Help With Black Bear Tune ?

cujo8 · March 31, 2009

I have signed up to get a Black Bear Tune in mid April, but I need help from those that have already had the Black Bear performance tune done to their truck. I know Justin is going to ask me some questions to help me choose the type of tune I want, but I don't want to make any wrong decisions along the way. I was hoping I would find a list of the questions I'll be asked, so that I could research my options. I went to the Black Bear Performance tuning website and searched this forum, but I have not really found exactly what parameters are going to be reprogrammed. I was hoping to find a list of what would/could be changed and what is to be gained/lost by adjusting the parameter and I'm sure there are some things that can be damaged if you push the adjustment too far.

For example, I've read on these boards about getting a "93" or "91" octane tune, but the details are unclear. I assume that a 93 Octane tune will set certain parameters to give the engine it's peak performance on 93 octane fuel, but what does that mean for fuel economy. If I get the 93 octane tune will I get more MPG than if I got the 91 Octane tune? I've also read something about a "Dual-Tune" and I've also read the there's no such thing. Then I heard something about tweaking the Tow-Haul transmission mode...what's that about? The question is; what is the best type of tune to get and why. I realize that people may have different performance goals and the type of tune they like may not be the one I need. I'm hoping for much better transmission shifts and 0-60 times, but also better fuel economy if I go easy on the gas pedal. I also do some towing with my truck, so I'm thinking some tweaks of the Tow-Haul mode may be in order. Any help you could offer on helping me to decide on the best type of tune to get will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

jrrod2004 · March 31, 2009

Some of the things he will ask is:

Stock Tires?

Rear End Ratio?

Engine Size?

Transmission Mods?

87 Tune?

91 Tune?

93 Tune?

87/93 Tune?

Changes to Tranmission shifting

Idle RPMs?

jrrod2004 · March 31, 2009

It is these questions that will allow him to determine what he would recommend. Hell, one of his first questions to me was: "How do you drive your truck on a daily basis?" "What do you want to see from this truck?" I went with the Dual Tune and this has worked out for me. I wanted the ability to drive hard on 93 but use 87 (for when dad is using it). I told him to set my RPMs (idle) @ 700 and told him that I wanted to have the trans shift with 15% throttle (for light driving) and optimized for fuel economy on the 87 octane...

sgrah230 · March 31, 2009

Jim, I had some of those same questions . Thanks for asking them...now for some more answers.

66nova · March 31, 2009

I have signed up to get a Black Bear Tune in mid April, but I need help from those that have already had the Black Bear performance tune done to their truck. I know Justin is going to ask me some questions to help me choose the type of tune I want, but I don't want to make any wrong decisions along the way. I was hoping I would find a list of the questions I'll be asked, so that I could research my options. I went to the Black Bear Performance tuning website and searched this forum, but I have not really found exactly what parameters are going to be reprogrammed. I was hoping to find a list of what would/could be changed and what is to be gained/lost by adjusting the parameter and I'm sure there are some things that can be damaged if you push the adjustment too far. Don't worry about this too much. Leave it up to Justin to decide what parameters to adjust. He won't stear you wrong. He will ask you general questions about driving style, towing, etc.
For example, I've read on these boards about getting a "93" or "91" octane tune, but the details are unclear. I assume that a 93 Octane tune will set certain parameters to give the engine it's peak performance on 93 octane fuel, but what does that mean for fuel economy. If I get the 93 octane tune will I get more MPG than if I got the 91 Octane tune? You will not see a tone of mileage/power difference between 91/93. I would pick this based on what is readily available in your area. We have a lot of 93 here.Hard to find 91. I've also read something about a "Dual-Tune" and I've also read the there's no such thing.All of Justins tunes are "dual tunes". There are a set of tables set up for a range of octane. Our engines have very good "knock sensors" that to a point will adjust for detonation or "pinging" Then I heard something about tweaking the Tow-Haul transmission mode...what's that about? He can make your T/H mode a performance mode adjusting shift points and removing more torque management. You don't want to do this if you tow. I removed all of my TM out of my daily driving mode (my foot is the TM) and left everything in the T/H mode because I tow with my truck.The question is; what is the best type of tune to get and why. I realize that people may have different performance goals and the type of tune they like may not be the one I need. I'm hoping for much better transmission shifts and 0-60 times, but also better fuel economy if I go easy on the gas pedal. I also do some towing with my truck, so I'm thinking some tweaks of the Tow-Haul mode may be in order. Any help you could offer on helping me to decide on the best type of tune to get will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Tell Justin your goals and he will give you recommendations on how to get there. Don't fret about it, he has done this a million times. It's like he can almost read your mind. Go with the high octane tune. You will get the most bang for your buck this way and it only cost about 4 dollars per tank extra. Plus in a pinch it will not be the end of the world if you stick lower octane in it, you will just not want to hammer on it.

08SGMSierra · March 31, 2009

Jim, I had some of those same questions . Thanks for asking them...now for some more answers.

+1

So what is the dual tune, is that the different ways you can use the T/H mode?

How do you like the removal of the TM? I do not have my truck yet, so I don't know how bad it is with it in the factory mode.

cujo8 · March 31, 2009

Thanks for the replies! I always tend to over-think things like this that I don't fully understand. I do trust that Justin will help me make the right decision. I've never done a PCM tune and I have the 1st time slot on Sunday morning, so I'm guessing I won't get a chance to talk to the others getting a tune that day to here what they have to say about this subject. That is why I started this thread to see what others have to say about their BB tune experience.

How would you describe the "before and after" the BB performance tune truck performance? Was the performance gains minor or dramatic?

