Jay-Jay's Polo 6R 1.2TSI

[Jay-Jay]

Infact, I've been surprised as well!
I also didn't expect those crackles and pops when downshifting.

It's a pity I've not been able to record the farts while ASR kicks in: they sounds like the DSG farts, sometimes even much louder!

In general, I am very satisfied with this setup and I don't really see a reason for going for a downpipe (decat or sport 200 cells cat).

[Pierlu]

Yeah, it’s a very good result. I’ve got pops in my setup but yours are better cause of the resonator

Changing downpipe will probably cause a loss of torque at lower rpm who need an adaption for the remap

[Jay-Jay]

That's the main reason I'm more than afraid of doing the downpipe.
I like the torque curve I have now at low rpm and I'd be very disappointed if neither a new ECU tune would give me back this torque.
I don't wanna bother this car any further, ahah!

[Pierlu]

Ahahahah

Can I ask you how many km have you done since the remap? Performance are like the first day?

[Jay-Jay]

I've driven about 33.000km since the first remap.
Later the remap has been revised 6 times, because I've done further modifications to the exhaust and to the intake components.
After all of that, I dyno-tested the car and from that moment till today I can say performances are still the same.

With time I understood that spark leads are a key component for the performances of this engine.
The original wires (made by Bremi) don't have a good resistance (~8,5-9 kOhm each). When I installed the NGK ones (~4,5-5 kOhm each), I immediately felt a big difference in throttle response and torque.
At the moment, I am waiting for some custom hand-made high performances spark leads, with theorically zero resistance and much more heat protection.
Hopefully they will make the engine perform even better.

[Pierlu]

Good... spark plugs, spark leads, rail and other parts are very important to gain an advantage in terms of power. You’ve done a good upgrade, some people remaps only and leave the other parts stock and this isn’t a good thing

[Jay-Jay]

Thank you!
Yes, it's very important to take care of the ignition system on this engine, as it really affects performances (especially the torque) and consumptions.

[Jay-Jay]

The new spark leads arrived yesterday.

They are made by MrRetroLeads (UK), which is a little company run by a guy (Anthony) who personally hand-makes the wires per order.
I phoned him twice and he has been very kind to me, explaining all the tech stuff behind the making of high performances spark leads.

Yesterday, as soon as the lead set arrived to me, I measured the resistance with a multimeter. It is ~0,6kOhm for all 4 wires, which is an incredibile value.
Later, I installed them and, as soon as I started the engine, I immediately felt a difference in how it sounded. Smoother, quieter and without even the most little vibration at idle.
Then I took the car for a test-drive and I've been surprised of the increase in throttle response and in torque all over the entire revs.
But "not everything that shines is gold"!
While I was driving I casually looked at the instrument cluster and noticed that the oil temp. indication was intermittent.
I connected VCDS and checked the oil temp. sensor values: when the indication on the cluster disappears, the sensor feels like the oil is at -58°C.
Initally I suspected the sensor was faulty. But it all started as soon as I installed the new spark leads...

So I reinstalled the old ones as a little try. The problem immediately disappeared!
I did this exchange of spark wires three times and the problem came back only with the MrRetroLeads spark wires.
After these tests, I have to sadly say NrRetroLeads spark wires cause some weird problems with EMI, which makes the oil temp. sensor go crazy.

I am going to call Anthony to see what he can suggest to fix the problem.
If you have any tip, it would be really appreciated.

[benzinkopf]

wow. that one interesting : correlation between the ignition cable and the oil temp sensor. [emoji1360]. so its safe to say, the cables that we use, really has big impact on the total engine performance?


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[Jay-Jay]

Sure! The entire ignition system (spark plugs, spark wires and ignition coil) is essential for the performances of this engine.
The original spark wires (made by Bremi) are not so good, because they have a resistance of ~8-9kOhm. They don't allow the engine to express its full potential.
The NGK spark wires have a resistance of ~4-5kOhm and already have a good impact on throttle response and torque.

It's really a pity these MrRetroLeads spark wires cause this weird interference problem to the oil temp. sensor, because the engine runs amazingly with them.
I really want to find a solution.

[benzinkopf]

oh ok. so u re saying the original sparkplugs from VW box aint good like the NGK model? no wonder the NGK price is higher than the original box!


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[Jay-Jay]

Yes, from my experience I can say the original spark wires (by Bremi) are not as good as the NGK aftermarket spark wires.
Three weeks ago, my mum bought a new set of Bremi spark wires for her Audi A1 1.2TFSI engine (the same as mine) and I wanted to try again those wires on my engine just for curiosity.
As soon as I installed them on my car, I immediately felt a noticable loss of torque and power, especially at low revs.
Then, I quickly reinstalled the NGK wires and the torque immediately came back.

In my opinion, this is the ultimate prove that the original spark wires are not so special and negatively affect performances.
Maybe this loss of torque/power is more noticable on modified engine (like mine), who knows.

[benzinkopf]

Yes. perhaps because your engine is modified that’s why you can notice the difference. but it still a fact that there’s a difference! and good to know that coz mine is also CBZB.

btw, in your experiences, how long do this spark wires / ignition cable last? I’m using the NGK model too now, but seems like i always got a bad wires after 80-90k km. is this normal or there’s something else im missing within the whole ignition components?


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[Jay-Jay]

Replacing spark wires every 80-90k km is normal, because the heat and the high tension wear those wires.
If you want to keep performances efficient as much as possible, it would be even better to replace the spark wires every 50k km.

Spark wires in good conditions not only allow the engine to run better, but also make the ignition coil work better and last more.

[Jay-Jay]

Yesterday I phoned Anthony (MrRetroLeads) and I explained him my weird problem with his spark wires.
He sincerely told me he doesn't know what could be the cause of the problem, but he ensured me that he used high quality wires (which have many ISO omolgations for EMI and RFI suppression), so there must be a specific problem with my oil temp. sensor being particurarly sensitive to these high performances spark wires.
During the call he told me that he sold many spark lead sets to many customers, who have other cars with my same engine, and none of them reported any issue.
This sentence made me notice a very relevant detail.

The 1.2TSI EA111 CBZ* engine is mounted on a large variety of models of the VW Group.
Considering only the VW Polo 6R and the sisters (Audi A1, Skoda Fabia and Seat Ibiza of the same generation of the Polo 6R) with my same engine, they all have a thing in common: their instrument cluster doesn't show the oil temperature! (except for those few Skoda Fabia with the MaxiDot optional).
In my case, I replaced the instrument cluster with the MFA+ one (from the 6R GTI), so it's an exception that I can read the oil temperature from the cluster!
With this consideration, I could come to the conclusion that, maybe, all of the MrRetroLeads's customers with my same engine could have my same problem, but they have never been able to notice it!

To confirm this suspect, In the next days (maybe even today if I find some free time) I will test these spark wires on other cars.
My mum has an Audi A1 with my same engine. It will be the first "guinea pig". [emoji38] Then, few friends's cars will follow.

Let's see if it's my sensor which is going to die and has become more sensitive to EMI. Or if, instead, it's a problem of these spark wires which ar not shielded enough.