Anyone use or have used the "Bully Dog" ???

[IronJ]

I do not know if any info I can give you is helpful on the newer diesels except this, my neighbor has been a diesel mechanic for his entire adult life and has more pickups with bully dog tuners come in to be repaired than any other tuner. He states that the BD just throws more fuel and trans rail pressure in without any thought of protection to the components. I have completely modded my pickup and found that the biggest gains for me were larger exhaust and an after market AFE intake. I should note that I also race my pickup from time to time on the track. Everything I have done to it has not been only for power gains, but for longevity and fuel mileage. I used to have a Banks six gun in mine bust have since gone to a six position TS chip. I also spent the money to have it live tuned so that each of the settings I have does exactly what I want it to do.

Anyone with any diesel knowledge will tell you to make your engine breath and exhale more efficiently before you start throwing tunes at it. I am not sure with the newer emissions how much you can actually do to accomplish that.

You cant...since the tuner voids the warranty, you might as well spend the extra $$ and dump the dpf/def/egr.....a straight pipe and an cold air...then if you want MORE you need fuel system upgrades...

Heck i think the h &s crew pulled 600hp with just fuel and a turbo tweak...in breaking point...

Then nearly 900hp and 1700 tq with nitrous....only thing that winced was the tranny started slipping. ...they continued to daily drive the vehicle for some time there after with no issues. ..

But I agree..if your going to mod to that extent a good dyno tune is in order. ..

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[Lynn1130]

Advice from a GM Tech when I was asking about a tune or tuner back when the truck was pretty new. "If you want more power find a truck with a bigger engine and more HP".
Advice from the main U.S. representative of EFI Live, probably one of the best tuning tools for vehicles (it gets inside the ECM and makes changes to the entire computer system of the vehicle). "Any tune, even the slightest in HP increase does some damage, however slight, to internal components in the vehicle and will like shorten the life of the vehicle".

Engines today are designed to get the most out of them while still leaving some room for the abuse that we give them.

 

[avvidclif]

On the subject does anyone know anything about the GearboxZ DPF-R programmer? They come in several flavors, plain with no tune just delete, next adds a 75hp tune or stock, all the way up to a 5 step tune. Some packages have EGR delete also.

 

[Doublegranch]

From my understanding, you cannot have just deletes....you must have a tuner to reprogram the truck to not throw a code. Otherwise your truck will recognize your emissions system is not working and will shut you down.

 

[IronJ]

Re: Anyone use or have used the "Bully Dog" ???

You can tune and not delete, or you can delete and not necessarily "tune" for performance...but either way a tuner is required yes...

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[porthole]

I'd like to see where they claim 24 mpg, I've never seen that and I've had a lot of ford diesels. 9-10 mpg is average pulling a Cyclone with an F-250 being you are way overloaded. What gears are you running?? Don't think I would do any Bully Dog, It will void the warranty.

Yeah - what Jon said

 

[avvidclif]

From my understanding, you cannot have just deletes....you must have a tuner to reprogram the truck to not throw a code. Otherwise your truck will recognize your emissions system is not working and will shut you down.

I understand that, if you're replying to my post about the GearboxZ. I want to know if anyone has any experience with one.

 

[Randor]

My 2011 F-250 super w/the 6.7 diesel gets the absolute worst mileage ...

I do believe ford lied when they claimed 24 mpg ...

I am lucky to get 9 mpg towing our 16.5k 5th wheel (see both in the picture below) when all my friends are getting 12 to 15 mpg with less of a motor ...

So hence the question about the Bully Dog ... is it worth it ?

thank you ... !!!

I tried the Edge tuner on my 2014 F250, and I regret it. In only a few thousand miles it wasn't sending the right signals to the Exhaust Filter telling it to clean properly. When it finally told me there was an issue, the filter was plugged solid. Since they could tell I had a tuner on the truck when they connected their computer, the $4700 repair came out of my pocket. Talking to the Ford mechanic, he told me that all tuners void any kind of warranty, but if I were to put another tuner on I should use the Bully - more compatible with the Ford.

An expensive lesson.

 

[gregattaway]

you have to go back to 2010 when they claimed thay had run this truck/eng 200k with no problems ans 24 mph without towing ...

Both I and my dad saw this and were taken in by it cuz the government was supposed to make them tell the truth ... bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa !!!
politicians telling the truth !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

it is not overloaded ... the truck is rated at 16.4k per ford dealership and the cyclone is 16k loaded but we do not carry a vehicle in the back ...

I'd like to see where they claim 24 mpg, I've never seen that and I've had a lot of ford diesels. 9-10 mpg is average pulling a Cyclone with an F-250 being you are way overloaded. What gears are you running?? Don't think I would do any Bully Dog, It will void the warranty.

