Got my Black Bear tune

[withac]

Just like everyone says, it's the best bang for the buck.

I wasn't looking to burn down ricers or smoke Hemi's on the weekend so I didn't go for a high performance tune, I just wanted to get more out of the 'Ho, make it a little more responsive, more fun to drive, not leave any horsepower on the table, and mainly, get some improved mileage out of it by improving how it runs. It seems like it accelerates faster/easier. It doesn't put me back in the seat any more than before but it seems like it gets up to highway speed easier/quicker/with less work, same thing when accelerating in town from a stop. The shifts feel a little quicker and firmer but they don't hammer me. When you kick it down into passing gear it seems to take off better than before. The changes are subtle but noticeable if you are paying attention and that's what I was after. As far as what it will do for my mileage, I won't be able to get a true picture of that for a while as the winter roads don't give a true picture. That'll just give me one more reason to look forward to spring. Justin is great to work with, he figures I got about a 13 or 14 horsepower increase. Try getting that with just a CAI or a hand held tuner. I'd highly recommend this for anyone wondering what a good mod would be.

Thanks Justin!

 

[jgiguere17]

did you send yours in without doing the computer in your car to map your driving habits?

how much was this to do?

 

[withac]

did you send yours in without doing the computer in your car to map your driving habits?

how much was this to do?

I did the lap top thing. I don't own one personally so I borrowed one. If it's at all possible I'd recommend doing it this way. Justin said I was grandfathered in at the old prices so I don't know if that means the year of my Tahoe or if prices went up after I first contacted him. First I had to send a security deposit of $250 for the scan cable. After the data was sent I sent him another $300, $200 for the tune and a $100 core charge on the actual PCM. I just put the PCM as well as the scan cable in the mail to him, when he gets it he'll credit me back the $250 deposit as well as the $100 core charge for the PCM. So total outlay in the middle of the process was $550 bucks but after I get the $350 back I'm only out $200, well worth what you get for it. Some guys will let him keep the core charge so they can keep the original PCM, that way if they take it in the shop they can swap out the tuned PCM for the stock one. I don't think I'd ever do that so I didn't see the need to spend the extra $100. If I ever do take it into a shop where I'm afraid they might flash over the tune I'll tell them ahead of time not to mess with it.

 

[Polecat]

sweet, never hear any bad about Blackbear....
Grandfathered in, means you asked for the cable before the price increase. Any request after such date, has to pay the newer price.

Sounds like it helped your ride

 

[withac]

sweet, never hear any bad about Blackbear....
Grandfathered in, means you asked for the cable before the price increase. Any request after such date, has to pay the newer price.

Sounds like it helped your ride

I think so. I'm anxious to run a few tanks through it and see what it's done for the efficiency.

 

[tybardy]

Blackbear raised the price?!?!?! well fvck me running :cuss:

:nonod:I was waiting till i got my tax return to do the CAI and tune all at one time...

whats his new price spread?

 

[tybardy]

Blackbear raised the price?!?!?! well fvck me running :cuss:

:nonod:I was waiting till i got my tax return to do the CAI and tune all at one time...

whats his new price spread?

also... anyone here done a really intense tune on the 5.3? I have been giving this thought and i want to do a pretty agressive tune... whats it like?

 

[Beauman33]

this sounds like exactly what I am looking for. what did you think about the whole process as far as difficulty? specifically the crank relearn? I am wanting to do this and trying to guage my own ability to do this correctly, haha.

 

[withac]

Blackbear raised the price?!?!?! well fvck me running :cuss:

:nonod:I was waiting till i got my tax return to do the CAI and tune all at one time...

whats his new price spread?

Check the website, there's a link in the top left corner and several different options. You can get a mail order tune without the data log for cheaper but it won't be as detailed to your specific vehicle. Since you'll need access to a laptop for the crankcase relearn, I'd recommend doing the data log tune, it costs more but you'll get more in return. Even with the price increase it's still cheaper or comparable to a lot of hand held tuners and they only look at a few dozen parameters, Justin looks at hundreds from what I understand. He diagnosed an air leak under vacuum/at idle, said it was likely a leak in the intake manifold gasket. Bingo. Try diagnosing that with a hand held tuner. If you plan on the CAI it would be best to do it first, that way when he tunes he can tune for the increase air flow. You also get retunes for life so if you add a blower, nos, cam, efans, whatever, you can have it retuned for the new mod.

 

[withac]

this sounds like exactly what I am looking for. what did you think about the whole process as far as difficulty? specifically the crank relearn? I am wanting to do this and trying to guage my own ability to do this correctly, haha.

If you follow the instructions no sweat. I don't even own a laptop so I borrowed one. I ran into a little snag setting it up to log the data but that was mostly because I wasn't following the directions close enough. They're in more of a narrative style, do this, then do that, as opposed to a 1., 2., style. As I sat down and looked at them I missed a step, when I went back and looked closer and I realized my mistake and was able to do it no problem. Same with the crank relearn. I missed a step so it wouldn't let me click a tab I was suppose to click. I looked closer, followed the directions exactly doing the step I had overlooked and it worked first time. Anyone who has a basic understanding of operating a lap top and follows the instructions carefully can walk right through it, no problem.

