2013DIBGT
I Hate Wheelhop
OK,
Maybe I'm just blind or incapable of searching correctly within the forum but it seems there is very little chatter/discussion/comparisons/reviews about the many different flavors of ECU Tunes/Tuners available when browsing the forum for the newer 4v motors.
I can certainly browse other forums to find such information but I am more curious as to why this forum seems to not discuss the topic very often? Is it simply because very few "certified/approved" vendors of the forum do ECU tuning?
In any event, I will ask my question anyway with flame suit on JIK I'm out of the loop on why it seems tunes aren't discussed.
So I have a passing interest in applying some flavor of 3rd party tune to my 2013 GT. From what I have researched thus far there are only a few that stood out to me as ones I would consider, at the moment they are: (FRPP,Steeda & AED).
I am mostly interested in hearing peoples thoughts on the FRPP Tune if anyone runs it and what they think of it? For me the only reason I am considering the FRPP tune is for engine warranty retention purposes that others can't provide. Beyond that, I think its main selling point or at least the one most talked about is how much low end torque it produces (60ft/lbs'ish increase at 1500rpm).
When I see a touted torque increase of that amount at such a low RPM the first thing that comes to mind for me is that it would be pointless in DD driving and probably also on the track without Bias Plys or similar. I say this because how many people would actually be able to put another 60ft/lbs of torque down to the pavement in a usable manor on the street, just off idle, without blowing off the tires more so then they already do?
In my mind, an ideal tune would put down better numbers higher in the RPM band (somewhere above 3000rpm) and continue to do so up to Redline so that you may actually have a chance of using that extra power for better forward momentum.
Then there is the topic which seems to also come up when discussing the FRPP Tune of pinging. There seems to be many reports of people who use this tune and then encountered increased pinging at WOT. One would think that the folks who built the car would be best suited to tune it but I have read many cases where this seems to not be the reality.
I have noticed some pinging in my own car without a tune while running 91 octane gas at WOT. I have recently switched to Sunoco 93 and it seems to have stopped or at least became less frequent. Bad 91 octane gas, maybe? But, bad 91 octane gas over the course of 7K miles using different brands, not likely. I mean, the car is said to run on 87 octane but based on my own experience that would only make things worse.
So I think one of the main motivational factors in me wanting a tune is to preserve engine life believe it or not. In my case, without a tune I experience pinging that those with a "Proper" tune do not experience. I have done some low tech testing using the in dash AF/R gauge at WOT and see values that are almost always in the 14.0 range which is concerning. I'm not convinced that factory gauge is very accurate though. It seems to lag behind quite a bit.
What tune are you folks running who have a 2011+? How many people chose to keep the factory airbox intact with said tune because, like me, you don't find any pleasure in needing to remove an aftermarket CAI every year for emissions testing? Does anyone who does SCCA cone style racing or open road course's use an aftermarket tune with success and hasn't noticed problems with cooling?
Thanks for any info and experience you can provide.
Maybe I'm just blind or incapable of searching correctly within the forum but it seems there is very little chatter/discussion/comparisons/reviews about the many different flavors of ECU Tunes/Tuners available when browsing the forum for the newer 4v motors.
I can certainly browse other forums to find such information but I am more curious as to why this forum seems to not discuss the topic very often? Is it simply because very few "certified/approved" vendors of the forum do ECU tuning?
In any event, I will ask my question anyway with flame suit on JIK I'm out of the loop on why it seems tunes aren't discussed.
So I have a passing interest in applying some flavor of 3rd party tune to my 2013 GT. From what I have researched thus far there are only a few that stood out to me as ones I would consider, at the moment they are: (FRPP,Steeda & AED).
I am mostly interested in hearing peoples thoughts on the FRPP Tune if anyone runs it and what they think of it? For me the only reason I am considering the FRPP tune is for engine warranty retention purposes that others can't provide. Beyond that, I think its main selling point or at least the one most talked about is how much low end torque it produces (60ft/lbs'ish increase at 1500rpm).
When I see a touted torque increase of that amount at such a low RPM the first thing that comes to mind for me is that it would be pointless in DD driving and probably also on the track without Bias Plys or similar. I say this because how many people would actually be able to put another 60ft/lbs of torque down to the pavement in a usable manor on the street, just off idle, without blowing off the tires more so then they already do?
In my mind, an ideal tune would put down better numbers higher in the RPM band (somewhere above 3000rpm) and continue to do so up to Redline so that you may actually have a chance of using that extra power for better forward momentum.
Then there is the topic which seems to also come up when discussing the FRPP Tune of pinging. There seems to be many reports of people who use this tune and then encountered increased pinging at WOT. One would think that the folks who built the car would be best suited to tune it but I have read many cases where this seems to not be the reality.
I have noticed some pinging in my own car without a tune while running 91 octane gas at WOT. I have recently switched to Sunoco 93 and it seems to have stopped or at least became less frequent. Bad 91 octane gas, maybe? But, bad 91 octane gas over the course of 7K miles using different brands, not likely. I mean, the car is said to run on 87 octane but based on my own experience that would only make things worse.
So I think one of the main motivational factors in me wanting a tune is to preserve engine life believe it or not. In my case, without a tune I experience pinging that those with a "Proper" tune do not experience. I have done some low tech testing using the in dash AF/R gauge at WOT and see values that are almost always in the 14.0 range which is concerning. I'm not convinced that factory gauge is very accurate though. It seems to lag behind quite a bit.
What tune are you folks running who have a 2011+? How many people chose to keep the factory airbox intact with said tune because, like me, you don't find any pleasure in needing to remove an aftermarket CAI every year for emissions testing? Does anyone who does SCCA cone style racing or open road course's use an aftermarket tune with success and hasn't noticed problems with cooling?
Thanks for any info and experience you can provide.
