Ford Performance Tune

[Netranger6]

I'm just going to get a redseal mechanic to push the button, give me a receipt and keep my extended warranty. Having a dealer do it would flag the truck right away IMO. In the future if they give me a hard time I'll show them the receipt. It can't void the whole extended warranty if anything. It's probably just the Raptor or the 2019 Limited 450hp stock tune. It says Ford on the tune not some 3rd party, I highly doubt it's something special. I'll fight for my warranty if I have to down the road.

Prove to me it's not the Raptor or Limited tune is where I would start.

Exactly

 

[pittman]

There was some rumbling that Livernois worked in collaboration with Ford on the 3.5L tune given their extensive experience. I also think it's a bit strange that the non-raptor tune has the same peak power figures as the stock 3.5L raptor. Perhaps Ford is confident in the reliability of the engine at this state of tune. I think a large part of it is that the truck still needs to be able to tow. Many aftermarket tunes are too aggressive for adequate cooling with the demands put on them during towing. No mention of that with the FP tune.

In any case, tough to say for sure. I hope Livernois put a bit of effort into the transmission calibration. It sure seems improved in the few weeks I've had it.

 

[FeeltheTremor]

There was some rumbling that Livernois worked in collaboration with Ford on the 3.5L tune given their extensive experience. I also think it's a bit strange that the non-raptor tune has the same peak power figures as the stock 3.5L raptor. Perhaps Ford is confident in the reliability of the engine at this state of tune. I think a large part of it is that the truck still needs to be able to tow. Many aftermarket tunes are too aggressive for adequate cooling with the demands put on them during towing. No mention of that with the FP tune.

In any case, tough to say for sure. I hope Livernois put a bit of effort into the transmission calibration. It sure seems improved in the few weeks I've had it.

With the Livernois tune you get a separate Tune for Towing. I ordered the FP one yesterday, now to find a redseal mechanic to push the button.

 

[FeeltheTremor]

@Netranger6 does it come with a sticker to put on the fuel door saying premium gas only or anything?

 

[pittman]

No sticker.

 

[FeeltheTremor]

No sticker.

Good to know, Thanks

 

[zx12-iowa]

Why do you think it's a Livernois tune? Their tunes are much more aggressive at over an extra 100hp and 110tq. and can make a lot more changes in the ECU. Maybe the programmer is the same with limited functions but the same tune is not listed as an option on their site that I can see.

I forget where I read it, but it was in more than one place. Yes, those aftermarket tunes can get peak power much higher. But remember these are warrantied by Ford so more conservative and likely to have less stress on truck. You can go balls out, but chances are it will trade off some longer term reliability.

 

[Netranger6]

@Netranger6 does it come with a sticker to put on the fuel door saying premium gas only or anything?

No sir

 

[FeeltheTremor]

It's an ADD thing, when I'm going to or do buy something I Research the crap out of it. Found this extreamly interesting. Thought I should share. Makes me swing closer to thinking it's just the OEM Raptor, 2019 Limited Tune. That works for me.

But it also makes me question installing a Cold Air Intake.

ProCal - Performance Calibrations - Ford Performance Parts

Welcome to the Ford Performance Parts website. Offering quality aftermarket parts specifically engineered and designed for your Ford Powered vehicle.

performanceparts.ford.com

Powertrain Control Module calibration

There's also the matter of the engine's internal conditions, which are monitored and adjusted-for by the powertrain control module (and the way it's calibrated). Ford Performance calibrations, like Ford production calibrations, are developed with certain protections against damage, both short-term and long-term, caused by particular internal conditions – mainly heat.

One example is protection against overly hot catalyst temperatures, which can cause permanent damage. Without going into how it's done, a production PCM will continually calculate the hottest temperature in a catalyst, and if it exceeds a predetermined limit, the PCM will richen the A/F ratio to lower the exhaust gas temperature until the catalyst has cooled sufficiently. Of course a richer A/F ratio will also reduce power output.

So what? Well, suppose a car – a supercharged production vehicle with production calibration – is driven to a dyno facility and a run is performed immediately, resulting in a reading of 420 hp. Then a part is swapped out for a "high-performance" version and the car run again; the reading is 430 hp. The high-performance part is worth 10 hp, right? Wrong. In this hypothetical example, the dyno operator was not monitoring A/F ratio, so didn't know that in the first run, with the engine fully up to temperature, the catalyst protection function kicked in, richened the A/F ratio, and reduced power output. In the second run, the engine had cooled enough that the catalyst protection wasn't needed and the A/F ratio remained optimal. So the results were misleading; it wasn't an apples-to-apples comparison.

