Tuner defective???
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Joined: Mar 2000
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From: Chapin,SC
Tuner defective???
I've been running the new 1715 tuner on my 4.6L, 5 speed for about 2 weeks now, running 93 octane Union 76 and I don't notice any difference at all in pre-programming. I have talked to Anita several times and came to the conclusion that maybe I was expecting too much to begin with so I installed the performance program ( I was running tow-performance) on my boss's 5.4L auto and he claims he did not feel any difference either. Since then I have re-installed the tow -performance program back on my truck and still don't feel any difference. I realize that the "feel" will not be as noticable as if I had a auto trans but I thought I should notice something. My question is...is there a way to test the tuner itself to be sure that it is not defective.
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Joined: Mar 1998
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From: Virginia
Hello R,
Bear with me a second here, as I'm going to make a point I hope everyone will appreciate...........
Where are your 0-60 times before & after?
Where are your 1/4 mile times & trap speeds before & after? You know, the before & after testing data.
Let me guess - you don't have any, right?
Don't feel bad, you're not alone! You're just making the same basic & simple yet very important mistake that so many people make who do not have experience modifying vehicles. And that is, trying to judge performance gains by guessing (seat of the pants) - that is a strict no-no with *any* performance part, on *any* heavy vehicle.
There is no problem with your Micro Tuner somehow not uploading the performance tuning correctly, as if there was your vehicle would not have even started after it was installed.
Trying to judge performance gains by the seat of your pants is the single worst mistake you can make in any vehicle weighing roughly 3800 lbs. or more when trying to judge performance results - but *especially* in these very heavy trucks with their large aero profiles. NEVER attempt to do that, it doesn't work, never has worked & never will work. That is not testing of any kind - it's just guessing by the seat of your pants, which means nothing in a 2-3 ton truck - it's not a 3400 lb. Mustang. As long as you continue to do that you will probably be disappointed, as your method is ineffective, not the part - the Micro Tuner isn't the problem, it's clearly done it's job or your engine would not have even started after it's installation.
The Micro Tuner has already told you that it has successfully uploaded the program, it told you that right on it's LCD screen - remember when it told you to disconnect it? It dopes that after every time you upload a different performance program, and *that's* how you know it's done it's job - that and the fact that the engine starts afterwards.
To give you an idea & some perspective on this, this is something that affects *everyone*, not just you - for example, I have 30+ years of experience modifying vehicles for more performance, and even *I* can't feel a 10-20 HP gain in a 2.5-3 ton truck by the seat of the pants - and neither can you. Nobody can accurately judge power gains by the seat of the pants in heavy vehicles.
So if you are actually interested in seeing what kind of performance improvement you got, start by actually *measuring* the performance - pretty simple. And that's very easy to do, there are great informal & inexpensive devices like the GTech Pro Competition model available, which we carry on our web site as well, for this *exact* reason - so people can actually measure and quantify the actual performance improvement, as long as they have a properly controlled before & after test format - heck, the GTech Pro Comp model will give you 0-60, 1/4 times & trap speed & many other tests & data quickly & easily.
You just need to use a proper procedure to do properly controlled timed acceleration testing - the 0-60 times and the 1/4 mile times & trap speeds both before and after, in a controlled format, allowing sufficient cooldown time to stabilize powertrain temperatures in between each run. That is the *only* way you are ever going to see just what the Micro Tuner has done for your performance - seat of the pants won't ever work, as it would probably take a supercharger to feel it in the seat of the pants.
There are many posts here in which I have outlined the procedure that we use for that kind of testing, just use the search feature here to retrieve and read those posts, and then use those proper methods and you will clearly see the improvement in the reduced acceleration times.
*Forget* trying to judge by the seat of your pants in *ANY* vehicle weighing about 3800 lbs. or more, because it doesn't work, as you and many others have found out. That is not going to change no matter how many calls you make, no matter how many people you ask - you won't change the laws of physics. There's an old saying - you can't feel radiation either, but it'll sure as heck kill you anyway.
The bottom line is, this is a very simple problem you're having, and one we discuss here often - and in each case where someone has actually gone back and measured the performance, every single time has it been noticeably and measurably improved - it's just your method that's the problem, not the part - and that will clearly be shown via proper testing of acceleration times.
