Go with exhaust first or wait until chip available?
#1
12-18-2003, 10:38 AM
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#2
12-19-2003, 02:19 PM
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I guess what I am asking is, if you put a chip in first and
then add a duel exhaust would you have to retune the chip to make up for the duel exhaust. Really for that matter if you have a chip in and add other engine mods do you have to retune the
truck to get the best performance? I have never added a chip
or considered doing anything other than leaving it stock, but this
site has a way of making you think about doing upgrades.
then add a duel exhaust would you have to retune the chip to make up for the duel exhaust. Really for that matter if you have a chip in and add other engine mods do you have to retune the
truck to get the best performance? I have never added a chip
or considered doing anything other than leaving it stock, but this
site has a way of making you think about doing upgrades.
#4
12-19-2003, 09:10 PM
Former Sponsor
Hi JDaddy,
Congratulations on your 2004 F-150!
In terms of which to do first, tuning or exhaust, or even what mod to do first overall from the standpoint of best bang for the buck, that is always an optimized powertrain program - what you referred to as a "chip."
Now in the case of the 2004 F-150, we are already offering the tuning for the 2004 3-valve 5.4 F-150 - we can do that for you right now. Due to the design of the PCM's used in the new F-150's, it can't take a traditional performance chip, the PCM has to be flashed like many other vehicles these days - you'll need to give us a call for details on that of course, but we can do that right *now*. Top speed limiter will be removed also, and I can tell you from driving 850 miles yesterday from Orlando back to Virginia that in our 2004 F-150, with that TS limiter off I was able to go faster than the platform was stable at in the high winds I had to drive thru at that point - it will bury that 120 mph speedo by a good amount! I got up to the left side of the "A" in "Lariat" before I backed off, and that's gotta be a good 128 to maybe even 130 mph. That's with no tonneau cover, the tailgate up and those huge mirrors not folded in, etc. I had the road, but not the nerve to push that tall 4x4 SuperCrew any faster - the 2004's are taller than before, and I just didn't feel really relaxed & comfortable going much over 110 mph or so in the 20-30 mph crosswinds we had last night - I won't be trying to top it out again - at least not until we lower it & have no winds & get to a racetrack!
So in terms of what's going to give you the most performance gain, it's the tuning - we just made 24.0 HP & well over 40+ lbs./ft. of torque at the wheels on our 2004 F-150 3-valve 5.4 motor on 93 octane - and those are the *peak* gains at the rear wheels! In fact, we probably gained more torque than that, as we consistently saw anywhere from 343-350 lbs./ft. to the wheels on Superchip's eddy-current dyno on our truck - that was before & after'd at about 65 degrees ambient & 80%+ humidity - and it's rated at only 365 at the flywheel stock. We also had another identical 2004 5.4 F-150 there that saw 13 HP gains on 87 octane. We're also controlling the transmission shifting very nicely, making it shift much better, firmer, quicker, & have better throttle response, driveability, downshifts, etc.
Now in terms of which do you actually do *first*? That's strictly up to you - you do whatever you feel will make you happiest. We are already shipping the new Magnaflow cat-back system for the 2004 F-150 too, and it's doing a very nice job - you'll love how it sounds. Heck, call us & have us work out a combo deal for you, so you can get both at the same time - and gain upwards of 40 HP & 60+ lbs./ft. of torque for Christmas!
Seriously, if I had to choose between the tuning and the exhaust, for me I would always do the tuning first, simply because that will get you the best performance gain between those 2 mods - and of course, I'm probably biased towards tuning anyway, but again, it's because of the bang for the buck value relative to other mods. The bottom line is you can go with whatever *you* feel you'll like to have first the most, as either way you'll enjoy it.
Good luck with your decision & Merry Christmas!
Congratulations on your 2004 F-150!
In terms of which to do first, tuning or exhaust, or even what mod to do first overall from the standpoint of best bang for the buck, that is always an optimized powertrain program - what you referred to as a "chip."
Now in the case of the 2004 F-150, we are already offering the tuning for the 2004 3-valve 5.4 F-150 - we can do that for you right now. Due to the design of the PCM's used in the new F-150's, it can't take a traditional performance chip, the PCM has to be flashed like many other vehicles these days - you'll need to give us a call for details on that of course, but we can do that right *now*. Top speed limiter will be removed also, and I can tell you from driving 850 miles yesterday from Orlando back to Virginia that in our 2004 F-150, with that TS limiter off I was able to go faster than the platform was stable at in the high winds I had to drive thru at that point - it will bury that 120 mph speedo by a good amount! I got up to the left side of the "A" in "Lariat" before I backed off, and that's gotta be a good 128 to maybe even 130 mph. That's with no tonneau cover, the tailgate up and those huge mirrors not folded in, etc. I had the road, but not the nerve to push that tall 4x4 SuperCrew any faster - the 2004's are taller than before, and I just didn't feel really relaxed & comfortable going much over 110 mph or so in the 20-30 mph crosswinds we had last night - I won't be trying to top it out again - at least not until we lower it & have no winds & get to a racetrack!
