Hi guys , I am looking to run VF34, Perrin Rails STi Pink, Upgraded I/C,Blitz Air Filter, Turboback 3inch exhaust and Upgraded fuel pump.

I see a lot of guys run this setup with the Utec but has anyone used this setup with a Vishnu Reflash. If so how does the car feel and would this be a good choice versus a UTEC.

I have no idea how to tune a car and too many shops in Miami are charging big bucks to experiment tune the UTEC.

I would apreciate some feedback from anyone with a Vishnu setup or anyome who knows a good UTEC tuner in Miami/Fortlauderdale Area.

You can go with ANY Ecutek authorized dealer for a reflash. It does not have to be a "Vishnu re-flash." Go to www.ecutek.com for a list of authorized dealers. Many places do mail-oder tunes as well. They mail you an ECU with a map to your mods, and you mail back your ECU...

You can also go the route of a Cobb Access Port. It's a plug and play device with some pre made maps for your application. And for a little more money, Street tuner software to have a pro, tune the base maps further.

If you know nothing about tuning and don't plan on constantly tinkering arround with your tune then stay away from a UTEC. Go with a "flash-type" EM. EcuTek or Cobb AP... the drivability alone from flash-type EMs is way better then the UTEC's. The UTEC is old school piggyback technology. Sure there are a lot of people with them and sure there are a lot of people that swear by them and wouldn't use anything else, but why use it when the OEM ECU has reflash capabilities?

Most people today tend to like the UTEC more because of it's other features... like launch control and aux inputs.... that's about it. When it comes down to streight engine control, it doesn't do a better job then the OEM ECU does (if it's tuned right).


<- Waits quietly for ride5000 to show up and preach the UTEC bible. :lol:

For easy, plug and play, and ease of resale, go with an AP. No question about it. UTEC has some better abilities, but you may not want. Also consider the openecu stuff if you are willing to play with. Don't bother with ECUtek as they have made it impossible to remove. see sticky thread for info.

^^x2 on the AP...anything else is a mistake. The AP with a protune has all of the abilities that ecutek does, and then you can also add multiple maps.

UTEC still has other features, but is outdated for the most part. Also, your better off going with a reflash rather than a piggy-back, for the sake of your engine.

Thanks for the information guys. I had the UTEC in mind but the tuning aspect was really discouraging me from purchasing it.

I have heard that the Cobb Acessport however is not that agressive in terms of tuning to acheive high numbers for Hp and torque . I would like to achieve 350hp with the Vf34, pinks and a good tune.

Is this a realistic expectation and if so can a Cobb AP provide such numbers.

Also anyone with a Vishnu Reflash in their car

It's vague to say that cobb is "not agressive". You don't have to run their maps. Buy the accessport for the convenience and features, then get a protune map made by a tuner or just buy street tuner and tune it the way you want it. Cobbs maps off the shelf are conservative so that they'll be safe on every car at every altitude.

There is nothing wrong with the utec, it is what I run on my sti. I don't play with it constantly or anything else. the most important question is _WHO_ is going to tune it? Talk to them, and see what _THEY_ use. If it is ecutek, find someone else. AP you are looking at st ($195 extra) or protune ($??? extra), to get a good map. DOn't think anyone has a shelf map for that combo. If you are going to do the tune, use either street tuner+ap or the openecu stuff, or, if you want launch control and easy map switching, utec. define your wants/needs/budget, and your choice will be made quickly.

I thought companies like Vishnu would offer a "Shelf" Map or rather reflash that could run the combo I plan on running and offer a fairly aggresive tune. That is why i was looking for anyone with this setup.

I am aware of a shop in my area that will load a Utec map (generic) that will run the combo i plan on running for $250 and then work from their by street tuning at a cost of $70/hr.

My hesitation is that these guys are experimenting when they street tune as they are not really certified tuners for the Utec.I suggested taking the car to a dyno and they said that is not necessary for tuning.Makes me wonder if they even know what they are doing, I always thought dyno tuning was the best way to go.$70/hr for street tuning seems like an Open Cheque.

I am looking for someone or a reflashed ECU that can provide fairly decent numbers and are as reliable as a modified car gets.

I was not aware of a Protune setup by Cobb but will do some research.Maybe i will go with AEM EMS as I know a shop that is certified and knows their stuff, problem is the $$$$ are high with this setup.

