Jump to content

Tunes and headers

lineman74
 Share

Recommended Posts

lineman74 Enthusiast

lineman74

Posted
Posted

So I'm seriously considering having Santa bring me a BBP tune. My question for you guys that have tuned is, is it a waste of time to tune without putting on headers and a cai?

 

My main goal in the tune is just to unlock the trucks potential, I don't need a top hp machine.

 

Thanks

truckguy82 Senior Enthusiast

truckguy82

Posted
Posted

So I'm seriously considering having Santa bring me a BBP tune. My question for you guys that have tuned is, is it a waste of time to tune without putting on headers and a cai?

 

My main goal in the tune is just to unlock the trucks potential, I don't need a top hp machine.

 

Thanks

I am very happy with my truck completely stock with a tune.

 

If you go with blackbear, you get free tunes afterwards if you decide to modify.

 

So you are not wasting a nickle if you upgrade in stages and see how you like it.

 

Tune first

 

That's also what I did, told my wife I wanted an early xmas present, just got it done about a month ago. Now she won't have to spend another few hundred of my money on some other gift!

lineman74 Enthusiast

lineman74

Posted
  • Author
Posted

I am very happy with my truck completely stock with a tune.

 

If you go with blackbear, you get free tunes afterwards if you decide to modify.

 

So you are not wasting a nickle if you upgrade in stages and see how you like it.

 

Tune first

 

That's also what I did, told my wife I wanted an early xmas present, just got it done about a month ago. Now she won't have to spend another few hundred of my money on some other gift!

lineman74 Enthusiast

lineman74

Posted
  • Author
Posted

That's what I'm up against at my house also. I've never modified any vehicle besides tires and now I'm having to justify how to spend my money. Isn't marriage grand!

 

That was my thought as well, just tune now and add in the future. I wasn't sure if there was any benefit to adding before doing the tuning.

 

Thanks

speedbump Enthusiast

speedbump

Posted
Posted

What kind of performance enhancements can be expected from a tune?

I tuned my old 2001 Sierra C-3 with a 6.0 liter engine and didn't see much difference except in shift points.

lineman74 Enthusiast

lineman74

Posted
  • Author
Posted

What kind of performance enhancements can be expected from a tune?

I tuned my old 2001 Sierra C-3 with a 6.0 liter engine and didn't see much difference except in shift points.

Look at Black Bear's website, they can custom tune your truck. There are several guys running their tune and have seen awesome results. AFM delete is a biggie with most guys

crushNchowda Senior Enthusiast

crushNchowda

Posted
Posted (edited)

So I'm seriously considering having Santa bring me a BBP tune. My question for you guys that have tuned is, is it a waste of time to tune without putting on headers and a cai?

 

My main goal in the tune is just to unlock the trucks potential, I don't need a top hp machine.

 

Thanks

Not a waste of time at all particularly on a GM vehicle w/ a smallblock V8 & automatic tranny. GM is notorious for tuning down there performance drivetrains in an effort to meet CAFE regs, "protect" consumers who may not be capable of handling 450hp w/ no electronic nannies, & "protect" components from excessive wear for warranty purposes. The performance tune will do a few things - remove speed limiter, tweak/lower the torque mgmt programming (this is what pulls engine tq goinf to the rear wheels), eliminate pulled timing, increase shift torque pressures so there's less "slop"/delay in shifts, address shift points, adjust air/fuel mix for more power & even better mileage (it's common for stock vehicles to run on the richer side as a precautionary measure since they have the stingy heavy duty cats anyhow the extra fuel doesn't hurt emissions).

 

Additionally w/ these new DI engines allow for even finer tuning of the A/F ratio I've heard & are capable of netting even more power from a tune alone vs. your standard FI engine all else being equal.

 

The benefits from the tranny tuning alone would make it worth doing regardless of any power gains.

 

If you have a reputable engine tuner w/ a dyno in your area who's familiar w/ GM vehicles I would recommend trying that route first as the gains will be better & the tune will be custom matched to your specific truck. On my old '04 GTO w/ the LS1 I had a diablosport handheld tune on it w/ a CAI & exhaust, I ended up getting a custom tune b/c I wanted to add headers...just to prove to me it was worth going to him in the future even on a stock vehicle vs. getting a mail order or handheld tune he dynoed my car stock & then adjusted everything prior to adding the headers I picked up an extra 11whp just from his tune over the diablo tune.

 

I have also had custom dyno tunes done on other stock GM vehicles (they didn't all stay stock LOL) like my old '08 G8 GT, my '03 Z06, my previous '07 Silverado....I have yet to get my current 6.2 Sierra done only because I'm waiting until spring when I put on bigger/heavier BFG K02's - that way they can address the speedo & I'll get the max benefit of the tune doing it w/ the heavier tires on it so its tuned to full potential w/ that setup vs. the stock rubber.

 

That's not to say there's anything wrong w/ going w/ black bear, I'm just saying if you have access to a good dynotuner you would get more performance for your $$$ IMO.