The Chosen One · March 31, 2009

Tell Justin your goals and he will give you recommendations on how to get there. Don't fret about it, he has done this a million times.

+1, he is gonna ask you and from what i hear is one-on-one. All you do is let him know your goals and at the same time ask him these questions. The other option is, email him directly. I don't see why he wouldn't answer those questions through email, I've asked a few questions and got next day responses.

Nick The Great · March 31, 2009

Thanks for the replies! I always tend to over-think things like this that I don't fully understand. I do trust that Justin will help me make the right decision. I've never done a PCM tune and I have the 1st time slot on Sunday morning, so I'm guessing I won't get a chance to talk to the others getting a tune that day to here what they have to say about this subject. That is why I started this thread to see what others have to say about their BB tune experience.

How would you describe the "before and after" the BB performance tune truck performance? Was the performance gains minor or dramatic?

I wouldn't worry about it. You can't have less of an idea of what you wanted than I did. Justin is quite good at figuring out what you want.

He just sits in your passenger sit with his computer and does some initial readings. You rev it, take it up to high speed, WOT, etc.

As far as before and after, there are a lot of threads on here about that. But mine was quite noticeable. I'm not sure the numbers on a Dyno would be much different, but the "driveability" is much increased. It's not such a pooch off the line, shifts firmer and faster.

66nova · March 31, 2009

How would you describe the "before and after" the BB performance tune truck performance? Was the performance gains minor or dramatic?

Oh boy! It is dramatic. Now, it is not going to turn your 5.3 into a tuned duramax, but the difference in throttle response and driveability is night and day. You will not even know you are in the same truck.

stadt11 · March 31, 2009

Jim, check out the links in my sig. You will the before & after videos (the only performance mod is the Black Bear Tune). You didn't mention what your rear gear-ratio was, mine is 3.42, but if yours is 3.73 you'll see a little better 0-60 times. I went with the 91 dual-tune so I could still run 89 if I wanted to. Much MUCH improvement over stock

I would also recommend a Corvette Servo for your tranny. It will really help your 1-2 shifts, and Justin will tweak your line-pressure to accommodate the servo.

cujo8 · March 31, 2009

Jim, check out the links in my sig. You will the before & after videos (the only performance mod is the Black Bear Tune). You didn't mention what your rear gear-ratio was, mine is 3.42, but if yours is 3.73 you'll see a little better 0-60 times. I went with the 91 dual-tune so I could still run 89 if I wanted to. Much MUCH improvement over stock

I would also recommend a Corvette Servo for your tranny. It will really help your 1-2 shifts, and Justin will tweak your line-pressure to accommodate the servo.

I was not sure which gears I had, since I had not had a chance to look up the code yet. I found the code was GU6, which I found on this site to translate to "76 88 AXLE, RR 3.42". So it looks like I have the same 3.42 gear ratio that you have in your truck. What do the 76 and 88 numbers mean? I'm guessing it designates the front and year axle type. What does the RR designate?

Does the corvette servo make the shifts very hard or just quick and firm? I read you had very hard shifts before the tune, did Justin fix the hardness by reducing the line pressure? Thanks for the info.

Jim

NFSGamerUSA · April 1, 2009

Here's Justin's explanation of what other tuners call a "dual-tune":

The PCM has two primary spark tables, both a high octane and a low octane table. Upon initial startup with the tune installed (or after the battery has been disconnected), the PCM will reference the high octane table for it's base spark reference. As you drive around, the PCM is constantly monitoring the knock sensors for noise that matches what the PCM has been programmed to *think* is detonation. Depending on the severity, timing will be reduced temporarily on a knock event from .1* up to 8* (in most cases). As this knock occurs, the adaptive spark scaler is adjusted from the high octane table towards the low octane table. This scaler is a value of 0 when in full high octane mode, a value of 1 in low octane mode, with any point possible in between. Can think of it's function as: High Octane Value - (High octane value - low octane value) x Scaler. This scaler is constantly learning so as to yield spark reference as near to the high octane table as possible. The scaler will rapidly increase as knock perpetuates, but will degrade it slowly so as to not to constantly be subjecting the engine to detonation if low octane or a bad tank of gas is introduced.

Did that come out clearly?

So basically there's a low octane spark table (which you could have left at 87 octane) and high octane spark table. The computer will try to keep the timing as high as possible without knocking at a point between the low and high octane tables. If it knocks, it'll quickly adjust closer to the low octane table until it stops.

All of this being said, you could get a 93 octane tune and run 87 regular pump, but you wouldn't get full performance or economy since the computer is set for 93 octane.

If I'm wrong about any of this, please correct me, Justin or Jenna.

bigdog2005 · April 1, 2009

Jim, I had some of those same questions . Thanks for asking them...now for some more answers.

+1

So what is the dual tune, is that the different ways you can use the T/H mode?

How do you like the removal of the TM? I do not have my truck yet, so I don't know how bad it is with it in the factory mode.

I was lost on this whole tunning thing, just let Justin do his thing and you tell him as you drive around what you like and dislike. He will tune it till you like it.....As far as TM, I had mine 80% removed in regular drive. And 100% removed in tow mode. He can do anything you want. Trust me and many other's, your truck will never be the same.

stadt11 · April 1, 2009

Does the corvette servo make the shifts very hard or just quick and firm? I read you had very hard shifts before the tune, did Justin fix the hardness by reducing the line pressure? Thanks for the info.

Jim

My shifts were very sloppy from stock, they're now nice and quick. The servo definitely firms things up, at WOT it's very "firm", almost wants to bark the tires @ 58mph coming out of 1st gear