To progam or not to program
'11 FX4 SCREW 5.ohh!
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 307
Likes: 55
From: West Texas
Ask yourself one question: why doesn't Ford use these tunes from the factory? In the cutthroat competition between truck manufacturers, even a fraction of extra performance or economy can make the difference in tens of thousands of sales.
Is it because they don't have the dyno knowhow or the hrs to dial in the right tunes? Hardly. Is it because they aren't interested in extracting every last bit of usable power and fuel economy out of the truck? They spend millions doing just that.
The answer, I suspect, is because these tunes extract extra performance at the price of less reliability and shorter life cycles of key drivetrain components. The manufacturers choose a tune that balances reliability and longevity with performance. Which is why I run stock. There is no free lunch, people.
Is it because they don't have the dyno knowhow or the hrs to dial in the right tunes? Hardly. Is it because they aren't interested in extracting every last bit of usable power and fuel economy out of the truck? They spend millions doing just that.
The answer, I suspect, is because these tunes extract extra performance at the price of less reliability and shorter life cycles of key drivetrain components. The manufacturers choose a tune that balances reliability and longevity with performance. Which is why I run stock. There is no free lunch, people.
I wonder if in a couple more years we'll see the 5.0 with 370HP/390TQ, from tuning done at Ford, once they've done enough testing to confirm that bumping up the power will get them past the warranty mileage/date.
It definitely boils down to power vs reliability. Engineers build 2000 HP engines that have to be rebuilt after 1/4 mile. Engineers could also probably build an engine that would last 1,000,000 miles, but if they did that no one would upgrade!
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 914
Likes: 75
From: ontario
Well said. You play, you pay! The EcoBoost has only been out for a couple of years and generally very few can talk about real world long term durability on trucks with the stock Eco engines, and modified-engines even less so.
I think the tuners everyone is talking about pretty much know what they are doing as far as remapping engine performance settings but none of them are going to be able to qualify that they tested their product after 150,000 miles and assure you that there will be no issues or premature failures. They can't.
A lot of folks are successfully running the tunes with their Ecos with no real issues so far, and a few have ran into some serious issues if you search.
But the draw to getting more horses and performance out of our trucks is strong....almost American....lol. I know I am considering it even though I know better and that I am taking a gamble with my warranty for a +$50K truck. So I continue to ponder and wait.
Happy pondering
....it drove me fricken nuts...should I or shouldn't I
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 1,307
Likes: 281
From: Albuquerque, NM
Yeah, I will probably continue to ponder for a bit. Glad you could make a decision! How has the tune been working for you?
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 914
Likes: 75
From: ontario
I don't think we're disagreeing at all; as I said "generally very few can talk about real world long term durability on trucks with the stock Eco engines..." so that goes for the good and the bad alike. My point was that the aftermarket tuners can't assure you of anything but at least you do get a factory warranty if left stock.
Yeah, I will probably continue to ponder for a bit. Glad you could make a decision! How has the tune been working for you?
Love the canned ones too..5star tunes def have a lot of low end torque in them
0.9% is for suckers!
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 1,529
Likes: 172
From: Texas
this question gets raised a bunch, moreso on the diesel forums and even the Raptor forums.
I had a Spartan tuned 6.4 diesel ($1500) and it ran like a raped ape all the time. couldn't keep rubber on the tires, blew smoke worse than a politician (no offense to any politicians that were able to read this, lol). Never had an issue. The MAIN reason I did the tuner is because the 6.4 on the 08-10 Superduties ran like a brick with a ball/chain tied behind it.
My last 2 superduties, 2011 and 2012 I never felt the need to tune em because of the 6.7L performance. Can a tuner add hp? yes? could it potentially cost me $16,000 for a new diesel to find out? maybe.
I had a SCT with 5 star for my 6.2 Raptor. Ran great, but really needed the added pipes, headers, etc to get the most from it. I ended up selling the SCT before I sold my Raptor. I didn't miss it that much.
COST vs REWARD is what you have to consider. todays new trucks perform well, but it depends on what you are into
I had a Spartan tuned 6.4 diesel ($1500) and it ran like a raped ape all the time. couldn't keep rubber on the tires, blew smoke worse than a politician (no offense to any politicians that were able to read this, lol). Never had an issue. The MAIN reason I did the tuner is because the 6.4 on the 08-10 Superduties ran like a brick with a ball/chain tied behind it.
My last 2 superduties, 2011 and 2012 I never felt the need to tune em because of the 6.7L performance. Can a tuner add hp? yes? could it potentially cost me $16,000 for a new diesel to find out? maybe.
I had a SCT with 5 star for my 6.2 Raptor. Ran great, but really needed the added pipes, headers, etc to get the most from it. I ended up selling the SCT before I sold my Raptor. I didn't miss it that much.
COST vs REWARD is what you have to consider. todays new trucks perform well, but it depends on what you are into
Will be picking up my '13 fx2 this saturday and have been kicking around the idea. It probably wont get tuned immediately but will eventually be tuned.
My GMC was tuned via EFI Live and absolutely woke up my old 5.3. I would expect even more out of brand new 5.0
As long as traceability for warranty is not an issue i will probably tune sooner than later.
My GMC was tuned via EFI Live and absolutely woke up my old 5.3. I would expect even more out of brand new 5.0
As long as traceability for warranty is not an issue i will probably tune sooner than later.