When would yall suggest I chip my truck. Had the chip in the '99 and now I have an '02. It only haves about 152 miles on it right now. I was reading a post that 10TH_ANNIV_T2 had about his problem with his new truck and chip. So know I'm curious if I should wait a few thosand miles before having the chip re-programed? Thanks.

 

Well, I'd say it's fine to get it programmed and installed after say 500-- you'll probably add that many miles while it's going back and forth anyway.

The point of my message is that the engine is still breaking in, so you may or may not see what you're expecting to see on a dyno-- that's basically what happened to me. If I had benchmarked my truck at 1600 miles first, I would have expected a slightly lower HP and torque rating than what I got with the chip. If you recall, 1st dyno was 169hp/220tq with the chip, K&N, and Borla cat back.

My 2nd run showed that things were getting better, and that was at something like 3800 miles I think, without the chip (had to go back to the dealer for work), but still with the Borla and K&N. That measured 189hp/240tq? if I remember correctly.

So if you are going to dyno and expect the numbers to be closer to the rated output, it just takes a while for the engine to break in. The butt-o-meter told me right away that there was something different with the chip, so I'm pretty sure it was making some gains. Besides, what was I going to do with the chip anyway? For the re-program cost, it was a done deal.

I'm hoping that when I do my 3rd dyno, around 7500 miles maybe, that I'll measure 200~210hp and a few more ft-lbs.

I dunno, dollar for dollar I still believe a Superchip is worthy of the investment. Everyone has their own opinion and experiences though.

Greg O.

 

Thanks for the help Greg. I'm going to get mine re-programed this weekend provided the old lday will let me fork out the cash. If so I'll let yall know what my butt-o-meter tells me.

 

Hi fellows,

What we have to remember about Greg's initial dyno numbers (and thanks for your post Greg!) is that they were simply wrong. That first dyno run wasn't even close to what a bone stock 5.4 F-150 puts out (190-195 hp), as we discussed in great detail back then in that original thread. We have brand new F-150's on the dyno very frequently at Superchips, and at other locations across the country. Not one 5.4 F-150, either in bone stock trim, or in the same trim Greg's was in that day, has ever made numbers anywhere near that low. We discussed this previously, and that is simply wrong, and has almost nothing to do with that engine breaking in.

The low power readings from that first dyno run were not entirely or even in majority due to the engine not being broken in, that is never going to make that kind of horsepower difference, making 169 instead of 225-240 rear wheel as it should have in that trim. It is true that it will generally take 4000-8000 miles for most new engines to fully "loosen up," they generally need some miles on them to make their maximum power and get their best mileage, but they are not much below their ratings, maybe 8-15 hp, we've had that dyno'd many times on a good eddy ciurrent chassis dyno, as well as on other inertia dynos like the Dynojet.

This is the kind of thing we can typically see from inertia dynos's, typically Dynojets. They tend to show too low power readings on these regular F-150's, and just the *opposite* on the supercharged Lightnings, too *much* power. We've seen many cases of a Dynojet showing 330+ rear wheel horsepower on a stock 1999 or 2000 Lightning, when the rear number is more like 290 hp. It makes those owners very happy to se those high numbers, until we tell them hang on there a second, that's wrong too.

Greg is right in that it would be nice if he had been able to get a good true "before" reading, but in any case, there is no way that 5.4 truck was making only 169 HP with the chip, intake and exhaust, that is simply dead wrong and wouldn't happen even with just 100 miles on the motor and in bone stock trim. We've had them dyno'd with 6 miles on the odometer, and that doesn't happen.

Greg has of course mentioned the obvious power gain from the Superchips in the seat of the pants, and when we add that to the fact that any 5.4 automatic F-150 in decent mechanical condition and stock trim consistently makes about 190-195 hp at the rear wheels, we can quickly see there is an obvious problem with those dyno numbers that have nothing to do with break in or een adaptive strategy. There is no way his truck, with the Superchip, intake and exhaust on it, was making 20-25 hp less than a bone stock truck makes.

This has to be difficult for Greg, as he is kind of stuck in the middle so to speak. He has a shop with a dyno telling him he only made 169 hp with those 3 modifications, and then on the other hand we're telling him that there is no way that could be close to correct on even a bone-stock truck, let alone one with those 3 modifications. Greg has taken all of this in stride, much to his credit!

Thanks very much to Greg for all his information and all his impressions, etc. he has posted, he has certainly gone above and beyond to provide as much information as possible.

To answer dsm327's question of when can he chip his new vehicle, as Greg mentioned, we like to see 300-500 miles on a brand new vehicle before doing any modifications, just so that you know there are no immedaite problems with the vehicle that need service attention before reliable operations can be established, and of course, that happens rarely, but it's just a good idea. At 152 miles, you need to put a couple hundred more miles on we would suggest, but that can easily happen in a day or two of driving around, so this is going to happen very quickly for you.

 

Mike,

Thanks for the reply. Your always good about getting to everyone on this site and helping them. I would like to thank you for the info you have provided me with. Guess I'll have to drive the hell outa her for the next 3 days.

 

Hi DSM,

That's very kind of you to say, thanks.

It's always a kick to pick up another brand new vehicle, get some miles on it, and then start configuring it like you want.

Have fun!

 

Blah, blah, blah....hehehehehehe.

Mike's right, sucks to be me (please send money!)

I do agree with most if not everything Mike mentions, just have not zero'd in on the real problem with my truck YET. Based on what I experienced with my old 2000, 4.6L, and the same chip, my results are indeed disappointing on paper. There is only one other dyno-- a DynoJet-- that I know of in the Milwaukee, WI area, and it's just not very convienient to get to.

This spring I hope to get to the dragstrip to get some accurately timed runs. From that, I can calculate the power needed to move all this mass over that interval-- effectively calculate rwhp. That's probably my next step.

Later!

 

Hi Greg,

Thanks for your post.

Using the "standard" formulas to determine horsepower based on vehicle weight and trap speed would certainly be closer than the initial dyno numbers were, and would immediatley confirm their inaccuracy.

One thing those formulas do not take into consideration is drag, which goes up not in a linear fashion, but rather exponentially, as speed increases, so you end up getting a lower number than what you actually have, and the bigger your aero profile, the more it's off. However, it can still be used in direct comparisons, and with as far off as those dyno numbers were, that method would be a lot closer, and certainly close enough to be considered "valid."

Thanks once again for all your data & posts, etc., & we look forward to seeing your track numbers!