Thanks for your feedback, keep them coming if you have more.

I would like to achieve 350hp with the Vf34, pinks and a good tune.

Is the flywheel or wheel hp you're talking about. If you're looking for 350 to the ground with just a VF34 you're going to be disappointed regardless of what you use for EM.

Also everyone talking about power differences on the AP vs EcuTek is most of the time talking out of their ass. The reason for this is because Cobb's OTS maps for the AP suck ass. Get a good map and you'll make good power. Use Cobb's ***** maps and you'll make less power. If you're going to use OTS maps with your AP I suggest you buy one from PDXTuning as it comes with custom OTS maps which are better then Cobb's. Map for map, either should provide the same power levels, however this was never proven or disproven. In the end it's still the Subaru ECU that's making the power... all you're doing is changing the values in the map.

I thought companies like Vishnu would offer a "Shelf" Map or rather reflash that could run the combo I plan on running and offer a fairly aggresive tune. That is why i was looking for anyone with this setup.


For your mods, yes they probably have a map for you. "Aggresive," probably not. Shiv is very conservative in general when tuning. But a great tuner overall.


I am aware of a shop in my area that will load a Utec map (generic) that will run the combo i plan on running for $250 and then work from their by street tuning at a cost of $70/hr.

Umm you can load the map yourself. The maps are a free download from TurboXS. Why pay them $250 to load a map for you?


My hesitation is that these guys are experimenting when they street tune as they are not really certified tuners for the Utec.I suggested taking the car to a dyno and they said that is not necessary for tuning.Makes me wonder if they even know what they are doing, I always thought dyno tuning was the best way to go.$70/hr for street tuning seems like an Open Cheque.

I am looking for someone or a reflashed ECU that can provide fairly decent numbers and are as reliable as a modified car gets.


Certified or not, it's all the same tuning. All that needs to be done is to get familiar with the interace, and the software features.

And tuning in an ideal setting is both dyno tuning, and road tuning. But you can get 90% there with either method.


I was not aware of a Protune setup by Cobb but will do some research.Maybe i will go with AEM EMS as I know a shop that is certified and knows their stuff, problem is the $$$$ are high with this setup.



A ProTune is nothing more then an authorized Cobb tuner that can make custom maps for an access port. Street tuner allows you to tune yourself, as well as handing your car over to them to tune as well.. Except you own the tuning software.

If you are considering AEM (or a standalone for that matter) for a daily driver, I'd suggest you do more research. You obviously haven't done much.

I just started the process of researching ECU upgrades. I am looking at 350hp flywheel not to the ground.I think that is more realistic

I wish someone with a Vishnu reflash could provide some feedback.

Thanks for letting me know about the free maps from turboxs. That is something to consider. I am bent to Vishnu because the Silver WRX they featured on Sport Compact Car magazine a few years back was BAD ASS.

The performance of that Vishnu WRX should keep me happy for a good while.

I just started the process of researching ECU upgrades. I am looking at 350hp flywheel not to the ground.I think that is more realistic

I wish someone with a Vishnu reflash could provide some feedback.

Thanks for letting me know about the free maps from turboxs. That is something to consider. I am bent to Vishnu because the Silver WRX they featured on Sport Compact Car magazine a few years back was BAD ASS.

The performance of that Vishnu WRX should keep me happy for a good while.


Sadly, Vishnu while supporting Subaru's I believe has not marketed heavily as of late. They also jumped on to the EVO bandwagon for a short while, forgetting about Subaru tuning it seemed as well, IMO.

There are much better (or perhaps at least preferred tuners) on this board. What you saw a few years back is nothing compared to what can be done now by a dozen top Subaru tuners, for less money.

/Former Vishnu Customer w/ custom tune from Shiv himself.

I wish someone with a Vishnu reflash could provide some feedback.

Well, while I don't have a Vishnu EcuTek tune I can tell you that certain things in their tuning philosophy caused me to stay away from them. With that said, I ended up picking Dynocomp as my tuner at the time. Do some research into both tuners and you'll see why I went with them. If you're just wanting to run an OTS map I highly recommend the ones from Dynocomp.

Thanks for letting me know about the free maps from turboxs.

Those maps are not perfect... they are intended to get you by until you can get to a tuner. Definatly not maps you'd want to drive on for a long time.