how does a remapped Gti fair against standard edition30?

[AlanD]

I much preferred my remapped GTi to my standard ED30.It had a far smoother power delivery but then again, neither could match the fun factor of my E30 325i Sport..

GTI and an E30 325? Evidently someone with good taste in cars  Mine is very good at making circles in this weather 

The 325 sport was no match for the ED30 I've had both and the golf is a far better and faster car

Yeah, but everyone just seems to love off the E30. They are great cars but I just cant get my head around the 80s looks 

[Incitatus]

I much preferred my remapped GTi to my standard ED30.It had a far smoother power delivery but then again, neither could match the fun factor of my E30 325i Sport..

GTI and an E30 325? Evidently someone with good taste in cars  Mine is very good at making circles in this weather 

The 325 sport was no match for the ED30 I've had both and the golf is a far better and faster car

Yeah, but everyone just seems to love off the E30. They are great cars but I just cant get my head around the 80s looks 

You'd be suprised how many people say that they are the last of the proper shape BMWs.

The Golf is far better in all respects, of course 20+ years separate them. But the E30 is a different kind of experince, with the straight six howl and the power going to the correct end, I must admit it's the one I take when I just want a blast around the place. The GTI seems too capable in comparison, and as a result just a little sterile. 

[ifti]

Slightly off topic - but does a remap shorten the life of the car, since its stressing the car a little more? I mean, are components more likely to fail etc??

[AlanD]

In theory yes.

[topher]

Absolutely yes, but not to the point that you should be concerned. In the original design, of any engine, a compromise of performance/longevity has to be made. A remap will lean the compromise more to the performance side of things. Extra strain on the drivetrain puts more stress on the clutch in particular - but that is considered a servicable item anyway and isn't expected to last the life of the car.
To put some real numbers to the matter for you, my last car was standard until 60k miles. It was then remapped and modified in other ways to increase the power to about 70bhp above standard. The clutch -just- started slipping under heavy load in high gears a week or two before I sold it with 130k miles on the clock. I had no other engine issues (not related to the remap anyway) for those 70k miles of driving pleasure.

[stealthwolf]

You'd be suprised how many people say that they are the last of the proper shape BMWs.

I completely agree. It's from an era where you could tell the make of a car from it's shape. Everything has become so much more generic these days, partly because of H&S.

[RedRobin]

....

My previous car was a straight-six 1989 Beemer, 2-door, tiny back seat and tiny boot, but an awesome exhaust sound and didn't need modding. Fond memories and was sold privately to an enthusiast.

Standard Ed30 vs remapped GTI? - There's no doubt that the K04 turbo delivers more strongly at higher revs/speeds but although I much prefer the colour coded bodywork I love the Monza design and I'm not keen on the fussy red stitching. Having said that, I'd probably have bought the Ed30 if it had been available when my GTI was, but then I would say the same about the Mk5 R32 - I'd have gone for that V6 zorst music!

Bottom line is that they are all excellent variants of an excellent car. IMO

[Vtec Abuser]

how does a remapped Gti fair against standard edition30?

Well according to Santa Pod's timing gear, very similar (only 1/10th sec in it). Although the Ed30 was DSG, but the GTI had other mods over remap (ie Exhaust, FMIC, Intake etc).
In accelaration terms I would say the mapped GTI would take a small lead upto just under triple figures, then after that the KO4 would bring the ED30 back in play and turn the tables around (but again by a small margain).

[Komenda]

You'd be suprised how many people say that they are the last of the proper shape BMWs.

I completely agree. It's from an era where you could tell the make of a car from it's shape. Everything has become so much more generic these days, partly because of H&S.

An E30 M3 will feature in my life pretty soon. I'll probably have one more year out of the Mk5 and then either start another restoration project with a Mk2 G60 or get a sorted E30 M3. The M3 will fulfill a boyhood dream watching Johnny Cecotto race these things so I'm leaning towards that.

[Micky 32]

how does a remapped Gti fair against standard edition30?

In accelaration terms I would say the mapped GTI would take a small lead upto just under triple figures, then after that the KO4 would bring the ED30 back in play and turn the tables around (but again by a small margain).

I'm not so sure about that. The ko3 is capable of up to 280 bhp and holds quite well to the redline. So a normal remapped ko3 has lots more potential left in the turbo. It's turbo isn't maxed out so why would a normal remapped one run out of steam so easily?. My car is running 288bhp and still running over 270bhp at the redline. If you look at some of the JKM graphs showing standard ED30 bhp and normal GTI remapped bhp they hold to the redline just as good.