Tuning the Hyundai Mu

"Building the best modified Hyundai Mu engine!"

Carref prides itself on providing the latest tips and guides to your modification project.

The Mu engine shares much in common with the Delta block but it boasts CVVT (continuous variable valve timing).

We review and look at Mu tuning and point out the premier upgrades. Hyundai Mu make a good tuning project and with carefully chosen motorsport modifications like a remap, turbo upgrades and camshafts you will greatly maximise your driving enjoyment.

We rely on our visitors to pass on tips and tell us about their projects and what worked on their car, and this article is the culmination of the feedback we have received. First let us look at the history and specs of this engine and then consider which tuning modifications work best on it.

History of the Engine

• 2.7 L V6 162–200 hp 181–192 lbft

DOHC 24 valve, 6 cylinder with variable intake, and MPi, power was increased when the CVVT was added to the exhaust ports.

• 2010-2013 Kia Cadenza
• 2007-2010 Kia Optima
• 2007-2010 Kia Rondo
• 2006-2011 Hyundai Azera
• 2007-2009 Hyundai Santa Fe

What are the most effective Mu mods

The best upgrades on an engine are in our opinion the ones that give the best power gain for you spend.

We won't be swayed by popular Mu upgrades, they need to be cost effective.

Significant gains can be made from cam upgrades. Altering the cam profile alters the intake and exhaust durations on the engine and can dramatically change the power band and power output.

Fast road cams tend to raise the torque through the rpm band, you may sacrifice a little bottom end bhp but your higher rpm power will be higher.

On a relatively low revving V6 engine the benefits of an aggressive cam profile are questionable, but a mild cam should help increase low end torque.

Competition cams, raise the higher rpm power band but as a result the car will not idle smoothly and low end power nearly always suffers.

On a car used daily should ideally to match your bhp range to your preferences.

I'd be surprised if you have found a Motorsport cam is a pleasure to live with when driving around busy urban areas.

Each engine responds better to more aggressive cam durations check your engine on a rolling road.

The ECU mapping and injectors and fuel pump also will say much on the power gains you'll achieve.

Altering valve durations can alter the power band and on most engines the exhaust and intake durations do not need to match, although most cams and tuners use matched pairs there are some advantages to extending the intake or exhaust durations.

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Modifying to Stage 1:

 Remaps/piggy back ECU, Intake headers, Drilled & smoothed airbox, Sports exhaust manifold, Panel air filters, Fast road camshaft.

Modifying to Stage 2:

 fuel pump upgrades, induction kit, Fast road cam, high flow fuel injectors, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust, Ported and polished head.

Modifying to Stage 3:

 Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Twin charging conversions, Competition cam, Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression, Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Engine balancing & blueprinting.

ECU flashing should help to release the full potential of all the upgrades you've done to your Mu.

It will usually give around 30% more power on turbocharged vehicles and 15% on NASP engines, but you mileage will vary depending on the upgrades you've done and the condition of your engine.

Shoving more fuel and air into each cylinder is vital to any performance tuning task.

Intake manifold carry the air during the suck phase from the filter and allow it to be fed into the engine and mixed with fuel.

Design and rate of flow of the Intake manifold can make a big difference to to fuel atomisation on the Mu.

I usually find plenum chambers are begging for performance upgrades, although some OEM provide reasonably well designed plenum chambers.

Increasing the Mu valve size, carrying out port matching and head flowing will also increase power, the fantastic side effect is it will raise potential for an improved power increase on other upgrades.

Which turbo upgrades are best?

NASP engines need quite a lot of work when you add a turbo, so we have a separate guide to help you take into account the pros and cons of going this route on your Mu

The more air to get into an engine, the more fuel it can burn and uprating the induction with a turbocharger upgrade makes massive power gains.

If an engine is fitted with a turbocharger parts are going to make more power and you'll see that turbo charged engines will have harder and stronger components.

There are reliable limits for every engine, with some being incredibly solid and some just sufficiently able to handle stock power

Research these limitations and upgrade to forged components to handle the power.

We've seen guys spending a loads on turbo upgrades on the Mu only to experience the Mu go up in smoke when it's used in anger.

Large turbochargers commonly experience a bottom end lag, and little turbochargers spool up much more quickly but do not have the peak rpm bhp gains.

We are pleased that the market of turbochargers is always increasing and we now see variable vane turbochargers, where the vane profile is altered according to speed to lower lag and increase top end bhp and torque.

Twin scroll turbochargers divert the exhaust flow into a couple of channels and feed these at differently profiled vanes in the turbo charger. They also help the scavenging effect of the engine.

It is not unusual that there is a restriction in the air flow sensor MAF/MAP on these engines when a lot more air is being fed into the engine.

Going up you'll find 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor limited torque at a much lower level.

Adding a supercharger or additional turbo will make large bhp gains, although more challenging to configure. We have a twincharger bhp adding guide if you want to read more.

Fuelling

When you boost the bhp and torque you will need to uprate to the fuelling.

More bhp and torque needs more fuel. We would recommend you to be generous with your flow rate on the injectors.

The accepted safe increase is to add 20% to the flow rate when specifying an injector, helps cope with injector deterioration and allows a little spare capacity should the engine need more fuel.

We think this one is common sense, but you'll need to match your fuel injector to the type of fuel your car uses as well.

Choosing the right performance exhaust

One of the most common mistakes and problems we see in tuning projects is usually down to the exhaust, or rather a poorly chosen exhaust for your engine.

Only look to improve your exhaust if the existing exhaust is actually creating a flow problem.

On most factory exhausts you'll see the flow rate is still fine even on modest power gains, but when you start pushing up the power levels you will need to get a better flowing exhaust.

Sports exhausts can usually air flow out of the engine but avoid an exhaust that is too big or you may end up will reduce the flow rate. Stick to 1.5 to 2.5 inches for best results.

Usual exhaust restrictions are in the catalysts installed, so adding a freer flowing sports alternative will help avoid this restriction.

Weak spots Issues & problem areas on the

The engines are generally reliable and solid as long as they are regularly serviced and maintained.

Regular oil changes are vital on the , especially when tuned and will help extend the life and reliability of the engine.

For more information on Tuning your engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.

Please help us improve these tips by sending us your feedback in the comments box below.

We love to hear what our visitors have got up to and which mods work best for them on each model of car. Comments are used to improve the accuracy of these articles which are continually updated.

This article was written by Waynne Smith on TorqueCars, and I appreciate your feedback and suggestions. This entry was filed under Hyundai, Kia. You can leave a response below or join TorqueCars forum to discuss this article and car modification in detail with our members.

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