That example may be trivial, but it shows how vital the essential data input is to getting correct results. In this case, if the A/F ratio had been monitored, the discrepancy would have been immediately apparent.

Similarly misleading results can be caused by a failure to keep inlet air temperature constant between runs. As inlet air temperature increases, the PCM will retard spark timing to prevent detonation, lowering power output.

Some aftermarket cold-air kit manufacturers claim enormous power gains using nothing but their kit and a production calibration. Most of these claims are not supported with A/F, inlet temperature, or spark advance traces during the dyno pulls shown in their advertising.

In some cases, the apparent increase in power is because the mass air flow sensor transfer function in the PCM is left stock. With the new the cold-air kit flowing more air, the stock PCM will not "know" about the extra air that's entering the engine, causing an A/F ratio that is leaner than it should be for durability. This can produce more power, but it also can be damaging to catalysts, exhaust valves, piston rings, and other engine components. The commanded spark advance can also be incorrect, and result in detonation or pre-ignition with potentially catastrophic results.

The bottom line is, a healthy dose of caution and skepticism is a good thing when approaching high-performance power upgrades.

Some aftermarket tuners do a few "tricks" that Ford Performance does not recommend, such as:

• Turning off the catalyst, oxygen sensor and exhaust valve temperature protection logic. This can result in more power under certain conditions, but the downside is drastically decreased durability of these expensive components.
• Advancing spark timing to potentially unsafe levels that can cause spark knock or pre-ignition. So the answer to the opening question is, some power increase claims are based on poor and misleading dynamometer test practices. Others are genuine but at the expense of engine, catalyst, or drivetrain durability. Even driver safety is sometimes overlooked for horsepower.

Ford Performance calibrations

Ford Performance tests its calibrations extensively, in a wide range of conditions. The engineers take extreme care to provide as much power and torque as can be safely delivered, and also to deliver high durability and exceptional drivability. In the area of automatic transmission calibration, they generally make extensive changes to improve shift quality and give the transmission a more performance-oriented feel, without compromising durability.

Most other companies do not have the time or resources to test to the extent Ford Performance does. Some don't realize they need to do it at all!

"We have a lot of customers wanting a 600 hp blower kit," says Dennis Gomes, "but when they learn that Ford Performance's 400 hp kit can be installed and they can keep the factory warranty – it's easy. Also, you can put Ford Performance calibrations on a Mustang and it will pass emissions, no problem."

In fact, all Ford Performance kits are 50 state emissions legal and many are offered with a warranty. Customers can be sure of a quality product that will continue to deliver improved performance over the long term.

 

[Netranger6]

It's an ADD thing, when I'm going to or do buy something I Research the crap out of it. Found this extreamly interesting. Thought I should share. Makes me swing closer to thinking it's just the OEM Raptor, 2019 Limited Tune. That works for me.

But it also makes me question installing a Cold Air Intake.

ProCal - Performance Calibrations - Ford Performance Parts

Welcome to the Ford Performance Parts website. Offering quality aftermarket parts specifically engineered and designed for your Ford Powered vehicle.

performanceparts.ford.com

Powertrain Control Module calibration

There's also the matter of the engine's internal conditions, which are monitored and adjusted-for by the powertrain control module (and the way it's calibrated). Ford Performance calibrations, like Ford production calibrations, are developed with certain protections against damage, both short-term and long-term, caused by particular internal conditions – mainly heat.

One example is protection against overly hot catalyst temperatures, which can cause permanent damage. Without going into how it's done, a production PCM will continually calculate the hottest temperature in a catalyst, and if it exceeds a predetermined limit, the PCM will richen the A/F ratio to lower the exhaust gas temperature until the catalyst has cooled sufficiently. Of course a richer A/F ratio will also reduce power output.

So what? Well, suppose a car – a supercharged production vehicle with production calibration – is driven to a dyno facility and a run is performed immediately, resulting in a reading of 420 hp. Then a part is swapped out for a "high-performance" version and the car run again; the reading is 430 hp. The high-performance part is worth 10 hp, right? Wrong. In this hypothetical example, the dyno operator was not monitoring A/F ratio, so didn't know that in the first run, with the engine fully up to temperature, the catalyst protection function kicked in, richened the A/F ratio, and reduced power output. In the second run, the engine had cooled enough that the catalyst protection wasn't needed and the A/F ratio remained optimal. So the results were misleading; it wasn't an apples-to-apples comparison.

That example may be trivial, but it shows how vital the essential data input is to getting correct results. In this case, if the A/F ratio had been monitored, the discrepancy would have been immediately apparent.