So in terms of what's going to give you the most performance gain, it's the tuning - we just made 24.0 HP & well over 40+ lbs./ft. of torque at the wheels on our 2004 F-150 3-valve 5.4 motor on 93 octane - and those are the *peak* gains at the rear wheels! In fact, we probably gained more torque than that, as we consistently saw anywhere from 343-350 lbs./ft. to the wheels on Superchip's eddy-current dyno on our truck - that was before & after'd at about 65 degrees ambient & 80%+ humidity - and it's rated at only 365 at the flywheel stock. We also had another identical 2004 5.4 F-150 there that saw 13 HP gains on 87 octane. We're also controlling the transmission shifting very nicely, making it shift much better, firmer, quicker, & have better throttle response, driveability, downshifts, etc.
Now in terms of which do you actually do *first*? That's strictly up to you - you do whatever you feel will make you happiest. We are already shipping the new Magnaflow cat-back system for the 2004 F-150 too, and it's doing a very nice job - you'll love how it sounds. Heck, call us & have us work out a combo deal for you, so you can get both at the same time - and gain upwards of 40 HP & 60+ lbs./ft. of torque for Christmas!
Seriously, if I had to choose between the tuning and the exhaust, for me I would always do the tuning first, simply because that will get you the best performance gain between those 2 mods - and of course, I'm probably biased towards tuning anyway, but again, it's because of the bang for the buck value relative to other mods. The bottom line is you can go with whatever *you* feel you'll like to have first the most, as either way you'll enjoy it.
Good luck with your decision & Merry Christmas!
#5
12-22-2003, 08:39 AM
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Location: Wisconsin
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Mike thank you for your reply. I dont beleive I will ever want to take the truck up to the speeds you were talking about, but there is always bragging rights to my chevy owning friends that it
will do that. I was happy to see the part about the better throttle
response as my father in law took the truck out for a ride and
that was the first thing he stated when he got back , that there
seems to be a lag from the time he hit the throttle and when it took off. I am pretty sure that he is going to get a 04 himself
and I told him that the lag time in response was a result of the drive by wire system in the Ford's. Thanks again for your response
and havea great holiday.
will do that. I was happy to see the part about the better throttle
response as my father in law took the truck out for a ride and
that was the first thing he stated when he got back , that there
seems to be a lag from the time he hit the throttle and when it took off. I am pretty sure that he is going to get a 04 himself
and I told him that the lag time in response was a result of the drive by wire system in the Ford's. Thanks again for your response
and havea great holiday.
#6
12-23-2003, 02:07 PM
Former Sponsor
Hi JDaddy,
>>>I don't believe I will ever want to take the truck up to the speeds you were talking about, but there is always bragging rights.........<<<
I hear you! I don't do top-end runs very often at all these days - we usually just do the 0-60 & 1/4 mile times, but we didn't have a chance to get to a drag strip during that R&D session, but did have the opportunity to just let it wind. This was just one of those one-off opportunities where we had the road & we could do a top-end run in "relative" safety - as I mentioned, we won't be doing a top-end run on that truck again until it's lowered & we're at another suitable location. But it *is* nice to know that with nothing more than our tuning we can turn 130 mph or so at the full 6000 lb. weight of a 2004 4x4 SuperCrew Lariat, with the mirrors out & the tailgate up - that's what 350 lbs./ft. of torque at the wheels will do!
The "lag" you speak of in the throttle response of the ETC system (electronic throttle control, otherwise known as "throttle by wire") is aided by our tuning - this whole issue of the throttle by wire is really just a matter of getting used to it, putting some miles on the vehicle - at this point, I'm used to it and it works well now that our truck is tuned. When we first got our 2004, I complained about backing up from a standstill, how the throttle response was a bit delayed for things like backing up to a trailer in inclement weather/road conditions, for example - but not any more. Between getting used to it and our tuning, I'm pretty well satisfied at this point. I now have about 7000 miles of seat time in our '04 Lariat, and it's a great truck - we love it, and I'm sure your father-in-law will, too. It's like driving a lifted Caddy.
Have fun,
>>>I don't believe I will ever want to take the truck up to the speeds you were talking about, but there is always bragging rights.........<<<
I hear you! I don't do top-end runs very often at all these days - we usually just do the 0-60 & 1/4 mile times, but we didn't have a chance to get to a drag strip during that R&D session, but did have the opportunity to just let it wind. This was just one of those one-off opportunities where we had the road & we could do a top-end run in "relative" safety - as I mentioned, we won't be doing a top-end run on that truck again until it's lowered & we're at another suitable location. But it *is* nice to know that with nothing more than our tuning we can turn 130 mph or so at the full 6000 lb. weight of a 2004 4x4 SuperCrew Lariat, with the mirrors out & the tailgate up - that's what 350 lbs./ft. of torque at the wheels will do!
The "lag" you speak of in the throttle response of the ETC system (electronic throttle control, otherwise known as "throttle by wire") is aided by our tuning - this whole issue of the throttle by wire is really just a matter of getting used to it, putting some miles on the vehicle - at this point, I'm used to it and it works well now that our truck is tuned. When we first got our 2004, I complained about backing up from a standstill, how the throttle response was a bit delayed for things like backing up to a trailer in inclement weather/road conditions, for example - but not any more. Between getting used to it and our tuning, I'm pretty well satisfied at this point. I now have about 7000 miles of seat time in our '04 Lariat, and it's a great truck - we love it, and I'm sure your father-in-law will, too. It's like driving a lifted Caddy.
Have fun,