Good to see another C30 in Brisbane! I have a 2007 R Design myself. I picked up the tune when Volvo had it on sale for $1100
I looked into other options - mainly Elevate and Shark tune which are pretty well respected in the C30-mod scene. (as an aside, you should check out the c30 crew forum, as it has HEAPS of great advice/pics etc
http://www.c30crew.com/forum/forum.php
The benefit with these tunes is that if you are planning modifications to the car, you can buy different 'stage'/custom tunes at a reasonable price. Polestar is basically a 'stage 1' tune, and you can't tweak it more.
So if you run 98 fuel exclusively, or want to remove the top speed limiter, or install a new Intercooler/k16 turbo/downpipe etc, then the sky is the limit.
Elevate tunes are around $900 us for the hand-tuner and basic tune. I think custom tunes are around the $200-250 us mark. Shark is pretty comparable.
You can pick up second-hand elevate hand-held tuner units for around $200-250 plus postage (but be careful, since they can have a max of 3 VIN's installed, so make sure you're not buying a dud) - then a tune will cost you around $450-500 from memory.
I wasn't really interested in milking as much speed as possible from my car, so didn't see the need for a 'multi-stage' tune option. With the aussie dollar the was it is, the cost of the Polestar on sale was pretty close (or even cheaper) than buying a shark or elevate tune
Was it worth it? Yes, absolutely - it's almost like a different car.
