Tuning in the Tules
 

Stinky had some great tunes in him, but as with any modified truck that's long-in-tooth... there is no prefab tune that yields the results I was seeking. I wanted to feel like this truck came off the showroom floor from Ford with 375-400 HP... and that's asking a lot. Well... I invested a lot. New injectors instead of remans, HD4R100, 38R, T500, all new exhaust from the block to the back, etc.... I wasn't messin' around. While that's ample green for modifications, the conveyor belt of needed repairs insured that I didn't grow bored (or wealthy) between upgrades. I was finally running out of things (and Buck$Zooka rounds) to put under the hood, so it was time to send Stinky's parts to a marriage counselor. It's a long story that some here know, but I ended up with an exclusive tuner by the name of Cody. (see disclaimer below).

Cody and I agreed it was time to live-tune the Stinkster, but our schedules are near-impossible to synchronize, plus Cody and I have a number of mile markers between our homes. On short-notice, I located a fun middle ground – Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. The visit was abbreviated, but we agreed this is the place to plan another event in the future. There are log cabins, tent sites, RV sites, canoes, paddle boats, a monster-sized lake, winding roads (great for bike/motorcycle touring), and an interstate with a nearby 75 MPH zone. Not only was this a great place for a GTG, but it's tuning heaven... nothing goes untested, and the scenery doesn't suck.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...ctureid=131139

Step one of day one was to get Cody pretty tanked up and let him spill his guts of everything we can blackmail him for. Step two of day one was to join in on the tanking and gut-spilling, so there will be no blackmailing... now, or in the future. A night of kicking the campfire, stories, then rest -and it's all Stinky, all morning. We tinkered with ideas rattling around in both our heads and we stumble onto what I would call a“Tire-Saver” tune. It has odd characteristics for a hopped-up truck, but it's beautifully smooth and doesn't force me to concentrate on how to prevent lathing Stinky's shoes. If I ever get in the mood to frighten the ricers, small woodland creatures, and the passenger... I still have the unadulterated race tune. We also discussed Cody's exclusive TNT tune (I just named it that) that I've been lucky to try for a while: Permagrin is dead! Long live Permagasm! What's TNT you say? Ask Bill at PHP if and when he's going to offer it (Hydra only – no other chip). Why the Hydra only? Hydra is secure from the tunes being copied by third parties. Stinky will never be without TNT again. Ever. Seriously.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...ctureid=131182

The results: Cody wins! https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...ctureid=128230 Each tune behaves like it was written by a team of Ford engineers for smooth operation by all style of drivers – but the valet/teenager interlocks are removed. It's as if Stinky gives OSHA and NTSB one long extended finger, and I get a forefinger and pinky.:-jammin The drive home was... well... boring (save for the scenery and passing the occasional vehicle). Nothing happened. The shifts were so slick, I forgot to notice them. The drone from the engine was so quiet and smooth, I had to bump the tunes to keep things lively. I stopped analyzing the truck and it automatically fell into the status of “one of those things you just take for granted”. https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...ctureid=128227 After riding in Stinky for hours, I got back in my Toyota Corolla with a 4-banger and my first thought was “I didn't realize how crappy a 4-banger idles. Gotta remember to let Cody know”.

Statement from Cody:

This is a response written as a requirement to clear the air of any stories you may have heard or rumors that may come of this.
I contacted Rich after reading numerous threads he had started regarding the plethora of issues he was having after changing the injectors in his truck, "Stinky". Before getting into the specifics of our particular arrangement, it needs to be known that I work part-time for a tuning company who works in direct competition with the sponsor of this particular forum and for most people, this has not been a secret and has been common "community knowledge" for quite some time. Additionally, this arrangement has NOTHING to do with either company, but was brought forward simply as a gesture of kindness to help pinpoint the causes of his issues and to eliminate the tuning being the cause of a few of the issues Rich had been having. It must also be said that there has been no intellectual property shared, used, or otherwise copied from either tuning company in question; the calibrations used for testing on "Stinky" are creations of my own and started out as ones that were used on my own particular truck with the same injectors. The calibrations written and used on the chip sent to Rich were written by me, for me.