Edited by crushNchowda
  • Like 1
truckguy82 Senior Enthusiast

truckguy82

Posted
Posted (edited)

What kind of performance enhancements can be expected from a tune?

I tuned my old 2001 Sierra C-3 with a 6.0 liter engine and didn't see much difference except in shift points.

The 5.3 and 6.2 are both powerful engines, they just don't feel like it, at all. The tune essentially makes it feel like the power is there. Changing the shift rpm, the throttle, shift speed, and reducing torque managment is way more important for the driving experience than power. Your old 6.0 had a real throttle cable and no torque managment, I am absolutey certain you will see a much bigger difference tuning your current truck.

 

If you asked me what would be more fun, a 500hp truck on the factory tune, vs a 420hp truck with a tune, I'd take the 420hp truck any day.

Edited by truckguy82
  • Like 2
Rawyzf Senior Enthusiast

Rawyzf

Posted
Posted

Not a waste of time at all particularly on a GM vehicle w/ a smallblock V8 & automatic tranny. GM is notorious for tuning down there performance drivetrains in an effort to meet CAFE regs, "protect" consumers who may not be capable of handling 450hp w/ no electronic nannies, & "protect" components from excessive wear for warranty purposes. The performance tune will do a few things - remove speed limiter, tweak/lower the torque mgmt programming (this is what pulls engine tq goinf to the rear wheels), eliminate pulled timing, increase shift torque pressures so there's less "slop"/delay in shifts, address shift points, adjust air/fuel mix for more power & even better mileage (it's common for stock vehicles to run on the richer side as a precautionary measure since they have the stingy heavy duty cats anyhow the extra fuel doesn't hurt emissions).

 

Additionally w/ these new DI engines allow for even finer tuning of the A/F ratio I've heard & are capable of netting even more power from a tune alone vs. your standard FI engine all else being equal.

 

The benefits from the tranny tuning alone would make it worth doing regardless of any power gains.

 

If you have a reputable engine tuner w/ a dyno in your area who's familiar w/ GM vehicles I would recommend trying that route first as the gains will be better & the tune will be custom matched to your specific truck. On my old '04 GTO w/ the LS1 I had a diablosport handheld tune on it w/ a CAI & exhaust, I ended up getting a custom tune b/c I wanted to add headers...just to prove to me it was worth going to him in the future even on a stock vehicle vs. getting a mail order or handheld tune he dynoed my car stock & then adjusted everything prior to adding the headers I picked up an extra 11whp just from his tune over the diablo tune.

 

I have also had custom dyno tunes done on other stock GM vehicles (they didn't all stay stock LOL) like my old '08 G8 GT, my '03 Z06, my previous '07 Silverado....I have yet to get my current 6.2 Sierra done only because I'm waiting until spring when I put on bigger/heavier BFG K02's - that way they can address the speedo & I'll get the max benefit of the tune doing it w/ the heavier tires on it so its tuned to full potential w/ that setup vs. the stock rubber.

 

That's not to say there's anything wrong w/ going w/ black bear, I'm just saying if you have access to a good dynotuner you would get more performance for your $$$ IMO.

 

This pretty much says it all. Great post.

 

I tuned my truck before headers, and it was worth every penny. Just the shifting characteristics was worth the tune in my opinion.

 

Gains are to be had as well on a stock truck. My tune wasn't done on a completely stock truck (Catback and MIT Tube), but I gained 30hp and 34tq from tuning with my 5.3L.

 

Link in my sig for e85 has Dyno charts for my truck.

 

 

  • Like 1
speedbump Enthusiast

speedbump

Posted
Posted

OK guys, your getting me excited. The truck is a year old and I just had the new torque inverter installed because of the studder when trying to downshift thingie going on. I am not pleased with the way the truck shifts now and never have been, so that improvement would be great by itself. I don't know if there is a tune guy in my area but I'm going to find out. No matter what I end up doing, I will come back and tell y'all about it.

 

One more quick question, is the Wife going to like the truck better after the tune, because she drives it now and then.

truckguy82 Senior Enthusiast

truckguy82

Posted
Posted

OK guys, your getting me excited. The truck is a year old and I just had the new torque inverter installed because of the studder when trying to downshift thingie going on. I am not pleased with the way the truck shifts now and never have been, so that improvement would be great by itself. I don't know if there is a tune guy in my area but I'm going to find out. No matter what I end up doing, I will come back and tell y'all about it.

 

One more quick question, is the Wife going to like the truck better after the tune, because she drives it now and then.

I'd be scared to local with DI and the 8speed.

 

Chances someone has extensive experience on these is slim and there are certain things, which I'm not aware of, that the 8speed does not like and is easy to screw up.

 

If you were doing turbo's or nitrous, I'd probably say go local as you'll need wideband tuning.

 

I'd rather have a blackbear tune than a local tune any day for a mostly stock vehicle. He's tuned 100's of them. Could it be a little conservative, sure, but 10hp isn't worth the risk IMO.

 

Also blackbear doesn't really do "canned" tunes. While the mail order service doesn't have "live tuning", he still looks at what your individual truck is doing through stored sensor data and makes adjustments from there.

