7.3 Powerstroke Question

Procrastinator - well said!

I too hate my truck without a tune - even the 40HP. I would hate to think of having to drive it without one. Once you have one you wont ever want to go back.

Good adders

Tunes, injectors, or turbos, hands down the SINGLE best thing improvement I have ever had on any vehicle.

but the tuner is about 1/5 the cost of the other 2. Injectors are about $350.00 each (X8) and a good upsized turbo is about $2500.00 plus labor for installation.

I think you can get a tuner with a shelf tune for about $300-350. As I stated I do believe with all else stock a shelf tune should make a world of difference.

Yes easy to do on a 99 and up 7.3 with tuner. But my 97 does pull my 12,500 lbs with no issue at all, But mine is not stock. K&N Intake with dry NAPA Filter (Tymar) 4 inch MBRP exhaust, TS 5 selection chip set. stock, Hi Idle(Warm Up), 50 hp, 75hp, 100 hp. I run the 50 hp all the time because that is all I can get from my stock injectors without more modifications. Get hand calculated 20 mpg on my mixed commute and estimate 12 to 14 mpg towing. I did a gear change from 3:55 to 4:10 this made a much better towing machine due to better RPM and gear match.
Also have larger Trans cooler and Gauge pod with EGT, Boost and Trans Temp.

I am currently driving my 3rd modified diesel. I had off the shelf tunes (only thing available then) for my first two. As custom tunes became more common, I was selling my 05 Ram with an off the shelf tuned Edge with Attitude tuner. It had 5 tunes to pick from. It helped, but I used it more for the gauges than anything else.

I sold the 05, and got my 03 7.3 Ford. I was so amazed at how slow that vehicle was in every manner. Regular, towing, uphill, down hill driving slow slow and slow I hated the transmission shifting. I added gauges and then used Jody Tipton's tunes using the Moates Quarterhorse system. I have 7 custom settings, no start, stock, hi idle, 60 horse tow, activate exhaust valve (poor man's exhaust brake), 80 horse tow, 60 horse economy, and 80 horse economy. I could have had added many more, but I am on the factory transmission and I tow between 5000-11000 a lot.

After years and years of playing with diesels, this custom tune set up has more improvement than ANY other single modification that I have ever done. Tunes, injectors, or turbos, hands down the SINGLE best thing improvement I have ever had on any vehicle. The way the tunes work with the transmission is amazing. Now I don't want to say you have to use Jody. There are many others, Beans, PHP, Gearhead, and about a dozen or so others that I am sure are just as good.

To anyone that says they drive their stock 7.3 has plenty of power daily driving and towing anything, I would say drive a custom tuned truck (mine even) for a few minutes and your mind will open to a new thoughts. It is a completely different truck.

Yes Newsw don't leave it stock

wittmeba wrote:

up2nogood wrote:
Are we talking custom tunes or are we still trying to sell this off the shelf stuff. I have run both , no comparison . Be clear on what you are saying.

Sorry but Im not sure how to answer this question. My tunes were offered by providing the make, model and year to Jody at DP-Tuner via a phone call. I couldnt get to the CPU to give him the number.

He asked me what I wanted then suggested the 40/80/120HP tunes but I dont know if you refer to them as custom or shelf goods. I dont know if any of Jody's stuff is shelf, all custom or some combination. It is a set of tunes that had been proven effective from his Dyno testing. The vehicles when they come from Ford all have the same tunes so vehicle specifics are not a consideration.

I only notice a tweak in the shift points on the 120HP tune and I dont like how it feels - therefore I almost never use it.

Im sure each vehicle would yield a different set of specifications if every vehicle was put on a dyno - but that cost big bucks. Jody talked about $800.00 to setup and dyno a truck like mine.

Personally I dont think hooking my truck to a dyno would yield a much different tune specific for my truck. The trucks are very similar when delivered.

I do think that they guys willing to pay the money for dyno-tunes are also the ones that invest in many other power performance parts and it may make a bigger difference due to the synergies of parts working together.

Jody indicated the guys having the dyno's performed are big time and serious - some in sled pulls and other competitions.

The DP tuner I have is called the F5. ALL the shift points on my truck are different it holds in the gears longer before shifting , and smoother . Torque converter is locked in the lower gears. The tunes I have are plugged into the PCM, and I have a switch mounted on my pillar to change tunes. My truck runs ,and sounds totally different then stock.

up2nogood wrote:
Are we talking custom tunes or are we still trying to sell this off the shelf stuff. I have run both , no comparison . Be clear on what you are saying.