 

[Grebbler]

A scan cable is on its way to me.

What kind of tune did you request @ what octane fuel?

After waiting so long I am faced with decisions I still haven't fully thought out.
The speeding ticket I got last week may also be influencing my judgement a bit.:mpr:

I have always had low rpm motors and I'm still not comfortable with the higher revving 5.3 and getting up to its power band.

Since I have trailers and a boat I am planning to leave the tow switch alone so that removes the on-the-fly dual tune alternative. That leaves me with one chance to get it right. 87 or 89 tune? I drive too many miles daily to work so a 93 tune and the 30 or so cents more per gallon would add up quick.

There still seems to be a debate about a CAI. Some say a stocker is fine until I put in a large exhaust and a cam which is not in the cards at this time. Plus, I find that as I have gotten to be an old fogey...I like my quiet muffler.

Did you fix the intake while you had the scanner or did Justin tweak for it for when it's fixed? Did you also have to weigh the truck so that could be accounted for?

enough for now...

Glad you are happy with the tune.

Greb

 

[tybardy]

Hey Greb, i am also in the situation that i dont think a CAI is worth $300 for what you get, however you can get a made to fit strait tube for $100. couple that with a high flow replacment filter like a K&N or Air Hog and you will get a ton of air flow for much less... just food for thought


here in arizona, we dont even have 93 octain... its 91 lol

 

[withac]

Damnit. I just spent at least five minutes typing up a response and the system logged me off, when I logged back in I'd lost the reply. Gotta run right now, will get back to this later.

 

[withac]

As far as the CAI, if you want to give the knock offs a try go for it. If you want to stick with a name brand talk to Boostaholic, Boost gave me a sweet deal on an AEM Brute Force. I’ve had K&N drop ins and an AirRaid CAI. I liked both but after cleaning them I always wondered if I had enough oil in them or too much. With the Brute Force that’s not an issue, it’s a dry element so just wash and dry and go. The AEM not only removes the air box, but takes out the pan underneath the air box so you are no longer restricted to the small intake holes in the fender well. It does increase the noise under the hood under throttle.

On the tune, I had the scan cable tune. Last Friday I made a 300 mile trip both ways. I ran 91 octane going down, and 85 coming back. I know this is a limited sample and long range data might prove out different, but this is the first highway trip I’ve been able to make since I added the AEM, it was also pre-tune. The 91 was 20 cents/gallon more and gave me a 1 mpg boost. Doing the math, the cost per mile for the 85 was 10 cents, the 91 11 cents. Therefore, if the 91 was less than 20 cents more my cpm would be cheaper and make it worth it to run the 91, if it was more than 20 cents higher, my cpm would be more and the 85 would be cheaper. Since my goal was to improve mpg and save some money at the gas station, I went with the 85 tune. I explained all this to Justin and asked him about running different octanes, he said “What I could do for you is set it up to run both 93 and 89 or 89 and 87, or some blend like that for you. You'd then be able to pick and choose what type of gas you preferred to run based on your tahoe's actual mileage gains. The PCM will adjust automatically as you drive, nothing will need to be done otherwise. I would suggest taking it easy on the throttle when changing from high to low octane.” Hope that all made sense.

Yes, I had my truck weighed. I live in a small rural town and there is grainery on the edge of town. They let me pull the ‘Ho on their scales and weighed it for me.

I had planned on fixing the gasket first, but I’ve never done one before and my neighbor who is a much better mechanic than I took a look at it and wasn’t sure he wanted to tackle it. I also didn’t have the $200 to pay to have it done. The leak is at idle so it won’t affect the performance/driveablility so for now we just tuned around it. Next summer when I have plenty of time I plan on tracking down some step by step instructions. Lots of guys say it really isn’t that bad so I figure if I take my time and follow the instructions I can do it myself. I just don’t want to be hurried plus it’s winter here. Justin said the PCM would adjust for the fixed leak so I shouldn’t have any problems.

 

[Grebbler]

A very nice reply.

Thank you!

Greb

 

[withac]

A very nice reply.

Thank you!

Greb

NO prob., glad I actually made sense.

 

[Rollin Thunder]

also... anyone here done a really intense tune on the 5.3? I have been giving this thought and i want to do a pretty agressive tune... whats it like?

Im getting the most powerful tune possible on the 5.3 silverado. We will see what happens. 93 and 100% removed. and what ever else they tell me.:cool2:

 

[Grebbler]

The Premium tune pkg includes tire wax for better aerodynamic performance



... and a mint.

Greb

 

[boostaholic]

love my tune, best thing I could have done for my truck.

 

[withac]

The Premium tune pkg includes tire wax for better aerodynamic performance



... and a mint.

Greb

LOL :lol::lol::lol: