Performance chips

[Quilbilly brian]

I have been thinking about installing a performance chip in my 06 2500.

There are so many out there that make a lot of claims and costs vary from $150 to $800.

I want to increase fuel economy but dont want to lose HP doing it. What would be the most cost effective bang for my bucks.

 

[pullya]

Truthfully the cheapest thing to do is leave your truck stock. Once you put a chip on it you can begin to have problems with the trans, turbo, drive train etc etc etc plus the fact that your dealer may refuse to repair your truck cause you added the chip. A performance box is something you keep on investing in forever--This is IMO.

Jay

 

[Jim W]

I have installed a Smarty on my 08 6. 7L. I did this for fuel mileage improvement over the stock configuration. I gain a solid 3+ MPG over stock. The HP can be increase by a moderate rate also and not be abusive to the truck. You just need to understand what you are doing. Most users get a programmer and can not leave it alone. They must see what the truck can produce at maximum settings, this is were things break.

 

[Quilbilly brian]

I have been looking at the Smarty and the Edge. . Does the Smarty take the place of any gauges I might want to add such as EGT, Boost , and Trans temp?
Both of these products are very spendy... and I wonder if the cost is justified for a little more power and 3mpg. . "Thanks for replying and sharing your thoughts

 

[Jim W]

I am conservative by nature and being a retired design engineer, I tend to stay conservative. There are nine different software levels on the Smarty that you can up load plus change several different parameters in each program. I chose SW3, everything else set at 2 to be non-abusive to my truck while still achieving fuel economy and some horsepower. I use this level for towing my camper and winter driving.

Other users have set the Smarty at 5 or 7 and still see improved fuel economy and have a lot more RWH then my setting, 120 RWH or better. On the Smarty web sit there is a disclaimer that anything higher then SW3 60RWH, will cause serious engine and transmission damage over time.

You could get the Smarty JR for less money and still increase RWH and improve fuel economy.

The Smarty is computer software uploader and once this is uploaded, unless you are interested in Power On Demand it is removed. If you want POD then you can leave the Smarty installed in the OBDII port and can change settings as required to increase the horsepower when needed.

The Smarty does not have the ability to be a gage pod. You will need separate gages for each function.

Good luck.

 

[2Rowdy]

To add to Jim W the SMARTY is undetectable on a 5. 9 ltr engine when it is removed.

 

[Quilbilly brian]

Hey thanks Jim and 2Rowdy this is the kind of info I have been trying to find out...
I too am conservative by nature and do my home work before I jump onto a product. There are so many gimiks out there and some can do a lot of damage to an engine if you dont know what you are doing. I want to get the most out of my Cummins engine and will try to see if I can make the truck last too. . I am an old Toyota owner and I never had to do anything to that truck in the 16 years I owned it except change the oil and replace two clutches. It had 282k on the original engine when I sold it to buy a bigger truck. . And it still ran great, did not leak any oil or burn any
Thanks again and I will let you know what I decide and what the results are.

 

[2Rowdy]

Good luck to you. It is a slippery slope when you start adding a little more power. Very addictive. It's really tough when your a firearm addict to boot.

 

[ToolManTimTaylor]

Moved this thread next door for a little more exposure.

 

[JExum]

I use smarty programmer on my 5. 9 and it has some mods on it. But the smarty is good for about 2-3 more miles per gal. mine gets the best mpgs set to max #9 and timing advance but with a light foot it sometimes gets 18-19 highway but normal is 17. performance wise #9 and default time seem to spool and power up best. My truck is pretty heavy weighing in at 8980lbs

 

[Bob Wagner]

We now offer the smary junior for the 67l truck. stock , 40,70,100 hp with deletes.



Thanks

 

[Quilbilly brian]

What is meant by deletes?? I am still debating if I am going to install a chip or not. . I think I want to get gauges first like a Pyro, Boost and either a Trany or rail pressure gauge. What is the opinion of people who have these gauges as to which ones are a must have in our trucks.

 

[2Rowdy]

They are talking about on the newer 6. 7 ltr cummins engine from 07. 5 and up.



On the guages, I started with pyro, boost and transmission. Then when I added the extreme power puck I thought I needed a rail pressure guage. Which I did since I also shimmed the rail. I had an Edge juice with attitude so I moved the pyro to read on the Edge. Imho if you go with the SMARTY the rail pressure is pretty safe. Maybe Bob will chime in again.

 

[Quilbilly brian]

Yea 2Rowdy the smarty Jr advertisement says I wont need additional gauges because the EGT's will be lower. I dont know but Im old school and like to see what is happening on the other side of the firewall... These engines are great but I would hate to have to replace injectors because I was putting all my faith in the smarty. . It is spendy but having the gauges along with the smarty seems like a pretty fail safe system... Now how about the Amsoil bypass system and synthetic oil... $$$$$ I better get a job. . Im retired. .