"The Difference Between The DTUK Green And CRD2 On A 1.9CDTI"

10th Nov 08 Taken from Astra Owners Network “” My visit to DTUK (Whats the difference between the DTUK Green and DTUK CRD2) ——————————————————————————– After firing a few pm’s at Andy (Abyss), the gaffer at DTUK, I decided to pay him a visit and find out first hand what all the fuss is about with regards to the tuning boxes he offers. First things first, you couldn’t hope to find a nicer, more open, honest and helpful bloke. Every question I asked was answered in plain english with plenty of proof to back it up. I made it quite clear on arrival that I wasn’t looking to purchase until sorting things out with my insurance company, but rather than see me as some kind of timewaster Andy still extended every courtesy. I had made my decision as to which set-up I was most interested in but allowed Andy to talk me through the pro’s and con’s of each system (con’s bit didn’t take long as from what I can see there aren’t any!) and then he suggested I try it out for myself. Trying it out wasn’t a case of a passenger ride in a demonstrator driven, probably with other undisclaimed mods, by someone who knows how to get the best out of the box. It consisted of Andy fitting the system to my own car (approx. 3 minutes flat!) and sending me off on my own with a standard green box fitted AND another tweaked green box (i’ll let Andy tell you what they were set too so I don’t get it wrong) plus instructions on how to change them over. After I got back he asked me how it was and then gave me a tweaked (again i’ll let Andy confirm the figures) red crd2 and sent me off on my merry way again! I must make it quite clear at this point that it was a totally blind test. Andy wanted me to find it out for myself, he didn’t tell me in advance how the three different boxes would act, potentially clouding my judgement, he just left to see how my car would react. When I got back I described the power curves and then he showed me the actual maps on his PC and they corresponded perfectly with the behaviour I had described! Now to the actual bits of kit. The boxes themselves are compact, robust and look very well made. The looms look like Vauxhall original equipment and as said fitting was a doddle. Tested on my otherwise standard cdti 150 sri sporthatch Straight out of the box greenimpressive turn of power and useful extra torque, difference is immediate. Tweeked green boxsame as above but more so, very linear power delivery, hard-hitting, induced gobs of torque-steer nailing it out of a junction in 2nd. Reminded me of a twin-cam petrol, could feel the power coming in waves as if coming ‘on-cam’. Bit of a Jeremy Clarkson ‘pppppppppoooooooooooooowwwwww wwwwwwwweeeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrr rrr!!!!!!!!’ feeling. Tweeked CRD2 boxall the power and torque of the tweeked green but felt much smoother and more controlled in its delivery. Torque appeared to last longer in the range. worth the extra pennies in my opinion. On the CRD2 i did a direct comparison with stock holding, speed in certain gears. In each instance the red was delivering the speed with approx 4-500 less revs, holding up the claims of improved fuel efficiency according to driving style. In closing (thank god he’s shutting up everyone shouts!) any doubts you have can be easily dispelled by a visit to Andy and experiencing what these boxes can do. If you are too far away then just take my word for it and buy one anyway (join AON for a handy discount). For an exceptionally busy guy (a phone at each ear the whole time I was there) Andy couldn’t be more helpful unless he gave you the kit for free then chauffered you home! Buy one you wont regret it. Thanks for working your way through war and peace! p.s. just thought of two cons, 1 I haven’t got one yet and 2 I’m gonna end up on first name terms with the local traffic cops! Oh and just to make it perfectly clear I have never met Andy until today and have absolutely no vested interests in DTUK.