I hope that helps you understand this better & good luck!
Bear with me a second here, as I'm going to make a point I hope everyone will appreciate...........
Where are your 0-60 times before & after?
Where are your 1/4 mile times & trap speeds before & after? You know, the before & after testing data.
Let me guess - you don't have any, right?
Don't feel bad, you're not alone! You're just making the same basic & simple yet very important mistake that so many people make who do not have experience modifying vehicles. And that is, trying to judge performance gains by guessing (seat of the pants) - that is a strict no-no with *any* performance part, on *any* heavy vehicle.
There is no problem with your Micro Tuner somehow not uploading the performance tuning correctly, as if there was your vehicle would not have even started after it was installed.
Trying to judge performance gains by the seat of your pants is the single worst mistake you can make in any vehicle weighing roughly 3800 lbs. or more when trying to judge performance results - but *especially* in these very heavy trucks with their large aero profiles. NEVER attempt to do that, it doesn't work, never has worked & never will work. That is not testing of any kind - it's just guessing by the seat of your pants, which means nothing in a 2-3 ton truck - it's not a 3400 lb. Mustang. As long as you continue to do that you will probably be disappointed, as your method is ineffective, not the part - the Micro Tuner isn't the problem, it's clearly done it's job or your engine would not have even started after it's installation.
The Micro Tuner has already told you that it has successfully uploaded the program, it told you that right on it's LCD screen - remember when it told you to disconnect it? It dopes that after every time you upload a different performance program, and *that's* how you know it's done it's job - that and the fact that the engine starts afterwards.
To give you an idea & some perspective on this, this is something that affects *everyone*, not just you - for example, I have 30+ years of experience modifying vehicles for more performance, and even *I* can't feel a 10-20 HP gain in a 2.5-3 ton truck by the seat of the pants - and neither can you. Nobody can accurately judge power gains by the seat of the pants in heavy vehicles.
So if you are actually interested in seeing what kind of performance improvement you got, start by actually *measuring* the performance - pretty simple. And that's very easy to do, there are great informal & inexpensive devices like the GTech Pro Competition model available, which we carry on our web site as well, for this *exact* reason - so people can actually measure and quantify the actual performance improvement, as long as they have a properly controlled before & after test format - heck, the GTech Pro Comp model will give you 0-60, 1/4 times & trap speed & many other tests & data quickly & easily.
You just need to use a proper procedure to do properly controlled timed acceleration testing - the 0-60 times and the 1/4 mile times & trap speeds both before and after, in a controlled format, allowing sufficient cooldown time to stabilize powertrain temperatures in between each run. That is the *only* way you are ever going to see just what the Micro Tuner has done for your performance - seat of the pants won't ever work, as it would probably take a supercharger to feel it in the seat of the pants.
There are many posts here in which I have outlined the procedure that we use for that kind of testing, just use the search feature here to retrieve and read those posts, and then use those proper methods and you will clearly see the improvement in the reduced acceleration times.
*Forget* trying to judge by the seat of your pants in *ANY* vehicle weighing about 3800 lbs. or more, because it doesn't work, as you and many others have found out. That is not going to change no matter how many calls you make, no matter how many people you ask - you won't change the laws of physics. There's an old saying - you can't feel radiation either, but it'll sure as heck kill you anyway.
The bottom line is, this is a very simple problem you're having, and one we discuss here often - and in each case where someone has actually gone back and measured the performance, every single time has it been noticeably and measurably improved - it's just your method that's the problem, not the part - and that will clearly be shown via proper testing of acceleration times.
I hope that helps you understand this better & good luck!
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 26
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From: Chapin,SC
Yes Mike, you are correct in that I don't have before and after 1/4 mile times etc. In fact I discussed that with Anita and had accepted the fact that there would be no "SOP" gains but then I read message boards (here and other truck sites) and see comments like..."WOW what a difference" etc and that got me thinking maybe something was wrong with my unit and that it was not programming properly or that I was not operating it properly. I am sure that the Superchips tuner is the best available but it gives one pause when reading other comments that seemed to indicate that a difference could be "felt" with a tuner. Thanks for the explanation though!