Hey Guys,

A ‘newbie’ and also a proud new owner of a 03’ SuperCrew XLT here.

I have been reading this message board almost daily and I must say I have learned so much, as this is a great source of reference, information, and real-world advice.

I have been doing some research (basically lot’s of reading) on computer chips/superchips and am not sure if this question has been asked before?

What is the difference between Superchip’s ‘Micro Tuner and Hypertech’s ‘Power Programmer III’?

They basically do the same thing right?

Is one better then the other, or is it just a matter of prefernce?

School me please...

 

The Superchips has a *much* better program than the Hypertech. Adds more power, and its all the time. Not just at WOT.

 

I have a 97 f150 5.4l and I have ran both the Hypertech and Superchips. I ran the Hypertech power module for three years trouble free (no detenation issues). Switched to Superchips Micro Tuner first of this year, they came out with a programmer for the 97's first and I wanted to change shift points and remove the speedlimiter.

Hypertech: better response and power at low rpms/part throttle(I know this goes against all the info on this forum about Hypertech but it is just my observation), better in towing situations, firm shifts but shift points not changed over stock, speed limit not raised. The last 2 would be addressed with the programmer

Superchips: better power at higher rpms, shift points improved over stock, raised speed limiter and slightly quicker shifts, better for all out speed performance.

These are just my seat of the pants impressions as I use my truck as a daily driver and not looking turn it into a race car but I do perfer a little more guts in the performance department. It is my opinion that they are both good investments. Perhaps you can find someone in your area that have each and you could try them out and form you own judgements. That would be too cool.

 

Hi Mr Tude,

There is a *world* of difference between Hypertech and Superchips units...

With the Hypertech unit, you get generic tuning that has been compromised to run on all similar vehicles, only 1 same program for all the F-150's of a given model year, whereas with the Superchips unit each vehicle gets it's own individual performance program. Superchips does a different tune for each different factory software revision, which is why they make significantly more power than Hypertech.

Each model year alone, there are *hundreds* of different factory software revisions in these F-150 PCM's, and they have different aspects, different areas that control different parameters, etc., so no genric tuning could ever properly optimize this vehicle platform, it must be vehicle-specific tuning to do it right.

Also, Hypertech, Jet, & most others only tune where there are nmo emissions standards that have to be met (basically full throttle only), so you only get performance improvement when you have your foot to the floor. At anything less than 81% throttle, there is *no* change to engine tuning at all in the Hypertech unit, so there is no improvement in normal driving.

With the Superchips tuning, you get maximum horsepower and torque gains *all* the time, at any throttle positon and at any rpm, not just full-throttle.

There are also other differences, with the Superchips Micro Tuner you also have it's built-in OBD-II code scanner, a big plus, but really, the difference in tuning is the key important factor here. The Superchips tuning goes into much m,ore depth, rem,oving various delays & retards that also hurt performance, giving additionmal performance increases beyond just the raw power gains.

It's the choice between basically a generic full-throttle only program, or a unique vehicle-specific tune that adds power *all* the time, regardless of how you drive the vehicle, and that makes plenty of difference in the actual results.

It's really very simple, we don't care about the name on the box here at Performance, what we care about are the actrual resutls, so we test the other products to see just who is really doing what, it's what we're known for. In all of that, hands down the Superchips tuning has always been the best in these & many other vechicles, as it's vehicle-specific and that added power is there *all* the time, not just under extremely heavy throttle.

Also, no other gimmicks like abnormally cold thermostats are required with the Superchips unit like is required with most Hypertech products.

The bottom line is, you'll get a significantly better result from the Superchips tuning with no gimmicks like the cold thermostats that "trick" the PCM into dumping in more spark, etc., you get a properly optimized powertrain program that gas far more R&D into it as compared to the Hypertech tuning, which is why we sell them and not the Hypertech units.

In fact, as I type I am in Florida right now, we are working as we always do with Superchips on our 2003 F-150 SVT Lighting tuning R&D, which is why I'm a bit slow in my responses here this week!

Please feel free to give us a call if you;d liek to go over thjis in more detail, read the threads here from many people who have used both oproductrs on the same vehicle, & you'll quickly find that the Superchips tuning is preferred by virtually everyone, hands down.

Good luck with your truck & we hope you'll hang out here with us in your spare time!

 

Hey everyone thanks for all your feedback.

