Ok guys so I recently sold my 2008 F150 5.4L and I had an Edge Evo on it and loved the power/response/fuel mileage I was able to get. Ive been looking into getting another tuner; however, I'm a rookie in this field. My 2008 had the tuner on it when I bought it so I'm clueless as to how to set them up, which ones are best, etc.. Ive seen most everyone who has an 04-08 runs the Edge Evo but most guys with 09+ run 5 star tuning or something of that sort. I now have a 2009 Lariat 4x4 5.4L with leveling kit and 33" MTs. Its stock under the hood and I can notice a significant difference in power from my 08 to this truck.

I'm not looking to make a beast out of this truck performance wise. Just have it more responsive and more powerful like my 2008 was. I do most of my driving in the city due to college so I would like to improve MPG if possible and then maybe have a performance setting if possible if i wanted to have more HP, etc...

Like I said, I'm a rookie when it comes to all this so any input, advice from those with my same motor would be appreciated. I'll probably be pulling the trigger on something for Christmas, just wanted to soak up some info before I made a concrete decision.

Thanks, Zac.

 

SCT is what comes most recommended, and 5Star and MPT plus several others write custom tunes for them.

Edge is only custom tuned by PHP, and they can only tune the older Evolutions not the CTS or CS.

 

So what would be the best SCT for me? I looked on 5 Star website and was wondering would it be worth to spend the money on the TS or ITS model? Or could I get by with what I'm wanting to do with just the X4 model? I figured for what I'm needing it for, I would only need 3 tunes MAX since I don't really tow/haul anything..

 

the X4 will be fine. The ts just has some fancy gauges but the tuning is exactly the same. The X4 will hold up to ten custom tunes I believe. Get the tunes as a package when you buy the tuner and it's way cheaper.

 

I have the older SCT SF3 for my 2010. The canned tunes were ok. % Star tunes were worth it. I didn't notice much of a difference between the 87 and 91 performance tow. No difference in power for the average trip to work and no difference in fuel economy. I've been running the 87 economy tune and am happy with it. You can tell the throttle response is still there but it shifts a bit sooner and locks out the torque converter sooner so the mileage is better than the performance tow; overall better than stock. If you're going to do it, don't think you'll save a whole lot in fuel, think of it as making the truck easier to drive in traffic. More responsive.

 

I just purchased the X4 with 3 custom tunes from 5 star and it definitely made a difference in the way the engine runs. Now I'm in a 2011 with EB, but service has been good with them and product is very good also.

 

I use the Livewire TS on mine. Pricey but you get to use it in a variety of gauge modes which makes up for the difference.

Here is one of the gauge modes. Each box shows the min and max values with real time updates. It also has analog gauge mode which I use for the boost gauge. This TS model is much better than the older version.



I used the same unit on my mustang before I parted it out and traded it in. I miss the stang but look forward to mod'ing the truck

 

This is exactly what I had in mind. If I can increase MPG, awesome; but if not, that's completely ok. I overall just want the truck to run smoother and be more responsive. I was thinking of doing the 87 economy and the 91 performance and maybe one other since I can get three. I guess I need to contact 5 Star and see what they recommend. The X4 is more in my price range, seeing as though the fancy gauges are the only plus for the other models. Im completely fine with not having gauges. If the tunes will perform correctly, I don't see a need for gauges to constantly "monitor". Thanks so much for the input guys. Any other input/advice would be greatly appreciated. I'm an open book at this point.

 

Check out americanmuscle.com. Start with a intake and tuner package.

 

I got those tunes as well as the 89 Per/Tow. Seemed like a good mix to me and I really like the 89 P/T as my everyday driver. Hope that helps.