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Ford Performance Tune

TMac

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Smart money says the same applies to me. lol
Let's take a quiz:
Do you post useful information to the site? Check.
Do you add insight and technical direction that results in hundreds of positive accolades? Check.
Do you occasionally refute nonsensical, false information? Check.
Do a majority of active members of the site acknowledge your contributions? Check.
And finally:
Do you always agree with @CareerFiremanGuy? Ummm....No.
Sorry. You are an "uneducated troll" and are therefore on his "ignore" list and your "rants will be muted forever"!
 

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Dale5403

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He has me blocked as well as several others who didn't agree with him, so he can't see the post!
Smart money says the same applies to me. lol
I'm sure that I am in that club to. He is the only person that I have ever seen brag about blocking people on a web forum.
 

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May I distill this down in a nutshell? For those who think this "tune" is going to give them a few extra HP (and perhaps better shifting) and not void their warranty- they have a point, and I get it. For those who think that 30 HP is not worth the amount of money over a tune that could provide them a lot more HP (and perhaps better shifting) at the same price point- they have a point, and I get it.

However, if you believe that if you "pop" your engine while on the Ford tune the dealership and warranty service guy are just going to "pop" for the repair, good luck with that! Just because they say it doesn't void a warranty, unless you find a nice dealer who needs the work; and that work pays well, you're going to be out of your vehicle for awhile.

However, if you're on the stock turbos- neither the Ford tune nor a dedicated octane ZFG tune should cause any worries. I hesitate to include other tuners simply because looking at their dyno maps, they are not addressing the boost spikes around 3K RPM which can lead to detonation problems.

The biggest concern with a dedicated octane tune is when all of your correction maps are on (say) 93 octane gas. You, your pal, your high school son, etc, decides to fill it up with 87 to save money on a dry 30 degree day and then decides to make a WOT run. That is a recipe for problems.

In the end, I don't blame anyone for wanting a bit more HP so they can say they're tuned and they believe they're keeping their warranty intact. It's your money after all.
A Ford dealer is not going to make the choice to proceed with warranty work on your vehicle based on it being FP tuned or not. If you have an aftermarket tune, there’s a chance they won’t want to go through the effort to submit a claim and tell you it’s going to be out of pocket. Factors that are more likely to have a impact you you getting service are their Service Backlog, Technician capacity (both resource and ability) and if the Service Manager is an asshat and doesn’t want the lower $$$ of a warranty job that they just may have to sit in for months due to parts back orders and dealing with a grumpy customer because of it. They will submit the service request for approval based on what see and know, send pictures as requested and show the regional rep if Ford Corp makes the request.

Also, please keep in mind that Warranty isn’t “void” due to a modification, it just isn’t. It’s a claim by claim situation (even though the mod will likely be noted in Oasis for you serial number). The claim can be denied however and regardless about anyone want to sing the praises of the Magnuson Act (doesn’t exist for us Canadians anyway) the onus quickly shift to the vehicle owner to lawyer up if they want to fight the denial.

Having close family and friends that work at 4 different dealerships, I can tell you the FP tunes are regarded as “mild” and I have yet to hear about any warranty claims being denied due to them on the Mustang or Focus.

The FP tune is VERY low risk from a warranty or even a potential issue standpoint. This is coming from someone that has tunes from three different aftermarket tuners for mine.


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CareerFiremanGuy

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I currently have the FP calibration but haven’t installed yet. I plan on getting some baseline dyno pulls for a comparison first and will share before and after on the forum. I tried to get baseline numbers last week but ran into issues. (I failed to realize that when disabling pre-collision assist it doesn’t stay off and defaults to ‘on’ with every key cycle) so I’m a bonehead. Needless to say the ST freaked out on the dyno.

Before I return to the dyno can someone confirm the proper settings? My understanding is:
1. Sport Mode, Manual
2. Turn off traction control / Advance Trac
3. Disable pre-collision assist

Anything else? Thank you.
Sorry no one has responded to you yet.

For me, I have no problem with FP's dyno numbers. What I meant by "testing" was using a Dragy or going to the drag strip.

Because additional hp/torque alone will not give the whole story on acceleration improvements, it's also about where that hp/torque is placed and for how long.

Do you have a dragy? If not, have some fun with your dyno session.(y)
 

Spins4

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Sorry no one has responded to you yet.

