Hey all, I have a 2002 L and im looking into putting a superchip in it, a couple concerns i had was that I really like where the shift points are in terms of downshifting while going uphill and what not, the L is always in the gear I need, will the chip affect this, and what changes has anyone noticed good or bad once you put the chip in, besides the horsepower increase . I have looked at a lot of info on this site on the subject so I apologize if this has been answered, but i didnt seem to find anything about the shift points. Thanks a lot.

 

Oh yeah one more thing, I use my L as a daily driver and dont take it to the track, so is a single program enough or is there a reason i may want a flip chip. Thanks again

 

I don't know too much about what a chip actually does for a L. It will make it shift harder though. That was the biggest difference it made on my truck and a friend who has a lightning also told me he noticed that it shifted firmer when he put a chip in his L.

My friend also uses his Lightning daily as a work truck and has a superchip in it and I haven't heard him have any complaints.

If you have any concerns, then I'd give Troyer Performance a call. They can tell you exactly what the chip will do. They also have great customer service. I've ordered virtually everything for my truck though them and have no complaints.

 

Hi avidian,

Using the Superchips tuning is not going to affect the downshift characteristics is the Lightnings, so you don't need to worry about that - it only affects the *upshift* characteristics, which it makes slightly higher at full-throttle for best acceleration and a bit firmer - both of which are welcome improvements to the stock calibration - never harsh, just right.

On a stock to lightly modified Lightning, you can get away with using a single program Superchip, even if you are drag racing.

Ideally, you are always better of with a multi-program type of unit so you can do things like retain the stock towing capacity if you want to, then have a "street performance" type of program, and then a drag race or "maximum performance" type of tune too, just for example. But you *can* use a single program chip in stock to lightly modified Lightnings, that will work if you're trying to save some money.

However, and this is important - these days, I would NOT use the standard blue single program and single-bank style Superchip on the Lightning or any supercharged vehicle - simply because there is something significantly better available. Instead, use our newer red 4-bank Superchip (available in both single and 4-program models), as our 4-bank unit can address the entire PCM's program in these Lightnings as opposed to the "standard" blue Superchip modules being able to address 1 bank. We can do much more in-depth tuning with that type of unit, with complete control over virtually every parameter in the PCM.

That is not absolutely *critical* right now if the truck is bone-stock, but it is the best way to go and will get better performance improvements even on a stock truck. And it may well turn out to be *very* important in the future, especially if you decide to do other performance modifications, as some areas of the 2001 & newer Lightning PCM programs simply cannot be accessed with the standard single-bank type of chip.

Ideally, the best thing to do would be to have us supply you with the new custom-tune capable version of the Micro Tuner, which we can load with any combination of 3 different custom programs - the vehicle does NOT have to be modified to get good benefit from our in-depth custom tuning, any vehicle will benefit from that. I prefer the Micro Tuner simply because the J3 port is not engaged as it is when you use *any* performance chip, thus you are not in any way limited in terms of doing diagnostics or datalogging as you are with any traditional performance chip in place. Some scan tools can't pick *anything* with a chip in place (like Ford's WDS system), while others, at best, can only pick up the completely generic OBD-II DTC's & some of the engine sensor PID's. With the custom version of the Micro Tuner to flash the PCM, there are no such limitations - and, you'd have 3 different programs available.

Now I'm not talking about the 1715 Micro Tuner, I'm talking about the new custom-tune capable (9100) Micro Tuner - you can read all about it over on our web site at www.TroyerPerformance.com - and feel free to give us a call to go over this in proper detail.

I know this is a lot to take in, and I don't mean to overwhelm you with all this additional info, it's just that you need to know. So don't hesitate to give us a call to cover all of this in proper detail.

Best of luck with your Lightning!

 

thanks for the replies. Mike you answered a bunch of questions I was thinking about so thanks for that, I think that the flip chip or the micro tuner probably is the best idea, right now Ive got my eye on the stage one performance kit on your site so that might be my next step have to check the ole budget hehe. Thanks again. Great information, lots to think about.

 

Hi avidian,

You're very welcome - and good luck with the budget, we all have to deal with that one.