MRT custom tuning booked in 10/4

[37371118]

ok I rang both Tunehouse and MRT, both of them are very keen and nice to discuss with me. Ended up with booking in MRT coz I am just 5 mins away from MRT. I was planning to put a FMIC and do the tune at the same time, but after some discussion with Brett, he said the fmic as per their engine data guide adds no power with a stock std engine and my current mods. so I will just do the tuning first. getting my car back around 23rd of April and will post the dyno sheets up

[MattMPS3]

Can I give you some advice,

-Firstly cancel the MRT booking, drive to the other side of town and go talk to Jim and the boys at tunehouse, not just because they are forum sponsors, but because they are consistently producing bigger power, more efficiently than MRT are capable of.
The forum has unfortunately seen one too many bad reports of MRTs workmanship and it has tarnished their reputation. In my opinion Brett is a great salesman and marketer, but Jim is a great tuner who takes an insane amount of pride and passion in his work.
I work relatively close to MRT, yet still have all my servicing work done by tunehouse on a Saturday, tunehouse show a level of professionalism rarely seen these days

-Secondly, before you tune, buy a downpipe. it will give you loads of power and open up your top end power considerably.

-What Brett is saying about intercoolers is true in one regard, and crap in another, intercoolers are not necessarily a power mod so to speak, they do however allow the turbo to do its job more efficiently and also with the added cooling properties allow a denser air charge to enter the combustion cycle, think of it more as, they reduce the amount of power robbed by the stock system, FMICs are great (I have one), but they are costly and labour intensive to fit, aftermarket TMICs are becoming a lot more available, and are showing good results for a fraction of the cost (and can be quickly removed in the event of a warranty related issue), they will suffer from the same heatsoak as the stock unit due to their location, but do cool down a lot quicker once the car is moving, the gen 2's probably arent as badly affected by heat soak as the gen 1s were due to the scoop.
To give you an example, the stock intercooler robs 4psi across its core, i.e to produce 18psi at the manifold, the pre intercooler pressure needs to be 22 psi, most aftermarket intercoolers will only see a 1-2 psi drop, while doing a better job of cooling as most are made using more efficient bar and plate style cores.

-DONT TUNE UNTIL YOU HAVE FINISHED, if you go and tune the car now and pay a small fortune for your ECUTEK tune, then fit a downpipe or intercooler, you will need to retune if you want to take full advantage of your added mods, leave the tune until the end of your bolt on mods, also with the imminent release of the AP, e-tuning will become a very real option in the future, there are some tuners in the US who know these engines far more intimately than both tunehouse and MRT.

In my opinion spend your money on a downpipe and IC upgrade first, you will see good gains from these two upgrades, then think about tuning.

[Cton]

yes a fmic might be too much for your car, id look at a tmic upgrade. happy medium.
But it totally depends on your goals, and what you told Brett you were after. if you just want a bit more power and better response. maybe you dont need to spend the cash on any bolt ons.

[Oldhead]

+1 to advice from MattMPS3. Do your homework! Jim at Tunehouse spent an incredible amount of time on my car until he was totally happy, Jim does know his stuff & Not taking away from Brett ,but look at the credentials/experience /knowledge of the tuner.
An old adage , " let the buyer be aware".

[2XS]

+2 for Tunehouse and Matt.

Is MRT taking your car from the 10th to the 23rd?

[37371118]

Can't cancel now they already charged 500 deposit the day I booked on the phone as they told me it's a special price.
I have upgraded a CPe turbo back system which I thought including down pipe? Oh yes another reason coz I am going overseas for one week from 15th but tunehouse only let me leave my car for two days due to limited space but mrt is fine about this so I didn't really think that much. I did read some article first but I found some good words both MRT and Tunehouse. Anyway thank you guys for all the advises, but I think it's too late now, worst case maybe I crash my car and claim a new one lol just j/k.

