ZF 8HP gearbox tune: 34 settings, flashed from your laptop
Most tools stop at the engine and leave the gearbox on factory settings. Hellflash tunes the ZF 8-speed too, and gearbox flashing is proven on a real car.
Three gearbox stages
- Stage 1
- A firmer, faster upshift with a modest torque cut. No bang: the everyday pack.
- Stage 2
- A clean pop on an aggressive upshift, using the car's own fast ignition-cut shift.
- Stage 3
- The firmest upshift and the deepest cut, with the bang in more shift paths. The loud pack.
Every setting people ask for
34 settings you can build and flash, each decoded from the gearbox software:
- Shift points
- Upshift rpm for every gear in Drive, Sport and Manual.
- Shift speed
- Firmer, faster steps beyond stock.
- Ignition-cut upshifts
- The crack on a hard upshift.
- Upshift torque cut
- How much torque drops between gears.
- Torque punch
- Upshifts that land harder.
- Throttle blips
- Rev-matched downshifts.
- Brake downshifts
- Drops a gear sooner when you brake hard.
- Max rpm
- Raise the shift-up and rev limit.
- Kickdown
- Sharper when you floor it.
- Launch control
- Launch torque and how it blends in.
- Drag mode
- Higher pressure and less cut, for the strip.
- Line pressure
- More clutch clamping for more torque.
- Torque limit per gear
- Lets the box hold a tuned engine.
- Take off in 2nd
- More grip in snow and rain.
- True manual
- Holds your gear, even at the limiter.
- Stay in 2nd
- Holds second when you ask it to.
- No 6th in Sport
- Keeps Sport in the lower gears.
- Drive mode setup
- Choose what each drive mode does.
- Coasting
- Freewheel when you lift, or never.
- Creep
- How it rolls off the brake.
- Stop and go
- How it behaves in traffic.
- Standstill decoupling
- Off, so it is ready the moment the lights change.
- Auto start-stop off
- For good.
- Warm-up mode off
- Normal shifts from cold.
- Eco shift mode
- Smoother, earlier shifts for the commute.
- Valet mode
- Capped torque and gentle shifts for someone else.
- Gear display
- The gear number in Drive.
- Shift arrows off
- A cleaner cluster.
Which gearboxes
The F-series ZF 8HP automatic (8HPtu), found in the M140i, M240i, 340i and 440i autos, and the M135i, M235i, 335i and 435i autos. Gearbox software varies by car, so the app reads yours and shows which settings it supports.
With the engine, on one licence
The same £300 licence tunes the engine too: Stage 1, 2 and 3 maps, sound, and the full editor. The B58 tune
How it works
- Plug in
- An ENET cable (about £15) from the OBD port to a Windows laptop, with a charger on the battery.
- Read your car
- Hellflash finds the engine and gearbox computers and saves a full backup. Free.
- Pick a tune
- A stage, a few plain choices, the full editor, or describe it to Hellflash AI.
- Flash and drive
- Checksums corrected, every write verified, back to stock any time.
Questions
Anything else, email support@hellflash.com
Does Hellflash tune the ZF 8HP gearbox?
Yes. 34 settings including shift points, shift speed, ignition-cut upshifts, launch control, throttle blips and torque limit per gear. Gearbox flashing is proven on a real car.
Do I need the engine tune to tune the gearbox?
No. You can flash the gearbox on its own, the engine on its own, or both. One licence covers both.
Will a gearbox tune make it pop on upshift?
Yes, if you want it to. Gearbox Stage 2 and 3 use the car's own fast ignition-cut shift for a crack on a hard upshift. Stage 1 has no bang.
Can I go back to stock?
Yes. Hellflash reads and saves your car's own software before the first flash, so you can put it back any time.
What do I need?
A standard ENET cable (OBD to Ethernet), a Windows laptop and a battery charger on the car while you flash. iPhone and Android apps are on the way.
How much does it cost?
£300, one time, per car. It covers the engine and the gearbox, with updates for that car. No subscription and no credits.
Start with a free read of your car.
Read your car for free first. If it fits, it’s £300 once and it’s yours.