Shuddering and tunes
08-10-2012, 09:06 AM
#1
Member
Thread Starter
Shuddering and tunes
OK, so I just got my truck back from the dealer monkeys, I can still make the damn thing shudder on a hill at 55-57MPH, albiet not as much and for a shorter time. I'm thinking about just picking up a SCT, but am wondering has anyone still felt the shudder with their canned/custom tunes? I see we have a new vendor on board (MPT) that everone seems to be impressed with, maybe Mike can chime in here or someone with his company's tunes can chime in. I'm just tired of dealing with this. Took it in for the leather seat coming apart as well, and now my heated seat doesn't work. I just want to get this crap straightend out and never go back to another dealership AGAIN!
08-10-2012, 09:26 AM
#2
Senior Member
Well I can tell you this, I have had 4 or 5 different tunes in my truck:
Stock - no studder
Superchumps - no studder
SCT 93 canned - no studder
5 star 93 custom- no studder
Unleashed 93 and 87 - studder On both (changing plugs this weekend to see if it helps)
Ta ta ta ta today junior
Stock - no studder
Superchumps - no studder
SCT 93 canned - no studder
5 star 93 custom- no studder
Unleashed 93 and 87 - studder On both (changing plugs this weekend to see if it helps)
Ta ta ta ta today junior
08-10-2012, 10:27 AM
#3
Senior Member
I do not think a tuner will resolve any shudder issue; low or high speed.
The highway speed shudder seems to be related to either condensation in the intercooler, or bad coil packs, the jury is still out on this one.
The low speed shudder that plagues the 157" WB is related to poor engineering of the truck's driveline and suspension.
What a tuner will do for you is vastly improve the day to day driveability of your truck. All of the major tuners on here have threads that contain reviews of their products. It will take a long time, but reading these real life reviews will help in your decision. Breaking down your needs/wants and how much you can spend will also make your decision a bit easier.
I recommend looking at 5star for your tuning needs.
www.5startuning.com
Best of luck.
The highway speed shudder seems to be related to either condensation in the intercooler, or bad coil packs, the jury is still out on this one.
The low speed shudder that plagues the 157" WB is related to poor engineering of the truck's driveline and suspension.
What a tuner will do for you is vastly improve the day to day driveability of your truck. All of the major tuners on here have threads that contain reviews of their products. It will take a long time, but reading these real life reviews will help in your decision. Breaking down your needs/wants and how much you can spend will also make your decision a bit easier.
I recommend looking at 5star for your tuning needs.
www.5startuning.com
Best of luck.
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5star (08-18-2012)
08-10-2012, 10:33 AM
#4
Boost :)
The shudder that he is talking about is not the "get on the gas and it shakes" shudder that I think you are thinking of BucketMan. It is the one that only so slightly happens when you have the cruise on, going up a hill, in between 50-60mph. That is not an intercooler issue.
The issue is almost undoubtedly a torque converter issue. If you watch the pressures on the converter during one of these incidents, they are all over the place. It feels like its not sure whether to give more gas or back off the gas so it does both about 10 times a second and just has a little hesitation/studder to it.
I drive the same road home everyday from work and there is a hill I go up on the way home, very short one, and the speed limit is 50. I always have it set at 53-54 and I have only felt the shudder once in over a year.
Stock tune didn't do it, SCT canned tunes didn't do it, MPT custom tunes don't do it either. If it is actually a torque converter problem like most tend to think it is, I would think that tuning might fix it, but that's just my opinion.
The issue is almost undoubtedly a torque converter issue. If you watch the pressures on the converter during one of these incidents, they are all over the place. It feels like its not sure whether to give more gas or back off the gas so it does both about 10 times a second and just has a little hesitation/studder to it.
I drive the same road home everyday from work and there is a hill I go up on the way home, very short one, and the speed limit is 50. I always have it set at 53-54 and I have only felt the shudder once in over a year.
Stock tune didn't do it, SCT canned tunes didn't do it, MPT custom tunes don't do it either. If it is actually a torque converter problem like most tend to think it is, I would think that tuning might fix it, but that's just my opinion.
08-10-2012, 10:52 AM
#5
Keepin' the lights on!
There is no guarantee that a tuner will or won't make your truck shudder. It's hard to tell around here if I'm feeling a slight shudder or it's just the roads, they are pretty bad around here. I did feel a shudder when the truck had about 2000 miles on it. I'm pretty sure it was fuel related because it started about 5-10 miles after I had stopped for fuel. It was doing it pretty bad at one point. I know it wasn't a condensation issue either. I ran that tank almost empty then filled with different gas. 5-10 miles later it seemed better but I could still feel it every now and then. It did this for about 3000 miles but not bad enough for me to take it in. We took a long trip in June and it just stopped the shudder completely.
A few weeks ago I installed the 5 Star 87 perf/tow tune. Now that slight shudder 55-75 mph is back. Not bad enough to take it to the dealer. Not bad enough to re-flash to stock. I can't really tell if it's the truck or the roads half the time. It does seem to be getting better with time. Like the adaptive learning is just on a slow curve. I'm starting to wonder if it's not torque converter/trans related too because it is getting better with more miles. I still like the 5 Star tune and recommend those guys
A few weeks ago I installed the 5 Star 87 perf/tow tune. Now that slight shudder 55-75 mph is back. Not bad enough to take it to the dealer. Not bad enough to re-flash to stock. I can't really tell if it's the truck or the roads half the time. It does seem to be getting better with time. Like the adaptive learning is just on a slow curve. I'm starting to wonder if it's not torque converter/trans related too because it is getting better with more miles. I still like the 5 Star tune and recommend those guys
08-10-2012, 11:27 AM
#6
Senior Member
The shudder that he is talking about is not the "get on the gas and it shakes" shudder that I think you are thinking of BucketMan. It is the one that only so slightly happens when you have the cruise on, going up a hill, in between 50-60mph. That is not an intercooler issue.
