Burger Steak & Eggs

Wouldn't it be great if version 2.1.1.1 popped out and it said "improved throttle response, reduced lag" Oh well, a guy can dream.

lil12002

If i buy the k tuner v.2 will i need to do an update every time they out with a new version?

2019MSM

Good question.......I would say no if you look at the changes that were made for the new version and there were none for the RDX. Some will say to download and reflash anyway just to be sure.

Duna

Hey everyone,

I have decided to move on from my RDX. If anyone is interested, I am willing to sell my Ktuner v1.2 for $380. If you are interested, please PM me. Thank you.

sonyfever

The steering wheel feels a little tighter with fine adjustments. I also feels the steering wheel is closer to me for whatever reason. In comparison, i feel the steering wheel sits above the steering axle in the other state.

SpaceBot

Why are you moving on, if you don't mind me asking?

I'm interested in the Ktuner, thinking of going for stage 2 on my 2020 Advanced. I'm guessing it's an unlocked unit?

SpaceBot

Why are you moving on, if you don't mind me asking?

I'm interested in the Ktuner, thinking of going for stage 2 on my 2020 Advanced. I'm guessing it's an unlocked unit or it's an unmarried unit (think that's the term? I'm kinda new to this stuff)

Ginoj56

Has anyone clocked a 0-60 on a Ktuner Stage 2 tune? Saw one on Youtube and it was about 6.3 seconds, I'm not convinced at all.

Funz51

like any 60 time, depends who is driving and how they do it. I got around 6 seconds, see previous post in this thread where he got he same.
what are you expecting with 4000 lbs and 4 wheel drive? I do not go around measuring 60 times all the time. I can tell you it’s a vast improvement in drivability.

Ginoj56

Point taken! Thanks.

So I pulled the trigger on the V2. Arriving by Friday but I have an appointment with the dealer to do TSB 20-001 for the gauge cluster replacement. I'll have them finish this first then I can install the Ktuner after.

I don't need to flash it back to factory map for any regular service from the dealer (oil changes, fluid changes, etc), right?

Funz51

I don't. I just brought it in for a A service and a trunk seal replacement. No questions. It would be prudent to flash it back before any maintenance where they would need to burn, like a TSB that requires it, or any engine issues. You can reset the maintenance minder from the infotainment console, so there would be no reason for them to hook up to the ECU. Besides, it takes time. Time they dont want to spend doing something they dont have to.
also, educate yourself about the details. google and read the 'Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act of 1975'.
Also, read your warranty very carefully, and google 'honda ktuner warranty' for issues and experiences. Civic forums have been discussing this issue for years.
IMHO

Ginoj56

Thanks! I'll do that when I have the time later. Can't wait to run the Stage 2.

Ktuner site only showed gains from the wheels, how much brake power and torque do you think are gained?

Funz51

I view everything as relative. They measure with a two wheel dyno I believe. If you see a 20% gain at the wheels, then I would say pretty much a 20% gain at the driveshaft ( maybe a bit more due to less losses). That's another one of those 'google searches and 30 minutes of your time' to get educated. let us know what you find out!

Ginoj56

My rough estimate would be 328 bhp and 355 lb-ft of torque. Basing on 20% losses, we'll never know the real numbers because Honda sometimes underrate the numbers, the Type R only had about 5% loss to the wheels, but that's a manual and lighter.

Padre Dave

y, but my wife asked me if I could soften things up a bit when we were on a road trip. I said “absolutely not” and gave her a wink. I shifted to Comfort and she noticed right away. Weird. Stage 2 and Comfort is pretty adequate for keeping her happy, which is my joy!

I am in Sport mode most of the time and love the throttle response. She downright scoots. I love passing, though I find myself over 100 before I know it.. Weird thing is that in Sport+ I actually get better mileage, and I attribute this to my keeping my foot out of it, because it scoots so much better.....I feel a difference in the steering feel...more effort and more precise. I know it is fly-by-wire but I sense the difference in damping as well.

Since lowering springs seem no more likely to hit the market than anything else we want for our cars, I am relegated to relatively conservative driving. I am averaging around 23-24mpg these days, before AC on all the time season hits the desert.

Ginoj56

Thanks PD! I'll be installing mine this Friday and really looking forward to eliminate the lag of sport mode, Sport is my daily driver and I really like sport plus' response, but keeping high gears are not that practical for daily driving. Looking forward to this, finally!

SpaceBot

I want stage 2 so bad but I'm in California. I don't think I have to smog for five year? Anyone know? I could flash and then flash back for smog right?

Ginoj56

Yes, you can flash back to stock anytime. Someone told me that no need to flashback during emissions, for Illinois at least but I'll confirm. Email Ktuner for California

Ginoj56

Turns out that Ktuner emailed me back and said "check your local state for emissions". They never give me concrete answers, but they reply in a timely manner, overall I think their support sucks.

I'm posting a new topic for it, hoping to shed some light. You can comment in on it.

sonyfever

Don't worry, you will pass smog easily with Stage-1/2 tunes. No need to flash stock tune for that.

sonyfever

You should get what you want (response) in Stage 2. Let us know how you feel!

