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- San Antonio, Texas
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- '15 CX-5 Miata AWD
Tuning
- Thread starter Chris_Top_Her
- Start date
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- 23 CX-5 Premium
Of course; why would you think it was different? Same with the 6.
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- 23 CX-5 Premium
If it doesn't have a SkyActiv badge on the rear hatch (in witch case it would be the 2.0 ltr with 12:1 compression), it will either be the old 2.0 ltr or 2.5 ltr non-SkyActive engine.
No, in terms of the tuning maps, they would be vastly different because the Mazda 3 Skyactiv does not have the extended length tuned header.
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- 23 CX-5 Premium
He asked if: "The new Mazda3, has the same engines as us?" new as in 2014 Mike. Only the 2013 Mazda 3 had the non-tubular header and 12:1 compression ratio.
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Let me put it another way.
No, the engines are different enough in terms of desired mapping (due to different headers) that tuning for one engine is not appropriate for the other engine. This is true for the Mazda 3 whether it be the late models with or the early models without the new Skyactiv headers.
Personally, I think the amount of power and torque Mazda has squeezed out of both gas CX-5 engines (and the diesels for that matter) is incredible relative to their displacement and design rpm. Any gains to be had beyond that are either going to be so subtle as to not be worth it to me or will be somewhat more significant but lead to reduced engine or component life and thus not worth it for my purposes. Those who feel like they have the time and money to burn may see the risk/reward ratio for a few HP differently.
Mazda has achieved an awesome balance of torque/power to reliability, usability and economy of operation. The engines run like Swiss watches. Try to out tune Mazda's incredibly skilled, experienced and dedicated team experts of at your own risk.
I don't believe you can get 28hp with remapping in the CX-5. Gone are the days when Detroit detuned engines to meet pollution requirements. I see only two ways to go faster, if that is your objective. Easiest is lose weight, remove rear seats, tires, etc. Second is far more dangerous and that is a small shot of nitrous oxide. You can get away with it on high compression engines because the liquid NO2 cools the intake air. Down side is there are so many ways NO2 injection can go wrong and wreck your motor; running lean, intake backfire, etc. Once saw a mustang at the track have a intake backfire on NO2. His throttle body plate shot through his front fender. Saw another mustang at the track have the NO2 bottle in the trunk explode and it blew off a rear quarter panel. If you wanna go fast, just get a new Mustang GT with 435hp stock.
With a diesel engine you get more out of a remap:
http://www.br-performance.be/en-be/...azda/4716-cx-5/4717-2012/4718-2-2-skyactiv-d/
http://www.br-performance.be/en-be/...azda/4716-cx-5/4717-2012/4718-2-2-skyactiv-d/
That's because the diesel has a turbo with maximum boost pressure regulated by the ECU. Raise the maximum boost pressure, raise the power output. Go too far and the engine self-destructs. Except in this case it would be a misnomer to say it "self" destructed because it had help.
Mess with the factory tune and don't be surprised if the fuel consumption goes up un proportionally to the increase in power. I've seen this time and time again, always with the same results depending on how advanced the factory motor is. I believe Mazdas Skyactiv 4, as others above have said, is so highly tuned already that trying to improve on the factory tune will only lead to compromises like reduced fuel economy, higher emissions, or less reliability. The whole plight behind Mazdas Skyactiv engines is to have best in class economy with best in class power. These engines are tuned to have very usable lower rev torque, at least for their displacement class.
I agree that if you want to improve performance and you think pouring money into a 4 cylinder economy SUV is the vehicle to do it with than lighten the wheels, remove the spare, and put some performance tires on it. Spending thousands to get 20 hp and less low end torque makes no sense to me.
I hope someone could prove me wrong but I've spent my fair share of time on a dynamometer. I doubt any one person here has the resources to outsmart the Mazda engineers. I also doubt Mazda engineers left something out that's easy to improve upon too.
Good luck!
I agree that if you want to improve performance and you think pouring money into a 4 cylinder economy SUV is the vehicle to do it with than lighten the wheels, remove the spare, and put some performance tires on it. Spending thousands to get 20 hp and less low end torque makes no sense to me.
I hope someone could prove me wrong but I've spent my fair share of time on a dynamometer. I doubt any one person here has the resources to outsmart the Mazda engineers. I also doubt Mazda engineers left something out that's easy to improve upon too.
Good luck!
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- San Antonio, Texas
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- '15 CX-5 Miata AWD
It doesn't cost thousands to get a motor tune though, it actually costs as little a $50 if you have the equip. Most likely if you are trying to increase your engine output, you are not worried about fuel econ, and since these motors are tuned based on load, when you are cruising you aren't consuming more than usual. When you are wot, different story. Emissions? That's partly why tuning can change the performance towards a different preference.. Emission are why the diesel is not over here, by the time they make it meet emissions w/o a urea treatment, it has lost power. When I see diesel trucks of commercial, and private types belching smoke everywhere, I could care less bout a little bit more emissions from my gas engine lol, which is still better than half the pos cars I smell on the road everyday. It's not an issue of outsmarting a mazda engineer, it's an issue of changing fueling and vvt + all of the other variables a tuner understands (not me) without the constraints of the EPA and their precise emission measuring equipment.
