[jonrjen]

I have been looking into picking up a tuner for my new FX4 Eco. I won't get into who I am looking at going with since they are not a vendor who advertises on this forum.....of course nothing is set in stone and the money is still in my wallet at this point.

Anyway, it would appear that there are a couple of ways to go. One of which is the SCT tuner will hold 3 different tunes. I am looking at going 87 octane tunes of Tow/Performance, Transmission shift points alterations on the OEM program, and a new Economy tune or detune if you will (this tune limits the amount of vacuum allow, thus keeping it between 2 to 4 limits unless you push it to WOT then it will allow the vacuum up to 10) design is to limit turbo use, increasing the MPG.
One feature I like about the SCT is you plug it in to down load the OEM program, then up load the program of your choice. Remove the SCT connection wire/cable and your done. $429+shipping

The other tuner is the Livewire tuner with will hold 10 tunes. Three canned tunes from manufacture, then six custom tunes from the tuner for the truck based on my computer code in my truck.
I understand that the Livewire does offer some added benefits in the way of a 4" monitor screen that does allow for some plugging in a rear view camera and watching calculated times and such. But the Live wire has to stay plugged in to the CPU port at all times to do so. $649 plus shipping.

So what is your thoughts, is the Livewire worth the extra $240? I don't know that I would ever fill my tank with 93 octane gas just to use a higher tune. Not sure that the monitor would justify the cost since I have a back up camera and a $159 Scan Gauge would offer more information.

Lay it on me, am I over thinking or under thinking here.

 

[MATTWAYNE07]

I can't speak for the Livewire because i have no experience with it but i do have the SCT SF3 and love it. It holds 3 canned tunes plus 3 custom tunes, if you have more then 3 custom tunes (i do) it takes a matter of 2 minutes with your laptop to switch which custom tunes are on the handheld. (i've also heard rumors that SCT will be releasing new firmware for the SF3 that will allow it to hold 10 custom tunes as well, but don't quote me on that)

I've also been experimenting with SCT's logging software "Livelink" in combination with the SF3 and that’s really cool, it will allow your tuner to really dial in the tune.

Thanks,
MWW

 

[jonrjen]

I appreciate that information,

 

[Ecoboost2012]

Love my SCT. No problems with it and its been on for 5000 plus miles!

 

[jonrjen]

Well I went with an SCT off of Amazon. It comes with the three SCT canned tunes, plus three (3) additional custom tunes based on the information you supply and performance you are looking to achieve. $379 delivered, with custom tunes being sent via Email then transferred to the SCT.

Wish me luck, the sellers reviews have been very positive with feedback.

 

[Kc311]

I've had sct and never had an issue with it. Now have the AIW that comes with Livernois. It's a lot more basic but holds 4 custom tunes plus 1 stock.

 

[GJN25]

I have the SCT Livewire tuner by MPT from Amazon.com just because I wanted to be able to do data logging and it gives you the ability to do that without having to have another thing on the truck. Those were the original reasons why I spent the extra money... Now in retrospect I am still glad I chose the Livewire over the handheld tuner but I think it would've liked to have the money in my pocket even more. I hold no regrets for my decision though lol. I am super happy with SCT and with my tunes from MPT they're great people to deal with. I drive them crazy at least once a month calling them and asking questions.

 

[jonrjen]

Thanks for the feedback on MPT, it is appreciated.

 

[GJN25]

Thanks for the feedback on MPT, it is appreciated.

LOL. I knew who you were talking about when you said Amazon. Like I said I'm very happy with my tunes from them and the tunes are the same quality no matter what unit you get. I hope you enjoy them as I do. I just put my truck back to stock yesterday so that I could update my Livewire. Decided to go for a drive I was going nuts not having the power that I have grown used to over the past wile. Let me know what you think once you get them and have a chance to run around for a bit. Now I'm off to figure out what I'm going to do with my exhaust so many choices and so many mixed reviews I get a headache every time I start to look for new one... lol.

 

[jonrjen]

My son also ordered the same unit as me off of Ebay. I purchased my truck and a week later he followed suite with an exact truck as mine.

 

[m361]

Just ran the SCT SF3 3015 87 octane tune for the first time. By far the most noticeable improvement yet. Haven't smoked the tires yet, but I'm not into wasting good rubber.

A little scary when it started the programming. I heard a loud POP from the stereo speakers and everything went dark. The next 30 seconds or so I could feel my blood pressure rise as I began to ponder the idea that I may have just fried the ECU on my brand new truck that has only 2000 miles on it (and even worse, how I'm going to explain it to my wife who doesn't even know I bought the tuner!)...then the tuner screen showed signs of activity so I started to relax a bit. 10 minutes later and it was a done deal.

Next up...working with 5 star on a custom tune for towing and mpg's. This is by far the most fun I've had with a vehicle in years!

 

[jonrjen]

It does make for a few stressful moments doesn't it. One thing that I noticed was an improvement in MPG. I believe it has to do with the change in the transmission shift points.

 

[Siggyfreud]

That's good to hear. I have been wondering about that, as the stock shift points at times seem to lug the engine to the point of less efficiency, rather than downshifting and getting slightly better mileage. Might have to put a tune on.

 

[ricere]

Do the tunes get rid of the speed limiter? I hate that thing.

 

[jonrjen]

Yes, if I recall correctly the canned tunes on the SCT programmer does allow the limiter to be removed or set to another point. Now if you have a custom tune written for your truck, you may need to request that the limiter be removed. Some tuners believe in leaving the limiter in place for liability reasons IE: they would not want to be liable for removing the speed limiter on a truck that say the tires have a low speed rating.

 

[m361]

Well...I've had the tune loaded for a few days now and (I'm not sure if I am imagining this or what) it seems like the truck has actually lost some of the power improvement it initially had when I loaded the tune. It has a lag off the line like it did with the stock tune, and doesn't seem like the shifts are as crisp. I've tried to search for similar experiences with the SCT tune, but haven't had any luck.

 

[jonrjen]

Well...I've had the tune loaded for a few days now and (I'm not sure if I am imagining this or what) it seems like the truck has actually lost some of the power improvement it initially had when I loaded the tune. It has a lag off the line like it did with the stock tune, and doesn't seem like the shifts are as crisp. I've tried to search for similar experiences with the SCT tune, but haven't had any luck.

Could it be more related to the "RFPPP" (right foot proportional pedal pressure)? Sometimes we can become a creature of habit, where when the tune was new you played a little harder with the foot feed. But, may have a tendency to resort back to safe, calm, economy driving with time. I have two suggestions to try.

1. Go out and drive it with a bit more aggressive foot pressure allowing for the CPU to learn the more aggressive shifts as programmed.
2. Take it back to the stock program for a few days then reload the tuner and pay close attention to any noticeable changes after a few days.

As for the off the line start turbo lag, it will always be there until you get the RPMs up producing some boost. This is controlled in great part with that foot to pedal relationship.....doesn't do the MPG much good however....LOL!!!! This is part of the idea behind of higher RPM shift points it keeps the turbo boost up when shifting into the next higher gear to prevent boost drop.

I know a Ecoboost owner who had a custom tune installed that went with a 87 octane performance tune with a firmer than street transmission tune. He ended up removing that program because it keep the boost up so high that at some shifts he would chirp the rear tires as the transmission upshifted. He said the downshifts were almost brutal.

Don't know if this helps any, but good luck. Keep us updated.