Q5 TDI, Malone Stage 2

Owain@malonetuning

Associate Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
Jul 1, 2016
Location
Vancouver
TDI
PD jetta wagon
Of course, we typically charge 100 for re-tuning and for any major accidents/vehicle replacements we address it on a case by case basis.
 

BarryT82

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2010
Location
Charleston, WV
TDI
‘12 JSW TDI
Have you tuned any of the emissions repaired Q5 TDI’s yet? The emissions repair is killing the fuel economy and I know some people wanting a tune.
 

AU_Bug

Active member
Joined
Aug 10, 2004
Location
Not today EPA
TDI
2014 Q7 TDI, 2011 A3 TDI
Yes we've been tuning a ton of them and started doing the 3Ls the week the update was out.
Can the FlashZilla V3 be used on a 2014 3.0L Q7 TDI? It appears it can, but I can't tell on your site.

Also, if I buy the FlashZilla and Tune from one of your US dealers, how does the upload procedure work?

Does the FlashZilla come with the tune pre-installed?

If I need to take it back to for "service" can I put the "stock" tune back in place?

Is the "stock" tune stored the "updated" version from post-fix/recall?

I know it is a lot of questions, thanks for your time.
 

Owain@malonetuning

Associate Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
Jul 1, 2016
Location
Vancouver
TDI
PD jetta wagon
Yes it works and functions as advertised, so it does not come pre-loaded. The first thing you would need to do is read the stock file on the vehicle and then make up a file accordingly, so both are saved. Files are sent via email and loaded through the menu on the device.

Please email us directly if you have any questions since this isn't the place for sales.
 
Last edited:

Jetta_Pilot

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 14, 2005
Location
West Hill, Ont.
TDI
2015 Passat Highline TDI Candy White (SEL Premium) long gone 2002 Jetta TDI
Thanks for the quick reply and information!
Maybe I can explain the procedure a bit better. Copying the OEM tune to the Flashzilla takes less than one minute.

1.) You plug the Flashzilla into your OBD II port
2.) Follow the instructions to download your original tune into the Flashzilla
3.) Disconnect the Flashzilla
4.) Take the Flashzilla and connect to your PC computer
5.) Make a folder and name it Malone tune.
6.) Save the file from the Flashzilla to this folder
7.) Email this file to Malone

Loading the new TUNE which comes by email

1.) Copy the new tune to the Flashzilla
2.) Plug Flashzilla into OBD II port and follow directions.

You should have a battery charger connected for this, it may take some time.
Everything except the ignition should be off for this procedure.
 

BarryT82

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2010
Location
Charleston, WV
TDI
‘12 JSW TDI
I can’t get the flashvilla to read the new stock tune on my Q5. It states that the calibration file isn’t found. Mine had the JR Auto Tuning file, but my wife’s has always been stock and she wants it tuned. They’re both the same year and model so I’m assuming that they have the same OEM file now.
 

Jetta_Pilot

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Apr 14, 2005
Location
West Hill, Ont.
TDI
2015 Passat Highline TDI Candy White (SEL Premium) long gone 2002 Jetta TDI
I can’t get the flashvilla to read the new stock tune on my Q5. It states that the calibration file isn’t found. Mine had the JR Auto Tuning file, but my wife’s has always been stock and she wants it tuned. They’re both the same year and model so I’m assuming that they have the same OEM file now.
I'm not that knowledgeable about this, but my guess is that your Flashzilla has the "Tuned file" from your car in the system and won't let you read another OEM file.
Each ECU has its own identity, ie serial number.
 

BarryT82

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2010
Location
Charleston, WV
TDI
‘12 JSW TDI
I'm not that knowledgeable about this, but my guess is that your Flashzilla has the "Tuned file" from your car in the system and won't let you read another OEM file.
Each ECU has its own identity, ie serial number.
The flashzilla was erased so it could read the new file, but the new file isn’t in the database yet.
https://ibb.co/d7Xv0n
 
Last edited:

viper550

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 25, 2010
Location
Earth
TDI
14 JSW 6M, 15 Q5 TDI S-Line
Does the Malone tune help to get back some of the Lost fuel economy after getting the emissions fix done?
I'm wanting to get the wife a Q5 however getting the lost fuel economy back is extremely important.
 