Mike, thank you for breaking it down to me and explaining it to me in such great detail.
It is now pretty obvious with 'Programmer/Tuner' is the superior product.

Reagrds,

-James

 

Superchips_Distributor

You mention that " each vehicle gets it's own individual performance program:". So does this mean if I have put a supercharger on my truck that the programmer would be programmed different than a non-supercharged truck? Is it also possible to change A/F ratio's?

Is there a link or something to this programmer were the operating instructions can be viewed?

Thanks

 

any reply

 

I'm curious...Superchip for a 01 F150 4.6...what are overall horse and torque numbers??

 

With the programmer (SuperChips Max MicroTuner), you cannot change A/F ratios. You upload the normal SC programming for the engine tuning, but can change some of the other programming. The options i have on mine are for the tranny settings (shift points, pressures for each gear change), speed limiter, rev limiter, and tire size (for recalibrating the speedo).

The MicroTuner will not work for a SuperCharged engine. It is for a mostly stock engine. Dual exhaust and modded intake are OK as long as you have not changed the MAF or injectors. If you have modded your ride more than exhaust and intake, then the SuperChips module is what you need instead of the SuperChips MicroTuner.

I have had both the module, and now the MicroTuner. They are both fantastic products!

 

Hi 1JT,

Just a quick tip in general before I get to your response, you might want to read some of the previous posts here on the Micro Tuner to get up to speed on "the basics," as all of that has been gone over many times in great detail here. Using the search feature can help you avoid having to go over things that have been covered many times already, and get you up to speed much more quickly on all the basics, if you want to take advantage of it. Just FYI in case you may not be familiar with it...........


The short answer to one of your questions is no, the Micro Tuner obviously has no way of knowing that you've installed a supercharger, it has no way of knowing what, if anything else, you may or may not have installed, of course.

It's not a device that's somehow going to detect all modifications & automatically tune for them, nor will it allow anyone to alter individual engine tuning parameters such as timing, A/F's, etc., as that would only result in many blown engines. While there are some people who actually can tune a computer controlled Ford Modular motor properly, they are few and far between, especially where the F-150 is concerned due to hundreds of different software revisions every model year spread across dozens & dozens of different templates.

So we don't allow changes to be made to individual engine tuning parameters by each vehicle owner, if that is what you're asking. I hope I've properly understood what you're really asking here and that the above is roughly what you were wanting to know.

With the Micro Tuner, just to get you a bit more familiar in general, it can be used with modifications that do not require custom engine tuning to compensate for. Now in these 1997 & up F-150 platform vehicles, that would generally be things such as intakes, exhausts, electric fan kits & underdrive pulleys, for example. Those changes do not require custom engine tuning to compensate for, you'll be fine with the standard Superchips performance program for each individual computer code (software revision in the PCM).

When you connect the Micro Tuner, it automatically reads your PCM to determine exactly what code it has, store that program in the Micro Tuner and then do an internal lookup to find the code-matched Superchips performance program to upload in place of your original factory program, so that the performance program you get was actually made for *your* exact and specific vehicle, and not something that is generic & compromised to run on all similar F-150's. Now all of that happens transparently to the end user, so you don't "see" it doing any of this, it happens in the background, so to speak. This enables us to program each individual vehicle according to it's exact PCM software & hardware revisions, so you get the best possible optimization for *your* vehicle. This is what we mean when we say each vehicle gets it's own unique program, as Superchips is "code specific," each vehicle is tuned according to the exact software revision in it's PCM, and there are hundred's of different revisions just in the V8's each model year alone, making this a very important factor affecting the end result.

If you do things like adding a supercharger, nitrous oxide, ported heads, camshaft changes, aftermarket MAF's, larger fuel injectors, etc., those kinds of things *DO* require custom engine tuning to compensate for, to tie them all together & make them work correctly and the enigne run right, and that's a completely different situation.

Regardless of whatever mods you may have, any Superchips program has to be code-specific, meaning it has to match the exact software revision in your PCM (as well as compensating for any mods if need be), that's the only way to properly optimize the powertrain program in each individual vehicle. These F-150's can have hundreds of different codes each model year alone, so the Micro Tuner currently has well over 1200-1300 different performance programs in it, and more are being added all the time as new codes are released. This is so it can be used on virtually any 1997 & up Ford F-150 or Expedition with a V8 engione, whether it's a Lightning, Harley or a regular F-150, as long as the vehicle does not have more involved modifications that require custom engine tuning to compensate for.

