Mike, Took my trip today about 400 miles with the new chip in the v 10, pulling about 20'000 lb. trailer. I noticed that it seemed to take alot longer for the transmission to shift down when comming to a hill. It would pull the rpm's down and waited longer to downshift.Is this part of the chip program or a result of the increase in power? I like the fact that it isn't hunting for a gear. Just curious, don't remember this being brought up before. Thanks Brian Groth

P.S believe it or not my last tank of fuel i got 97 miles out of 20.13 gallons of fuel(less than 5 mpg) LOL

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99 red lightening,psp filter kit,Superchip, bassani complete system
2-2000 arctic cat zr440 snopro's
built 5-26-99, #1610
2000 super duty v10
Arctic cat 400 4x4
99 chev c1500 pickup
2000 red Lightning on order 2-14-00

 

Another similar ? for Mike. F250, v10, 4X4, towing 7,000lb trailer. If towing a travel trailer above 5000ft is the main purpose of the truck should it have a custom program? Also would need a flipchip for 85-87 octane as will be traveling in many areas including mexico. Then, of course there is the question of 4whl drive. Rock crawling being the main need of the 4whl dr. How does the SC affect Low Range 4x4? Uh Oh! Do I need a triple flip chip? Mike, you and all the 150 folks have given me a real education on Superchips. Thanks Carl

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'00, F250, CC, XLT, SB, Auto, V10, 3.73LS, Island Blue, LT265/75/R16

 

bbgroth. Do you own a bank? Its very nice to have 2 lightnings.

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99 F250 XLT LD 4X4 S/C,5.4,3.73 Limited slip,Bright red clearcoat ,4whl abs,remote start w/keyless entry and alarm,chrome rims,tinted,westin nerf bars,factory tonneau,superchip,K&NGen II fipk,pioneer in dash cd,pioneer amp,infinity kappas all around,Lund front runner bug sheild.Gibson split rear,stull SS grilles.

 

Barlitz,
Nope just rob them. LOL

 

hahaha 97 miles on a 20 gallon tank hahah
thats so sad... lol i swear i feel for ya there buddy

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F150 97 4.6 v8 longbed
K&N Air filter
Hyper White xenon bulbs
Bedliner and Shell
6 disc cd changer

 

HI Brian,

Pulling over 20,000 lbs. behind that V-10, I'm amazed that it would even do it at all. That is obviously overloaded and beyond vehicle capacity, but you have to do what you have to do, of course. That's even beyond the Powerstroke's rated capacity of 20,000 lbs. total including vehicle & towed weight.

From our phone conversation, it took longer because you were not using cruise control, but instead were just keeping your right foot at the same throttle position, which causes a completely different response than if you instruct the vehicle to maintain a certain speed via cruise control setting. That is not going to allow the vehicle to follow it's "normal" strategies for satisfying throttle demand based on speed, in that situation it's load, and so you have to either wait, or give it more gas to downshift. It's assuming that you are content with what you're getting, because you have the cruise control off, and you're not giving it any more throttle as it slows down. Consequently, it's going to wait longer before downshifting, and that is basically true of almost any computer controlled automatic transmission vehicle, not just yours.

You see, just keeping your right foot at a steady throttle position, without cruise control on, the vehicle is not receiving any instructions to maintain a certain speed, so it's going to continue to drop speed until load finally overcomes velocity enough to cause it to finally downshift. That is not going to change unless you use cruise control, or give it more gas before that point.

Between the vehicle and your towed weight, you're well over 26,000 lbs., and may be closer to 27,000 or 28,000. That is a *tremendous* amount of weight. Heck, 20,000 total is a tremendous amount of weight, before adding the vehicle weight. I'm just glad the vehicle did it for you!

Must be built "Ford tough", eh?

------------------
Mike Troyer
Performance Products, Inc.
National Distributor of Superchips
(540) 862-9515
Email: mtroyer@compuserve.com
Online Superchip ordering system:https://www.f150online.com/scpp/index.html

[This message has been edited by Superchips_Distributor (edited 03-20-2000).]

 

Dear c7Carl,

Usually those vehicles already have a high-altitude calibration from the factory, if you live at that kind of elevation. We can easily set up a custom Flip Chip for you, so that you can use low-octane fuel in one program, and then on the other side have the normal performance program for premium gas, we do this all the time. 4WD doesn't matter at all to the Superchip, neither does low range operation. The Superchip has nothing to do with what gear range or how many wheels are applying power to the ground. The Superchip is going to tune the engine, and recalibrate the automatic transmission to be more responsive and given better performance in *any* situation, thanks to the fact that is adds power all the time.

Please feel free to give us a call to go over the details of your particular situation & needs.

------------------
Mike Troyer
Performance Products, Inc.
National Distributor of Superchips
(540) 862-9515
Email: mtroyer@compuserve.com
Online Superchip ordering system:https://www.f150online.com/scpp/index.html

[This message has been edited by Superchips_Distributor (edited 03-20-2000).]

 

Thanks Mike. I will be contacting you just as soon as the truck is delivered, probably near the end of May. Carl

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'00, F250, SD, XLT, Crewcab, Shortbed, Auto, V10, 3.73LS, CaptnChairs, Island Blue, LT265/75/R16, fulltime trailer pulling

 

Mik T. what about a set of J.B.A. headers on 4.6L W/S.CHIP dual flowmasters?????????
thanks for advice.

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BB
1997 4x4 Reg Cab xlt.4.6
Superchiped,flowmasters
bfgoodrich k.o.2657017
K&N filter(only)

 

Mike,
I put alot of miles on my F250 80-90%hwy but on weekends tow a 24ft HYDRA-SPORTS boat (5000+lb).I plan to get true duel exhaust & a chip soon. Besides the upgrades in my profile. How would the chip help me with towing and hwy driving. (mpg & hp)
I also would like to know what other easy add-ons would help? T-body spacer??