Owain@malonetuning

Associate Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
Jul 1, 2016
Location
Vancouver
TDI
PD jetta wagon
Does the Malone tune help to get back some of the Lost fuel economy after getting the emissions fix done?
I'm wanting to get the wife a Q5 however getting the lost fuel economy back is extremely important.
Yes we alter the timing, feel free to shoot us an email and I'll send you some driving logs of before/after fix and how the tune affects that. I'll be making up an article at some point but have 20hrs of data logs to sift through.

The flashvilla was erased so it could read the new file, but the new file isn’t in the database yet.
https://ibb.co/d7Xv0n
This file was available as of Monday with Malone. Maybe not through your respective tuner yet as we're the ones building the database, the data is shared through alientech so other tuners benefit from our work and vice versa.
 
Last edited:

mousaillon

Member
Joined
Jun 28, 2009
Location
laval
TDI
jetta
good news i should get my flashzilla in a mater of days :) can wait to drive back my q5 with malone :) hope they put a sticker malone in the box :)
 

mike

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 28, 1999
Location
New England
TDI
2015 Q5 Tdi, RIP 2003 Jetta GLS 5sp
Maybe I can explain the procedure a bit better. Copying the OEM tune to the Flashzilla takes less than one minute.

1.) You plug the Flashzilla into your OBD II port
2.) Follow the instructions to download your original tune into the Flashzilla
3.) Disconnect the Flashzilla
4.) Take the Flashzilla and connect to your PC computer
5.) Make a folder and name it Malone tune.
6.) Save the file from the Flashzilla to this folder
7.) Email this file to Malone

Loading the new TUNE which comes by email

1.) Copy the new tune to the Flashzilla
2.) Plug Flashzilla into OBD II port and follow directions.

You should have a battery charger connected for this, it may take some time.
Everything except the ignition should be off for this procedure.
So could I do steps 1 - 6,
Get the emissions fix
Plug Flashzilla into the OBD II download and restore stock tune and get my mpg's back?
 

Owain@malonetuning

Associate Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
Jul 1, 2016
Location
Vancouver
TDI
PD jetta wagon
So could I do steps 1 - 6,
Get the emissions fix
Plug Flashzilla into the OBD II download and restore stock tune and get my mpg's back?

No, because the device works off a stock file, and if the stock file on the vehicle changes, then the device will no longer recognize it as the same vehicle.
 

GIACUser

Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2014
Location
Riverside, CA
TDI
2014 A8L 3.0 TDI
Always love to promote a great product.

I bought the Malone stage 2 tune / Flashzilla for my 2014 A8L 3.0TDI

Process was easy and flawless and Malone/Owain were incredibly responsive.

The tune transformed the performance of the car and mileage is very close to original pre-fix. This tune really wakes this motor up.
 

MBQ

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 5, 2012
Location
Houston, TX
TDI
2012 Golf TDI 4Dr DSG
Always love to promote a great product.

I bought the Malone stage 2 tune / Flashzilla for my 2014 A8L 3.0TDI

Process was easy and flawless and Malone/Owain were incredibly responsive.

The tune transformed the performance of the car and mileage is very close to original pre-fix. This tune really wakes this motor up.
I assume you only did the tune and kept all the emission equipment intact since you’re located in CA?
 

Milpitas2.7T

Member
Joined
Feb 19, 2018
Location
Livermore, CA
TDI
2014 Q5 Sline Plus Prestige
I'll site that I'm in CA and yes all the emissions are still in tact.

I will say I feel the Malone tune, but I want more. You can kind of feel an increase in torque, but it's no B5 S4 post chip install feeling. I think Malone is very conservative and that's not a bad thing, but I would like more.
 

j2112morris

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 3, 2013
Location
Chicago Suburbs
TDI
2014 Audi Q5 Premium Plus TDI (sold)
I'll site that I'm in CA and yes all the emissions are still in tact.
I will say I feel the Malone tune, but I want more. You can kind of feel an increase in torque, but it's no B5 S4 post chip install feeling. I think Malone is very conservative and that's not a bad thing, but I would like more.
Stage 2 installed? I just want to verify as this is a longer thread.

Thank you.
 