[slixx]

+3 for Tunehouse

I travelled from Melbourne to visit Jim and his crew and although I not interested in a tune right now, he made the time to talk and chat about my options and show me the shop

Great guy


Peter "SLIXX"

[jnt]

Can't cancel now they already charged 500 deposit the day I booked on the phone as they told me it's a special price.
I have upgraded a CPe turbo back system which I thought including down pipe? Oh yes another reason coz I am going overseas for one week from 15th but tunehouse only let me leave my car for two days due to limited space but mrt is fine about this so I didn't really think that much. I did read some article first but I found some good words both MRT and Tunehouse. Anyway thank you guys for all the advises, but I think it's too late now, worst case maybe I crash my car and claim a new one lol just j/k.

---------- Post added at 10:14 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:12 AM ----------

You think I should show this article to Brett or he is already reading now?

If you like you can still cancel and get a refund as no services have yet been rendered. On another note, with all the talk on the AP thread I would wait for that, if you needed any convincing about this just have a look at some of the USA forums or look at the 700 whp Mazdaspeed 3 on this forum.
What ever you decide on doing I wish you all the best. cheers.

[MRTBrett]

Matt

Several people have asked me off line to reply this thread........

So I am writing to clear up some mis information

FEEDBACK and REPUTATION
You say we have a bad reputation?
We tune more Mazda MPS models in OZ than any other tuner.
Hence statistically we would expect to by the law of averages get more complaints,

BUT
Every client that I am aware of that had even the smallest complaint we have always rectified
We are the only tuning workshop in Sydney (that I am aware of) that personally calls all clients 5 days after work is complete to ensure 100% satisfaction.
We then actually follow up another 10 days later with SMS message ...
We have the highest independent customer rating as a result

If ANYONE is here or you are aware of that is not %100 happy with any work we have completed, reply here or call us immediately.
I mean this sincerely!

PERFORMANCE
You compare us to Jim at Tunehouse
Every tuner varies in their results and power, its all based on opinion and data
Just cause Jim shows a higher power figure than XZY company does that make them better?
(Please consider the fact Jims Dyno also actually reads higher than MRT's.....)

WE aim for
1 reliability
2 power
3 Economy
As we have found a few extra Kws is not worth the risk of engine damage.

We are proud of the fact we have had ZERO engine failures on ANY MPS we have tuned... very few workshops in Sydney can lay claim to that

Please remember every workshop in Australia that tunes MPS models and uses EcuteK software
A is trained by MRT
B uses MRT data
C Uses MRT maps
We tune and test more MPS parts than any other workshop
and we tune more MPS race cars than any other workshop

WE SHARE ALL OUR DATA

WE TELL PEOPLE THE TRUTH (if a part works or more so does NOT work)
and yes we have upset some performance parts sellers..........

INTERCOOLERS
You are right and wrong in your assumption of a FMIC
One VITAL point you have overlooked is the intercooler "fill charge"
A FMIC is larger in volume than a TMIC and as such takes longer to "fill"
this causes LAG
this is EVERYTIME you take your foot off the loud pedal and re apply it
In 99% of cases where the (MPS) has a stock Turbo with a FMIC it is actually LESS powerful and MORE laggy than a same car with a stock TMIC

This has been tested multiple times by us on several cars
(please refer our dyno data for examples)
The only time a FMIC will be better is on a stinking hot day where the car is constantly under heavy load, like a race track, (but it will still have lag) very rarely will a car acheive this on the road and in that case a TMIC will be better as it has better response.
PLUS a FMIC is a lot more costly and best fitted AFTER the turbo is replaced with a larger unit that can pump it (full) and then the larger turbo is ONLY better after a engine rebuild and so on ete etc
and YES this will be even MORE laggy!

SORRY WHO?
Please forgive me as I dont know your full name so I cant assume,
But have you visited MRT and had work done by us?
Have we upset you and done anything that would disappoint you?
Please call me personally if i can help or solve this 0297674545 anytime

SPONSOR
Its a little ironic, and I commend you to encourage members to support forum sponsors
BUT
Did you know it was me personally who encouraged Jim to sponsor this forum
and then when I asked if we could also sponsor the forum were rejected because of Jims sponsorship..............

