Bully Dog downloader skeptics

[KBishop]

I understand the skeptism of the new downloader. I'm am not affiliated with bullydog. I am a constuction business owner. Been in the diesel game for quite awhile. Go to as many events as possible or that my schedule will allow. Close family friends own Extreme truck and trailer in three rivers mi. For the skeptics. Tomorrow we will have a dyno on site to test the new BULLYDOG DOWNLOADER on 03 so. 03hoauto,04. 56-speed,04. 5auto. anyone in the area with a TST box is welcome to come down and dyno against this new box. Then swap and see which is better. The outlook is not for power,but for gauges,0-60,1/4mile,and will defuel any box on market.

 

[Tomeygun]

where is this DYNO session located?



I would love to stop by...



(on edit) Stupid me, i didn't see that you said MI, right?

 

[Bertram65]

KBishop,

Look at this from other people's perspective. You say you have been in the diesel game for quite a while and go to alot of events but choose now to join the TDR and all you want to talk about is the new Bully Dog downloader?, your first 4 posts in fact, but you are not afilliated with them? A little hard to believe to say the least.

 

[DLeno]

you guys just dont' take a moderators thread shut down seriously do you

 

[Motofreak]

Kbishop, this may work on a Powerjoke site but Cummins owners are a little sharper.

I would listen to you even If you were affiliated with Bullydog but something justs seems fishy. I think its a good thing when vendors come on and talk as long as they are up front with who they are pushing. Keep it coming, I will just take it with a grain of salt if you dont mind.

 

[TxDieselKid]

Don't judge a book by it's cover guys. Just because someone has very few posts, doesn't mean that they don't know anything about diesels. Look at Van Hasliy, he has posted two times I think, would you doubt his knowledge? I don't know these guys from atom, but don't jump against them so fast.



Reminds me when the HillJack Brian was doing great things with his 1st Gen, and people on THIS SITE said he was lieing because all the knowledge was on this site, so he was lieing. He was telling the truth, wonder what else is out there in the diesel world, that don't post.



Andrew

 

[Hawkeye 04]

Give the guy a break! Imagine this possibility, he has been visiting for a while now and has gleaned alot of thoughts from the wisdom (and crap) that floats around here and has just finally come up with a peice of info that he thinks we might be intrested in and look at the welcome we give him!!! Jeez guys, just because there aren't facts to back up the story doesn't mean he's trying to screw us!!

I thought women got emotional over small things.....

 

[MUDDY]

kb. ill be awaiting the results. this downloader and monitor sounds interesting.



timing and pulsewidth which is stackable w/ a pressure box. many features on it sound nice.



i know b-dog has been working on this for ages. i hear that it has been successful on the test rigs. ill be lookin forward to the results that ya gonna post tomorrow nite

 

[Big MAK]

I'm looking forward to seeing some numbers; competition is a good thing. I'm confused about the "downloader" though; if it's a monitor that you can use in series with any box then where do the performance upgrades come from?

 

[CJEliassen]

Since there seem to be alot of plugs going on, here is my plug.



If you want to learn to fly airplanes or helicopters in the Denver Colorado area, drop me an email.

 

[Diesel Dan]

Mark,

We are hearing about 2 different products new from BullyDog. 1 is a downloader( hooks up to the ODBII port and downloads a new program into the ECM. then disconnects and is put in toolbox etc... ) the other one is a monitor that displays boost, EGT (two displays for multi probe applications) speed in miles per hour, 0-60 times and 1/4 mile times, HP etc... . I am testing one currently and it is pretty cool. As soon as i can get a break in my work schedule i will report all the details.



