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Rav4 2.2 Auto Remap


satts67
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I have found a specialist tuning place that can remove the ECU and perform a remap. Is there any problems doing this on an Auto Rav4 2.2 D-CAT?

I do not trust the tuning boxes and would prefer a professional remap. Anyone done this? Thanks

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  • 3 weeks later...

Well Satts67 seems like no one has had a remap done on their Rav4 then? I am happy to note that your stage 1 remap courtesy of Pro remaps performance tuning went well and the torque and mpg has improved giving an overall 3-4 mpg increase. All done via the OBD2 port so no need to remove ECU to read the file. Feel free anyone to join the chat.😀

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Just to keep the conversation going with myself here is an update on the remap.

Car performs best overall in Normal mode. When eco mode is selected I get better mpg but runs pretty much as it did before the remap. Not tried sport mode yet.

For those not wishing to go for a remap the Lindop kits are still available from Lindop Toyota @ £375.

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Continuing the conversation with myself (feel free to join in!) I have noticed that the tick over rises to 1200rpm when the shifter is moved to 'park' and back to normal 800rpm when moved to 'drive'. I cant remember if it did this before the remap (or if it did I did not notice it) Can someone with a Gen4 2.2 Auto verify if this is normal please and why it would do this?

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For years the main reason that owners used tuning boxes was that Toyotas were difficult to successfully remap, unlike some other makes.

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Yes I am aware of that but I was asking about rpm when idling in park?

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I don't have the same version and mine is manual... but it has an 'idle up' button that causes the engine to increase the idle speed from approx 800 to 1200. Maybe you have the same button and it has been pressed?

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ah! this is great and is probably the case many thanks I shall look!

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  • 8 months later...

Hi, late to the party as I’m a new Rav4 owner but maybe someone still reads this thread - hope so.

Yes, mine which is a 4 gen Rav4 2.2 Dcat auto also revs up in neutral. More so on a cold day and before the engine is up to temp. 

I’m thinking of getting mine remapped and would find it very useful and much appreciated which some more info on the effects it has had over time. What I really miss with the Rav4 compared to many other diesels I’ve driven, and that is a lot of different brands and cars over many years, is the smooth and powerful driveability that diesels normally have. Especially I dislike the high normal idle speed (mine never goes lower than 900 rpm), the high reving before changing gears followed by the slow lockup which also uses about 300 rpm. It seems as the car is not optimally programmed to use the torque curve. And all together I believe these things contribute to rather poor mpg. 
I also own a Citroen C5 with a 204 hp 2.2 diesel and the same auto gearbox as the Rav4. That car behaves completely different and is so much smoother to drive and I really see no reason why the Rav4 with a remap couldn’t be made to behave in a similar manor. 
As I wrote I’ve driven many other modern diesels, often long stretches as I’ve been traveling a lot due to my job. Cars from Volvo (same gearbox as Rav4 on many of them), VW, Audi, Peugeot, Renault, Ford, Subaru. Both awd and fwd and I can’t remember a single one that behaves like the Rav4. 

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Bernhard, this is a very active forum so I'm sure you will get some information from people who have or still do own this model.  I've been a few forums over the years and this one is brilliant in comparison to some I could name.

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35 minutes ago, BernhardF said:

Hi, late to the party as I’m a new Rav4 owner but maybe someone still reads this thread - hope so.

Yes, mine which is a 4 gen Rav4 2.2 Dcat auto also revs up in neutral. More so on a cold day and before the engine is up to temp. 

I’m thinking of getting mine remapped and would find it very useful and much appreciated which some more info on the effects it has had over time. What I really miss with the Rav4 compared to many other diesels I’ve driven, and that is a lot of different brands and cars over many years, is the smooth and powerful driveability that diesels normally have. Especially I dislike the high normal idle speed (mine never goes lower than 900 rpm), the high reving before changing gears followed by the slow lockup which also uses about 300 rpm. It seems as the car is not optimally programmed to use the torque curve. And all together I believe these things contribute to rather poor mpg. 
I also own a Citroen C5 with a 204 hp 2.2 diesel and the same auto gearbox as the Rav4. That car behaves completely different and is so much smoother to drive and I really see no reason why the Rav4 with a remap couldn’t be made to behave in a similar manor. 
As I wrote I’ve driven many other modern diesels, often long stretches as I’ve been traveling a lot due to my job. Cars from Volvo (same gearbox as Rav4 on many of them), VW, Audi, Peugeot, Renault, Ford, Subaru. Both awd and fwd and I can’t remember a single one that behaves like the Rav4. 

