[mvallido]

Just saw it today. Sorry for the repost. Just got excited a little bit.
http://www.dinancars.com/product/d44...ries&mid=1183/

[Turbo_435i]

Damn man !!!!!

$2300 for a tune.??

Your gonna have to convince me that the JB4 at $500 vs Dinan $2300, is worth it somehow.

First question would be....

1. Does the JB4 operate similar or the same as Dinan unit, as far as power and reliability. I would think so, because the JB units have been around for awhile.

2. Does the JB4 cause more "wear & tear" on the engine compoments, over the dinan unit ? Turbo, engine internals

3. If the JB4 does cause more wear & tear vs dinan, does it make a differnce if the owner of the car only keeps car for maximum of 2-3 years, and sells it.
No point spending $2300 on dinan if only benefit is long term engine reliability.?

4. Does either the JB4 or the Dinan unit cause hesitstion or engine knock, misfire, due to uneven mixture/chemistry of combustion ?

5. If the added cost for Dinan +$1700, is just for warranty purposes, im not sure it would be worth it.??

I need "real world" experiences from both JB4 & Dinan, before I can make a decision on which unit to buy.


I am NO WAY bashing either the JB4 or DINAN unit, i am keeping an open mind until someone can win my vote over on which direction to take.

And lets keep it apples to apples.

JB4 stage 1 vs Dinan stage 1
JB4 stage 2 vs Dinan stage 2

[verbs]

Originally Posted by schybrid

Damn man !!!!!

$2300 for a tune.??

Your gonna have to convince me that the JB4 at $500 vs Dinan $2300, is worth it somehow.

First question would be....

1. Does the JB4 operate similar or the same as Dinan unit, as far as power and reliability. I would think so, because the JB units have been around for awhile.

2. Does the JB4 cause more "wear & tear" on the engine compoments, over the dinan unit ? Turbo, engine internals

3. If the JB4 does cause more wear & tear vs dinan, does it make a differnce if the owner of the car only keeps car for maximum of 2-3 years, and sells it.
No point spending $2300 on dinan if only benefit is long term engine reliability.?

4. Does either the JB4 or the Dinan unit cause hesitstion or engine knock, misfire, due to uneven mixture/chemistry of combustion ?

5. If the added cost for Dinan +$1700, is just for warranty purposes, im not sure it would be worth it.??

I need "real world" experiences from both JB4 & Dinan, before I can make a decision on which unit to buy.


I am NO WAY bashing either the JB4 or DINAN unit, i am keeping an open mind until someone can win my vote over on which direction to take.

And lets keep it apples to apples.

JB4 stage 1 vs Dinan stage 1
JB4 stage 2 vs Dinan stage 2

Uninstalling and reinstalling the JB4 before taking it to the dealership is also a bit of an annoyance. Everyone puts a different value on that as well. I would have put very little value in that 10 years ago but as I've gotten older (with far less free time) that's become more valuable to me.

JB4s have also been known to be a bit herky jerky from others' posts. Don't recall seeing that complaint with Dinan.

That said, the JB4 has more programming capabilities.

I've owned both Dinan and BMS tuned cars in my day. If the Dinan was $1000 I'd probably go with it over the BMS at this stage in my life. I don't think I would have said that 10 years ago.

[Turbo_435i]

Originally Posted by verbs

Uninstalling and reinstalling the JB4 before taking it to the dealership is also a bit of an annoyance. Everyone puts a different value on that as well. I would have put very little value in that 10 years ago but as I've gotten older (with far less free time) that's become more valuable to me.

JB4s have also been known to be a bit herky jerky from others' posts. Don't recall seeing that complaint with Dinan.

That said, the JB4 has more programming capabilities.

I've owned both Dinan and BMS tuned cars in my day. If the Dinan was $1000 I'd probably go with it over the BMS at this stage in my life. I don't think I would have said that 10 years ago.

I actually am in the exact same boat as you right now, im older, and can deal with the initial install, but dint want the headaches of installing / removing / hiding from dealer etx......

And also in same boat as in..... If the Dinan was $1000, I'd be all over it vs the JB4, even if power was slighly lower.

Maybe Dinan can rethink pricing and make alot more sales in long run....

[mmmmm235i]

So I think the gains from the stage 2 being so substantially greater than 1, makes it very appealing for only $250 more for those with stage 1. Unfortunately at 2k the stage 1 module was extremely disappointing. If you can find someone looking to get out of the 235 and wants to sell the box for a discount even better. At nearly 380hp and 455 tq., however, I think paying an extra 1500 dollars when blowing the engine is likely the worst case scenario is money well spent. Sometimes you have to mod on a budget, but when you are talking about that much added stress on the engine (+60whp, +125ft/lb)it is better safe than sorry. In addition there will be nothing that will compare in terms of seamless integration and drivability. In terms of long term durability/reliability I think adequate cooling is most important and one would be better suited to upgrade all of the cooling components and worry less about which tune you run. If you are covered in that area you significantly reduce the potential for problems down the road.


By the way I will have stage 2 installed on the car next week and let you know how it runs. I was running the AFE stage 1 tune previously.

