When I first received the Xcal 2 with 87 perf., 87 tow and 93 perf. tunes I intstalled and ran the 87 perf. tune for about 500 miles (yeah I wanted to run her down enough to fill up on 93 and switch tunes but blacked-out and filled up on 87).

Anyway, the 87 perf. knocked my socks off, the shifts, the throttle response.. Felt like a completely different truck. Y'all know what I mean.

So finally was able to fill up with 93 and switch to the 93 perf. tune and have been running that for about 1,000 miles now.. I noticed a bit better takeoff response with the 93 tune, the shifts seemed to be the same..

So today I switched back to the 87 perf tune, basically full tank of 93, and I have to say I think I'll just stay with the 87 tune. The difference in launching seems to be minimal, the shifts seem the same, it still makes a world of difference over stock.. So with it all being about equal I reckon I'll pump the 87 gas..

What am I missing here?.. What does that 93 perf. tune offer as any advantage over the 87 perf. tune? Honestly, to my butt dyno they feel pretty much the same.

So I think I'll stay on the 87 perf and save .20 a gallon, only because I can't feel that much of a difference..

All comments and opinions welcome!!

 

https://www.f150online.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=302789

You might check out the above post that I did this summer. I had run the 87 tune for 6 or 7 months, then finally decided to try the 90 (that's all we get up north). Over several thousand miles before and after, making the same long distance commute over the summer, I ended up with 1.8 mpg better with the 90 tune. That would pay for the premium, and I read one of Troyer's posts that said the higher the price of gas goes, the better off you are with the higher octane-because the price split stays at the same $.20. Something to consider,.

 

A 3" AF1 and a less restrictive exhaust(stay away from baffles) will make your tunes even more enjoyable

 

I have flowmaster true dual 40's. My buddy went to have his done, the same as mine, and the dealer said that it was a waste of money. The true duals dont help. Was the flowmaster dealer correct? Or, was he an idiot? Does any know for a FACT either way? I also have a Volant Cai, and Xcal3 with custom tunes on the way.

 

A properly set up true duel system should gain power all the way across the power band. My first true duel system was with the same mufflers as you and i had poor results. I switched mufflers to magnaflow, added an X-Pipe and the difference is night and day. I myself would leave it stock before i did a true duel system with flowmasters again.

 

Pretty much the same with my experience. I ran the 87 perf tune for about 6 months and then when I came to Hawaii I ran my first tank of 92 (the highest out here) and switched to the 92 perf tune. Didn't get that wow factor like I had when I first installed the 87 perf tune. Guess I had just become accustomed to the feeling of the truck and there was little to be gained by switching tunes. I am on my 3rd tank of 92 and using the 92 perf tune. I'll probably be switching back to the 87 perf tune after this tank. Maybe I'll notice some sort of difference.

 

x2-phil

 

Actually, been using the 3" AF1 and Borla cat-back for about 7 months before getting the tunes.

Those DID help, even before tunes.

After switching back to the 87 perf. for a couple days now (I only did it to show a friend how easy it was to change between tunes) I think the main difference I notice is in initial throttle response. The 93 perf wants to, will, spin the tires with anything more than a cautious touch. The 87 will do the same but takes a concious effort, as in 1/2 throttle instead of 1/4. Does that make sense?

Other than that the shifts seem the same, I have no gripe whatsoever with either tune, absolutely love what they've done for my truck. I haven't tried the 87 tow tune yet, I think I may do that this week just too see how it feels, not that I'll be towing anything anytime soon.. Just to see if there's any difference in the shifting mainly.

Only reason I brought this up is that gas is getting ridiculous again and I'm just not convinced that the difference between the tunes justifies .25 to .30 more a gallon at this point. If gas prices ever drop some, then I'll not hesitate to go back to the 93 tune.

 

I may be wrong, but I thought the 93 tune increased gas mileage so it evened out the price.

 

Hey Tex, I’ve been running TP’s custom tunes since 12-03-04, totally trouble free. The 87 octane performance is excellent but the 93 max performance is better IMO but either way you can’t go wrong

 

I agree 100%, either make it a different truck!

Just one thing more to add.. LOL

Upon getting off of work tonight there was a nasty little "light" rain falling.. not a downpour, just enough to slick the roads. And it was the first non-downpour rain I've driven in since installing the tunes. Never had a problem in the heavy rain, I guess it washes away the oil and grime enough the traction's okay.

Man, the truck was almost un-driveable!!.. In a fun way..

Got sideways, I mean 90 degrees or so, 3 times just drivin' home. And I was driving carefully.. lol... Hasn't rained here really in about a month so the roads are fouled, and I know an empty bed is gonna want to slide some, but holy crap!!.

It was an interesting drive home!!

 

Tuners:
If your using the higher octane programming and getting an additional 1.8mpg out of the deal you might be spending more on gas than what you think, depending on how much the difference is. Here in Colorado, 87octane (depending on where you buy) can be purchased for $2.829 while 91octane runs $3.249. If you're only adding 1.8mpg you are spending approximately $65 more per year - assuming 15K miles per year, 18mpg w/ 87octane, and rounding up, 20mpg on 91octane. Just to break even you will have to get better than 20mpg - but less than 21mpg. I know, what a killjoy, right? Lets not forget, and no slam intended here, but any company that peddles their goods on this forum are here to make a profit. Take SuperChips for example...did they bother to tell anyone that was purchasing their Flashpaq tuners for the 3valve F-150's that their programming was NOT optimized for use with Cold Air Intakes? No! They marketed their product based upon everyone's desire for "power and performance". In fact, use of the 87octane programming and a CAI will decrease your fuel economy...in my case 3+mpg were lost. So never forget, while vendors may help us on this forum, they are here to also make a buck - plain and simple!

If anyone is interested, I have an Excel spreadsheet that I built that will enable you to calculate what you spend on gas based on yearly mileage, cost of gas, etc. You can even compare the cost of using 87 vs. 91 octane side by side, based upon the mileage you get with either fuel. If you'd like to have a copy, send a email to: moltman@comcast.net, and I will send it to you. I would post it here but I honestly dont know how.

 

I have Troyer Tunes but right now I am running the 87 tune with mid grade 89 octane and it really performs well. I would compare it to the 93 perf.

 

Interesting.. However I think most folks who purchase tunes, custom or canned, realize that while they'll spend more per gallon they're willing to do that for the performance gains. And again most who want tunes, to improve performance, are gonna USE that performance - as in laying the right foot down more often than not.

As far as vendors want to sell their goods.. well, of course. But I'd highly recommend to anyone to do some research before making any sort of modification to their vehicle. Such research would reveal that the Flashpaq, and other canned tunes, are intended for use with stock vehicles. They can't compensate or adjust for who the hell knows what you've done to your engine.

My experience with mods to my '05 4.6L Screw are like this:

Completly stock I got 17.4 mpg highway.

I put on a Borla cat-back and my highway mpg went up to 19.2.

I then put on a 3" AF1 intake kit and my highway mileage remained 19.2.

I've since installed custom tunes from Troyer and on both the 87 performance and 93 performance tunes I've averaged 18.8 mpg highway. It would better but I pass on the two-lane roads like I never dared to before the tunes.

I calculate mileage the old-fashioned way, fill up, drive, fill up and do the math.

So my experience is that the best thing to do for increased mileage is to install a quality straight through exhaust.

 

If you are looking for fuel mileage, “feather-foot-it”, it works, no matter what.

If you’re looking for the power to blow past another truck, hands down, TP tunes are the way to go; they’re the da’bomb, IMO