Post June Tuning Information

UPDATED - 8/13/26

The history, and where we are today with BMW MG1 ECU Tuning.

Back in 2018, AutoTuner changed everything when they announced a bench unlock for the MG1 ECU found in late model BMWs. At the time this was unheard of, it was the first true bench unlock that didn’t require opening the ECU. ECUs were bench unlocked when whatever tuning tool you were using wasn’t able to OBD program an ECU.

The summer of 2020 hit us hard when the dreaded Post-June ECUs started landing on our workbenches. We all thought something was wrong with our bench tools. Almost a year later, in July, Femto appeared with a solution known only to a few. Their unlock cost almost $1000 before shipping and it required shipping the ECU to Russia, paying by wire only. Their unlock was only partial with no EcuTek support and no custom features. A year later, this changed. Femto started pre-loading custom code from BM3 and MHD, but still no support for EcuTek.

Fast-forward to last month: AutoTuner announces they can unlock ECUs the same way as before, but with one big caveat. ECUs needed to be opened prior to shipment. This caused all sorts of speculation. Did they need board access to program, or were they looking for sniffers so their secrets couldn’t be stolen? Even at the cost of more than half of FEMTO before shipping, a lot of people had no interest in opening their ECU. The cost difference between AutoTuner and Femto still made Femto the better option.

Almost a month later, Kies announces the first USA-based OBD unlock for Post-June ECUs. Arguably better than Femto since it didn’t require shipping overseas and it supported all tuning platforms, including EcuTek, but at a price more than double Femto.

Only days later, AutoTuner announces they no longer need to open your ECU for the unlock which changes everything again.

Within hours, Femto responds with a price reduction matching AutoTuner. With AutoTuner offering such an inexpensive unlock option and Femto now following in their footsteps, Kies discontinues publicly offering their USA unlock service.

So here we are, the race to the bottom. Full ECU unlocks under $1000, supported by all tuning platforms.

Shortly after, Kies quickly brought their on-site unlock back. Then on July 6, 2026, Magic Motorsport announced that Flex version 8.3.0.0 added Boot Glitch support for the BMW Bosch MG1CS049 (TC298), allowing shops to perform the unlock and programming in house without shipping the unit to their laboratories or using the RFT service. The catch: the ECU needed to be opened up for the unlock.

Magic did not offer an OBD unlock patch, which is where MG Flasher stepped in thanks to their long-standing relationship with Magic. The only problem with this new MG Flasher service is that it locked out everyone who didn't pay for it. You could unlock the ECU in bench mode, but the Magic tool prevented you from manually applying an OBD unlock patch. Only those who subscribed to the $995 MG Flasher service had access to unlock OBD programming. This upset the tuning industry, and within two weeks the block was removed and the tool performed the unlock for free.

Now, on 8/13/26, Magic has released an update that allows a bench unlock without opening the ECU. Within hours, CMD announced they have the same capability available by beta request only. Things are moving quickly, and we are now offering on-site unlocks.