Sorry but Im not sure how to answer this question. My tunes were offered by providing the make, model and year to Jody at DP-Tuner via a phone call. I couldnt get to the CPU to give him the number.

He asked me what I wanted then suggested the 40/80/120HP tunes but I dont know if you refer to them as custom or shelf goods. I dont know if any of Jody's stuff is shelf, all custom or some combination. It is a set of tunes that had been proven effective from his Dyno testing. The vehicles when they come from Ford all have the same tunes so vehicle specifics are not a consideration.

I only notice a tweak in the shift points on the 120HP tune and I dont like how it feels - therefore I almost never use it.

Im sure each vehicle would yield a different set of specifications if every vehicle was put on a dyno - but that cost big bucks. Jody talked about $800.00 to setup and dyno a truck like mine.

Personally I dont think hooking my truck to a dyno would yield a much different tune specific for my truck. The trucks are very similar when delivered.

I do think that they guys willing to pay the money for dyno-tunes are also the ones that invest in many other power performance parts and it may make a bigger difference due to the synergies of parts working together.

Jody indicated the guys having the dyno's performed are big time and serious - some in sled pulls and other competitions.

Just to add a bit more...it doesnt take too long to raise the exhaust temperatures. They are almost instant. The gases (EGT's) will heat up the surrounding metals - such as pistons - but it takes a bit longer. Pistons are not aluminum but an alloy. They tolerate more heat than aluminum but not much more. Pistons are the likely element to be damaged by over-temperature of the EGT's. So if you watch the EGT's and keep them under about 1200-1250º you should be ok. Just dont run that hot too long. I have seen melted piston images (now conversational ashtrays) on the DieselStop.com website. Its pretty heartbreaking.

wittmeba wrote:
The Superchips tuner (the box also used for Flashpaq) is the same as what Jody uses - or at least when I got mine. What is most important is the tune itself. That is what controls the CPU. A good tune can increase HP/Torque, mileage and keep the EGT's in a safe zone.

You get a good tune and you will forget about the exhaust. There are lots of websites/links that discuss the relationship between exhaust diameter and power/torque performance. Bigger exhaust isnt always good.

Are we talking custom tunes or are we still trying to sell this off the shelf stuff. I have run both , no comparison . Be clear on what you are saying.

ib516 wrote:
Everyone has their favorite tuner. "Custom" does not = better or worse. A reputable tuning company, like Hypertech, puts lots of R&D into their tunes, some not so much.

I have had no trouble with mine, and I think you'd be very happy if you tuned yours, no matter if you chose a "custom" tuner (like DP) or an "off the shelf" tuner like Hypertech.

The key is to do your own research and decide for yourself.

The only thing wrong with your comments is. generic tunes are not good. Every truck will react differently. Plus the canned tunes do very littly for trans stratagies. Can you change shift points with their program? NO. Can you change TC lockup points? NO

A custom tuned chip is tuned for your particular vehicle. It can be tweaked to your liking. Sensitivity of the go pedal, shift points, shift harshness, TC control, etc. With a programmer what you get is all you get. Can't change it. Plus you have to stop & spend several min to change. Chip can shift on the fly.

One more time and I'm done with this. My 20hp tow tune produces MORE power than the 100 hp setting in the Hypertech. I'm not disputing their R&D program but when your tunes are for your individual truck & your individual driving needs & wants there's no argueing which it better let alone the trans controls. I have driven & towed with my truck using both so I have real world exp with both systems

here's a good example My truch is an early 99. The hypertech was for 99-00. My truck has smaller inj & turbo. You think they both will react the same to the programmer??

Thanks for that follow up. Your comments about the tune are exactly what I was told, and that egt's would not be a problem if I drive with a thought to them.

The "born in Montana" quip. That's funny!

The Superchips tuner (the box also used for Flashpaq) is the same as what Jody uses - or at least when I got mine. What is most important is the tune itself. That is what controls the CPU. A good tune can increase HP/Torque, mileage and keep the EGT's in a safe zone.

You get a good tune and you will forget about the exhaust. There are lots of websites/links that discuss the relationship between exhaust diameter and power/torque performance. Bigger exhaust isnt always good.