I respected the decision and have not asked again, but our offer is always where


WHEN TO TUNE HOW TO SAVE $$
Sorry, I disagree
its actually CHEAPER to tune first

Because an MPS with ANY (tuning related) mods is
A Unreliable
B Consumes more fuel
C Is suspect to brg failure

The best value is a tune first
then exhaust
(Please use our power kit data as a guide)

only if you plan a new turbo and engine mods is any other mod worth doing
If you tune first and then get a retune later to suit say the exhaust, we more often do this free
or at worst its only around $200 - $400 max for the customization of the initial tune to suit the new mods.

Many people dont realize how much GRUNT can be gained with JUST A CUSTOM ECU TUNE, often this is enough for most drivers.
as the car is torque limited in 1st 2nd 3rd and 4th gear
Add the torque limitations of steering angle input and traction control and you have a GREAT upgrade with ZERO parts hassles

We see so often heaps of people who listen to BS about XYZ that adds power and GFR that ads more power and then they spend all that money on getting miniscule results (or a risky engine that pings and overboosts) and then 6 - 12 mths - 2 years later eventually get a tune and say

"SHIT I should have tuned it first!"

By then they have wasted fuel, driven a car that is risking engine failure and so on....

I hope this helps and does not get deleted

BTW you can gather I am PASSIONATE about my work, clients and company, and yes its still Easter and i am "working"!

Brett
MRT

Can I give you some advice,

-Firstly cancel the MRT booking, drive to the other side of town and go talk to Jim and the boys at tunehouse, not just because they are forum sponsors, but because they are consistently producing bigger power, more efficiently than MRT are capable of.
The forum has unfortunately seen one too many bad reports of MRTs workmanship and it has tarnished their reputation. In my opinion Brett is a great salesman and marketer, but Jim is a great tuner who takes an insane amount of pride and passion in his work.
I work relatively close to MRT, yet still have all my servicing work done by tunehouse on a Saturday, tunehouse show a level of professionalism rarely seen these days

-Secondly, before you tune, buy a downpipe. it will give you loads of power and open up your top end power considerably.

-What Brett is saying about intercoolers is true in one regard, and crap in another, intercoolers are not necessarily a power mod so to speak, they do however allow the turbo to do its job more efficiently and also with the added cooling properties allow a denser air charge to enter the combustion cycle, think of it more as, they reduce the amount of power robbed by the stock system, FMICs are great (I have one), but they are costly and labour intensive to fit, aftermarket TMICs are becoming a lot more available, and are showing good results for a fraction of the cost (and can be quickly removed in the event of a warranty related issue), they will suffer from the same heatsoak as the stock unit due to their location, but do cool down a lot quicker once the car is moving, the gen 2's probably arent as badly affected by heat soak as the gen 1s were due to the scoop.
To give you an example, the stock intercooler robs 4psi across its core, i.e to produce 18psi at the manifold, the pre intercooler pressure needs to be 22 psi, most aftermarket intercoolers will only see a 1-2 psi drop, while doing a better job of cooling as most are made using more efficient bar and plate style cores.

-DONT TUNE UNTIL YOU HAVE FINISHED, if you go and tune the car now and pay a small fortune for your ECUTEK tune, then fit a downpipe or intercooler, you will need to retune if you want to take full advantage of your added mods, leave the tune until the end of your bolt on mods, also with the imminent release of the AP, e-tuning will become a very real option in the future, there are some tuners in the US who know these engines far more intimately than both tunehouse and MRT.

In my opinion spend your money on a downpipe and IC upgrade first, you will see good gains from these two upgrades, then think about tuning.

[Cton]

Good to see a reply Brett.
Sorry Matt, but I do think the 'cancel mrt' was probably a bit harsh,
And Jim did my car.
Tunehouse is awesome but this is getting a little 'fan boy' if you ask me.
I'm pretty sure MRT can also tune a car. And we all know you shouldn't compare dyno #s.
The only numbers that can be compared are track times.

[slixx]

Hmmm. Damn so much resources in NSW. Need more tuners in VIC like this


Peter "SLIXX"

[3MPSPWR]

Heh, like you guys have it hard. Try QLD. No resources of tuners.

Hmmm. Damn so much resources in NSW. Need more tuners in VIC like this


Peter "SLIXX"

[Yeldarb]

Nice response. I've learned something today.