Similarly misleading results can be caused by a failure to keep inlet air temperature constant between runs. As inlet air temperature increases, the PCM will retard spark timing to prevent detonation, lowering power output.

Some aftermarket cold-air kit manufacturers claim enormous power gains using nothing but their kit and a production calibration. Most of these claims are not supported with A/F, inlet temperature, or spark advance traces during the dyno pulls shown in their advertising.

In some cases, the apparent increase in power is because the mass air flow sensor transfer function in the PCM is left stock. With the new the cold-air kit flowing more air, the stock PCM will not "know" about the extra air that's entering the engine, causing an A/F ratio that is leaner than it should be for durability. This can produce more power, but it also can be damaging to catalysts, exhaust valves, piston rings, and other engine components. The commanded spark advance can also be incorrect, and result in detonation or pre-ignition with potentially catastrophic results.


Some aftermarket tuners do a few "tricks" that Ford Performance does not recommend, such as:

• Turning off the catalyst, oxygen sensor and exhaust valve temperature protection logic. This can result in more power under certain conditions, but the downside is drastically decreased durability of these expensive components.
• Advancing spark timing to potentially unsafe levels that can cause spark knock or pre-ignition. So the answer to the opening question is, some power increase claims are based on poor and misleading dynamometer test practices. Others are genuine but at the expense of engine, catalyst, or drivetrain durability. Even driver safety is sometimes overlooked for horsepower.

Ford Performance calibrations

Ford Performance tests its calibrations extensively, in a wide range of conditions. The engineers take extreme care to provide as much power and torque as can be safely delivered, and also to deliver high durability and exceptional drivability. In the area of automatic transmission calibration, they generally make extensive changes to improve shift quality and give the transmission a more performance-oriented feel, without compromising durability.

Most other companies do not have the time or resources to test to the extent Ford Performance does. Some don't realize they need to do it at all!

"We have a lot of customers wanting a 600 hp blower kit," says Dennis Gomes, "but when they learn that Ford Performance's 400 hp kit can be installed and they can keep the factory warranty – it's easy. Also, you can put Ford Performance calibrations on a Mustang and it will pass emissions, no problem."

In fact, all Ford Performance kits are 50 state emissions legal and many are offered with a warranty. Customers can be sure of a quality product that will continue to deliver improved performance over the long term.

I'm happy with mine. Installed by a performance dealer. And registered. No regerts

 

[zx12-iowa]

I'm happy with mine. Installed by a performance dealer. And registered. No regerts

How noticeable is the difference

 

[Netranger6]

How noticeable is the

How noticeable is the difference

For me, noticeable enough thst I don't need to be in sport mode. Normal gives me a similar feel.

The hp/reel curve is much more usable. Comes on earlier in rpm range. And doesn't fall off as fast. Plus the tranny feels great.

 

[BadaBing70]

For me, noticeable enough thst I don't need to be in sport mode. Normal gives me a similar feel.

The hp/reel curve is much more usable. Comes on earlier in rpm range. And doesn't fall off as fast. Plus the tranny feels great.

I'm curious if the tranny performing better is because of the tune or the fact the truck is relearning...

 

[BadaBing70]

What does the dealership charge to flash it and keep the warranty intact?

120 @ my local Ford shop.

 

[Moe7]

I jumped in with Lethal Performance's sale.

Waiting to see if my dealer will be reasonable for the install, to develop some type of relationship, otherwise just going to an ASE tech.

 

[mxvet]

I jumped in with Lethal Performance's sale.

Waiting to see if my dealer will be reasonable for the install, to develop some type of relationship, otherwise just going to an ASE tech.

I bought from there as well. great price.

 

[StormTremor]

I bought from there as well. great price.

The Lethal Performance price was $615, right?

 

[Netranger6]

I'm curious if the tranny performing better is because of the tune or the fact the truck is relearning...

Its part of the calibration. Tranny gets it as well as engine.

 

[mxvet]

The Lethal Performance price was $615, right

included 2day shipping as well.. back to $695 today

 

[zx12-iowa]

Got mine from Pauls automotive engineering’s. $624.99, with shipping included. Package got lost and they helped me track it down and stick with me until delivered. Very good customer service.

2021-2023 F150 3.5L PERFORMANCE CALIBRATION

Enhance the performance of your 2021-2023 F-150 3.5L EcoBoost engine with the Ford Performance Parts calibration. Ford Performance Parts calibrations are engineered and dyno tested to deliver more power and increased performance while maintaining reliability. Peak power = 450 HP @ 5,250 rpm +55...

paulsautomotiveengineering.com