Chances are, fuel economy was a strong selling point for a majority of CX-5 purchasers. But the question wasn't whether the CX-5 gas engines could be tuned for considerably more power without impacting fuel economy but whether there are any considerable power gains to be had at all by simply tuning. So far, no one has demonstrated anything significant and simple calculations involving volumetric efficiency will show that there couldn't be any substantial gains without raising the redline (which would likely compromise reliability unacceptably).
Contrary to what passes for "common wisdom" these days, the EPA has little to do with limiting the maximum performance of modern engines because modern engines use fuel injection and computer controlled ignitions and (in the case of the CX-5) even valve timing. In fact, EPA emissions standards have improved the power/displacement ratios over the last few decades by effectively requiring these computer controls and other technologies that optimize the combustion process.
To claim that substantial power gains can be realized by ignoring the emission standards and tuning for power (on CX-5 gas engines) ignores that emissions regulations actually require manufacturers to hold the fuel mixture much closer to stoichiometric than would be required for performance purposes. That's because very small changes in fuel mixture create very large changes in catalytic conversion efficiency of non-methane hydrocarbons and NOx. Optimum conversion of all pollutants in total occurs with a stoichiometric mixture. Deviations (either richer or leaner) of even 1% can cause the vehicle to fall out of compliance.
On the other hand, this slight deviation from stoichiometric has very little effect on power production. In fact, peak power is achieved slightly lean of stoichiometric but many performance tuners will tune slightly rich of stoichiometric because this helps the engine run cooler and has a minimal affect on power. EPA regulations force manufacturers to hold the mixture to a much tighter range.
I have been following some of the Mazda forums for a while now looking at the tuning potential for the 2.5L Skyactive engine.
I do not believe I can link a thread to another forum here, but over on a popular Mazda 6 forum, a member recently has had some success using OrangeVirus as a tuner (same tuner as Chris Top Her I believe). I am looking to dive into tuning my CX5 this summer, but as of right now I'm clueless. Chris - do you have any input on this / feedback re OrangeVirus?
Also, just found this on youtube and thought it was pretty cool to see the capability of this engine with E85 and tune...
I do not believe I can link a thread to another forum here, but over on a popular Mazda 6 forum, a member recently has had some success using OrangeVirus as a tuner (same tuner as Chris Top Her I believe). I am looking to dive into tuning my CX5 this summer, but as of right now I'm clueless. Chris - do you have any input on this / feedback re OrangeVirus?
Also, just found this on youtube and thought it was pretty cool to see the capability of this engine with E85 and tune...
Sigh...
More misleading hype designed to sell tuning software. This is idiotic. There is no way to "tune" a 2.5L CX-5 to go 260 km/h (161 mph), let alone more than that as the video shows. This is pure ignorance. Need I remind anyone that this is on a dyno which does not take into account the extreme amount of aerodynamic drag encountered at those speeds?
Are people really that gullible?
I will admit that I am very gullible. I now notice at the end of the video that it was on a dyno (peep)
I will state, however, that I am not looking to make crazy power with this vehicle. Just a slight bump (do not mind filling with 93 octane) in the higher RPM range, which would satisfy me completely. Otherwise, the car is amazing.
I am also very interested to see what Mazda does with the rumored MPS/Speed variants...
MikeM...
With respect, I have to disagree with you.
It is very possible to "tune" the car to reach 260kmh. Whether or not it physically can, I have no idea. But from a file/tune perspective, it's a simple job. Raising speed and RPM limiters within the file can done in a couple of minutes. I am looking at them now in a 2.0L file out of Europe.
The question should be, does the engine have enough headroom (RPM-wise) to reach 260kmh. No idea on this point.
You are very correct in mentioning the actual real world possibility the car would simply never be able to propel itself to that velocity.
With respect, I have to disagree with you.
It is very possible to "tune" the car to reach 260kmh. Whether or not it physically can, I have no idea. But from a file/tune perspective, it's a simple job. Raising speed and RPM limiters within the file can done in a couple of minutes. I am looking at them now in a 2.0L file out of Europe.
The question should be, does the engine have enough headroom (RPM-wise) to reach 260kmh. No idea on this point.
You are very correct in mentioning the actual real world possibility the car would simply never be able to propel itself to that velocity.
You know he meant "physically" go 260kmh, being picky just for the sake of it.
It's also not about RPM limits on the CX-5, I have had mine at top speed a few times, I live near unlimited sections of Autobahn, the RPM limiter is not reached, there is simply not enough power to overcome the drag. Was over 200kmh in 5th gear near 5000rpm, speed would reduce if put into 6th gear IIRC.
It's also not about RPM limits on the CX-5, I have had mine at top speed a few times, I live near unlimited sections of Autobahn, the RPM limiter is not reached, there is simply not enough power to overcome the drag. Was over 200kmh in 5th gear near 5000rpm, speed would reduce if put into 6th gear IIRC.
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- San Antonio, Texas
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- '15 CX-5 Miata AWD
The tuning is more for adjusting how the engine responds at certain engine loads, power delivery etc.. if more power is made I'll take it. I'm still getting tuned and already have -1sec 0-60 time vs stock tune.
