Regarding the 'programming' on the heavily
discussed 'superchip'?
I rarely exceed 100mph in my 97 F150 4.9...
but often wish for more real 'mid-range'.

Are there any 'variations' to the factory
programming that would 'set' the timing
for a more mid-range grunt effect?

Thanks.

 

So 100 mph is midrange fer you? :-)

 

Heheheh, well... no. I guess that sounded
like it though.

I like the 97 F150 (not 4WD) 4.9... have
about 68K on her and we get 20 on the
long hauls at 68 (no cruise control..
DOES anyone else notice CC raises your
mileage??).. about 14 or 15 around town...
Best milage was 21.2 on a return trip from
N.California, down 495 at night... great
time.

But here in sunny and hot S. California the
freeways require some work on occasion and
the truck has grunt, I just want more.

To be honest, I don't wanna drive at 100 to
often, but would love a better 40-70 time.

Another question I had was the 'exhaust'
systems that compliment the 'superchip'??
Anyone got a good experience with any in
particular and does that require another
change to the chip??

Thanks.

 

Hi Doc,

Well, the "Big 6" as we call it, was designed to make a lot of torque down low, and it runs out of steam much over 4000 rpm due to it's camshaft profile. The Superchip for that application adds 15 horsepower and 31 lbs./ft. of torque, and it adds power at every throttle position, so it will help to give more mid-range torque.

If your engine uses a distributor that still allows manual timing adjustments (and I don't remember off the top of my head what years have that in the 4.9 motor), then you can twist it and dial in more spark advance, but doing it that way is a gross adjustment that dumps in the same amount of advance all across the rpm range, rather than optimizing it exactly at every rpm like the Superchip does. Changing the programming in the computer allows much more precise control of those parameters, and allows us to make more power safely.

As far as exhaust changes, the Superchip will work very well with exhaust system changes, and also with changes to reduce restriction on the intake side as well. There are two "basic" things to look at modifying there in terms of reducing restriction on both the intake & exhaust sides: first, using K&N's FIPK kit that eliminates the restrictive factory airbox and replaces it with a low restriciton air tube & much larger conical K&N air filter element(I don't think Airaid, a K&N competitor, makes their similar kit for that motor), and second, installing a good cat-back exhaust system. The K&N FIPK kit adds about 10 more horsepower in that application, and a good cat-back exhaust can add about 9-10 horsepower on the 4.9 motor. Either or both of those will work very nicely with the Superchip.

The FIPK kit & exhaust systems are available here in the F-150 Online store (just click on the link on the left side of your screen that says "Online Store"), and the Superchip is of course available from us. We also have an online ordering system right here on F-150 Online, that you can acces by clicking on the link listed just below in my signature line.

Please feel free to give us a call if you'd like to go over all the details, etc., we'll be happy to go over all of that with you, so you can give it some thought before deciding what you want to do.

Best of luck with your truck,

------------------
Mike Troyer
Performance Products, Inc.
National Distributor of Superchips
(540) 862-9515
Email: mtroyer@compuserve.com
Performance Products F150Online Superchip ordering system: F150Online Superchip Ordering System
First National F-150 Online Rally Info:https://www.f150online.com/rally2000/index.html

 

Oh, Mike, I 'screwed' up!!!
Man, I do NOT have the 4.9... I have
the 4.6 V8 (right.. 1997 F150... not
the smallest V8, not the biggest... darn!)

So, could you 're-address' my queries? Sorry
for being so lame... don't know why I kept
thinking that it was that gas hogging
straight 6!

sorry...

 

And while you're at it, I've got a question for Mike, too.

I've got a 2000 F150 with the 4.6 V8, and most of my driving is in the city, either 4 lane streets, freeway on-ramps, or stop and go. I don't like the way the tranny shifts. Usually, it goes into a higher gear just when I need the lower gear. Is a superchip slightly more aggressive in terms of shift points? And how is it useful for city driving?

 

Hi Doc,

Hey, you're already fitting in around here very nicely, as we all make mistakes from time to time! I should have picked up on you mentioning it was a 1997 model!

OK, the 4.6 V-8 picks up 26 horsepower and 40 lbs./ft. of torque with the Superchip, and has much different characteristics than the 4.9 Big 6. The overhead cam design tends to make it's power up in the higher rpm ranges, so it does not run out of steam at 4000 rpm like the Big 6 does.

It has no provision for adjusting the timing like earlier engines, so the Superchip is the way to optimize the timing, as well as many other functions. The automatic transmission programming leaves much to be desired from the factory, and so we spend quite a bit of R&D on recalibrating it's characteristics, making the vehicle much more responsive and enjoyable to drive.

