diablo tuner
Thread Starter
|
Member
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 14
Likes: 0
From: Ada, Oklahoma
diablo tuner
I have a 2000 supercab f-150 and am planning on doing a few things to improve overall performance and mileage. I am going to install a muffler and was wondering what everyone thought would be the best. I will just be installing a muffler cant afford a cat back. I was also wondering what everyone thought about the diablo tuner for the f-150. i want to get it or the superchip tuner but cant really decide on which one. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Former Sponsor
Joined: Mar 1998
Posts: 13,385
Likes: 4
From: Virginia
Hi shads302,
First, with regard to the muffler - we generally recommend not changing just the muffler as the power gains will be minimal - you might see another 3-5 HP on a 5.4 motor, and you probably won't see any difference in fuel mileage. We understand when someone really can't comfortably afford a proper complete cat-back system, a lot of people are in the same situation - and in those cases, we generally recommend saving your pennies until you *can* afford to do a complete cat-back system.
If you decide you're going to go ahead and do a muffler change, then go with a stainless steel Magnaflow unit - they are doing about the best job of flow-engineering, and will last the life of the vehicle. You'll want to get one that most closely matches the dimensions of your stock muffler for easiest installation, that has the same 2.5" inlet & outlet to match your stock exhaust tubing diameter. Usually you do best with a 22' to 30" long 5x11 oval, and it's a good idea to take a quick measurement of the stock muffler on your truck - Ford used a couple different units on the late-model F-150, and you'll want to know the exact body length. Then you can take a look over at Magnaflow's web site, they are at www.magnaflow.com - look thru the S/S mufflers there (go stainless steel, forget aluminized) to find one or several you like, write down the Part numbers of the ones you like and then call us - we can go over the exact specs & pricing for each Part#, etc.
With regard to the tuning side of things, there I would recommend using the Superchips Micro Tuner - the Diablo unit is significantly more expensive. It does have one additional feature that is nice, being able to see the sensor PID's - that can be a useful feature. Overall, to me the Diablo unit is not worth the additional cost over the Superchips Micro Tuner - it's roughly about $100 more than the Superchips unit. The actual end result, the improvements in performance, are better in the Superchips tuning - there's more R&D in the Superchips tuning for this F-150 platform, as they've tuned a lot more of these F-150's, having been in the business for 20 years - we've worked with them for a decade on the tuning of these F-150's, so we know the R&D that has gone into these applications. At one time we also carried the Diablo line as well - in our experience in making direct comparisons between the two, the Superchips tuning gave us a better performance improvement, and Superchips also has a better automatic transmission calibration - much more linear & progressive, and driveability felt better.
You'll have 3 different performance tunes in the Superchips Micro Tuner - one for 87 octane that is towing-compatible, one for premium gas that is also towing compatible, and then our "max" performance tune for premium gas that is *not* towing compatible - it's for maximum performance. So you've got multi-octane capability & a program to cover every type of use.
And of course it's got the built in OBD-II code scanner, ability to recalibrate the speedometer for changes in gear ratio or tire size, ability to adjust shift points & shift pressures, etc.
The bottom line is, you'd probably be happy with either unit, and it's really not possible to go over all of this in proper detail here, by typing it all out. So if you'd like to learn more about this & go over the details, exact costs, etc., please give us a call at our number listed below & we'll be happy to go over this with you & answer any questions you may have, etc.
In the meantime, best of luck with your truck & whatever you decide to do, and we hope you'll hang out here with us in your spare time!
First, with regard to the muffler - we generally recommend not changing just the muffler as the power gains will be minimal - you might see another 3-5 HP on a 5.4 motor, and you probably won't see any difference in fuel mileage. We understand when someone really can't comfortably afford a proper complete cat-back system, a lot of people are in the same situation - and in those cases, we generally recommend saving your pennies until you *can* afford to do a complete cat-back system.
If you decide you're going to go ahead and do a muffler change, then go with a stainless steel Magnaflow unit - they are doing about the best job of flow-engineering, and will last the life of the vehicle. You'll want to get one that most closely matches the dimensions of your stock muffler for easiest installation, that has the same 2.5" inlet & outlet to match your stock exhaust tubing diameter. Usually you do best with a 22' to 30" long 5x11 oval, and it's a good idea to take a quick measurement of the stock muffler on your truck - Ford used a couple different units on the late-model F-150, and you'll want to know the exact body length. Then you can take a look over at Magnaflow's web site, they are at www.magnaflow.com - look thru the S/S mufflers there (go stainless steel, forget aluminized) to find one or several you like, write down the Part numbers of the ones you like and then call us - we can go over the exact specs & pricing for each Part#, etc.
With regard to the tuning side of things, there I would recommend using the Superchips Micro Tuner - the Diablo unit is significantly more expensive. It does have one additional feature that is nice, being able to see the sensor PID's - that can be a useful feature. Overall, to me the Diablo unit is not worth the additional cost over the Superchips Micro Tuner - it's roughly about $100 more than the Superchips unit. The actual end result, the improvements in performance, are better in the Superchips tuning - there's more R&D in the Superchips tuning for this F-150 platform, as they've tuned a lot more of these F-150's, having been in the business for 20 years - we've worked with them for a decade on the tuning of these F-150's, so we know the R&D that has gone into these applications. At one time we also carried the Diablo line as well - in our experience in making direct comparisons between the two, the Superchips tuning gave us a better performance improvement, and Superchips also has a better automatic transmission calibration - much more linear & progressive, and driveability felt better.
You'll have 3 different performance tunes in the Superchips Micro Tuner - one for 87 octane that is towing-compatible, one for premium gas that is also towing compatible, and then our "max" performance tune for premium gas that is *not* towing compatible - it's for maximum performance. So you've got multi-octane capability & a program to cover every type of use.
And of course it's got the built in OBD-II code scanner, ability to recalibrate the speedometer for changes in gear ratio or tire size, ability to adjust shift points & shift pressures, etc. The bottom line is, you'd probably be happy with either unit, and it's really not possible to go over all of this in proper detail here, by typing it all out. So if you'd like to learn more about this & go over the details, exact costs, etc., please give us a call at our number listed below & we'll be happy to go over this with you & answer any questions you may have, etc.
In the meantime, best of luck with your truck & whatever you decide to do, and we hope you'll hang out here with us in your spare time!
Last edited by Superchips_Distributor; Dec 10, 2003 at 01:50 PM.