Hey mate. So Stage2 and Stage2+ are essentially the same except the + usually means intercooler on top which given the amount of cash required to get to Stage2 alone, the few hundred quid extra to get the intercooler on for all the extra power and torque is worth it. Most people recommend going straight from stock to Stage2+ which is what I did, currently running at 380bhp and 421 lb/ft torque with DSG.
Stage2 Minimum Spec:
- Intake/induction kit, preferably cold air induction.
- TBE exhaust or downpipe at minimum, sport or race cat recommended (or decat, needs map)
- High Pressure Fuel Pump (or Auto-Tech internals) with 136bar RSV Fuel Pressure Return Valve
- Miller's Nanodrive 5w40 NT+ Oil
- 97-99 RON Fuel - Shell vPower, BP Ultimate or Tesco Momentum. 99 is recommended.
Optional but recommended extra include:
- Stage2 Airtec/Wagner Front Mounted Intercooler (optional, but is the main difference between Stage2 (upto 340bhp) and Stage2+ (upto 380/90 bhp and alot more torque)
- Iridium NGK BKR7EIX Spark Plugs
- Injector Service and Walnut Blast / Decoke
- Clutch/DMF upgrade if manual or DSG Remap
- Brakes, Suspension upgrades
- Runner Flap Delete mod - Needs to be mapped in to avoid issues with cold start but improves throttle response significantly and eliminates the risk of it failing and killing your engine.
- New coilpacks. Old ones will often fail quickly once remapped to Stage2 or higher and you can get nice red R8 ones if that takes your fancy.
On top of this I've also got:
Bar-Tek Turbo Inlet Pipe
Bar-Tek Turbo Outlet Pipe
Bar-Tek Turbo Muffler delete.
These don't add more power but do massively improve the turbo spool up and down, throttle response and let off some excellent turbo flutter.
Obviously before you get any of the above done you should ensure:
- all items on the preventative maintenance thread is done, especially the engine timing belt and water pump, DSG service, oil pickup pipe and the dipstick and PCV if needed.
- make sure you've got no vacuum/boost leaks or error codes.
- thorough service especially new oil and fuel filters and a clean sump (especially if you've not replaced the dipstick as it'll likely have little pieces of plastic in it and you don't want one of them blocking your oil pickup pipe).
For mapping you want R-Tech in Nuneaton just outside Birmingham. They are #1 in the country for mapping these cars and people go there from far and wide for a reason. Well worth the trip.
They have alot of info on their tuning and remaps here:
r-techperformance.co.uk
Their website does appear to be down at the moment though but check back later.