdBlue is a different matter with different consequences; we explain it in deletes.
- We don't touch the speed limiter on lorries and buses, the tachograph or the odometer.
- We don't write anything without saving the original first. If one day you want to go back, the way back exists.
Price, and what affects it
Remaps start from from €200 + VAT (€242 including VAT). What moves the final price is:
- How the ECU has to be accessed: via the diagnostic port, or by removing and opening it.
- The stage: a Stage 2 or 3 involves more development and testing work than a Stage 1.
- Whether the gearbox control unit is also involved on automatic cars.
- Whether we come to you at your home, your garage or your business.
We give you a fixed price before we start. Our other rates are in prices.
The legal side in two lines
If the remap changes details recorded on the vehicle's technical data sheet (ficha técnica), such as the power output, legally it is a vehicle modification (reforma) that must be legalised and inspected at the ITV (Spain's compulsory periodic vehicle inspection, similar to the UK MOT); and you have to tell your insurer about anything that increases the risk. It's all explained, with links to the regulations, in legality, ITV and insurance. What an appointment looks like from start to finish is in how we work.
Stage 1
Software only, no parts changed. For standard cars in good condition that want more pull and sharper response.from €200 + VAT (€242 including VAT)
Stage 2
Software matched to upgraded intake, intercooler or exhaust parts.
Stage 3
Projects with a bigger turbo, injectors or a strengthened engine: software built for that combination.
Eco
A map built for low-rev torque and relaxed driving: vans, fleets and high mileage.
Custom functions
Pop&Bang, Launch Control, Hardcut, torque delivery, throttle pedal, FLAP and VMAX: what each one does and when it's legal.
Tell us what car you have, what's been changed on it and what you use it for. We'll tell you which stage it needs, whether it's worth it and how much it costs.
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