Padre Dave

I just did a 2 year renewal ($1,100.00 in vehicle tax!!!) and because the car is newer, there is no emissions test required. When they do the test in AZ, they plug into the OBD port. As long as emissions are not tampered with they pass the vehicle. With my last car (a 2010 Mazdaspeed 3 that was highly modified) the first time I had removed all of the old tunes on it, and there wasn’t enough record, so they did a tailpipe test and I passed with the specific tune I bought from one of the local guys. 2 years later I went in with the same tune and passed on the OBD and physical inspection (not messing with the fuel filler to accept leaded gas....where do you even get leaded gas?).

If you remove any emission stuff, I guess the ECU saves that.

Ginoj56

Nice to know and thanks! ok, so Ktuner stock tunes 1 & 2 doesn't affect or change the emissions then, great news. I hope this passes in Illinois. I can't get info from users in Illinois, if ever there is a different law on emission .

Ginoj56

Yes! That's why I bought it, response is sluggish in stock Sport. I will be flashing tomorrow afternoon (Friday) and really looking forward to improvements.

SpaceBot

Let us know how it goes and how it feels!

Funz51

and make sure you do that 'ECU' reset procedure with the throttle. That really helped my response in comfort and Sport. Like PDave mentioned, the Stage 2 Comfort is strong enough to use on a daily basis. I could not even use stock comfort, it was frustrating...

Ginoj56

flashed Stage 2! The throttle improved a lot after the throttle reset on top of stage 2's advantage. Car feels lighter now and finally decides quicker on which gears to use! Thank you for all your support and feedbacks. I can now safely say it is worth the tune, and will be enjoying the car more!

Funz51

Very happy you are having a great experience with the tune as a few of us have been.
I just love it. Nice torque, nice throttle, great stereo, roomy! Besides the issues associated with a brand new model, it's a really fun car.
glad you went for it! Make sure you test out sport plus, it's awesome!

Ginoj56

I did test plus but on the highway so, not that much of a test unless pulling from stop . I just hope that the tunes won't cause powertrain problems, at least for the life of the car.

Funz51

I personally am not worried about that. Honda Trannys are speced to handle much higher torque. Otherwise they would not be reliable. It's when you add a new turbo and boost the crap out of the engine that the tranny will have issues. Just don't add another 20% torque, then I would worry lol

Ginoj56

Well, if you compute the 60 wheel torque gain of Ktuner's claim, I think it returns more than 20%?

280 brake torque, estimate a 20% loss to get wheel torque? And 20% of that is only about 44 wheel torque vs 6 . I'm not good at it, but that's how I understand it.

I do agree with what you said, Honda leaves room for these and I trust Ktuner, believing that they test cars thoroughly for reliability tunes.

Funz51

i meant 20% on top of the ktuner 20%.
the stage 2 is 20% gain in torque as advertised. If you pump it up 20% more, I would be concerned. IMHO

Duna

I loved my RDX but a BMW M340i came on my local market for 20% lower than MSRP. I couldn't believe it! It only had 2.5K miles and it was in perfect condition. Since the crossover is so popular, the dealership gave an awesome trade value. I stayed away from BMWs due to their unreliability but the new engine (B58) is truly amazing.

Anyway, I ended up selling my tuner on eBay. I didn't realize you wrote on this forum. I would have definitely sold it to someone on this forum. Anyway, if the buyer ends up not wanting it for some reason, I'll reach out to you if you haven't purchased it yet. Either way, you should definitely get it. The Ktune transformed the car!

sonyfever

Congrats, M340 is a steal especially new one. When I was looking, I could get 8-9k off MSRP with three discounts combined, and it was when the car just launched. Near F80 M3 performance for 10k less, that's real progress.

Ginoj56

Have you done A or B services at the dealer? Did you have to reflash them back to stock before having the services done?

No need to flash back during emission testings right?

Funz51

I defer the emissions testing answer to someone else.
i did not burn back to stock for my A or B service. I did burn back to stock before dropping off for dealer to look at replacing the gauge cluster, because they plug in for that. They currently have my vehicle looking to reproduce the gauge issue.

Ginoj56

ok. So good to know that even at the B service, they don't plug into the ECU.

I called a few other dealers after my dealer wanted to waste my time by keeping the car in for a few days for the cluster replacement. Luckily I found one dealer that said that they are well aware of the TSB, and just wants me to schedule my car for the repair.

I'll call tomorrow for the appointment and to make sure they will do the repair right away. If your dealer is giving you a hard time, go to a dealer that knows how do it without wasting your time. My dealer's service is full of BS and I will change dealers for service.

Funz51

good advice. I will do that tomorrow.

Funz51

so got the vehicle back today. They swapped in a new gauge cluster without issue. No questions about any burning. I burned to stage 2 as soon as I got home...lol

TiiTime

Spent half a day on and off going through this thread. So much informations, thanks for all the feedbacks and tips and advice.

now, the real question is, is the v2 worth the extra $200. For your average Joe who doesn’t care much about fine tuning and all the charts. Are the extra gains and a bit better response and the added screen where you don’t need to have a laptop to flash your car worth it.