1. I towed a heavy load the wrong way and blew up the transmission in my 2000 F250 diesel tow vehicle.

2. I put in a bigger transmission (and cooler and transmission temp gauge).

3. I discovered other issues with the exhaust system (turbo feed) and had it fixed.

4. I bought a performance chip to extend the life of the transmission, as well as make better use of my fuel.

That 4th step brings me to the reason for this post. After careful research and reading many reviews on many chips, I contacted the guys at dp-tuner.com. Why?

1. Tunes can be changed "on-the-fly' for changing conditions and it's programmable, I can get updates and upgrades emailed to me.

2. They are designed in the USA, made in the USA, programmed in the USA, and supported in the USA. I'm not against any other country, but I like to see my money contribute to the welfare of my countrymen when I get the opportunity.

3. Their website has all (and I mean all) the information up front. Installation instructions with correct grammar (as opposed to translated instructions), software instructions, pros and cons of all options available, and the gauges and other products to accompany/support a performance chip.

4. They called me: I submitted questions to the website because while the product is not expensive, my truck ("Stinky") is. This is going to change my truck's "personality" and I wanted to make sure these guys knew how not to make Stinky suicidal.

They had James Breeden call me and he really knows diesels and their product. Skeptics will say I don't know enough to know if he knows his stuff. I usually get no less than 3 sources of information before I make investments (and this is one) and he knew everything I had amassed before the call (and more). When I first got the chip, most of the programs worked beautifully... just as advertised. I had a problem with the shifts in the Economy tune and the Tow tune. This was not their fault... remember that custom transmission I mentioned above? Guess what... do you also remember I said it was programmable from emailed files? James worked with me on my issues with the tunes. I explained precisely what I was experiencing with the shifts and under what conditions. He walked me through what's good for the transmission vs. the engine vs. passenger comfort. James and I formulated an answer, and I included a request to drop one shift point (lower the speed at which point the transmission will shift up) in the economy tune. Jody Tipton changed the troublesome programs (it's really nice to know who I'm working with), and the modification was emailed to me. The cost? It's all part of the original purchase price. How 'bout that?

I used my laptop to transfer the customized tune to Stinky's chip and I was listening to that throaty rumble 5 minutes later. I commute 100 miles (round trip) every day and this was my opportunity to stretch Stinky's legs a bit. The tune did precisely what I wanted it to do and what they said it would do. I still have to drive Stinky enough to get the MPG figures, but I can say that after all the repairs/upgrades to the truck and using the economy tune... that is one slow-moving fuel gauge.

That list of reasons I went with dp-tune.com? Throw outrageously good customer support on there for good measure.

 

Yes and no with regard to better use of fuel. It depends on how the tune is setup.

With regard to tranny longevity. Doubtful. If you are adding HP/TQ output over stock (which is what I'm gathering since you used the phrase "performance chip"), you are causing more stress to those parts above that in stock form. As such, you are lowering the life expectancy of your tranny.

You said it was custom built. So I would imagine that hopefully it is stronger then stock if built right (some aren't, there is a guy in the 6.0 forum that had a custom built tranny and still have issues with it). Let me ask you this, do you think it would last longer if you kept the stock HP/TQ output versus adding more HP/TQ to it? What about those two compared to an all out race tune? When you add more HP/TQ to it, you are adding more stress, more stress means life expectancy goes down. Might not be drastic as if it was a totally stock tranny, but it still goes down.

Now if you kept stock HP/TQ setting and just changed a few parameters to make it more efficient within those output levels, then yes it would add to the life of the tranny, but if you increased HP/TQ, no you took away from the tranny's life. How much depends on the tune and how well the tranny is built up.

 

Since I wasn't concise here about my situation leading up to all the changes, I can see where questions will arise.

The transmission is not custom per se, it's just not stock. I bought a HD transmission from a reputable vendor with a warranty in line with others in the field of making HD transmissions.

As for reducing the life of the tranny from burying my foot, I agree. I didn't get a tune to spin, smoke, and stink... I ordered up the tunes that protect the truck over time while I drive reasonably. I have the TT, pyro, and TB gauges now and I plan to drive by temp - this is crucial in the mountainous terrain that I drive and tow.

As for the term "performance" - Diesel Performance Tuner is the company. I know there are those here who go all Tim Allen with their rides, but I'm just into the practical capabilities of a properly configured and maintained F250.

I appreciate you letting me know that I could be making false assumptions as to what to expect out of the chip. This information is also very useful for the other forum readers.

I just wanted to convey my experience with the guys at DP-Tuner because I thought others might benefit and this is a good way to express my thanks to James and Jody.

 

Good info Tugly. Do you still feel the same way a few years later?

 

He runs a Hydra now. With a live tune from xxx.

 

Check out his new avatar... "a few years later."









(couldn't resist )

 

Oh Jeezus... rub it in. As if I haven't had enough from the pupu platter, I get a side of crow.