Yep! Another 87 Tow Tune Question!
 

2007 F-150 SCREW. Only things not stock is Gott's mod & LT265/70R17 (up from P255/70R17). Everything else is completely stock. I live at 7,000' elevation.

When I bought the truck new, my salesman suggested I run 85 octane which is contrary to the owner's manual. He said they seem to run a little better at higher elevation than the recommended 87. So I ran 85 for about a year. I tried a few tanks of 87 for about a month, and it started coughing & sputtering when pulling grades or fast acceleration. It just ran like crap! I even changed brands, but that didn't help. I switched back to 85 & it's been running great ever since.

We just purchased a 19' bumper pull toy hauler which weighs in around 8,500# loaded. Truck running 85 octane handles it pretty good, except for some steep hills at 8,000' ~ 9,000' elevation. No sputtering, but r-e-a-l s-l-o-w! with lots of downshifting.

That's my history. Now, I'm thinking a Gryphon with custom tow tune might just help get a little more power to pull the TH. I'm not against running a 87 tow tune & using 87 octane fuel, but given the history, is 87 going to be the best way to go? Or will the bad experience I had running 87 repeat itself? OR (this is what I'm hoping) will the Gryphon with the 87 tow tune improve the performance of the truck so that 87 won't be a problem like it was in the past?

I have a few other questions, but let's start here first. Your help is greatly appreciated!

~Frank

Well, I just got off the phone with Bill - Great Guy! If you can't get through the first (or 2,3,4,5 ....) times, keep trying - it will be worth it!

So, from the information I got from Bill, here are some of the answers to the above questions.

Running higher octane than the vehicle is designed for (w/o a custom tune) will not help performance & may actually hinder performance. The owner's manual calls for 87 octane, but at my higher altitude, atmospheric pressure, etc, 87 was actually killing performance.

According to Bill, a Custom 87 Performance tune and a Custom 87 Tow tune is really all I need for my driving habits & altitude. He went on to say that I can still probably run 85 octane a lot of the time because of the altitude. I will switch to 87 octane when we are getting ready for a camping trip.

I asked about running 85 octane at lower elevations? He said you can't even get 85 below a certain elevation! I now remember our last trip to Mesquite NV, elevation ~1,000', 87 was the lowest I could find! I just never made the connection, but everything he said started to make sense. So when traveling to lower elevations empty or loaded I will be okay.

I just placed my order for the Gryphon with the two custom tunes I mentioned & kept the Stock 93 Performance.

Thanks again, Bill!

~Frank

Glad to got to talk with Bill and he was able to help....

another thing I'll add is that on step inclines in mountain driving when towing there's a few of us that use second gear to pull the trailers up those nasty hills....Using second gear will help minimize the shifts and keep the tranny at a constant temp...

There's a couple hills in particular that second will get me half way up, but then its first the rest of the way! That truck is working it's 5.4 heart out!

~Frank

The 8500# trailer is getting close to the tow limit. I'm not at all surprised you have to use 1st gear on the high Colorado mountain passes. I'd "lock" it in 1st when it needs it.

- Jack