The issue is almost undoubtedly a torque converter issue. If you watch the pressures on the converter during one of these incidents, they are all over the place. It feels like its not sure whether to give more gas or back off the gas so it does both about 10 times a second and just has a little hesitation/studder to it.
I drive the same road home everyday from work and there is a hill I go up on the way home, very short one, and the speed limit is 50. I always have it set at 53-54 and I have only felt the shudder once in over a year.
Stock tune didn't do it, SCT canned tunes didn't do it, MPT custom tunes don't do it either. If it is actually a torque converter problem like most tend to think it is, I would think that tuning might fix it, but that's just my opinion.
The issue is almost undoubtedly a torque converter issue. If you watch the pressures on the converter during one of these incidents, they are all over the place. It feels like its not sure whether to give more gas or back off the gas so it does both about 10 times a second and just has a little hesitation/studder to it.
I drive the same road home everyday from work and there is a hill I go up on the way home, very short one, and the speed limit is 50. I always have it set at 53-54 and I have only felt the shudder once in over a year.
Stock tune didn't do it, SCT canned tunes didn't do it, MPT custom tunes don't do it either. If it is actually a torque converter problem like most tend to think it is, I would think that tuning might fix it, but that's just my opinion.
I don't think it can be completely ruled out that the two issues are not related. I only experienced both issues when it was colder out, in the Winter. Both the 55 mph shudder(every day it would happen) and the falling on its face. I have had all TSB's performed this Summer, but the truck wasn't doing it when the weather warmed up. I am going to have to wait a few months when it cools off and see what happens. Personally I feel the 55 mph shudder could very well be caused by condensation. Condensation builds up, you go up hill throwing more boost, forcing water into the engine. Or, condensation built up in the Winter and froze, partially blocking the IC, causing disruption in airflow screwing up readings and how much throttle the truck should apply. I guess we will see this Winter if my issues come back.
08-10-2012, 12:24 PM
#7
Member
Thread Starter
The shudder that he is talking about is not the "get on the gas and it shakes" shudder that I think you are thinking of BucketMan. It is the one that only so slightly happens when you have the cruise on, going up a hill, in between 50-60mph. That is not an intercooler issue.
The issue is almost undoubtedly a torque converter issue. If you watch the pressures on the converter during one of these incidents, they are all over the place. It feels like its not sure whether to give more gas or back off the gas so it does both about 10 times a second and just has a little hesitation/studder to it.
I drive the same road home everyday from work and there is a hill I go up on the way home, very short one, and the speed limit is 50. I always have it set at 53-54 and I have only felt the shudder once in over a year.
Stock tune didn't do it, SCT canned tunes didn't do it, MPT custom tunes don't do it either. If it is actually a torque converter problem like most tend to think it is, I would think that tuning might fix it, but that's just my opinion.
The issue is almost undoubtedly a torque converter issue. If you watch the pressures on the converter during one of these incidents, they are all over the place. It feels like its not sure whether to give more gas or back off the gas so it does both about 10 times a second and just has a little hesitation/studder to it.
I drive the same road home everyday from work and there is a hill I go up on the way home, very short one, and the speed limit is 50. I always have it set at 53-54 and I have only felt the shudder once in over a year.
Stock tune didn't do it, SCT canned tunes didn't do it, MPT custom tunes don't do it either. If it is actually a torque converter problem like most tend to think it is, I would think that tuning might fix it, but that's just my opinion.
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08-10-2012, 01:24 PM
#8
if it was a condensation issue causing the 50-60 mph shudder, why are the 5.0 trucks like mine experiencing the EXACT same issue? I agree its most likely something with the converter. on mine (2wd, 30" tires, 3.31 gears) 50-55 is right at or right after the point, that under normal accel it shifts into 6th. so its at a really low rpm.
08-10-2012, 01:48 PM
#9
Boost :)
if it was a condensation issue causing the 50-60 mph shudder, why are the 5.0 trucks like mine experiencing the EXACT same issue? I agree its most likely something with the converter. on mine (2wd, 30" tires, 3.31 gears) 50-55 is right at or right after the point, that under normal accel it shifts into 6th. so its at a really low rpm.
08-10-2012, 02:07 PM
#10
Senior Member
The shutter is most likely a low rpm...high torque force...slight incline or towing scenario. The TC is not "beefy enuff" to hold the rpms in this scenario and "slips or chatters". If you gun it and it downshifts, it will immediately disappear. The Ecoboost is more likely to exibit this habit than the 5.0L, but both of these engines have enuff low end torque to put the TC into trouble. The best fix would be a TC upgrade...
A tune that changed the transmission schedule "could" also remedy this by modifying the shift schedule...but the best remedy is a real fix. We should be able to get good mileage with a proper TC that could hold low rpms during a high torque scenario...much like a diesel.
A tune that changed the transmission schedule "could" also remedy this by modifying the shift schedule...but the best remedy is a real fix. We should be able to get good mileage with a proper TC that could hold low rpms during a high torque scenario...much like a diesel.