 

You could also go custom through blackbear if he's coming to your area. That's what I did.

lineman74 Enthusiast

lineman74

Posted
  • Author
Posted

My truck came with cat back exhaust and I am planning an MIT upgrade over stock intake. It sounds like headers aren't a necessity at this time and will probably go ahead and "risk" the tune with only 2300 miles on it. Thanks for the input gentlemen.

  • Like 1

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Latest Articles

  • Posts

    • twgraham
      Video processing module location

      By twgraham · Posted

      Can someone tell me where the video processing module is in a 2023 Silverado? I'm getting conflicting results that it's in the front passenger area or the rear passenger area behind the seat.
    • Chuck FB
      Missing thrust bearing? And oil selection

      By Chuck FB · Posted

      Yes I agree, its what amounts to free advertising to let people know about his UOA testing company, and not that there is anything wrong with that but certainly that is a motivator for putting out videos about the science of oil as well as other topics such as oil and air filtration etc. The interesting part I found with his last video is not only the physics behind the reason for the varying wear due to a diesels working torque range causing more bearing load and that higher viscosity oil is of benefit, it was also that the chemistry behind the GM Dexos 0W-20 and the Mobil Dexos licensed 0W-20 are far enough apart that its showing up with a difference in wear even though the two oils are matched in viscosity and in that comparison viscosity was not having the finger pointed at it.    There are a few youtubers out there or one anyway that I have watched a bit of who has gone through the pains of accessing various countries manuals for a certain engine platform and while in the US/Canada it may say use 0W-20 or what have you for some Toyota product, in some other countries it sings a very different tune for the very same engine with the typical traditional oil viscosity/ambient temperature charts to help choose which oil viscosity is correct for the conditions the vehicle will be used in and in some cases its taken an engine in a US manual that states only use 0W-20 as per warranty coverage and yet that same engine in certain other countries may have up to a 15W-40 etc oil option that meets the spec. Another words the guy who is driving through Death Valley or Phoenix and south weather at 120f is often being fed a line of bs by the US system that has forced vehicle companies to restrict the warranty to a specific low viscosity oil for anterior reasons as well as the long drain interval suggestions.    Thankfully youtube is free ( yet anyway ) for viewers to sift through information and of course comes with the good and the bad ( truth and lies ) and we can choose to turn off/not watch what a person finds is bs or just not interested in the topic.         
    • Atlas
      Missing thrust bearing? And oil selection

      By Atlas · Posted

      No doubt... But, as someone who doesn't pay for his services, but who has provided a few views/clicks on his Youtube platform, the data around the Mobil oil testing I think does have some value including to "freeloaders" like me.   A lot of what he's doing is likely showing the OE's work in their oil selection, something that many of us had kind of assumed was true all along, a good balance of both excellent protection and efficiency.
    • Z45
      Missing thrust bearing? And oil selection

      By Z45 · Posted

      Lake Speed is drumming up business for his company just by being in the spot-light so he has a vested interest in stoking the 0W-20 fire.  IMO  
    • Chuck FB
      summer road trips in the 2026 2500HD

      By Chuck FB · Posted

      I knew when I bought my truck that it had off road hill decent or craw control or whatever they call it and rolled my eyes at that but it gets throw on with other options my truck has, I just never had a heads up if the highway speed regular cruise setting had anything to do with the brakes and that took me by surprise. If you've ever been to the top of Pikes Peak and watched those ahead of you on the way down with their brake lights on constantly, one can guess they are probably not gearing down or not enough anyway if their vehicle will allow and a good reason their is a brake check spot part way down where they use an infra red heat gun to check how hot ones brakes are front and rear.    Your right that once one gets out of the front range by Denver and I've not been on that stretch of 285 between Denver and Fairplay myself but I know its high and Fairplay at 10000 feet, Buena Vista at 8000, it drops a bit from there but then your going back up and over the 11000 pass and Durango is at 6500 . So yes your definitely right that 6500 and a lot higher is the theme of going anywhere out in that direction from Denver but hey, the down hill sections give fantastic fuel mileage !.    I don't even look at the fuel pumps for what premium costs here, since I live on a farm and up to this point get fuel delivered I am rarely in front of a fuel pump and when I am, I am often using card lock bulk fuel stations so it tells me what the price is AFTER I buy the fuel. Looking up on gas buddy and converting to US gallons but in Canadian dollars, regular on average of the prices listed was around 5.95 and premium is around 7.00 . That was one reason I did not go for the 6.2 half ton aside from its lack of carrying/towing if one was going by the rule of using premium fuel and until recently one could only buy regular farm gas if playing the few cents off game for farm dyed fuel for a "farm licensed pickup". But yes I hear you on the fuel price difference and like the diesel theme with it often being more expensive then gas it doesn't have quite the charm to it either as it once did although right now here for some reason the price of diesel has come down more so its now inline with the price of regular gas. 

  • GM-Trucks.com Clubs

  • Popular Contributors

×
×
  • Create New...