Thanks Brett.

[RedDjinn]

MRT have been good to me in the past. They have less power/torque at 3000rpm than others but with the MPS zoom zoom boom issues this is for the best. A tuner tunes to what the customer wants if you want more power than they will, want power at a different stage than thats what they will do. Whats the point of modding to our liking if all the tunes are the same and mods. Might i say they got my nightmare of a Gen1 MPS running right no easy task....

---------- Post added at 01:25 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:21 PM ----------

a side note .. if you run into issues like i did needing a ECU and keys match to new ecu, Bretts relationship with the local car dealerships came in handy saved me heaps...

[fiveight]

Afternoon all,

Given I’ve probably had the most experience dealing with MRT than anyone else on here, I thought I’d throw my hat in the ring and offer my opinion on MRTs advice, quality and price.

Firstly, I have never met Jim from Tunehouse. I’ve not spoken to him or been to his workshop. I have read a lot of complimenting blogs about his work and his service. What I am about to write isn’t to start a pissing contest between Tunehouse and MRT. From what I have been told, Jim and Brett are great mates and well as competitors in business. Based on what I have read, I’d be happy to take my car there. I chose MRT because of their R&D, guarantees and close proximity to where I live.

MRT have spend an enormous amount of time testing different components and pride themselves on only delivering what they believe to be value for money modifications. Like Brett said, they have tuned more MPSs than any other tuner. They know what works and what doesn’t. The fact that Brett DIDNT try and sell you a FMIC must tell you something about the bloke. He also won’t try and sell you any Air Filter or back half exhaust mods either. I’ll let you ask him why.

What he does know works are his XA and XB power kits. These have been rolled out into plenty of GEN 1s and Gen 2s with plenty of positive feedback. Subscribe to their monthly magazine to hear all about it. Not everyone who owns an MPS is on this forum, and what you will find is 90% of the opinions and views posted here are from a very small minority of MPS owners. Getting the opinion of others is a good start, but they will never tell you about a mod they spent their hard earned on that didn’t work. I tried it once and got shot down by those who had the same mod.

MRT backs their quality of workmanship. They Guarantee it. They guarantee that if a factory component fails due to a direct result of something they have down, they will cover the cost of the replacement. This is something you should defiantly read up on.

I have not done a direct price comparison between MRT and Tunehouse or any other tuner. I spoke to Brett about his prices once. He acknowledges that he probably inst the cheapest. But, he will always maintain that he is the best at delivering reliability, power and economy. For me, that’s piece of mind.

I will never bag another tuner or garage based on the reputation others have given them. All I can offer is my experience with what I have done. That includes success and failure. Isn’t what these forums are all about? A lot of you know that MRT used my car as a Gen 2 test “mule” for a lot of their R&D. I have seen first had what works and what doesn’t. The power kits I mentioned earlier and Brett brought up work. I know because I was part of the process which tested and developed them.

Proof is in the result though, and I’ve mention more than a few times in previous blogs that my car is always available to anyone who wants to know what these kits can do. Cton will vouch for that.

[gb123]

its good to see some passion!.

[RedDjinn]

its good to see some passion!.

^^ what he said. Brett thanks for getting on here and backing yourself and your bussiness, its guys like you's/TH and others helping support the MPS community in Australia with R&D and service. Thanks to guys like Fiveight,Reedy,2xs that have done the track time to see what works and feed us with info on what works.

[Reedy]

I can tell you very quickly that basic power mods and a tune won't net you much time at the track at all. The ECUTEK tune made my car FEEL a LOT faster, and made it much more fun to drive. As for lap times? Not so much. If you want improved lap times then spend money on Tyres, Brakes and Suspension mods in that order. Then start thinking about power.

As for MRT fanboyism? Who the fk cares. Take the same car to both places and you can be pretty sure that you'll get almost exactly the same result. Both places spruick torque, driveability, economy and power delivery over peak figures.

[37371118]

every day is learning day for me
cheers guys

[RedDjinn]

every day is learning day for me
cheers guys

Its what we are here for ... wouldnt be a community if no one cared....... looking at you Sam rofl (MSF)