I'm thinking of putting an apr chip in my 2003 audi 1.8t 5 spd. A few questions I have...
Will my mpg change? Good or bad?
How hard of an install is it? Do I have to really have a shop do it? I've been working at my dads auto body shop since I'm 12. I know a lot about auto body work and a good amount about mechanical stuff but this chip may be out of my reach.
How much does a shop get to install it? I guess I'm looking at $499 for the chip and some labor but how much do they usually get?
Is there anything else I should swap out when doing this? Anything need to be changed to accommodate the increase in power?
And If I get the stage 1+ and swap the injectors for different ones do I need a new exhaust?


thanks....

 

The instructions should make it clear for you whether you're capable of doing it yourself. I don't know how much a shop would get for it, but judging by the instructions, I wouldn't think it'd be a terribly long job, so probably an hour or two at most at whatever their labor rate is.

My understanding is that with any of the chip upgrades out there, boost pressure rises over stock, and the stock diverter valve isn't really meant to handle the higher pressure, so it's recommended to replace it with something stronger - APR R1, Forge 007, or similar.

As far as I know, you don't *need* a new exhaust to use the Stage 1+ setup, but you might get a bit more power if you do get one.

It would also be good to have a boost gauge in order to be sure everything is working properly, and to help diagnose any future problems you might encounter.

 

Oh, forgot to answer the fuel economy question: more boost = more fuel usage. Basically, when driven hard, you're going to get worse gas mileage, but otherwise, it shouldn't be much different. Highway cruising, for example, it should be operating in vacuum (no boost), and therefore your fuel economy in that scenario shouldn't change.

 

Has anyone installed it themselves? Just wondering how tough it is. And if I wind up down the road buying the better injectors and putting them in do I need to buy the stage 1+ program or can I swap for it?

 

IIRC they'll move you up to S1+ from S1 for $150, so you don't get it for free, but it's not like you have to pay the full $500 either. BTW, the vast majority of the information I've provided here is available on APR's website. You might want to read through it...

I haven't done the install myself, but I figure I can probably handle it when the time comes, and I'm not exactly Mr. Mechanical Genius - the only real problem I foresee is the downtime while it's being shipped back and forth. It's on my "when I've got the spare money" list, along with about a million other things. (I personally want to go straight to Stage 1+, but Stage 1 by itself would be a nice performance boost too.)

 

I had a shope do mine he was done in 15 20 mins it was just plug and play no waitting. He charge me 35 dollers.

 

I just got the APR stage 1 installed on my 2004 A4 1.8T. And it makes the car more enjoyable to drive then in the stock form. Gives great low end torque. Best bang for the buck in my opinion. I only replaced my diverter valve due to the higher boost increase. Since the stock diverter will leak and go bad in time. Another good thing to replace is the snub mount. This mount enhances upshifting and downshifting, reduces driveline shock, and helps power transfer by taking up excess drivetrain slack.


APR is having there sale from March 21- April 30 right now. You can get a fully loaded stage 1 or stage 1+ (without the injectors) for $499. Normally this would cost around $1100. All you have to do is send them your ECU. And you can have your ECU back in 3 days (Only if you send your ECU overnight to them). Here is there website if you want to check them out www.goapr.com I paid $596.32 shipped for the fully loaded stage 1 ECU upgrade and a APR snub mount. I would of went with the Stage 1+ but live in CA. And the smog laws here suck. You can also have a performance shop flash your ECU with this upgrade. Only if they are an APR distributor. Don't think about just do it.

 

I'm 99.999% sure you can't do it yourself. The "chipping" process is actually just a flash now on the newer cars. Literally, if you find an authorized dealer, they plug into you OBDII, press and button, and you're done. The term "chipping" came from older ECUs that actually had a chip soldered to the ECU...

 

The "do it yourself" being referred to here is actually removal and reinstallation of the ECU, bradytyler02. You remove it, ship it to APR, they flash it, send it back, and you reinstall it. If you're curious, I linked to the instructions for this (on APR's website) in my first reply in this thread.

It may be possible to flash the ECU in the manner you describe, but it's not how it's done for the particular upgrade being discussed here.

 

I see what you're saying, but wouldn't it be easier to just go to an authorized dealer and have it flashed? No waiting, no shipping, no removing the ECU...

Of course, this would mean you would have to have an authorized dealer within driving distance...