I have an '03 with 5.4 4x4 rolling on 36" with 4.56 gears (yeah speedo is 20% off) I need a programmer. Instead of reading about every combo of truck ford made.... I figured I could shorten the recommendations by asking WHAT to look for IN AN PROGRAMMER.
I realize they are NOT all the same....but something must set them apart right? NO i'm not looking to spend $800 for a programmer then load some super cool badass "tune" that makes my 200 hp truck run 9's.....Just simple stuff
Shift manipulation, tire fix, gear fix, maybe a towing set-up,....O2 delete (Longtubes in the future..)

 

You'll want to first look into a tuning house.

 

so I would assume feeding the info to say... 5 star, they would build me a couple tunes based on my info ...load it into a programmer (or e-mail if needed)? But the PROGRAMMER would still have adjustable functions like speedo fix and shift firmness....etc?

 

Yes, those functions are user adjustable. The custom tunes would be optimized for your specific truck, based on a questionnaire and datalogging. I would assume that if they know your gear ratio and tire size, they would take care of that for you.

Generally, I think what they do is ship the programmer out with generic tunes, you load them and datalog, send that in, then they email you your custom tunes.

 

 

I have an assortment of 5-Star tunes and an SCT X4 tuner. I am very pleased.

 

And, I'll add that 5-Star seems to enjoy a solid reputation here. I suspect the tuning device you will get is from SCT. It's a good tuner and as glc told you, it will allow you to adjust your speedometer reading and shift characteristics if that wasn't taken care of in your custom tunes.

- Jack

 

5 star and I are not having the best of relationships .......yet. Great service....but our communications are not quite there.
I will say for a STOCK truck...what a waste of money! ( i still HAD to do something for the tires and gears)
for a Heavily MODIFIED vehicle....i can see some advantages.....