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F250,XLT,LD,5.4L,4X2,BLACKSUPERCAB,AUTO,3.73GEARS, CLASS IV TOW PACKAGE,CROME RIMS,4 WHEEL DISK ABS, TINTED WINDOWS, SHORTBED,K&N GEN-II FILTERCHARGER,GIBSON SS HEADERS,CRAFTSMAN TRUCK BOX,DIAMOND PLATE BED COVER,TRANS COOLER, LUND BUG SHIELD, LINE-X BED LINER

 

Dear bobbyboy,

Headers make an excellent addition to your vehicle, and we like the JBA headers especially. Make sure you have them Jet-Hot coated! It adds a bit to the price, but it's more than worth it.

The JBA headers generally add about 12 horsepower on the 4.6 engine.

Most of the time you don't need a custom program in your Superchip to work with the headers. Sometimes we'll see that when you already have an airbox elimination kit and a free-flowing exhaust, that the headers will add just enough airflow to make the vehicle go just a tad lean, and if that happens, you'll know it from hearing a bit of spark knock on heavy throttle. If that happens, you'll need a custom program adjustment, which is a small fee and your existing Superchip can easily be updated for this. What we suggest is to go ahead and install the headers, and then listen closely during the first 2000 miles or so for any sounds of detonation. (spark knock, pre-ignition, "pinging", whatever you want to call it) If you hear it after installing the headers, that will mean it's gone a bit lean, and you need to have your Superchip program compensated accordingly.

Just to give you an idea, among our customers, a custom program is rarely needed for headers, probably about 15% of the time, as a rough guess.

Headers are #4 on the best bang-for-the-buck list of modifications for your vehicle, and given what you've already done, they're an excellent next step to gain more power.

Good luck!

------------------
Mike Troyer
Performance Products, Inc.
National Distributor of Superchips
(540) 862-9515
Email: mtroyer@compuserve.com
Online Superchip ordering system:https://www.f150online.com/scpp/index.html

 

Dear Jigger,

First, when you do your exhaust changes, I recommend that you do *not* go with a "true dual" exhaust system, as it will reduce your low end torque very noticeably in most cases. True duals will slow down the flow of the spent exhaust stream, and thus hurt lower rpm torque. You'll get more high-rpm horsepower from it, but that is the exact opposite of what you want for towing. Towing requires torque in the low to mid-range, on part-throttle. Most exhaust system manufacturers, like Gibson for example, will recommend that you go with a single cat-back setup for towing.

It used to be that you always could count on a good power gain throughout the entire rpm range by going to a set of duals on any V-8 engine, but that was because of the very small diameter of the factory exhaust systems years ago. Nowadays, the factory exhaust systems are 2.5 inches instead of 1.5 inches like they used to be years ago, so they flow considerably better to begin with. They're still restrictive, but not as badly as they used to be. These days for towing you want a single 2.5 inch or 3 inch system for best power where you need it for that purpose.

I would suggest that you speak directly to a couple of exhaust system manufacturers, and get their opinions on this, so you'll feel comfortable with this info.

The Superchip will help no matter what you use the vehicle for, as it adds power all the time, at any throttle position. On your 5.4 F-250 LD, figure it's going to add somewhere between 26-28 horsepower, and 42-46 lbs./ft. of torque, peak. With regards to gas mileage, most people do tend to see a small improvement, usually averaging about 1.5 - 2.0 more mpg, when you're not using heavy throttle. Anytime you have to use a lot of heavy throttle, I wouldn't expect to see much of an improvement in that situation, of course. The improvement in gas mileage is simply a by-product of the increased spark advance used on part-throttle, rather than something that was deliberately designed into the product specifically for better fuel mileage in gasoline engines; so your results will depend on how you drive the vehicle, what kind of load it's under, and the energy content of your fuel supply.

Here are the top 4 bang-for-the-buck modifications to increase power in these vehicles, along with the gains each gives for your vehicle:

1.) Optimize the vehicle's programming, with the Superchip. 26-28 hp. 2.) Reduce restriction on the intake side, using either the Airaid or the K&N airbox elimination kits. 14 hp 3.) Reduce restriction on the exhaust side, using a good name-brand cat-back exhaust system. 10 hp for most of them.

Each of these mods above will help to add power all the time, and each also tends to help give a little bit better gas mileage as well. Some of this you have already addressed.

I hope that answers your questions,

------------------
Mike Troyer
Performance Products, Inc.
National Distributor of Superchips
(540) 862-9515
Email: mtroyer@compuserve.com
Online Superchip ordering system:https://www.f150online.com/scpp/index.html

[This message has been edited by Superchips_Distributor (edited 03-21-2000).]

 

Mike what about the throttle body spacer?
Would that help with the torque? HP?

 

Dear JIGGER,

I honestly do not know for a fact about any power gains from that spacer on these vehicles, I don't have any feedback or dyno results on that part.

Spacers used on engines with carbs instead of fuel injection have generally worked well in terms of adding a bit more power, but that is because they effectively increase the plenum area of the "conventional" intake manifold. They are installed underneath the carb, and also help to isolate the carb from some of the engine heat, and thus help to keep the gasoline a bit cooler too.

I will take a guess and say that I don't *think* that this part can actually add a real power gain, but that is nothing more than a guess, and I could easily be wrong; once again, I have no hard data on that. If you do happen to install it, let us know what you think, ok?

------------------
Mike Troyer
Performance Products, Inc.
National Distributor of Superchips
(540) 862-9515
Email: mtroyer@compuserve.com
Online Superchip ordering system:https://www.f150online.com/scpp/index.html