Madtuner CONFIRMED

[RCA1186]

Took a trip up to see Ion (madtuner) today, let me be the first to say he is 100% legitimate and knows what he's doing. He got right to work when I got there. We played around with some things (I'll let him explain more in depth) but basically what I ended up with is ;

Fan Temps: low speed 205, high speed 215
Speed Limiter: removed

He also advanced the timing at full throttle.

We did some mileage testing as well, and so far on preliminary testing I went from 22-23 mpg on the way there to 28 mpg on the ride home. (40 mile drive all highway no cruise control at speeds ranging from 55-80mph)

I will most likely be returning on a day where we can go even further and dyno tune, play around with horsepower, shifting etc.

All in all I am more than pleased to say we have a confirmed tuned Aurora here on ACNA!

[Marc]

How long did it take to do the reprograming?

[RCA1186]

Honestly if we had all the parameters set he would have had it done in a matter of minutes. All in all i was there around two hours

[98redaurora]

Awesome!!!!!!!!!! ;D ;D ;D ;D

Kinda excited lol..

[sall]

That's great. I think I will let all the details get ironed out and order one eventually. That mpg increase alone is awesome though. I need to ask if he can do economy and performance dual chipped user selected.

[RCA1186]

Well i do know it is 100% possible to program the exact shift points you would want for power and have normal shift points as well, and you could select between the two using the power button on the shifter (yes that button really does work haha)

[lkraft92]

Thanks for being our test mule. Glad to see it turned out so well. That increase in mpg has definitely got me interested. The changed fan speeds and speed limiter removed are just icing on the cake. I can't wait to see what else you can do with it.

[98redaurora]

Apr 13, 2013 16:15:47 GMT -6 lkraft92 said:

Thanks for being our test mule. Glad to see it turned out so well. That increase in mpg has definitely got me interested. The changed fan speeds and speed limiter removed are just icing on the cake. I can't wait to see what else you can do with it.

Agreed.

[Randy T.]

Very cool! This is truly a great day in the history of ACNA! I am glad that this has been done and done with an active member that can post some honest feedback.

Added to the new Aurora PCM Tuning section in the Performance stickies.

aurorah.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=Zoom&thread=10991&page=1

[awehlage]

Does this thread only pertain to classic owners?

Sent from my XT901 using proboards

[Marc]

I think that any Aurora that has OBD2 can be tuned this way. That's all Auroras except the 1995, which has OBD1.

[renaldo0613]

;D ;D ;D YES!!! This is the best news I've heard on this forumn. Like sall said once the kinks are worked out and we can order a PCM tuned to our liking I suspect a lot of us will be giving ourselves early christmas presents ;D

[sall]

Apr 13, 2013 18:52:08 GMT -6 awehlage said:

Does this thread only pertain to classic owners?

Sent from my XT901 using proboards

2G uses completely different computer. It has been tuned before though maybe not an Aurora one but identical caddy part number IIRC.

Anyways, Classic guys. Wonder if Madtuner would do a group buy for a discount? ;D

[bobsblue95]

This is awesome! Another possibility now would be a liquid propane or natural gas Aurora.. We can think green too ya know! It's not only about the power curve.

[XJSman89]

Group buy sounds great to me. Haha

Excellent news, Rob! Glad to hear it. I'm excited to say the least.

I don't think I ever got the name of the gentleman doing the tuning? Could you let us know, madtuner? If you are distributing copies of your software I would be interested in that, as well as a cord? I could do my own tuning on my car here at work too. Fun stuff.

[RCA1186]

Fyi he has done a 2g already too

[madtuner]

Good evening everyone!

My name is Ion and I'd like to thank Rob once again for stopping by and helping out with the gas mileage tweaking as well as a few other things.

I fully support the entire Northstar line from 1996 to 2011, including the 3.5L.

The 96-99 Auroras still had a bit of ambiguity when it comes to shift points because of their performance mode, but the session with Rob today has helped to clear it up. We've identified both the normal and the performance shift tables. Otherwise, there aren't really and kinks or issues to work out. I will continue to look through the code when time permits to find additional features or possibilities for improvement.

My software will let you upload a custom calibration to your vehicle yourself, but it will not let you edit parameters at this time.

I am willing to do an ACNA group purchase combining any 96+ GM vehicle I support (that is, most of them).

[lanceslambos]

Wait I'm confused. you can upload a different set of parameters but not change the original ones? So you're saying there's enough memory / blank space to add a 2nd set of parameters? How does it work between two sets of parameters/ modes? This is really awesome by the way!

[RCA1186]

Basically the normal and performance mode use two different shift tables, so, if you wanted to change around shift speeds but only use that on occasion you could change only the performance mode shift table and still have the normal mode for every day driving

[XJSman89]

You can overwrite the existing values but you can't change/edit them. It is a flasher only.

