Own a 2002 supercrew 5.4L 4x4. I see lots of threads about guys buying these tuners. But are they really worth it? What kind of improvements can I expect to see? Will a tuner *really* improve the fuel milage? Will it assist with that the floaty feeling when it shifts between gears sometime?

Im looking at hanging on my truck for a couple more year and wondering if this really worth the money.

 

I picked up a little over 1 mpg with my edge, bought it for 320 shipped to my door last march. drove 25,000 miles last year, we'll go on the low numbers first so at 11mpg stock in town thats 2270 gal 12 mpg w/ edge thats 2085 gal saving 185 gal at a conservative 2.50 a gallon thats over $450. highway mileage 17 mpg stock = 1470 gal 18 mpg edge = 1390 saving 80 gal again w/ 2.50 gas thats $200. so for me since I do alot of town driving it was worth it. It has probably already paid for itself and the truck is much more fun now. this is just my experience though.

 

the right one is, do your homework and you'll be all set

 

The answer is yes to all of your questions. Go with a custom tuned Xcal2 !!

 

Nah... all programmers are junk. Save the money and spend it on all the extra fuel you'd be wasting. J/K

Seriously though, programmers are quite an inexpensive way to see noticable performance gains and in most cases 1-2 MPG increases in fuel economy. Definitely worth the investment.

Good luck.

 

Thanks for the info guys.

With there being so many different tuners out there which one would be the best fit for a 2002 supercrew? As in best bang for the buck, most features, most effective. Even it ends up being more then others but actually works the best I will seriously consider it.

 

call the guy that posted right above your last post. ASEMechanic is an excellent source. I love mine.

 

Exactly!

 

XCal 2 if you can find one or a XC3. I have an X Cal # with Troyer tunes and I've been very happy!

 

www.VMPTuning.com

 

or
www.troyerperformance.com

Both are great choices unless you want a Gryphon then it is www.powerhungryperformance.com

 

Agreed, you can't go wrong with either of them.

 

either of which? vmp or troyer or gryphon. Im just looking for the best tuner with the most options that will work best with my year. Im not sure how year independent they are. ie. if they are released in 2006 and the focus and testing was done with 2005 and 2006 models how well is it going to work with a 2002? Do you see what I am getting at? Are the tuners year specific? I have seen some that are and others that are not.

 

The Xcal line up is not vehicle specific but the Edge and Gryphon is ... That's one reason why I love the Xcal so much. If you buy a new vehicle you can take the tuner and just get a new tune. Now you've got a brand new vehicle that's tuned. Most tuners charge $50 for a new tune, they'll email it to you, you'll load it on the programmer and voila !!

 

My .02 - With all the Tuners that have been mentioned, they are all good choices and worth the investment. Personally, I'd look for used EDGE on Ebay. Custom tuning will give you the best results IMO, but canned tunes like the EDGE hold a higher resale value.

Simply put, I picked up a used EDGE for my 03 Screw. It is the one without the Guages and came with 3 canned tunes. I paid $184 for it and couldn't be happier with the results. However, if and when I need to get rid of the truck, I know that I can sell the tuner and easily get what I paid for it. With custom tunes, because they created specific for your turck and mods, you do not have that option. You can sell the custom tuner when you're done with the truck, but because it will need to be reprogrammed, you won't see as much of a return on your investment.

Not to take anything away from Troyer, VMP, Mike or anyone else that provides custom tunes, but if you are truely looking for the best "Bang for your buck", I recommend going this route. Whichever way you decide to go, it is well worth the investment and you will definately notice a difference in performance and at least a small, if not greater difference in Gas milage.