The stipulations of the arrangement are as follows:
1: This is a TEMPORARY agreement between Rich and Cody (myself) with intellectual property never being disclosed to the masses. No specifics of the calibrations in question are to be discussed openly due to certain tuning techniques used in a couple of the calibrations.
2: No money is exchanging hands nor are any trades being made. I am not doing this for profit. I cannot sell tuning of my own on a broad base (especially on a public forum) due to a conflict of interest trust agreement with my employer. The chip was supplied by me from stock purchased by me.
3: The calibrations used on the chip are MY SOLE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY and do not belong to, nor are they based in any way on current tuning offerings by either tuning company in question. I have no access or desire to know what the calibrations Rich's current tuning is based on or what his tuning entails. It's none of my business.
4: The only information about the tuning ever discussed between I and Rich would entail what Rich is physically able to determine using his scanning software. No tuning specifics were to be discussed (although there was a phone discussion about how much pulse width it actually takes to empty a 160/100% at certain injection pressures).

In conclusion, the reality is that selling tuning of my own remotely is NOT something that is an endeavor of mine. Again, just to reiterate the subject at hand, this is NOT an attempt to sell anything in an underhanded matter; this was an arrangement that was agreed upon as a DIAGNOSTIC exercise. Nothing more. I WILL NOT entertain ANY offers for private tuning in the future from persons who may choose to contact me.

Congratulations, Rich! Kudos to you, Cody! :-drink There's always seems to be a point when live tuning becomes a necessity to get things "so so". While some trucks respond well to the "one size fits all" tunes, differences between truck/engine configurations can yield some lacking results. Even tunes written for a similar combination will not give the same results. I know for a fact that no one has the exact combination of mods that I have. Some are the common ones and some are custom ones of my own. This lack of normality prompted me to seek live tuning to address some shifting and fueling issues. That is one decision I have never regretted. Live tuning has made my truck more user friendly and not a high strung thoroughbred.

Cody may try to act like a grumpy guss...

But we know he's all red pumpy parts...




Rich...
Excellent.

Stinky now has a clean bill of mental health.





Is that more than we can say for you?

:-jammin

sounds like you guys had a good time with Stinky.thats a gtg that I couldnt make to many excuses to not go. as long as it wasnt during my harvest time .

Campfires, adult beverages and diesel tunes, what a great time! :-jammin

Ya like the 'tire saver' tune as a daily driver? Or is it TNT all the way?

Very nice, gotta love when a plan finally comes together. Coeur d'Alene, ID is beautiful. I was there back in 1994. Great place for a GTG.

I had extremely strong suspicions about where your tunes had come from... And, I was right as usual ;)

If I ever break down to get live tuned, my hopes are it will be by Cody at a PHP event... Both of you have been great assets to this forum for as long as i've been around and longer. Please keep it up, the rest of us greatly appreciate it. Well, I do anyway...

Tire Saver is my revised DD, but TNT... I can't say anything more until Bill unleashes it on the public. Sorry. When he finally does, you can bet there will be a detailed review of the tune.

As for my mental state... well... let's just say I had to give the injector bolts a fresh twist before tuning. Torqueing the same bolts repeatedly for 8 months is like a monkey poopfest between your ears. I do have another plan though - inside star washers soaked in red thread lock. This will prevent twisting the heads off if I ever have to remove the bolts again, yet it will hold on to the 'jectors like a juvenile to a joy stick.

I was beginning to wonder if you made it home after the :-X19 you gave Stinky. It's a shame I never knew MY truck could run like that. Basically I drive like my accelerator pedal and floorboard oppose each other such as similar poles of magnets.


Thanks for the kudos, but you left out the pictures of what remained of the liquor bottles. As for the things rattling around in our heads the following morning, NOTHING was going to rattle mine....it hurt too dang much to even move it independently of my shoulders. I forgot that SmartWater is my friend on nights like that. :-partybud

Enjoy Stinky, Rich.

In the meantime I'll keep an eye out for your Hydra order. :-jammin

I knew some would put it together, without confirmation.

I'm glad somebody can benefit from my misadventures... I know I've benefitted from others. Cody and I talked about a possible business model where he could offer a unique service, but that's one of those "gotta mull on it" things... he already has a full dance card.

Glad you got yours running great. I'm ordering a hydra this week hoping to get my tunes working how I would like. I wish I could get live tuned like you did. Closest place to live tune is about a 12hr drive for me. At least with the hydra it will be easier to tweak and tune to hopefully get mine running perfect like yours. Glad your truck is up to your satisfaction, you deserve it.

congrats rich, you deserve it after all the rounds fired off and time invested. great to hear. :-X22

The other picture.... This is a family forum and I'm not sure where pictures of booze fall with the censors.