What I posted in the first response holds true here as well in other regards, the Superchip for the 4.6 will work just fine with most of the popular bolt-ons. Since it is a 1997, you also have another option for opening up the intake, as both K&N and Airaid makes kits for the 1997 & newer models, instead of K&N only on the older trucks, and we prefer the Airaid brand between the 2.

That should cover it, and of course feel free to give us a shout to go over all of this in more detail.

------------------
Mike Troyer
Performance Products, Inc.
National Distributor of Superchips
(540) 862-9515
Email: mtroyer@compuserve.com
Performance Products F150Online Superchip ordering system: F150Online Superchip Ordering System
First National F-150 Online Rally Info:https://www.f150online.com/rally2000/index.html

 

Hi Page62,

The Superchip helps in *any* driving situation, by virtue of the fact that it adds more power at all throttle positions, making the vehicle more responsive to your right foot.

And you will absolutely love what it does to correct the automatic transmission programming. Ford uses a shift delay signal to deliberately elongate and soften the upshift, and we pull that out. They also reduce engine power during and just after the upshift, and we remove that as well. Last, we bump the line pressure up lightly to make it have a more positive shift "feel". The end result is a much more direct connection between your right foot and the powertrain, with fimer and quicker shifting and better power. We also look at safety issues, for example there is a 1.5 second dowshift delay which we remove as well, so you can make better passing moves on 2-lane roads. You don't have to back up and get a run at the vehicle ahead of you anymore, like you do with the factory programming when you step down on the throttle to pull out and pass someone.

This is all part of Fords "soft-shift" strategy, and other automakers do this as well, it's not just Ford by any means. A lot of what we do to the transmission programming is designed to reduce slippage, to keep the transmission healthy longer.

Some of what you are experiencing is part of Fords strategies to improve gas mileage, that's why it is so quick to get up into the higher gears. The Superchip helps by increasing torque at any throttle position, so the vehicle is more responsive.

Please feel free to give us a shout and we'll be happy to go over all the specific details with you.

Best of luck with your truck,

------------------
Mike Troyer
Performance Products, Inc.
National Distributor of Superchips
(540) 862-9515
Email: mtroyer@compuserve.com
Performance Products F150Online Superchip ordering system: F150Online Superchip Ordering System
First National F-150 Online Rally Info:https://www.f150online.com/rally2000/index.html

 

Doc,

Remember that muscle cars had gross HP ratings (at the engine), while newer vehicles have net HP ratings (where the rubber meets the road). 300 HP today is a heck of a lot more power than 300 HP was back in the 60's.

Anyhow, click on "Online Store" on the upper left corner of any F150 Online page. They sell the Airaid right here. (You'll also find all kinds of feedback about it in the Engines forum.)

 

Great, I'll check it out. I did find a site
for the makers. Sounds pretty neat...

Yup, rear tire vs flywheel... although some
of those 426s came out with Dyno tests putting them in the 500hp ratio... did you
ever ride in one? The sounds and the
shifts, whew! Very visceral. And still
very fast...

 

Hi Mike,
thank you for your timely responses. I would
like to know more about the 'airaid' as
an addition to your chip?
I don't know that I've ever heard of them,
versus the K&N (which I use in the air
filter ONLY configuration, no kit.)

I grew up in the muscle car era... the
Muncie people. Those Camero makers in
N.J. that had 450+HP on the road... and
I spent most of my time in a 426Hemi GTX...
not mine, but a friends. A very neat
car. Had taken off the stock dual 4 carters
and put on big Hollys... some major exhaust
work. Of course it came with mediocre
rear ends but posi at least. Very fast car.

Now, I guess I'm leaning towards doing this
to my Ford (I note the soft shift, always
hated it... had someone put 'chevy'
tranny fluid in... have a pretty good 'new'
tranny guy and when he put the Ford product
back in, the shifting has defin. improved
but still very soft and mushy... exactly
as you mention, it 'feels' like it is slipping.

So, I will either call or online order...
what is the "customization" concepts that I
hear you offer? And tell me where I can
see this air kit.. thanks.

 

Hi Doc,

You and I must be somewhat close in age, as I remember quite well the Baldwin/Motion Performance Chevy's, and their package that was *guaranteed* to run 11.0 or better with their driver. Those were the days!

And yes, the Hemi cars were all monsters, yes indeed. We used to run a big-block early GTX car.