MY_TDI

New member
Joined
Apr 1, 2021
Location
Seatte
TDI
2014 Audi Q5 TDI
I just flashed my 3.0L Q5 TDI with Malone's Stage 2. By far the most noticeable change is the improved transmission shifts. I assume the emissions "fix" screwed up the transmission and caused hard shifts and hesitation at low speeds (I purchased the car after the "fix" so I don't know for sure). The tune fixed everything. It's a whole new car.

Notes on Flashing the car:
- The file file you upload onto the flash device might have a different name within the flash device GUI (Mine did)
- The car generates a bunch of warnings when you start flashing the ECU. Don't panic, they go away when you are done. I did have to reset the tire pressure calibration in the cars infotainment system after.
- It took 15ish minutes for the flash. I set up a battery charger/tender while I flashed the ECU as I'm not sure what condition my battery is in or how long I would need to sit with the ignition on. You can always return the batter tender to the store when you are done if you had to buy one.
 

mannytranny

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 14, 2003
Location
CA
TDI
02 Jetta (sold, such a great car) '16 Touareg
Thats odd because I don't think the Malone tuning affects the trans tuning. At least that's how it is on the Touareg. The TCU is a completely different module.
 

MY_TDI

New member
Joined
Apr 1, 2021
Location
Seatte
TDI
2014 Audi Q5 TDI
Thats odd because I don't think the Malone tuning affects the trans tuning. At least that's how it is on the Touareg. The TCU is a completely different module.
I agree that the effects are unexpected. I can 100% tell the trans is behaving better (No hesitation, smooth gear changes at low speeds, no hunting for gears). It's possible that the ECU flash reset the transmission "Learning". I have had problems with other Euro vehicles "learning" my driving style and creating transmission hesitation and gear hunting issues. I know the Q5 has a "learning" feature. I would pay to disable it if I could.
 

mannytranny

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 14, 2003
Location
CA
TDI
02 Jetta (sold, such a great car) '16 Touareg
I agree. I'd rather learn the static behavior of the transmission as opposed to having it learn my dynamic driving habits.
 

commedeschatons

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 6, 2019
Location
dtw
TDI
2003 ALH Wagon 5mt, 2016 VW Touareg TDI, 2014 Q5 TDI, 2011 335d Msport, 2009 Q7 TDI
Engine tune is not affect transmission at all. If anything it has to be an affect of more torque than usual means trans does different stuff than before

I have a transmission tune in my q5 which is really pleasant and in manual mode it downshifts so quick and firm, it makes u wonder why audi bothered with the DL501.

The only issue is now the trans shifts so fast, you notice the "slow" downshifts which from my reading, have to do with mass and design of the gearbox. 6-5 and 3-2 downshifts are a bit slower than the other ones which are lightning fast, I guess due to inertia
 

MY_TDI

New member
Joined
Apr 1, 2021
Location
Seatte
TDI
2014 Audi Q5 TDI
Update on my Stage II: The transmission slowly reverted back to its hesitation issues. I don't fully understand why but we are back to the all or nothing power, massive delays or hesitations with partial throttle, and some gear hunting in stop and go traffic. If any of you know what might be causing this, let me know. It's the only problem I have with the car currently.

I had the trans fluid replaced (old fluid looked healthy). Nothing changed.

The power is great though.
 

UberQuattro

New member
Joined
Jun 15, 2021
Location
Terre Haute, Indiana USA
TDI
2015 Audi Q5 TDI
Hey Hey Guys & Gals! I'm UberQuattro from the cornfields of Indiana! This is my first TDI and I'm in love with it! I just did the Malone Stage 2 tune after my local APR dealer went MIA (probably from Covid!) so, I wanted to get some more info about tuning options & parts available. I also heard there's a "TDI fest" and I wanna be all over that! Has anyone heard anything about it lately?
 

Pittdawg

Veteran Member
Joined
May 28, 2018
Location
Los Angeles
TDI
2014 Audi Q5 TDI
I bought the DTUK TCU flash from Europe. Not as good as a custom TCU tune but much better than factory and is especially noticeable in Sport/Dynamic. I believe it's just more performance-oriented OEM settings from another more high-performance model with the 3.0 TDI.
 
Top