Supporting the map
Intake air, fuel, clutch as a torque limit, turbo, DPF and EGR as engine systems. If it is not in the bay or on the flywheel, it is not on this list.
$180–$320
A remap on dirty oil and a tired fuel filter is how you score a high-pressure pump. Do this before the laptop comes out.
Fit · Every car, every stage. 5W-30 or the spec on the cap, quality filter, drain the fuel-filter water trap.
Skip · Never skip. If the service lights or the oil is black treacle, stop.
$80–$280
Stage 1 does not need it. Stage 2 uses it so the turbo is not pulling through a clogged box.
Fit · Keep the factory airbox — it is quiet and cool. A cotton panel is enough. A cone in the hot bay often loses you intake temp.
Skip · Stage 1. Open cones that ingest engine-bay heat.
$450–$900
The stock core heat-soaks. Colder charge air is the whole point of a road Stage 2 — more torque without more smoke.
Fit · Front-mount or a thick drop-in that actually flows. Straighten the boost routing and pressure-test it.
Skip · Stage 1. A cheap thin core that pressure-drops more than it cools.
$180–$380
The extra torque is wasted if a factory hose blows off at 2,400 rpm. Leaks also dump unmetered air and soot the DPF.
Fit · Silicone with proper joins. Smoke-test after the install.
Skip · Stage 1 unless a pipe is already swollen or oily.
$650–$1,400
Flow after the filter, a cleaner sound. It is not a downpipe delete.
Fit · Leave the DPF in the bay. Cat/DPF-back 63 mm is plenty on this engine.
Skip · Anything that guts or removes the DPF on a registered car.
$1,800–$3,200
The stock turbo is done making useful air around 190 PS. A hybrid is the Stage 3 gate.
Fit · A unit built for this VGT, with a mapped actuator. Dyno the file — do not copy a Stage 1.
Skip · Stage 1 and 2. A cheap hybrid with no map to match.
$800–$1,600
Stage 1/2 stay inside stock injector capacity if they are healthy. Stage 3 fueling needs flow and balance.
Fit · Send them for coding/balance, or fit a known set. Coding into the ECU matters on SID units.
Skip · Fresh Stage 1 on a car that starts clean and does not rattle.
$1,200–$2,200
The engine will take Stage 1. The DMF often will not, especially past 180,000 km. This is the real Stage 1 insurance policy.
Fit · Slip test in 4th at 2,500 rpm before you book the map. Budget a kit if it shudders on idle or take-up.
Skip · Ignoring a rumble and then blaming the tuner.
$220–$480
Coked EGR hangs open, idles like a tractor and throws maps off. A clean valve is part of a road file. A delete is not.
Fit · Remove, clean or replace, check the cooler. Road maps keep the strategy on.
Skip · Blanking plates on a registered car.
$350–$900
A blocked filter will choke any remap. Forced regen or a proper clean first. Ash-loaded filters do not recover with additives.
Fit · Diagnose differential pressure, oil dilution, and regen history. Map with the DPF in.
Skip · Gutting or deleting it for road use — illegal in Australia, and it is not an engine-tuning step we will walk through.