Anything bad about Westers?

GlennRMK · May 31, 2004

Ok, I've searched through here and it seems everyone is very happy with their Westers ECU.

Does anyone have any bad experiences, or are there any downsides?

I can get a Hypertec Power Programmer for about $260, but everyone seems to say the Westers is way better, and worth the $595. Yet, everyone I know with a Hypertec has been very happy.

My only thing is I am looking for low-mid gains more then top end. Pretty impressed top end, but I think it need some more power in the 1000-3000 RPM range. Especially for towing.

Is the Westers ECU worth it? Is it really that much better then the Hypertec?

I'm also going to buy a K&N FIPK($190) and go with a 40 series Delta Flow Flowmaster, with duals out the back.

What about warranty on the truck with the Westers?

Would like to do headers, but probably won't be for a while.

Any advice or info is welcome.

Thanks

tmf6902 · May 31, 2004

Mine has been great....I am pretty sure some peoples computer took some time to get right(knocking), but as long as you have the patience to let it learn or even send it back to make sure it works right you should be happy.

As far as a downside.....sure...I have to buy premium gas, and prices suck now, but I got the 93 tune because I wanted the power, so I don't mind paying extra for premium fuel. My mpg's went down some too, but that's more because of my foot than, the computer I imagine

intruder217 · June 1, 2004

The most notable difference between Westers and a handheld is with a handheld you know what you are changing and how much. With a Westers you tell him what you have and what you want to get and that's it. You'll never know what he touched and by what degree. That said, I have a Westers in my 99 5.7 Vortec and am happy with the performance mods he made for improved towing and driveability.

Tucson_02Silverado · June 1, 2004

There are bad experiences posted here and on FullSizeChevy.com. But read the entire thread before making any judgements. A few of them are the typical '...I sent email this morning and he still hasn't responded. That's bad business practice..."

I've had mine installed for over two months now and still very satisfied.

While I was looking at handheld programmers and custom "mail order" tuning, in January of this year for me the handhelds came down to SPE (Street Performance and Electronics), and the custom to Westers. The main reason was that there was a challenge made to tune a stock and slightly modified "mules" on FSC with SPE, Westers, Diablo, and open to any others. SPE and Westers said they would "donate" for the dyno/street tests their product, Diablo said they must buy it, no other responses.

At the time of my purchase of a custom, there was Nelson's and PCMsforless. Again at the time of my purchase decision, Westers had the better warranty and product transfer. I haven't looked, but I think Nelson's now matches Westers warranty, but I don't know about product transfer.

GlennRMK · June 1, 2004

Thanks for the feedback.

I think I will be going to the Westers.

Scott02Z71 · June 1, 2004

Well, i love mine. Lyndon has done great with me customer servicewise. I would recomend this tune and will get it again on my next truck!

Scott

Mort · June 1, 2004

CHOP
I'm also going to buy a K&N FIPK($190) and go with a 40 series Delta Flow Flowmaster, with duals out the back.

Would like to do headers, but probably won't be for a while.

Any advice or info is welcome.

Thanks

Glenn-

Carefull what you do to the exhaust or you will lose low end torque. Do a little research before you buy. A 3" in / dual 3" out will likely cost you on the bottom end. A 2.5" in / dual 2.5 " out is probably the biggest you should go. Ask around and hope you get some straight advice on this. True duals should be no bigger than 2.25" pipe. There are lots of threads in these forums on this so search around.

If you are not out for a full performance tune Lyndon has lots of options which can be geared toward towing as well but at the expense of all out performance. Again there are lots of threads on this so search around and do a little research before you commit. He also offers dual tunes if gas price is an issue. A lot of people who do not get the performance tune seem to complain about it after they get their tune. So know what you want and are likely to get.

I cannot comment on an K&N FIPK but I have heard various stories good and bad. I have a 6.0 not a 5.3 and I put an Airforce One Intake on it and it hurt performance as well so I am back to the stock intake. Check out some of the other intake makes as well such as Volant, AEM, etc before you commit. I know I am not exactly comparing apples to apples but I would look around and think a little before spending money on an intake kit. There are also reports of the oil on the filter contaminating the MAF as well so take care with that issue as well.

GlennRMK · June 1, 2004

Thanks

I was not planning on any bigger then 2.5" duals.

I have the K&N FIPK on my 95 Jeep Grand Cherokee with the 318 and it made a nice difference. So, I'm going to go with it again.

intruder217 · June 1, 2004

Should you do all your other mods first then get your Westers tuned to all the mods. Otherwise you'll be going back and forth with him doing updates. This will eat up time and money.

GlennRMK · June 2, 2004

Thanks

I was planning on the exhaust and K&N FIPK first.

And I still need to think if $595 vs $260 is worth it.

fastdrvr23 · June 2, 2004

A few months ago, I was tossing around the same type of decision you describe.

I ended up doing some very similar mods to what you were asking about, in this order...

K&N Panel

Magnaflow Single In / Dual Out (3in to 2X2.5out) -- See my sig.

Custom Wester's 89 Octane Tune

K&N FIPK

I've been extremely impressed with the wester's tune. I gained 2MPG on average with the tune, and another 1 MPG with the addition of the FIPK. With a ~80 mile overall commute everyday, my mileage is usually between 22 and 23 MPG highway. The truck's driveability is worlds different from stock as well, the transmission actually knows how to shift itself, the power delivery is nice and smooth, and the performance on the highway (mid and upper RPM's) is phenomenal. My low end increased a good bit, in fact, alot more than I expected with the 3.42 gear set. The lower/removal of torque management makes a huge difference.

GlennRMK · June 5, 2004

What about the warranty on the truck?

Is the dealer going to be a pain in the butt about warranty? Will they even know about the Westers ECU?

fastdrvr23 · June 5, 2004

What about the warranty on the truck?

Is the dealer going to be a pain in the butt about warranty? Will they even know about the Westers ECU?

They didn't say anything about mine, and they did a hell of an inspection for the extended warranty related to warm start knock and piston slap. I guess if the drove it over 100MPH they'd know, but you should be safe. My truck's been in the shop twice since I got the wester's installed. The tech told me my truck was running really strong, and that I must have had a factory freak or something.

I just agreed, and left smiling. I wouldn't go in there and tell them about it though, worst thing is they could Reflash your ecu trying to clear some other problem up, but Lyndon will burn you another for the cost of shipping.

Good luck!

snoman · June 5, 2004

Thanks

I was not planning on any bigger then 2.5" duals.

I have the K&N FIPK on my 95 Jeep Grand Cherokee with the 318 and it made a nice difference. So, I'm going to go with it again.

Your will get better low end and mid range torque with a single exhaust with a 3 inch or so tail pipe. Duals are really more show than go for general street use with modern ECM controlled engines and they may hurt mileage around town too.

GF7PE · June 6, 2004

When I first got mine, it sucked big time!!! After a few emails and a couple weeks of waiting for it to get better I sent it back and had a new program sent out in its place. At the same time I had put the lift on so it needed to be changed to 35" tires anyway. Well as soon as it came back and I put it in, it was dramatically different. Much more power and better all around performance. I went from 7-8 mpg around town to 10-11 and 10-11 on the highway to 14-15.

the only thing that sucks is the $20 freight charge to send it back for upgrades