87 vs 91 tunes

Old Jan 25, 2009 | 12:08 AM
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87 vs 91 tunes

just wondering if there is really a huge difference or benefit from one to an other i'm thinking of ordering a gryphon with a towing tune and a performance tune, any help or suggestions?
 
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Old Jan 25, 2009 | 03:09 AM
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Should get more power from the 91, and I've read people getting better mpg with the 91 also.
 
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Old Jan 25, 2009 | 03:16 AM
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I have both 87 and 91 setup with my Gryphon. Honestly I don't really like the 87. I pretty much always keep mine set on the 91. I do notice a difference between the two and have kept it on 91 for that reason. If gas starts going sky high again I'm probably going to call Bill to see if there is some tweaking that can be done with my 87 so I won't go broke at the pump.

As far as mileage goes, I got worse with the 87 because I was using the gas more trying to compensate for the lack of power. Same thing for my 87 economy; don't get very good mileage with either of them but haven't really used the economy on a long trip.
 
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Old Jan 25, 2009 | 11:14 AM
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thanks for the posts i was wondering if the higher octane got better milage or worse any one tow with either tune?
 
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Old Jan 25, 2009 | 12:54 PM
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From: Among javelinas and scorpions in Zoniestan
Originally Posted by jayjma20
thanks for the posts i was wondering if the higher octane got better milage or worse any one tow with either tune?
You should not tow anything over 2000-2500 # with anything but a "Tow" tune. Bill Cohron, who was responsible for much of the design of the Edge was very specific on that point in one of his posts that I think appeared on the PHPForum.

As far as deciding on which tune to use for fuel economy, do the math. If premium gas costs, say 10% more than regular, does your gas mileage improve by more than 10%?

- Jack
 
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Old Jan 25, 2009 | 05:25 PM
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thanks again, i am just wondering if a 91 tune for towing is practical compared to a 87 tune for towing
 
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Old Jan 25, 2009 | 05:29 PM
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Call Bill; he'd know more than anybody else.
 
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Old Jan 25, 2009 | 11:25 PM
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Can I safely tune my Edge Performance Programmer to level 2 or transmission control (meant for towing) if I'm running 91 octane fuel? I only run 91 because I notice a HUGE difference in acceleration and quickness between setting it to level 1 for 87 only or level 3 (performance) meant for 91 only. But I read in an earlier post that you shouldn't tow over 2500lbs unless you're driving stock or tuned to "tow".
 
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Old Jan 26, 2009 | 10:17 AM
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From: Among javelinas and scorpions in Zoniestan
Originally Posted by phattacorider
Can I safely tune my Edge Performance Programmer to level 2 or transmission control (meant for towing) if I'm running 91 octane fuel? I only run 91 because I notice a HUGE difference in acceleration and quickness between setting it to level 1 for 87 only or level 3 (performance) meant for 91 only. But I read in an earlier post that you shouldn't tow over 2500lbs unless you're driving stock or tuned to "tow".
If you are towing a significant weight, you should be using a Level 2 tune. But, that tune is set up for 87 octane unless it has been "customized", so, if you are using 91 octane gas, you are just wasting money on that tune. The Edge manual says you can advance the spark 0.5 degrees for every octane point you increase over the tune setting, so, I'd try advancing the spark in the custom options menu by 2 degrees if you tow on Level 2 using 91 octane gas. You are "safe" in "canned" Level 2, but you are not taking advantage of the anti-knock properties of the fuel you are using.

(Note: that 1/2 degree advance is a "ballpark figure. I think I'd try 1 degree at first and see how it works. If things are ok, change to 1.5 degrees and if ok there, go up to 2 degrees. The key in doing things with custom options is to make small, individual changes and to check the results rather than making drastic changes.)

- Jack
 

Last edited by JackandJanet; Jan 26, 2009 at 10:19 AM. Reason: Added comment about being "safe"
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Old Jan 30, 2009 | 10:30 AM
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This is good to know Jack,I too only run 91 octane and tow all the time on level 2 but didn't really think about advancing the timing...will do that on my next trip.
 
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Old Jan 30, 2009 | 11:10 AM
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From: Among javelinas and scorpions in Zoniestan
At the end of this thread: http://dygytalworld.ehost-services13...highlight=2500 is a post by Bill Cohron where he explains why there is a difference between a tow tune and a performance tune and what that difference is. It may help everyone understand why there are the two tunes.

- Jack
 
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Old Jan 31, 2009 | 08:57 AM
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You make more power with higher octane fuel. Your tunes will cost the same no matter which octane you choose. Why spend all that money on tuning + device, to make less power? I've got both an 87 octane performance tune & a 91 octane performance tune. It's like night and day. For towing, I would want the most power available to me.
 
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Old Jan 31, 2009 | 05:17 PM
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From: Among javelinas and scorpions in Zoniestan
Originally Posted by Fifty150
You make more power with higher octane fuel. Your tunes will cost the same no matter which octane you choose. Why spend all that money on tuning + device, to make less power? I've got both an 87 octane performance tune & a 91 octane performance tune. It's like night and day. For towing, I would want the most power available to me.
Fifty, you MAY be misunderstanding me. I did not really say to run an 87 octane tune for towing. I said to run a tow tune for towing. There's no reason in the world you can't have a 91+ octane tow tune if that's what blows air up your skirt!

- Jack
 
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Old Feb 1, 2009 | 11:04 AM
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Has anyone done an 89 octane (10% ethenal) with the gryphon, and how did you like it? 10% is the cheapest around here, and I have been wondering if tuned for it will you get a little better performace and milage than 87 octane. I think I probably need to have PHP convert my Edge since I now have a S&B CAI, and want to make sure I get the right tunes.
 
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Old Feb 1, 2009 | 11:22 AM
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Originally Posted by Midnightrider
Has anyone done an 89 octane (10% ethenal) with the gryphon, and how did you like it? 10% is the cheapest around here, and I have been wondering if tuned for it will you get a little better performace and milage than 87 octane. I think I probably need to have PHP convert my Edge since I now have a S&B CAI, and want to make sure I get the right tunes.
I'm not real sure what you are asking about the fuels. If you are comparing 87 without ethanol to 89 with 10% ethanol, make sure you realize that you lose about 10% of your mpg with ethanol.

Also, DO NOT run the CAI with a 2005 5.4 without a custom tune. You run a big risk of running lean. The 2004s and 2005s came from the factory in a near lean condition.
 
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