- Dec 4, 2011
- 242
To whom it may concern:
Amidst the seemingly unanimous praise of the PCM4L tune, I wanted to add in my less than completely positive experience to ensure future members are fully informed about all facets of their choice. I have a 2005 4.2 LT 4x4, 85k miles, basically stock across the board. I am writing this review after driving with it for about 1500 miles, to ensure I wasn't reviewing it based on short-term experiences.
I took advantage of the PCM4L holiday sale, and spent around $180 including shipping for the tune and loaner program. Their customer service was excellent, I applaud them for their dedication to their customers. Shipping to the west coast took around a week with the least expensive shipping option. The tune itself was largely left with the default settings since I hadn't modified the truck at all; following their advice, I went with a shift level 2, no towing.
My gas mileage did not change whatsoever, still averaging ~17.5 city/hwy (miles/gallons calculated by hand). I am a conservative driver in general, and on more than 1 tank I consciously made the effort to try to get the best MPG possible; proof positive that this failure to improve MPG isn't a result of more aggressive driving patters following the tune. The tune simply didn't positively affect my mileage.
I do like the faster response time of the throttle body, the tune definitely reduced or eliminated the old lag between pressing the gas pedal and the truck starting to respond. It also drives much more lively, it feels as if there is more power throughout the band but especially in the low-mid RPM range.
Shift level 2 resulted in great shifts from 2-3 and 3-4 (up or down), especially under moderate to hard acceleration. The 1-2/2-1 shift, however, is jerky and unpleasant. Even if I'm accelerating lightly, it shifts hard; I find myself getting up to speed faster just to make the shift more tolerable. To PCM4L's credit, I contacted them about my regret and they suggested my trans fluid may be low (it wasn't) and barring that offered to reflash my PCM to a 0 or 1 shift level at no cost to me. I can't go without the vehicle for the length of time it would take to swap the PCM again, so I'm sticking with it as-is.
Bottom line: I definitely wouldn't recommend shift level 2 for anyone that drives conservatively to moderately. I would not recommend purchasing this tune just to try to improve your MPG, because at least in my experience it didn't happen. I'm happy with the extra resposiveness and power of the tune. All that being said, I wouldn't purchase the tune again, even if I had gone with a less aggressive shift level - I simply don't get $180 worth of value out of the somewhat better throttle response/power with my style of driving. If you have modifications they can factor into the tune for you, I think it would definitely be worth getting, or if you drive more aggressively and really will use the extra ponies and response, then I encourage you to take advantage of PCM4L's excellent service.
This is just one guy's experience with the service, so please take this and the opinions of the plethora of other members with PCM4L tunes in mind as you decide if a tune is right for you.
Cheers,
LT
Amidst the seemingly unanimous praise of the PCM4L tune, I wanted to add in my less than completely positive experience to ensure future members are fully informed about all facets of their choice. I have a 2005 4.2 LT 4x4, 85k miles, basically stock across the board. I am writing this review after driving with it for about 1500 miles, to ensure I wasn't reviewing it based on short-term experiences.
I took advantage of the PCM4L holiday sale, and spent around $180 including shipping for the tune and loaner program. Their customer service was excellent, I applaud them for their dedication to their customers. Shipping to the west coast took around a week with the least expensive shipping option. The tune itself was largely left with the default settings since I hadn't modified the truck at all; following their advice, I went with a shift level 2, no towing.
My gas mileage did not change whatsoever, still averaging ~17.5 city/hwy (miles/gallons calculated by hand). I am a conservative driver in general, and on more than 1 tank I consciously made the effort to try to get the best MPG possible; proof positive that this failure to improve MPG isn't a result of more aggressive driving patters following the tune. The tune simply didn't positively affect my mileage.
I do like the faster response time of the throttle body, the tune definitely reduced or eliminated the old lag between pressing the gas pedal and the truck starting to respond. It also drives much more lively, it feels as if there is more power throughout the band but especially in the low-mid RPM range.
Shift level 2 resulted in great shifts from 2-3 and 3-4 (up or down), especially under moderate to hard acceleration. The 1-2/2-1 shift, however, is jerky and unpleasant. Even if I'm accelerating lightly, it shifts hard; I find myself getting up to speed faster just to make the shift more tolerable. To PCM4L's credit, I contacted them about my regret and they suggested my trans fluid may be low (it wasn't) and barring that offered to reflash my PCM to a 0 or 1 shift level at no cost to me. I can't go without the vehicle for the length of time it would take to swap the PCM again, so I'm sticking with it as-is.
Bottom line: I definitely wouldn't recommend shift level 2 for anyone that drives conservatively to moderately. I would not recommend purchasing this tune just to try to improve your MPG, because at least in my experience it didn't happen. I'm happy with the extra resposiveness and power of the tune. All that being said, I wouldn't purchase the tune again, even if I had gone with a less aggressive shift level - I simply don't get $180 worth of value out of the somewhat better throttle response/power with my style of driving. If you have modifications they can factor into the tune for you, I think it would definitely be worth getting, or if you drive more aggressively and really will use the extra ponies and response, then I encourage you to take advantage of PCM4L's excellent service.
This is just one guy's experience with the service, so please take this and the opinions of the plethora of other members with PCM4L tunes in mind as you decide if a tune is right for you.
Cheers,
LT
Not so good on the MPG's Though