[Turbo_435i]

Originally Posted by mmmmm235i

So I think the gains from the stage 2 being so substantially greater than 1, makes it very appealing for only $250 more for those with stage 1. Unfortunately at 2k the stage 1 module was extremely disappointing. If you can find someone looking to get out of the 235 and wants to sell the box for a discount even better. At nearly 380hp and 455 tq., however, I think paying an extra 1500 dollars when blowing the engine is likely the worst case scenario is money well spent. Sometimes you have to mod on a budget, but when you are talking about that much added stress on the engine (+60whp, +125ft/lb)it is better safe than sorry. In addition there will be nothing that will compare in terms of seamless integration and drivability. In terms of long term durability/reliability I think adequate cooling is most important and one would be better suited to upgrade all of the cooling components and worry less about which tune you run. If you are covered in that area you significantly reduce the potential for problems down the road.


By the way I will have stage 2 installed on the car next week and let you know how it runs. I was running the AFE stage 1 tune previously.

U mean stage 2 dinan ?

If so, please post some GOOD Videos of speedo, acceleration, outside drive bu vids etc.....

Wveryone here would appreciate that immensly.

Thanks in advance....

[kerm1t]

Originally Posted by verbs

Uninstalling and reinstalling the JB4 before taking it to the dealership is also a bit of an annoyance. Everyone puts a different value on that as well. I would have put very little value in that 10 years ago but as I've gotten older (with far less free time) that's become more valuable to me.

JB4s have also been known to be a bit herky jerky from others' posts. Don't recall seeing that complaint with Dinan.

That said, the JB4 has more programming capabilities.

I've owned both Dinan and BMS tuned cars in my day. If the Dinan was $1000 I'd probably go with it over the BMS at this stage in my life. I don't think I would have said that 10 years ago.

no matter how old i get, i can't imagine the difficulty of few connections becoming a problem at all...

[mmmmm235i]

Originally Posted by schybrid

U mean stage 2 dinan ?

If so, please post some GOOD Videos of speedo, acceleration, outside drive bu vids etc.....

Wveryone here would appreciate that immensly.

Thanks in advance....

Absolutely I am extremely busy for the next week, but will have some time to get to the dealer next monday. Can't wait to post up some clips.

[135iUSN]

opinion....

I have 09 135 and had stage 2 added about year 2010 and love it. I've had ZERO issues and it didn't void warranty.

I didn't pay the premium, as stated above, as I caught it when Dinan had a 20% off sale... so be patient as I've seen Dinan have the sale couple times a year. Still a stiff price compared to others, but I don't have to worry about anything to 'uninstall' when I took it to dealer for maintenance or warranty repairs.

good luck

[Luftwaffe1O1]

Originally Posted by schybrid

I actually am in the exact same boat as you right now, im older, and can deal with the initial install, but dint want the headaches of installing / removing / hiding from dealer etx......

And also in same boat as in..... If the Dinan was $1000, I'd be all over it vs the JB4, even if power was slighly lower.

Maybe Dinan can rethink pricing and make alot more sales in long run....

The thing is, and there is some confusion on this, Dinan matches the manufacturers original warranty. In most of the country, Dinan is not the greatest option, as not all BMW dealers are Dinan authorized dealers, and if something happens, and BMW disputes the warranty claim, you have to get it repaired at a Dinan authorized dealer.

Fortunately for us west coast people, most BMW dealers are also authorized dinan dealers, this means you don't ever have to worry about your original warranty (sort of). Basically, Dinan parts can still void your original manufacturer warranty, HOWEVER, Dinan matches it. Meaning if your engine goes boom, and BMW says we wont cover it, Dinan will. And since it is being repaired at the dealer anyways, you wont notice any difference on your end.

With the JB4 tune, if things go boom (not saying they will, but just in case they do), you might be out of luck. Now, I know people say the dealer can't read traces of the JB4 unit if all codes are cleared etc. BUT, BMW of NA can, and this has been demonstrated in the past, there are shadow codes that remain, and it does appear that BMW of NA can pretty much always see traces of a piggy back tune. Meaning if some catastrophic failure happens, and BMW decides to void your warranty with a JB tune, you are on your own.

For some this risk is low enough (and people have used the JB tunes for a long time) that it doesn't warranty the price difference. But you figure the 1800 difference is the insurance policy basically. If you are bothered enough by it, that you pay the extra bit to have some safety net in case things go awry.

Personally for me, the peace of mind is worth it, especially on a brand new car. If I had a used out of warranty car, I would obviously go for the JB tune.

[Dinan_Engineering]

Originally Posted by Luftwaffe1O1

The thing is, and there is some confusion on this, Dinan matches the manufacturers original warranty. In most of the country, Dinan is not the greatest option, as not all BMW dealers are Dinan authorized dealers, and if something happens, and BMW disputes the warranty claim, you have to get it repaired at a Dinan authorized dealer.

Correction to that statement. While it is a much simpler process and more streamlined if the warranty work is done at a Dinan dealer it is NOT required. If no Dinan dealer is reasonably close to the customer then we will work with the non-Dinan dealership and essentially be the cash cow to pay for the warranty work. Again, its a much smoother process if the dealer is a Dinan dealer since they know the processes BUT it is by no means a requirement to get warranty work done.

