Hi all

I have just purchased a 2011 C30 T5 R Design

Great car, low Ks heaps of extras however no Polestar upgrade.

I have been quoted about $1600 for a chip update.

Is there a more cost effective way to upgrade the ECU than emptying my pocket this much on 1&0's

Thanks
Speak to Rob ( @discombobulate ), he has had the Polestar tune added to his '07 C30 T5 R design.
I believe he is quite happy with it.

Where are you located? Our local dealer does the polestar tune for our customers @ cost price which is around $850. Alternatively you could speak to Mark @ V.P Tuning he should have some other cheaper options for you
Hi Tim

Wow that's a big price difference, I'm located in Brisbane.
Talk to Mark , he can help.
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.
Thanks everyone for the detailed advice, much appreciated.

I'm not looking at extracting super high performance out of the car. It's a daily drive and weekender that will also be ferrying the family around so it needs to be usable, reliable and still fun. So will probably just be a chip and exhaust upgrade for me.

The performance figures on paper look good and Rob's experience suggests that the improvement is noticeable and worth it.

i have since had a quote for the polestar chip for $1200 installed which is becoming a bit more reasonable.

I have only had the car a week and am enjoying every minute in it so far. Been busy detailing and accessorising.

There do not seem to be many C30's in Brisbane and very few R Designs around. Been looking for 4-5 months so when this one came up I moved quickly and grabbed it.

I'll start a thread and post some photos when I get a chance to take some good ones.

GS
Its not a chip, its just a software flash

If its out of warranty I would go with Elevate or ARD long before Volvo unless you could get it sub $1000 from Volvo
I've just ordered a Simmons exhaust through Mark at VP tuning.

As a 2011, yours willbe a facelift model, right?

The guys on c30 crew did a series of exhaust recordings, including decibel readings and breakdown of turbo/down pipe/ catback so you can get an idea of what sort of sound you are looking for



KPAX and Milltek are probably my faves from the list, though pretty $$$
Here's a couple of initial photos as picked up.

Let me know how you get on with the exhaust.

Rob are you a member of SSVC ?





Looking great!

From the look of it, you have a sunroof

I'd advise you to test the drain plugs on your sunroof pretty regularly - have the roof open and you can see there are 4 holes. Test them by pouring water into each hole and having another person check if it's flowing freely - they should drain near each wheel.

the overflow sunroof drains into the footwells, and I've learned this from bitter experience :)

Yes I'm a SSVC member
Thanks for the tip on the sunroof drains.

Sunroof was not on my list but car came with it....cool and a nice addition.

Will test the drains on the weekend.

After more than a few years absent from car clubs I joined SSVC on the weekend. Hopefully catch up over the next couple of months.
5 months later
I don't mean to hijack the thread but I couldn't find too much on the forums about Polestar. I'm really keen to get the polestar tune on a 2011 S40 T5 I've recently bought and haven't managed to get a quote below $1400 in Melbourne.

Any suggestions or should I just bite the bullet?
If its out of warranty I would go with Elevate or ARD long before Volvo
Elevate is probably the easiest for you
I went the Polestar upgrade and is a marked improvement.

I am a bit conservative and went with the Volvo update.

The car is quick to accelorate and scares the piss out of the misses!

The genuine option was easy for me. Not saying the other options would not achieve great results.
5 months later
Hi Guys,

Fairly new Volvo owner here with a MY15 S60 T5 R design. I've also considered getting the polestar upgrade on my car. Located in Brisbane.
timbo;61864 wroteWhere are you located? Our local dealer does the polestar tune for our customers @ cost price which is around $850. Alternatively you could speak to Mark @ V.P Tuning he should have some other cheaper options for you
Tim where are you located?
So I just received a call back from Austral Volvo Brisbane and was quoted $1900 for the software upgrade... As we only have one dealership in Brisbane, I think they're used to rorting us.
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