That would still be nice, if I were to tune my car (or with Randy's on my dyno) we could hook up to Skype, make a pull, send you the data, and you can then make changes, send it back, and I can flash the new tune over?

[awehlage]

Apr 13, 2013 22:16:43 GMT -6 madtuner said:

I fully support the entire Northstar line from 1996 to 2011, including the 3.5L.

I am willing to do an ACNA group purchase combining any 96+ GM vehicle I support (that is, most of them).

I'm in for a 2G (2001 4.0). Should a moderator start a new thread to get the interest of others?

Sent from my XT901 using proboards

[madtuner]

Apr 14, 2013 7:50:02 GMT -6 XJSman89 said:

You can overwrite the existing values but you can't change/edit them. It is a flasher only.

That would still be nice, if I were to tune my car (or with Randy's on my dyno) we could hook up to Skype, make a pull, send you the data, and you can then make changes, send it back, and I can flash the new tune over?

That is correct. A typical upload takes about 1 minute 15 seconds. Skype would not be an issue for dyno tuning.

As for the question on dual programs (economy/power), that is not necessary nor supported by this type of PCM. The changes done for economy are at part throttle, low loads whereas the performance changes are done at full throttle, high loads, thus they don't interfere with each other.

[sall]

Makes sense. Thanks for that bit of information. What does pricing look like for a group buy?

[oldwino]

I'd be in for a tune of shift points, particularly the 2nd-3rd, which is currently around 37mph which hurts my economy on 35mph roads. Would prefer it around 32mph. Also highway speed, 60mph and up, fuel economy. My isssue is the time available to get up there.

[renaldo0613]

So Ion. Are you able to send us the software and we uplpad it to our PCM ourselves?? Rather than doing a complete PCM swap.

[madtuner]

I can send you my software as well as a tuning cable so that you can upload the tune yourself, yes. The cable requires a $250.00 refundable deposit. This option also gives you the flexibility of doing additional tweaks, if desired.

This would not apply to 2nd generation 4.0 Auroras because that PCM is particularly troublesome and prone to communication errors. GM used to ship off-board programming harnesses to dealers just for that PCM. If you have or want to build a programming harness for it, then not a problem.

Generally though, it's not too difficult to swap PCMs on these cars. For 2nd generation, it would require a VTD (Vehicle Theft Deterrent) learn and possibly CASE (Crankshaft Angle Variation Sensing System) learn unless these are disabled. This applies only if you are not using your original PCM.

2nd generation guys, I didn't pay attention to the shifter on the last one I did, but do you have a special mode button (like Sport or Winter) on your shifter plate? The PCM does have several transmission modes defined, but I don't remember if the button exists on the 2nd gens.

As for a group purchase, I am willing to extend a discount of $50.00 on a group of 6 or $75.00 on a group of 12. An additional $20.00 discount (from the Paypal/CC fees saved) if you send a money order.

[shelbyracing]

Sounds super awesome, all I am waiting on at this point is the money to do it ;D ;D

[awehlage]

@ madtuner

My 2nd gen does not have a mode button on the shifter plate. Are you saying a 2nd gen is doable but is just a pain? If I have my original pcm I would not need the CASE or theft deterant relearn? If you answer yes to the above all I would need is the special pcm cable and your software?


Sent from my XT901 using proboards

[madtuner]

Apr 14, 2013 17:57:40 GMT -6 awehlage said:

@ madtuner

My 2nd gen does not have a mode button on the shifter plate. Are you saying a 2nd gen is doable but is just a pain? If I have my original pcm I would not need the CASE or theft deterant relearn? If you answer yes to the above all I would need is the special pcm cable and your software?


Sent from my XT901 using proboards

It isn't an issue to program them on a bench harness. If you send in your own, you have nothing to worry about - once you get it back, you plug it in and go.

If you don't want to mail yours in, you can purchase a spare and send that in, but you may need to do one or two learns above with the spare unless those functions are disabled. You can do the VTD learn yourself without any special tools. Disabling it doesn't really hurt since the chips in the keys are starting to go these days. The CASE MAY be needed in some cases where the PCM sets the code for it, but not all cases.

If you want to be able to flash it yourself using the loaned cable and software, I recommend building a benchtop harness with a power supply as flashing it in the car has a higher chance of failure. You will need a blue PCM connector (you can purchase a used or new one on ebay), a switch and a 12V power supply. I can send you the pinouts.

All of the above only applies to a 2000-2003 4.0 Aurora.

[renaldo0613]

Apr 14, 2013 16:20:32 GMT -6 shelbyracing said:

Sounds super awesome, all I am waiting on at this point is the money to do it ;D ;D

At $300 ain't going take me long to get there.