[Luftwaffe1O1]

Originally Posted by Dinan_Engineering

Correction to that statement. While it is a much simpler process and more streamlined if the warranty work is done at a Dinan dealer it is NOT required. If no Dinan dealer is reasonably close to the customer then we will work with the non-Dinan dealership and essentially be the cash cow to pay for the warranty work. Again, its a much smoother process if the dealer is a Dinan dealer since they know the processes BUT it is by no means a requirement to get warranty work done.

My apologies. I figured it had to be at a Dinan dealer, well that makes it even nicer. But not a big deal in San Diego for me anyways... I think pretty much every dealer here is a Dinan dealer, I know my dealership is!

[Turbo_435i]

I cant see plopping down over $2300 for any tune until i see an actual car performing with it. Is there not 1 clean video of a speedo shot & outside view, possibly drive beside or drive by of the Dinan tuned M235i??? Seems like nobody has it !?!??!!?

[JaF22MPower]

Originally Posted by schybrid

I cant see plopping down over $2300 for any tune until i see an actual car performing with it. Is there not 1 clean video of a speedo shot & outside view, possibly drive beside or drive by of the Dinan tuned M235i??? Seems like nobody has it !?!??!!?

I have a Dinan Stg 2 with downpipe, MPE, and Intake. I can tell you first hand that the car feels phenomenal this way. I am going to get the car dyno'd soon to see what it is making. In my opinion there is no compromise between reliability, power, and refinement.

[Turbo_435i]

Originally Posted by JaF22MPower

I have a Dinan Stg 2 with downpipe, MPE, and Intake. I can tell you first hand that the car feels phenomenal this way. I am going to get the car dyno'd soon to see what it is making. In my opinion there is no compromise between reliability, power, and refinement.

Can u post a couple of vids of it performing ?

[JaF22MPower]

Originally Posted by schybrid

Can u post a couple of vids of it performing ?

I'll see what I can do for ya!

[alz0rz]

Dyno's would be more beneficial, I think.. what can we really see from a video of a car being driven..?

[BLK235iNJ]

Does having the DP and MPE cause a problem for your Dinan warranty? What brands did you go with?

I've been holding back from doing any other mods because I was told that if I went other than Dinan it would void the warranty which would defeat the major reason why I went with Dinan in the first place

Originally Posted by JaF22MPower

I have a Dinan Stg 2 with downpipe, MPE, and Intake. I can tell you first hand that the car feels phenomenal this way. I am going to get the car dyno'd soon to see what it is making. In my opinion there is no compromise between reliability, power, and refinement.

[s1uma1]

Originally Posted by BLK235iNJ

Does having the DP and MPE cause a problem for your Dinan warranty? What brands did you go with?

I've been holding back from doing any other mods because I was told that if I went other than Dinan it would void the warranty which would defeat the major reason why I went with Dinan in the first place

wondering same thing... which downpipe? I'm assuming catted?

[verbs]

Originally Posted by Dinan_Engineering

Correction to that statement. While it is a much simpler process and more streamlined if the warranty work is done at a Dinan dealer it is NOT required. If no Dinan dealer is reasonably close to the customer then we will work with the non-Dinan dealership and essentially be the cash cow to pay for the warranty work. Again, its a much smoother process if the dealer is a Dinan dealer since they know the processes BUT it is by no means a requirement to get warranty work done.

My dealership just told me yesterday that's not always the case when I asked about having them install Dinan parts as they were a dealer through March....

"We were a Dinan dealership until recently. We had a number of issues with them standing behind their warranty and we have parted ways."

[alz0rz]

The problem is that, by all accounts, Dinan and BMW don't have that close of a relationship, if any at all. I believe it is just the dealerships independently setting up the relationship with Dinan.

Dinan is a 3rd party warranty company. When you install any aftermarket part your warranty by BMW is in jeopardy, in fact, if a failure is related to a Dinan part, BMW will NOT cover it, your factory warranty is voided at that point. Dinan steps in and covers it if they deem it is truly due to a fault of their part. I can see there being cases where the dealership will try to tell this 3rd party company they have to pay up because it was their part that caused the failure and the 3rd party company saying, prove it... and that is where this "issues with them standing behind their warranty" may come from.

tldr; when you install any aftermarket part your factory warranty is void if failure is due to aftermarket part. So you'd need a 3rd party company (in this case Dinan) to step in to cover out of warranty failures making sure they specifically say they will cover modifications that are not OEM... and that is where Dinan's coverage is special in that they are covering you when it fails due to their part which is NOT an OEM part... you won't find many 3rd party warranty that cover aftermarket mods.

[mmmmm235i]

Originally Posted by JaF22MPower

I have a Dinan Stg 2 with downpipe, MPE, and Intake. I can tell you first hand that the car feels phenomenal this way. I am going to get the car dyno'd soon to see what it is making. In my opinion there is no compromise between reliability, power, and refinement.

Great to hear. I'll have the same setup next week and I can't wait.