Now from there, if you have modifications that require custom engine tuning to compensate for, then you have to use the traditional Superchip module instead of the Micro Tuner, and we have to go thru a very specific procedure & involved consultation to properly tune the vehicle. Depending on the exact mods, we may also requrie chassis dyno testing to include A/F ratio testing. None of that is ever just going to automatically happen on it's own by connecting a Micro Tuner, when you're into a custom situation it's just that, custom, so it's much different from the simpler modifications that the Micro Tuner is designed to be compatible with.

I hope that's given you the answers you were actually looking for here, & please feel free to give us a call if you'd like to go over this in more detail, etc.

 

Mike, Sorry for not using the search feature. I had gone to your web site and searched there but found nothing. I am a little hesitand in installing another chip. The last one I had did not perform on the dyno as it should. (it was another brand). I had no hp gains and a/f were all over the place. Before I get another chip I want the tuner to be able to dyno the vehicle after each tune. If you know someone in Nor Cal that has the know how. Or if you want to contact my speed shop, RPM they have a dyno. Set them up as a dealer and I know their looking.
Any help would be appricated.

Jeff

2001 Harley Davidson
Vortech supercharger

 

Hi Jeff,

No need to apologize at all, I was just letting you know the search feature here does work nicely if you want to use it, that's all, so please don't give it a thought. I really mentioned it simply because in those cases, you may be able to find the info you want quicker that way than if you have to wait on me to get back here to answer your question(s), that's all.

And you're absolutely right, the search on *our* web site really isn't functional yet, as there isn't much of anything to search! We should have the online store speed on March 1st (hopefully!), and then later we'll be adding message boards, etc., so *then* our search feature over on TroyerPerformance.com would actually be useful, right now it's not.

Now with your vehicle, which I see is an '01 Harley with a Vortech blower added, the Micro Tuner wouldn't be appropriate for you to use anyway, as you'll obviously have to have custom engine tuning done for the blower & whatever else you may have going on there that would affect the powertrain programming and/or engine tuning.

I'm sorry to hear you weren't happy with your last chip, but if you like, please do feel free to give us a call & I can go over your exact configuration there and then be able to tell you just what you can realistically expect from a proper tune in terms of power, results, etc., so you can give it some thought as to whether you feel you might want to do that.

In general, when we have a custom tuning situation for a blower being added, at that point it's a matter of doing whatever it takes to properly tune the engine rather than how much additional power we can gain. Once the motor is properly tuned, then wherever the power lands is where it lands, and no more will be gained by further tuning, at least, not *safely*. Now it is true that we normally do pick up nice power gains tuning for a blower or other mods, but that will depend on just what we're dealing with.

In general, when you've got a supercharger that has been added to a vehicle, don't think of a performance chip's job as being primarily one of adding even more additional power, though that may very well happen; it needs to be thought of as what is required to properly tune the combination, so the engine is running correctly and safely, with proper timing, A/F's, etc. In other words, you don't make the power in the tune, you make it with the mechanical modifications, and then the chip is there to proerly tune it all, so wherever the power lands after all that is where it lands. No custom program in this kind of situation (a blower added) should be judged on how much additional power it makes; it should be judged based on the results to the motor's tune, does it detonate, does it have proper driveability and are the A/F's in line, etc. Usually you will pick up nice additional power, but that is just a by-product of the chip's primary role in a situaiotn where a blower has been added; the primary role of teh chip in that case is simply to properly tune the motor for it's mechanical configuration.

If you have the typical Vortech FMU being used with the stock injectors setup, then below at least 4500 rpm you're generally running way too rich for best power in these trucks in many cases, so we can pick up nice power gains just by nailing the A/F's alone. We may be able to pick up 25 to as much as maybe 30 or even 35 hp at the rear wheels, it just depends on how far off the A/F's are to begin with. Or, if you're using larger injectors at stock rail pressure, then that's another tuning scenario, and so on, etc., etc., it just depends on your configuration & what it's doing right now that will determine how much power gain & performance improvement we can make, and/or improving driveabilty, etc.

I don't know what it was about your last chip that made you uynhappy, or if it had anything to do with pwoer at all, of course, so this is just some basic rambling.

If you'd like to call, I'll be happy to let you know just what kind of power gains you can expect & other results based on your current configuration, so you'll at least have some idea as to whether you want to do this or not.

Best of luck whatever you decide!