Whether you want to improve efficiency, maximise performance or ensure that your car is making the most out of replacement parts and modifications, engine remapping is a versatile, affordable approach to tuning a car to your specific needs.
Every car is different, each ECU is different, and thus each remapping will provide varying levels of improvements to your car, but unlike other forms of tuning and modification, it is also easy to fix and reset if you are unhappy with how the re-tuned car performs.
Some cars and some engines are more popular platforms for tuning than others, either because they have higher ceilings for improvement, can gain significant benefits without additional parts, or are available and affordable to buy and improve.
Here are some of the most popular tuning cars and why.
Nissan GT-R R35
There are a lot of JDM cars that became the defining icons of the tuning era, from the 1990s Toyota Supra to both the Subaru Impreza and Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution, but one of the most enduring cars for tuning has been the Nissan GT-R.
The reason for this is partly its heritage and more open tuning potential, but another part is that its combination of four-wheel drive, a drivetrain that can seemingly be endlessly tuned and the scope of what can be done with the ECU alone before any parts are added.
Any Mercedes M177-Engined Car
Fitted to a wide range of Mercedes S-Class, G-Class and Maybach cars, the M177 engine is one of the most remap-friendly engines on the market, with huge amounts of potential unlockable power that can come from some very simple tweaks.
Toyota GR Supra
The Toyota Supra is perhaps the single most popular tuning car of all time, and its return in 2019 with a BMW engine meant that it was remarkably simple to add significantly more power just by flashing the ECU.
It was also relatively affordable for tuner-friendly cars, and there is a lot of scope to pair ECU modifications with additional physical components.