I said "they" said "Ford did it for longevity". Whatever reason Ford did it, they did leave a tiny bit of wiggle room for aftermarket tuners to take advantage of. I run mine on Level 2 only. I increased the firmness just a tad and decreased the shift points. I'm in it for the MPG, not the acceleration. I can't think of a single time I have floored the truck.

Regarding the whole HT thing...been doing consulting/design on the side with a longtime fried for 6 or so years now. A few newer pics of mine, including the A/V server I built can be seen here :
http://gallery.avsforum.com/member.p...9651&protype=1
I did everything seen there (faming, electrical, plumbing [in the bathroom], drywall...). The ONLY thing I did not do was install the carpet to the floor and walls. I also measured the acoustical signature of the room and tamed the bass peaks. Very big hobby.

So how far down the rabbit hole did the A/V bug take you?

 

Yes, that is what I'm going to do. And I can't remember flooring it in three months either. I have no intention of running 91+ octane but I guess I've been convinced (beaten?) that I MAY try the 87 Tow tune as everyone has been telling me for many pages.

I've done all the work myself as well. Three dedicated lines. One for each amp and one for everything else. I made my own shelving based on Bright Star Audio theories too. I've got so many incarnations of the shelving (because of moving and needing different sizes and shapes) that I just store junk on the original ones now. Unfortunately my house is a bass trap. So I've been taming highs instead.

As for the rabbit hole, you can drive an '09 XLT into it. Maybe even a Lariat if you got a good deal. My wife wasn't impressed at the costs in the beginning. Now she asks when the next "upgrade" happens. But I'm so happy with what I've got that I haven't changed anything in a year now.

Believe it or not though, I haven't gone HD on the satellite yet. My "worst" component is the TV. Its rear projection and only does 1080i not 1080p so we watch everything in 720p. Its 51" though so my real problem is how the heck am I going to get it out of the basement. They had to remove the railing and the doors to get it down there. So I'm waiting for it to have some trouble before I swap it out. Might be a while, its a nice unit.

EDIT: I see a Classe in there. You and I think a lot alike.

 

Ford commands 12.0:1 A/F's not 13.0:1 in every single 2004 & up F-150
A naturally aspirated engine can be run between 12.5-13:1 to make the best power

 

AD, not to discredit a reputable seller of tuners, but the "optimal" AFR on a NATURALLY ASPIRATED engine is 14.7:1. Been that way since the dawn of internal combustion. Anyone who knows a thing or two about how an engine works knows this.

The LEANER an engine is, the MORE power it will make. This too is common knowledge amongst those in the know. It's that fine line between making the most power but keeping the motor in a dependable state for the average consumer. Think WARRANTY.

When we say 14.7:1 we mean that there are 14.7 parts of air to 1 part of fuel. So an AFR of 13:1 means there is less air to fuel or richer. Ford (as well as every other auto manufacturer) purposely builds their motors a bit on the rich side.

During normal cruising, one would desire to have their motor run as close to 14.7:1 as possible. WOT on the other hand is a different matter entirely. You want the motor to run richer to keep that combustion process cooler and help stave off pre-ignition, or ping. Of course all these "rules" change when you run a power adder (supercharger, turbo...) and/or add meth-injection.

 

High school chemistry. And the exact same equation applies with a *-charger. The AFR only changes because the chemical reaction equation takes pressure into account. When its naturally aspirated you basically multiply by "1" so nothing changes.

Hard to believe a Superchips representative said that. They are the distributor, maybe that explains it.

 

Superchips Distributor is Mike Troyer...I think he would know his stuff about these engines, but what do I know?