For me, I have no problem with FP's dyno numbers. What I meant by "testing" was using a Dragy or going to the drag strip.

Because additional hp/torque alone will not give the whole story on acceleration improvements, it's also about where that hp/torque is placed and for how long.

Do you have a dragy? If not, have some fun with your dyno session.(y)
In
It does depend on the vehicle and the tune. But in the event anything else goes wrong on the vehicle, that tune voids any warranty you had, that is the issue. It's not an issue of the tune causing damage. There are too many things that can go wrong with today's vehicles that the average home mechanic cannot fix, at least not easily or at a big expense. So some of us want to keep our vehicles extended warranty in place, that's all.
Sorry no one has responded to you yet.

For me, I have no problem with FP's dyno numbers. What I meant by "testing" was using a Dragy or going to the drag strip.

Because additional hp/torque alone will not give the whole story on acceleration improvements, it's also about where that hp/torque is placed and for how long.

Do you have a dragy? If not, have some fun with your dyno session.(y)
Appreciate the response. I’ve asked the same question about dyno settings on one of the Facebook pages too and haven’t received a confirmation. I’m sure someone will respond and confirm eventually.

I agree that dyno numbers won’t tell the whole story especially when the transmission shift strategy is changed, that could certainly help acceleration. I do have a Dragy and already have some baseline data to reference back to. I’ll share both after I make some runs with the FP calibration.
 

CareerFiremanGuy

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... I do have a Dragy and already have some baseline data to reference back to. I’ll share both after I make some runs with the FP calibration.
Cool! That'd be great.(y)
 

UNBROKEN

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I'm sure that I am in that club to. He is the only person that I have ever seen brag about blocking people on a web forum.
So I'm not the only one that thinks it’s weird? Like…a grown man actually needs a safe space? Or maybe it’s the only way to keep thinking he’s always right if he doesn’t see differing opinions…or actual facts. Either way…weird.
 

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So i was drinking and thinking that Ford released this "tune" case it's the same "tune" they're using in the Bronco Raptor which has the same motor and trans as the ST. The HP and TQ numbers match up to match so this is not really a performance tune for the ST if this is the case...
 

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However, if you believe that if you "pop" your engine while on the Ford tune the dealership and warranty service guy are just going to "pop" for the repair, good luck with that! Just because they say it doesn't void a warranty, unless you find a nice dealer who needs the work; and that work pays well, you're going to be out of your vehicle for awhile.
SPOT ON! So many people put way too much trust in the "Guarantee Fairy" but what they don't understand is the majority of dealer service departments are backed up with paying customers and a LOT of vehicles waiting on parts. Dealing with OEMs on warranty work is not only a major paperwork headache but the dealers get paid a lot less on warranty work from the OEM.
 

CareerFiremanGuy

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SPOT ON! So many people put way too much trust in the "Guarantee Fairy" but what they don't understand is the majority of dealer service departments are backed up with paying customers and a LOT of vehicles waiting on parts. Dealing with OEMs on warranty work is not only a major paperwork headache but the dealers get paid a lot less on warranty work from the OEM.
I've had warranty work done with no issues. Not sure where you're getting your info from, but they sound like Chicken Little screaming "The sky is falling!"

What too many people don't understand is that a voided warranty is a voided warranty.

With OEM parts/tunes they'll take care of it no matter how long it takes, whereas with 3rd party mods they will tell you to take a hike.
 

CareerFiremanGuy

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So i was drinking and thinking ...
Yeah, that always ends up well. Lol

.. Ford released this "tune" ... it's the same "tune" they're using in the Bronco Raptor which has the same motor and trans as the ST. The HP and TQ numbers match up to match so this is not really a performance tune for the ST if this is the case...
The FP tune for the ST makes 430 hp / 467 lb ft, while the Raptor "tune" makes 418 hp / 440 lb ft.

Not the same animal.
 

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Yeah, that always ends up well. Lol



The FP tune for the ST makes 430 hp / 467 lb ft, while the Raptor "tune" makes 418 hp / 440 lb ft.

Not the same animal.
The Bronco is definitely losing HP/TQ in the giant 37" tires... I'm just saying seems fishy.
 

