Kerma vs Digi pro? Whats best to buy??

Berniem

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 24, 2007
Location
Mansfield Pa.
TDI
2004 BEW-Jetta-My son 03ALH
I'm a nube here & have the chance to get a Kerma tune box &/or a Digi pro PD. Whats best to buy??Thanks B
 

bluesmoker

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 7, 2006
Location
Maple Ridge, B.C.
TDI
2004 pd 5 speed tip
its a loaded question around here

ecu flashes (kerma) can change fuel injection quantity, turbo boost, delete cel codes (egr delete) etc. you need to get a q loader and flash the ecu. if the dealer flashes your car for a recall (glow plugs for example) you will have to reload the tune (usually provided free by the tuner)

tuning modules can be installed in minutes by anyone with basic hand tools, they alter fuel timing and duration, turbo boost is not directly altered

the power increase with either is about 30%, although the chip tuners claim a few more hp because the software can raise the boost pressure (within safe limits)
 

VWBeamer

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2009
Location
GA
TDI
2004 Jetta Wagon
The only real advantage to a tuning box is it removable, where a tune is not unless you buy the loader.

Malone tuning rents the loader, and has an excellent tune for the PD motors.

The tune can also allow you to delete the egr if legal for your use, and leaking egr pipes are a problem on the pd motors.
 

glitdi

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2009
Location
West Coast Canada
TDI
Tdi asv motor in a mk3 golf, om642 in a wk jeep
A tune is a better buy overall for a pd motor.
I purchased a digi box and love the product, however a tune is better. I will be replacing the box with a tune when I complete my turbo upgrade.
The digi box is a great product however spikes are more prevalent with a box than with a tune. I like the fact not just fuel is adjusted with a tune, boost, also the safety parameters of the engine are adjusted for the increase of fuel and boost. I have heard (hear-say) that the car is less prone to going into limp mode with a tune.
Other pros and cons are the car smokes a little more with a disruptor box compared to a tune on a pd motor.
I do love the fact that it takes 20 mins install or remove the disruptor box at any time Also the vendor does supply a great warranty on his product. I like the fact that when I go bigger I can remove the product and still get decent money in the used section for the product.
Both products are great and both have there benefits. However the tune does win with a slight advantage.
 

Farfromovin

Torque Addict
Joined
Apr 9, 2005
Location
Ventura, CA
TDI
03 Golf 2dr- PD150 6m
I would strongly suggest checking out the loaders available for purchase or for rent from tdtuning.com and malonetuning.com in addition to Kerma. Same process, just a different tuner. My guess (because I have never used a box) is that you would love a tuning box but if you ever drove a "tuned" PD you would probably regret your purchase LOL. Tuners can implement GP fixes so you don't have to worry about even taking your car to the dealer for them to wreck your motor lol.
 

whatnxt

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Joined
Feb 25, 2003
Location
Lk Stevens, WA
TDI
2015 Q5 TDI Premium +
Graphs for A4 PD automatic with a stock turbo. I ended up upgrading the turbo and having a different tune done. Boost creep was an issue. A tune has more control.






 

Berniem

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 24, 2007
Location
Mansfield Pa.
TDI
2004 BEW-Jetta-My son 03ALH
Thanks Guys! That's great info. Would a boost guage be helpfue with either? If I do an EGR delete will I have trouble with codes using the Digi box? B
 
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coalminer16

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 11, 2008
Location
Central Wisconsin
TDI
Golf 2004
If you delete your EGR the tuner can delete the function so you don't have a light. A boost gauge is always helpful and so is the EGT gauge. I like the Q-loader and the pro with it (loaders in general) is that you can when getting recalls flash it back to stock and then once you have the car back you can reload an updated tune since the flash sometimes means the tune needs to be adjusted. And VW can't void your warranty if they don't know you have it.
 

vwmikel

Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
May 5, 2005
Location
Las Vegas, NV
TDI
'94 Golf Sport TDI
Thanks Guys! That's great info. Would a boost guage be helpfue with either? If I do an EGR delete will I have trouble with codes using the Digi box? B
A boost gauge is always a good idea. I don't know of any tuning box that can stop a trouble code from an EGR delete though. There is a rather archaic method of keeping the light off using something called an "epsilonian device" or there is something they call the "MAF twist". Either way, I don't think you can stop the trouble code this way without hurting performance (since you basically have to trim MAF voltage to trick the ECU) and just programming it out would save you a whole lot of headaches.
 

vwmikel

Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
May 5, 2005
Location
Las Vegas, NV
TDI
'94 Golf Sport TDI
Just programming it out with vag com or can a tune do so as well?
There is no way to do this with vag-com. It has to be done along with tuning. Trouble code fault paths need to be changed to block the codes.
 

Berniem

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 24, 2007
Location
Mansfield Pa.
TDI
2004 BEW-Jetta-My son 03ALH
Thanks Mike. A boost gauge help to not go too far then? I'm learning here. What does the EGT gauge do/good for? Thanks
 

drrck

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Joined
Jul 24, 2009
Location
Holland, MI
TDI
2005 Jetta GLS MKIV
I have had both and I recommend the tune over the box. The tune is much smoother and less smoky. The box did add a lot of power though, so as noted above, if you want it removable get the box. Otherwise I'd opt for the tune.
 

JP123

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Joined
Mar 5, 2008
Location
Denmark
TDI
1999 Passat Sedan, 1.9TDI AFN
Thanks Mike. A boost gauge help to not go too far then? I'm learning here. What does the EGT gauge do/good for? Thanks
If the boost gauge helps or not depends on you interpretating the values and you right foot :)

EGT Exhaust Gas Temperature - if it gets too high..... bye bye turbo. (right foot ;))

If you choose a box, a Boost control valve (to control boost spikes) would not be a bad idea.

The "custom" tune should have safe values, as not to overboost /spike/ or raise EGT too much (plz. correct me if i´m wrong )

-JP
 
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vwmikel

Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
May 5, 2005
Location
Las Vegas, NV
TDI
'94 Golf Sport TDI
Thanks Mike. A boost gauge help to not go too far then? I'm learning here. What does the EGT gauge do/good for? Thanks
A boost gauge is just nice because you have some idea of what's going on while you're driving. It can be helpful for tuning purposes, but a log using VCDS is actually a lot more useful in that regard. As JP123 said, EGT is a measurement of the heat being generated and reflects how heavily loaded down the engine is. If you climb a lot of long grades this might be really nice to know so that you can keep temps under control.
 
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