OFT Stage 1 Tune Review

[Mr.Impreza]

Hey everyone. Thought I'd post my little review regarding the OFT Stage 1 Tune since I have a lot of members often PM me asking how it is, the reliability and if it's worth it or not.

~~~~OFT Stage 1 Tune Review~~~~~

Why OFT
What attracted me to the OFT was that it was a similar product to the Cobb Access-port which I owned for my Wrx. I like the simplicity of the device and the easy to use nature of the car. No need to spend a lot of money and time in shops to get a perfect tune when you can just plug this device in your car and better ready to feel the difference in 5 minutes!
Also, the extras such as monitoring your car and being able to read codes is a huge bonus!

Quality
The quality of the tablet is okay. It does what it needs to so I won't fault it for being a bit on the cheap side.

The Pros & Cons

Pros:
1. Torque dip is improved!
It's not eliminated, but it get minimized. Out of excitement, for the first few days it felt like it was all gone, but once i got used to the stage 1 tune I felt it again. However it not as noticeable as on the stock tune.

2. Car idles more smoothly.
I'm always at 700rpm now when stopped compared to when it was stock and would idly higher or fluctuate up and down depending on the mood of the engine on that day.

3. Power!!!
Well, technically it's like 10hp and you feel it during the first week, but after you get used to it, the car feels like it was always meant to be like this. So don't expect insane gains.

4. Increased TQ.
I feel this is felt more than the HP gains. You can feel the car has more torque now. Nothing crazy but it definitely improved the car.

5. Smoother throughout the rev range.
Car drives and picks up speed much smoother now. On the stock tune I felt like the engine was really working hard and still couldn't react smoothly. Now it feels much better.

6. Improved throttle response.
You'll notice it, much better and easier to drive actually

7. Features
The tablet has a lot of features you can play around with. You can monitor a lot of things on your car, create your own custom maps (I won't suggest it unless your a pro) and you can see what codes you have if something ever lights up on the dash without having to go to a shop and and paying them to find out the code and remove it.

8. Flash back to stock anytime!
Finally, a big pro to this tablet is that you can always go back to stock without any traces left that you tuned the car. This is great for anyone with a warranty still and would like to keep it valid.

Cons:
1. Price
I paid retail for mine. Bought it for $700.00Cdn and I'm happy with it and recommend it to everyone, but i believe it should of been something along the lines of $500.00Cdn. But these tablets are always expensive, even in my Subaru, the Cobb was also like $700.00Cdn.

2. Not 100% Gains
80-90% of gains compared to a custom tune. However i rather gain 80% than 100% from a tuner that I can't trust. Which leads to our next part of the review, reliability!

Reliability
For me, this stage 1 tune seems very reliable. It's not like your adding 100hp which will strain every component in the engine. This is just a tune to fine tune the stock ECU. Just smoothing things out and giving you that little bit of improvement that does make a difference and makes the car more enjoyable in a everyday driving experience.

I personally would be more worried with a custom tune which is not proven. Even if the shop is proven, every car is different and with a custom tune they try to achieve 100% gains so you could technically mess something up compared to something like this which is tune to be safe and not achieve max gains but achieve safe gains. (I'm not trying to talk bad about tuning shops. I know there are many good ones, even here in my area, but it's just my paranoid opinion)

A good example. On my Subaru, I increased the Turbo PSI to 14 compared to 10 or something stock. Yes i could of increased it to 18...but than I was running the risk of blowing the turbo.

What I'm trying to explain with that Subaru example is that the OFT runs safe gains. Yes you can achieve more improvements going a different route, but if you want safe gains and a reliable setup than this is a great choice!

Final Thoughts
This is probably the best mod you can make on your car that is easy to use and does provide a driving improvement. I hope this review helps some of you.

Thanks!

[Teseo]

Hope you can get a nice uel header, you will love it more

[shellslinger]

Originally Posted by Teseo

Hope you can get a nice uel header, you will love it more

Plus one I like rolling around town cruising at low rpms just to hear that rumble

[Lantana frs]

Decent header is next up for me. Currently on 93 octane power block tune. Probably go ofh.

[Lantana frs]

I flashed back to stock once to see if my ass was fooling me. It wasn't. Even after 100 miles the car felt weak and soggy.

[randomthoughts]

If you like stage 1 wait until you get a header and load stage!

[Guru Woodman]

Thanks for sharing. When my car was in for service a while ago and André offered me a good deal on headers and a tablet. I declined but it has been in the back of my head ever since.
It is now time for service again and I am sure I will be tempted again. It is an OpenFlash Header V1 which I believe is discontinued and a OpenFlash tablet. Your review wil help making a decision.

[gskv]

I got a 2017 here as well...with OFH

Patiently waiting for openflash to get back to me...but sometimes their phone doesn't appear to ring? :S

[Shiv@Openflash]

Originally Posted by gskv

I got a 2017 here as well...with OFH

Patiently waiting for openflash to get back to me...but sometimes their phone doesn't appear to ring? :S

We should have 2017 tune ready to go early this week. Just go the definition files a couple of days ago. You should be receiving an email soon

[phrosty]

Originally Posted by Shiv@Openflash

We should have 2017 tune ready to go early this week. Just go the definition files a couple of days ago. You should be receiving an email soon

Wow, that was quick. VVT maps change much given the new intake/exhaust manifolds?

[steve99]

Originally Posted by phrosty

Wow, that was quick. VVT maps change much given the new intake/exhaust manifolds?

Their is a bunch of changes


PI/DI ratio changes
Fuel and timing maps
(now has two fuel and timing maps not sure on activation/switch between the two sets of maps)
Intake/exhaust cam timing changes (manuals get new header design and new intake)


Im looking at a Japanese manual map though


autos look same

[Guru Woodman]

Well, thanks to you @Mr.Impreza, I bit the bullet today and purchased a OFT and flashed Stage 1.
I have to agree with everything you say in your review. Thank you.

I am actually surprised how different the car feels compared to stock. I love it. I wasn't sure if the difference was in my head, but my wife agrees that the car is transformed.

I guess next on the list will be a UEL. The OFT is like opening Pandora's box.

[ap5512]

I agree with going back to the stock map. I did it for the emissions inspection and couldn't believe how different it felt compared to the stage 2 UEL OFH. I'm still waiting for a free weekend to put the header back on and tune it back to stage 2.

[Lorico]

mr impreza, can i ask why you didn't buy the OFT_OFH combo? seems pretty cheap about 1200 canadian