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So i was drinking and thinking that Ford released this "tune" case it's the same "tune" they're using in the Bronco Raptor which has the same motor and trans as the ST. The HP and TQ numbers match up to match so this is not really a performance tune for the ST if this is the case...
I don’t follow what you’re saying here. Ford states that some of the extra HP in the Braptor comes from different intake, exhaust and I believe turbos, compared to the other vehicles with the 3.0.

This is absolutely a performance tune for the ST, it gives your more power than stock.


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SPOT ON! So many people put way too much trust in the "Guarantee Fairy" but what they don't understand is the majority of dealer service departments are backed up with paying customers and a LOT of vehicles waiting on parts. Dealing with OEMs on warranty work is not only a major paperwork headache but the dealers get paid a lot less on warranty work from the OEM.
As much as some of us put our faith in aftermarket tuners, it doesn’t matter how you slice it, there is less risk with the FP tune and less chance you’re going to have this kinda convo with a service writer/manager.


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Y
As much as some of us put our faith in aftermarket tuners, it doesn’t matter how you slice it, there is less risk with the FP tune and less chance you’re going to have this kinda convo with a service writer/manager.


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yikes….I’m going to argue with this. You realize turnover at many OEMs engineering departments is very high, especially the big 3. After seeing how bad Ford botched this release (graphs, lack of proper dealer training) I would argue ZFG is less risk. Literally hundreds and hundreds running it, and pushing it hard, with zero issues. Zack has done his due diligence, so much that he even stopped taking orders to ensure he was compliant with EPA regs.
 

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Y


yikes….I’m going to argue with this. You realize turnover at many OEMs engineering departments is very high, especially the big 3. After seeing how bad Ford botched this release (graphs, lack of proper dealer training) I would argue ZFG is less risk. Literally hundreds and hundreds running it, and pushing it hard, with zero issues. Zack has done his due diligence, so much that he even stopped taking orders to ensure he was compliant with EPA regs.
Tell me the turnover of the folks that ran this program? Botched release, like how...a typo? Dealer training happens on a regular cadence for certain things and online courses for others. You clearly have no clue how this works. Do you mean marketing or technical?

I do find it interesting how you believe that a tuner that does this part-time some how has access to more than a division of the corporation that built the vehicle. It is awesome that Adam is going through the process and expense for C.A.R.B, but that doesn't mean much for reliability. "Zero Issues"? Come on dude, you're delusional.
 

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Y


yikes….I’m going to argue with this. You realize turnover at many OEMs engineering departments is very high, especially the big 3. After seeing how bad Ford botched this release (graphs, lack of proper dealer training) I would argue ZFG is less risk. Literally hundreds and hundreds running it, and pushing it hard, with zero issues. Zack has done his due diligence, so much that he even stopped taking orders to ensure he was compliant with EPA regs.
Completely agree and can not even argue. What the poster is trying to say though and I do agree is if I blow a piston through the side of my block I am much more likely to have a warranty claim approved through Ford with an FP Tune than I would with a ZFG even though it is far superior.

Even though there is a high turnover rate on engineers and botched graphs, that doesn’t matter, it is still backed with a Ford warranty. If you can get a Ford Warrantied ZFG tune Adam could retire in a month.
 

TMac

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I really enjoy the back-and-forth on this subject. Both sides have solid points as I posted in #290. I'm not even sure what the argument is about, but as someone over 55, I don't remember that any of this was even an issue when I was younger.

Please bear with me- I'm making a point. Because, in the past, if you modified your vehicle, you assumed the risk. It was that simple. You could simply put the trans in neutral, floor the accelerator, and destroy the engine. Easy-peasy. And yet- no one did. There was a time before rev-limiters, knock-detection, etc, when an individual who wanted more power assumed the responsibility that things could go wrong.

Now it seems there are people who want to modify their vehicles, and yet do not want to assume any responsibility for those customizations. I understand it, and truly don't understand anyone who can't. And if you're one of those people, guess what, you get 30 hp instead of 100 hp.

Once again, look back at post #290. Because in effect, the argument is about a warranty- in effect removing oneself from financial responsibility. In that post, I tried to lay out the worst case scenario for having that custom octane tune, and not having a warranty- the chances of engine failure,engineering-wise, are pretty miniscule. But there are people I'm sure who never change their engine oil and then bitch about smoke and bearing failure at 50k miles.

So, let me just express my thoughts- if you want to spend a thousand bucks to get 30hp, go for it. But I'm not going to make that choice. No way, No how. But I get it if you do.
 

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