Best regards



DD

 

[KBishop]

ok to answer the download question. It is a handheld module that plugs into the obd port and has a screen that tells you the activity of the module. Such as dtc's. pto's. the four different downloads,towing,performance,extreme,ans stock. The outlook monitor is a digital screen that you mount on your windshield or where every you choose. It has boost,2 pyros,icp psi,0-60,1/4mile times hp and torque,it will defuel the truck at a preset egt,speedo,and you can set a percentage from 0-100% at which the truck will perform. Say you have a buddy who has a heavy foot and you dont want your truck broke. You set it at 50 or 25 or what ever you prefer. the download and the monitor are 2 totally separate items. I use analog gauges. I installed the outlook when it came out and analog and outlook numbers are very very close. Again not affiliated with bd. Just a firm beleiver in there products. As we speak the dyno is being set up and i will post the numbers as soon as i get them.

 

[DLeno]

now we're talking guys. love the straight information. keep it flowing.

 

[TBrennan]

The downloader sounds like the way to go. Extremely easy to plug in, download, and unplug. No messing with all the hardwired stuff to fool the stock ECM. It would be just like you have access to the Cummins R&D group to reprogram your ECM for you. Being able to restore the stock program would make it impossible to detect and simple to restore for resale or warranty work. It also appeals to my engineering side that says "keep it simple" and do it the most efficient way possible.



Anyone have any downsides for a downloader? Of course it will be only as good / safe as the program is, which is the real R&D here. How good / safe are the ones they have? How much work has been done with them for long term testing?

 

[DLeno]

just in brainstorm mode ...



might be tracked by the dealer -- timestamps of the most recent download may be preserved



what happens if the OBD connection fails during a download and you corrupt things. or a connector breaks and you can't restore the stock parameters.



cannot be adjusted on the fly while driving



no physical confirmation of return-to-stock condition like removing a box



the consequences of a broken downloader are greater than a broken box. the box can be removed but a broken downloader (that you haven't used in a long time and dropped on the pavement) might not get you back to stock condition when you need it.



Once you perform a download (and preserve the stock code in the downloader) the downloader itself becomes the gold standard of stock ECM code and your only copy of that code.



If the dealer flashes your ECM with an update, will the downloader have to be updated and how dependant are you on the downloader mfg to stay up to date with ECM flashes.



if the engine fails with new code in it, you may or may not be able to re-program it while the engine is down. But a box can always be removed



a snap shot of operating parameters is stored in the ECM at engine failure time. the presence of new ECM code could be evident if stock parameters are out of normal boundaries. boost comes to mind -- engine failure could occur with 40lbs of boost recorded in the ECM. this is different from fooling with an external box, where the ECM reacts with parameters that are within stock boundaries.



I expect there are some solid ways to mitigate these risks, and as i said before, I expect Bullydog will be conciensous about it. I just brainstormed some possible downsides becuase that was the question

 

[KBishop]

I've had the the downloader for about a week,no high egt's,boost is quite high,48pounds out of stock turbo(undecided on aftermarket turbo) acts as safe as all others,the thing that impresses me the most is the throttle response,my pedal is so touchy that it was like a different truck,1/4 throttle was like 3/4 throttle and so on... . Anybody who tries this will be impressed

 

[KBishop]

Dleno, you make some very good points,But with anything else,you always run the risk,especially when your dealing with a under warranty truck,of the dealer being able to detect some unusual when the ecm is flashed. I worry about daily,but some people aren't as lucky as i am. 90% percent of the employees at my dealership are also my friends,of course i still take it back as much as possible,but with 6in exhaust and numerous gauges,and the fact that im not pulling my injectors everytime keeps you on toes. But there is always a downside to everything,it's part of the game.

 

[CJEliassen]

If they are so good with computers, how come they have the worse looking webpage I have seen in a long time. Not to be picky, but your store front should look hi tech if you claim to be a high tech company. And I can't find anything on a downloader on their site. Come on fellas, get with the 21st century. Heck, this poor shmuck has a nicer website! www.DiscoveryAviation.com.



hehe

 

[KBishop]

The reason there is nothing on the website is because they are not releasing them until the end of the month. No comment on the website

 

[jglasgow]

CJEliassen, $30,000 to learn to fly a helicopter, how much for a ride? and can you pick me up before the next Hurricane hits Charleston?



John