I too had a 2013 4.4 D-CAT Auto - from new and up until last year. There was nothing at all 'wrong' with the engine, gearbox or the way they worked together - it was smooth, powerful and driveable just the way a diesel should be. So, before considering a remap you may want to sort out what is currently 'wrong' with your particular car that it doesn't behave the way Toyota intended ... 😉 

satts67 is still around, and it would be interesting to get an update on how his remap is progressing ... 🙂

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Hi Philip, sorry if I wasn’t clear about things but I’m pretty certain that there’s nothing wrong with my car. I like the car a lot and overall I’m happy with getting it. It’s just the way Toyota decided to take advantage of, or maybe don’t fully take advantage of, the turbo diesel power that I don’t particularly like. I’ve read lots of posts about the idle speed, the way it changes gears, slow lockup, low mpg etc and people generally describe this to be the way this car is designed to work. My question is really if a remap can improve the car and if so in a way that it could be at smart move to go down that route. Or is there a negative side with remapping which means it’s better left avoided. 

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Update on remap:

I had an economy remap done and it didn't hurt the engine at all although not much mpg gain. In fact strangely with the eco button pressed it confused things and mpg dropped slightly and didn't seem to drive as smoothly. When I enquired about this the tuner advised to drive in 'normal' mode. I currently get around 36mpg on a run. It is still quite revvy if I accelerate from a standstill at a roundabout etc. but it has always done this. The rev pickup in neutral is normal on a cold day in winter until the car is really warm. It doesn't do this in the summer. Overall I would say it was worth it but it depends what type of map you want. A power remap may smooth things out even more. Make sure your tuner has experience of mapping Denso ecu's. It wont harm the engine unless it is a poor map. Ask them who writes their software as a lot of tuners use generic maps that are tried and tested, these are the ones to go with not just a back street garage who tweaks the settings with a laptop. Lindop Toyota also do good tuning boxes I am told:

https://www.lindoptoyota.co.uk/

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Thanks satts67, I understand it as you’ve found that the remap have made the car smoother to drive but not really more economical. Great to hear that you’ve not noticed any negative side effects.

I’ve been thinking of using an experienced remapper who first reads different parameters of the specific vehicle (my Rav4 that is) and then writes a software which is said to be deigned specifically for my car. Not a generic software that is supposed to work for every car of a specific model. I’ve been advised against generic softwares as these may, or may not, work for an individual car. Any thoughts on that? 

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58 minutes ago, BernhardF said:

Thanks satts67, I understand it as you’ve found that the remap have made the car smoother to drive but not really more economical. Great to hear that you’ve not noticed any negative side effects.

I’ve been thinking of using an experienced remapper who first reads different parameters of the specific vehicle (my Rav4 that is) and then writes a software which is said to be deigned specifically for my car. Not a generic software that is supposed to work for every car of a specific model. I’ve been advised against generic softwares as these may, or may not, work for an individual car. Any thoughts on that? 

The only thing I would say is ask him if he is happy to work on  the ECU type for your car and if he is able to revert back to the original settings if you are not happy with the way it drives. This could be weeks or even months down the line with seasonal changes in weather. Well written coding should work for every car of a specific make and spec which was why I went with that as it was a proven map, but I am not experienced in this and can only tell you what I found when I looked into all this a year ago. Good luck, let us know how it goes!

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Thanks, I’ll keep you posted. And yes they offer reverting to original settings as well as a free trial time of two months. 

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  • 1 month later...

Just a quick update. Had the gearbox flushed and the transmission fluid changed the other day. My initial experience is that it shifts a little quicker and doesn’t rev quite as much. It also locks up a little quicker after shifting gear. Still not like I’m used to from other diesel cars with this gearbox but a step in the right direction. 
Having also had some other work done to the car and with the holidays coming up I have to save up for remapping the ECU. I’ll get back with further updates as things progress.

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  • 6 months later...

Been a long time coming but now I’ve finally got the car remapped. The difference is significant but not dramatic. It’s reacts more directly on the throttle and accelerates quicker. Overall it feels smother and nicer to drive. It still is quite revvy when accelerating but the gears do lockup a bit quicker than before. To early yet to say something about the mileage. With todays fuel prices I sure hope for at least som improved mileage.

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  • 8 months later...

Did you inform your insurance company that you have had the eco remapped? Insurance companies in UK are apt to take a hard line on remapped vehicles that they have not been informed about. The hard line being loss of insurance!

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5 hours ago, Iain_M said:

Did you inform your insurance company that you have had the eco remapped? Insurance companies in UK are apt to take a hard line on remapped vehicles that they have not been informed about. The hard line being loss of insurance!

Sometimes doesn't pay to be honest Iain 😃

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  • 8 months later...
On 2/20/2023 at 5:44 PM, Hybrid21 said:

Sometimes doesn't pay to be honest Iain 😃

I have a 2007 rav 4 with a lindop tuning box fitted by lindop at 1 year old, in all this time no one has ever noticed that it has a tuning box, either other toyota dealers i have used or my local garage who have serviced it the last 6yrs other than comments, that it seems faster than other Ravs, unfortunately Lindop (Kingo) doesn't sell / fit them anymore, I would honestly recommend them to anyone,  only one little thing that I have never seen mentioned, is that it alters your fuel consumption figures,, in that ,my car still averages 55/60 mpg according to the display, but in reality brim to brim, it is doing 40 too 45mpg

Cheers Stew

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