Yeah - what Jon said

 

[wdk450]

Anybody having a truck registered in California (who require diesel smog tests) should know that very few of these devices are legal here per the California Air Resources Board (CARB). As I understand it the smog tester tech plugs into your OBD port to see if a tuner has been used, which can fail you on the test. Mainly, you pay $50 for the tester to rev your engine and see how big/long lasting the exhaust plume is to give you a pass/fail. Some online diesel forums advise having your test done on a windy day in a non wind sheltered testing site.

 

[JohnD]

We have to do emission tests every two years on each vehicle.

I always take them out on the highway to blow out the cobwebs and get them warmed up before I go in.

They also check for things that should or shouldn't be on the vehicle.

Can't get your license tabs renewed unless you pass!

 

[Doublegranch]

Anybody having a truck registered in California (who require diesel smog tests) should know that very few of these devices are legal here per the California Air Resources Board (CARB). As I understand it the smog tester tech plugs into your OBD port to see if a tuner has been used, which can fail you on the test. Mainly, you pay $50 for the tester to rev your engine and see how big/long lasting the exhaust plume is to give you a pass/fail. Some online diesel forums advise having your test done on a windy day in a non wind sheltered testing site.

[ I read on another post that the connection to the OBD port is to see if your truck has a code being thrown. If so, then you fail. According to my dealer, they cannot tell exactly if a tuner has been used but they can see that your computer has been flashed more times than what the dealership or your MFG has authorized. Thus they suspect a Tuner was used. The Tuner does leave a flash footprint, but nothing stating it was a tuner specifically. ]

 

[Ann&Ted]

One of the 1st steps when installing the Bully Dog, is to save you vehicle codes off the computer. When you take you vehicle to the shop for warrenty repair, remember to re-load the original vehicle information. That should get around the voided warranty problem. I remove the bully dog from my F250 prior to taking into the dealership.

 

[Barry_Bernier]

Just a note FYI I have had 3 new GM trucks in the last 6 years first one (2011) 10 to 11 towing, 19 to 21 on highway, 17 around town. Second one (2013) 8 towing, 14 highway, 12 around town. New one 2015 10 towing 17 to 19 highway 15 around town. First 2 traded with 70k plus miles in 2 years new one now with 20k in 4 months all 3 units gas. Not problem with torque but mountains in Maine are not very long.

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[sdwelling]

Have you considered water-methanol injection? I have a 2012 F450 and saw a review last week in diesel power magazine. Sounds like an impressive option for towing as it lowers egts. My friend just put one in his 2010 Cummins Ram and towed his Cyclone 4200 to and from Myrtle Beach. He used to get around 9.5 Mpg and the setup have him 11.5 - 12 mpg. I'm getting 16 around town with my F450 and around 9 mpg towing a 15,500# Cyclone 4014. My truck has 4.30 gears in the differentials and I was considering changing them to 3.73 for better economy. I'm in 6th gear by about 35 mph, so anything above that speed is all throttle.

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[JohnD]

Just a note FYI I have had 3 new GM trucks in the last 6 years first one (2011) 10 to 11 towing, 19 to 21 on highway, 17 around town. Second one (2013) 8 towing, 14 highway, 12 around town. New one 2015 10 towing 17 to 19 highway 15 around town. First 2 traded with 70k plus miles in 2 years new one now with 20k in 4 months all 3 units gas. Not problem with torque but mountains in Maine are not very long.

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I have a 2015 Chevy Silverado 2500HD SRW double cab short box with the 6.0L V8 gas engine and the 4.10 rear end.

It will be one year old in 11 days . . . has 21,200 miles on it . . so is now broken in.

It is my daily driver . . . I'm getting 15 MPG unhitched and around 8 MPG with the trailer in tow.

Will be hauling over the continental divide net week so will probably get less MPG on that trip.

 

[porthole]

I'm getting 16 around town with my F450 and around 9 mpg towing a 15,500# Cyclone 4014. My truck has 4.30 gears in the differentials and I was considering changing them to 3.73 for better economy. I'm in 6th gear by about 35 mph, so anything above that speed is all throttle.

About the same mileage with our Cyclone, sometimes a bit better, F-350 with 3.73's
Would take a lot of miles to even up the cost of 2 sets of ring and pinion gear replacements.

$1500+ in parts maybe and 8-10 hours of labor would be my guess.

 

[sdwelling]

About the same mileage with our Cyclone, sometimes a bit better, F-350 with 3.73's
Would take a lot of miles to even up the cost of 2 sets of ring and pinion gear replacements.

$1500+ in parts maybe and 8-10 hours of labor would be my guess.

The Dana 110 rear is a beast - gears alone are expensive as **** - even with my buddy's Summit Racing discount.

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[jnbhobe]

The Dana 110 rear is a beast - gears alone are expensive as **** - even with my buddy's Summit Racing discount.

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I changed one of mine from 3.73 to 4.30, I did it for $1700 and change, at the Ford garage with my discount.