The Airaid kit, as was mentioned, is available in F-150 Online's Online Store. It's our favorite airbox elimination kit for these vehicles. It costs the same and makes the same power gains as K&N's FIPK kit which does the same basic thing.

Nowadays the horsepower ratings are SAE Net at the flywheel, with exhaust system and all accessories (alternator, fan, etc.) installed and operating, which gives a much more accurate picture of what actually gets delivered to the flywheel. You're absolutely right that some of those Hemi's did make over 500 gross horsepower! 500 gross hp would be roughly about 400 hp SAE Net by today's ratings for that car I'm guessing, plenty of power for that weight, drool, drool.

Have you seen what has happened to the prices of the "wing cars"? There is one on the showroom floor at a dealership right here in the mountains that has less than 8000 miles on it, it's not a Hemi (those very very rare in wing cars, and can command upwards of $500,000) but it has the 440 automatic package. They DX'd it from a Florida dealer back when it was new, and they drove down to meet the Florida dealer halfway to but the car new from that other dealer, a "dealer exchange" (DX). It's of course all original, including the *horrible* paint jobs those wing cars got back then, but it's sure a rare beauty.

Thanks for the blast down memory lane.........

------------------
Mike Troyer
Performance Products, Inc.
National Distributor of Superchips
(540) 862-9515
Email: mtroyer@compuserve.com
Performance Products F150Online Superchip ordering system: F150Online Superchip Ordering System
First National F-150 Online Rally Info:https://www.f150online.com/rally2000/index.html

 

Oh yes, I do well remember the 'wings'...
Cross between the 'rolling coffins' and the
RR's... 440 Wedge with RAM... recall
Motion Performance and the 'collector'
road in N.Y. (forget the exact name of it,
but all the mags talked about the midnite
drags - someone rolled a fuelie off there
and fired it up, ran, trailered it and
was gone.
There was a terrific article in MotorTrend..
about getting into the 426 Charger and
running thru the gears... it was a third
person article and talked about being
pressed back into the seat and getting some
good scratch from 2nd to 3rd at about 90+
(well, or so it said..)
Connecticut Dragway was my hangout and the
65 Plymouths with the square-ish butts and
big *** soft slicks!
Was it Ross and Martin or something like that. Fast Mopars... yeah, loved that time
and just yesterday (here in S. Cal.) saw a
great looking 'stock' drk. green RoadRunner.
Defin. was not the 383 version, but ever
so fine.
Wow... some great machines. Lost era, even
though things are fast, powerful and hi-tech,
those days were different then today. Just
something!@...
Thanks for the info. I'll be doing this in
another two or three weeks. Superchip and the
breather kit...
Can anyone SUGGEST a good exhaust to go with
the combo (don't care about 'sound', has to
do something for efficiency and power for me
to buy it... ). Thanks.

 

Hey Doc,

That was "Sox & Martin", by the way. There was a short film made that shows Sox rowing the 4-speed in a stock Mopar muscle car for a 1/4 mile run, that was done to show just how fast he can shift, and it was absolutely amazing. I have *never* seen anyone who could row a 4-speed like him, either on film or in person. He moved so quick that my *immediate* sensation the shift had occured was not the motion of his hands but the sound of the screeching tires, as the brain doesn't pick it up the first time around just by sight it's so quick & blurred, or at least that was the effect it had on me, Sox is *that* quick with a 4-speed, that film made my jaw drop. And no, before anyone asks, I have no idea where anyone could get a copy, nor do I have one, sorry!

On exhaust systems for these heavy F-150's, the systems designed for "towing" seem to do the best job, as they do not punch a hole in the torque curve down low, so just be aware of that. There are any number of good name brands of cat-back exhaust systems available for these trucks.

Good luck!

------------------
Mike Troyer
Performance Products, Inc.
National Distributor of Superchips
(540) 862-9515
Email: mtroyer@compuserve.com
Performance Products F150Online Superchip ordering system: F150Online Superchip Ordering System
First National F-150 Online Rally Info:https://www.f150online.com/rally2000/index.html

 

Hi Mike,
Thanks for the memories, Sox and Martin,
that was it! There was another competing
Mopar group, they were always neck and neck.
I recall the Hurst Shifters that were so
popular. Some guys were bending the stocks
systems...

Okay, I ordered the air intake system (have
100gals on a Priceline card of regular gas
for this month, so will wait another two
weeks and get Premium for next month..)
and will order the chip in a couple of weeks.

So tell me what are the custom 'changes' I've
seen mentioned?

Will do the exhaust later.

Appreciate the exchange. Take care.