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DP Tuner dissapointment

9K views 17 replies 11 participants last post by  ACD2 
#1 · (Edited)
Have a 2014 6.7 that I bought a DP tuner strictly for fuel mileage. I bought this tuner based off of the recommendation of Powerstrokehelp.com's very own Bill, whom I trust very much. BTW, I opted for an emissions friendly 35hp tune for towing. Was I wrong to assume that I would actually see an increase in fuel mileage? What tuner should I have gotten for heavy towing and an uptick in fuel mileage or does that exist?
 
#4 ·
I suspect the “room for improvement” is significantly smaller than the older motors. The 7.3 was so poorly tuned from the factory that the DP-Tuner turned it into a new truck. Still, call Jody and discuss your concerns. He’s a great person and will help figure this out.


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#5 · (Edited)
I have done a lot of mods to my trucks over the last 18 years, some did help with power, but very little mpg gain if any. The number one mod for better mpg when empty is to drive slower. When I am pulling the 5th wheel not much seems to help.
DENNY
 
#6 ·
I'll be the one to say it. Your first mistake was powerstrokehelp.com......
Fuel mileage is controlled by your right foot....
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#7 ·
I'll be the one to say it. Your first mistake was powerstrokehelp.com......

I know everyone likes to jump all over ole Bill on powerstrokehelp.com, but I've gleaned some useful info from his videos. However, he did upset me when he announced he was done with the 7.3. Bill or not, I still love my 97 7.3 (which I am now selling because I bought a '16 6.7).
 
#9 ·
There is no way to increase H/P without adding more fuel to the mix. So you will not under any circumstance see any improvement in fuel millage with a tune. Not sure what the term street tune has to do with much. Your truck came with a street tune and a towing tune from the factory. So having ether one of those makes no sense at all. Money down the drain for sure. These are trucks not sports cars so I am not sure what people are doing changing the tune in there trucks. If you put your foot to the floor these trucks will spin the tires so having more power is a waste of money.
Deleting the pollution controls open another can of worms. I am not a fan of smelly diesel trucks nor do I want to see soot in the air. Not sure how people make there truck better by doing this. it cost lots of money then what? Oh I make so much more power and then they cry my truck broke or what does this code mean? I didn't have it before I did the tune. There is no way that a caned tune is correct for your truck in the first place. They are made for lots of trucks but may not be correct for your specific truck. Only way to make sure the tune you have is to take it to a shop with a dyno to make sure. Leaving the pollution controls on the truck is better for all of us and your truck.
 
#11 ·
Yea....there's no MPG gains
When I 'tuned' my 97 7.3 (with an Edge programmer set to Safe Tow) all I was interested in was HP and torque. Stock, it wouldn't get out of its own way. Once tuned it was a brand new truck. There was the hype about fuel mileage but I knew I wasn't going to get more power and more mpg at the same time. We could now tow our RV with impunity, hauling up and over all the mountains out here in the west.

Mileage depended on wind and hills. I've gotten as high as 12.5 mpg (with a tail wind) and as lousy as 8 on a windy day with lots of hills. I don't really care about mileage. It's a truck and I bought it for towing. :x
 
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#12 ·
Yep. Plenty of people just want the HP/TQ gains. Some will find additional MPGs as a direct result. There are +'s and -'s to everything. Being smart about what one is doing gives the ability to know what to do and what not to do. Some people just read WAY too many magazines, some just have ZERO knowledge.
 
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#13 ·
Wow- interesting thread. Am I to understand no tune or tuner will increase fuel mileage ? Ive been kicking dirty ever since I bought my truck about doing a delete but it was always just hoping to squeeze a few more mpgs out of it.

Also, doesn't a tune and delete help to prevent the problems that most people see which is related to EGR or DEF ?

Thanks
 
#14 ·
Depends on the tune and right foot. Do you have a intake on it? Most these tuners want an intake... My SCT-BDX emissions friendly tuner works great with an afe intake and DPF back exhaust. All tunes are noticeable in power / Torque and the lower hp tune I have seen about 1 MPG increase and no more dam turbo lag. But when pulling trailer is when I see the most benefits from the tune. I wont delete. I see no need when I can get 14-15 mpgs and still run at about 500 HP and 1060 ft.pd.tq. and keep my warranty. Again I am not against deleting if thats what you want to do. Alot of money for new truck though as I bought the truck with 3 miles on it and now has 13000k, oil changes very 3 k and a fuel filter every 10k and dont want to lose my warranty deleting it.. I have only used the street tune couple times and that was way to much but handy if you need it to race a buddy. :) . Good knowledge here and you will get it figured out!
 
#15 ·
Just remember that a tuner is around $300 I know monkey has a cheaper one. Then you still have to purchase the tune and I am not sure how much that cost. It could be another $300. Now if and that's a big if you save a 1 mile per gallon than you might be doing something. Then you ask yourself how many gallons of fuel you will be saving as to how long till you brake even on the fuel and the tune.
Also do you really need a lousy 35 HP's I tow a 13,000# 5th wheel and It will spin the tires with it hooked up. Unloaded it's no problem spinning the tires.
Regardless of what monkey says more hp means less fuel millage.
 
#16 ·
A tune can help increase MPG while increasing power, but at the expense of emissions. Fuel leaning, timing, etc. can increase power, while increasing Nox too. The MPG savings comes in while cruising, and usually highway driving is where it becomes the most efficient. Tunes that can't be sold or used in CA come to mind. Of course they are for off road use only and cannot bypass EGR or PDF/DEF without the EPA coming down on them.
 
#17 ·
I understand that you can lean out the motor which produces more heat which means that you have to watch EGT's Which in turn will increase fuel millage but there is a reason not to lean out the motor because of this. Then again how lean can you go. Another thing . It's risky to mess with the fuel curve on a vehicle that a guy has never seen. You can however add a degree or 2 for the timing or take them out for more HP gains. Nothing wrong with that but don't you have to worry about the fuel then. Diesel is not like gas where you can get different grades to help with knock. In a gas motor you can also change the plugs to help prevent this. I may be wrong but the best way to increase power is with a bigger blower more fuel. I know you know all this, just a debate on whether to spend the money on something like this. If he had a gas truck there are way more options out there for more everything. What did Ford do to increase the power in the 18"s and even more in the 20's with the same motor?
 
#18 ·
Yeah I forgot about the EGT part too. I don't know who made the tune for mine, only that it has an SCT tuner to do it. The MPG is good, ~19-20 on the highway, about 17 with short trips, and 12-13 towing @ 70. Can't complain one bit on the MPG, but it does stink more than it should and does smoke on first cold start. Previous owner did a Delete on it.
 
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