[Br0okLYnzSouLJa]

Thanks to amazing work by Steve and his coding and help I'm finally set with the Alpina flash... and so far its been an amazing addition along with the JB4 G5... I haven't opened it up as much yet, but within the next few days I will be, and I'm sure I may even seen more gains as the JB4/computer adapts to the new settings.

The car is definitely pulling alot quicker; I'm closing distance pretty damn fast, and the switching between gears are seamless. I drive using the steptronic shifter, but I drove in D & S modes to test it out the gear changes are amazingly fast and smooth.

I want some of your guys opinion... do you think investing in a decent FMIC worth it? Will I see even more gains? I was considering downpipes, but not sure I want to go that route. I think this FMIC may be my final mod, so I'd like to know if this will make my coupe pull harder.... I really enjoy the feeling of being sucked into my seat at the upper half of 2nd gear's RPM

[iturbo_bmw]

If I've read correctly the fmic is not going to give you any more power. Its just going to help your runs be consistent by preventing heatsoak and keeping your IAT's lower. So you wont lose power after a couple hard runs. The downpipes on the other hand will give you more power.probably around 20-30whp.. They'll ease the load on your turbo's a little bit too.

Just do some searches man..thats how i learned all that^ .. If i were you, and im kind of in the same situation, i'd just get both the fmic and downpipes. You'll get more power and consistency and your car will like it since your running a tune

[enrita]

Fmic is better than dps in the order of mods.

[Br0okLYnzSouLJa]

Yeah I plan on doing DPs just not yet, probably after my next emissions test.

[themyst]

sorry to burst your bubble but the alpina flash does not make your car faster.

[cn555ic]

That's not what the guys at PTF logs show. Jake from PTF told me himself that logs did show that. Maybe they can add to this thread with their data.

[rays 335i]

Originally Posted by themyst

sorry to burst your bubble but the alpina flash does not make your car faster.

im inclined to believe you. there is nothing in the drivetrain other than changing gears(rear) and higher stall(converter) that can make a car quicker.if taking the sliding into gear to being firmer has lessen any times it would be very little...a fraction of a tenth my guess.

[themyst]

Originally Posted by cn555ic

That's not what the guys at PTF logs show. Jake from PTF told me himself that logs did show that. Maybe they can add to this thread with their data.

please explain why wedges car actually ran worse at the track with the alpina flash than with his stock tcm programming.

btw if you were serious Im willing to take you up on your offer of flashing back to stock.

I found another nuisance with the alpina flash, even if you're not losing traction it intervenes unless you tick the DTC button.

so lets see, gotta drive in manual mode all the time tick DTC just to have the car drive acceptably and no proven gains in performance.

[Mr.Bimmer]

Originally Posted by themyst

please explain why wedges car actually ran worse at the track with the alpina flash than with his stock tcm programming.

btw if you were serious Im willing to take you up on your offer of flashing back to stock.

I found another nuisance with the alpina flash, even if you're not losing traction it intervenes unless you tick the DTC button.

so lets see, gotta drive in manual mode all the time tick DTC just to have the car drive acceptably and no proven gains in performance.

Whats your opinion of the Alpina vs stock? I'm seriously interested in the Alpina, but have never been in an E92 that has one. I use D mode 50% of the time I'm driving. Everyone talks about how good the flash is. Makes me want to get it.

[themyst]

Originally Posted by Mr.Bimmer

Whats your opinion of the Alpina vs stock? I'm seriously interested in the Alpina, but have never been in an E92 that has one. I use D mode 50% of the time I'm driving. Everyone talks about how good the flash is. Makes me want to get it.

alpina does downshift faster and smoother than stock, but other than that I dislike it for all the reasons listed in my last post.

my biggest pet peeve is the multistep process in preparation just to go WOT.

forgot to mention I HATE the ridiculously early shift points in D.

if the alpina flash actually made the car faster its something I'd love but it doesnt. I wouldnt spend money on it thats for sure.

[tofu-]

let's put it this way,

if D mode was the majority of my commute, I would hate the alpina flash. Right now it's just good for an "economy mode" when i'm trying to squeeze every last mpg out of my tank. Before the flash, it was a general use auto mode.

If you drive around in M or DS all day, the shifts will feel marginally nicer. It won't be faster. It's purely a subjective feel thing.

When we begged the Russians to tell us how to do it on the BB forums, and we all rushed to copy them, it seemed revolutionary at the time. I think we all got a bit too excited about how much this flash really affects the transmission. And for the few guys publicly offering to flash cars, it was a huge money maker.

all in all, if you have the means to do it yourself for free, go ahead and try it. if you drive around in D mode all day or have to pay over $100, skip it.

[E90Company]

Originally Posted by themyst

alpina does downshift faster and smoother than stock, but other than that I dislike it for all the reasons listed in my last post.

my biggest pet peeve is the multistep process in preparation just to go WOT.

forgot to mention I HATE the ridiculously early shift points in D.

if the alpina flash actually made the car faster its something I'd love but it doesnt. I wouldnt spend money on it thats for sure.

+1. Drive's shift points are terrible.