FICM tune for VT365?

[Power Hungry]

Originally Posted by pwerwagn

Hey Bill!

Another question. Is there a way to have a "tuner" for the FICM on these units with the J1708/J1939 plug? Or am I stuck sending the FICM/ECM in for a tune?

--Jeff

You're in luck. The Orion system will reflash the FICM as well as the ECM.

One of our current BETA testers has the VT365 setup and we're working on files for him as we speak.

[pwerwagn]

Originally Posted by Power Hungry

You're in luck. The Orion system will reflash the FICM as well as the ECM.

One of our current BETA testers has the VT365 setup and we're working on files for him as we speak.

Even Better!! Awesome news Bill!

If you need any testing done in a super heavy setup with 5.29's lemme know. A lot of guys with these supernovas have been looking for a tuner for a while. Hypermax used to have the mach 7, but they only sold a few of them and then discontinued them.

I bet you will sell a lot of these tuners to motorhome owners!

--Jeff

[pwerwagn]

So, Ive been doing a bunch more reading. I am curious about running a non VGT on this thing, since with 5.29's it seems to never be below 2Krpm.

Did you ever talk to the guys at KC? Id be curious what they think. I am at 2700rpm at 75mph. Seems like an SXE362 would shine there compared to a VGT, but maybe not?

Also, have you done anything with exhaust brakes on the VT365?

--Jeff

[Power Hungry]

I'm personally a fan of leaving the VGT on, but just going with one that's a little bigger (depending on what model turbo you have now). I like the added boost a VGT achieves at low RPM, and it really doesn't affect the mid to upper RPMs if the vanes are properly controlled.

Lot of folks swap to a non-VGT setup with reasonable success, but many of those applications are for competition situations where spool time isn't a major consideration. On dedicated tow rigs where highway travelling is where most of the vehicle spends its time, swapping to a non-VGT may have some benefit. I'm just not sure it's worth the expense and aggravation.

This leads into your second question. We've done setups that use the VGT as an exhaust brake and it works quite well. Obviously, this would require you keeping the VGT setup versus swapping to a non-VGT.

I hope this helps.

[pwerwagn]

That does help! If I could use my vanes as an exh brake, that would be worth keeping the VGT for that reason solely.

Do you have an ETA for when something will be available, tune wise? Are you still in the beta testing phase or ready for me to try a tune out?

--Jeff

[Power Hungry]

Currently still BETA testing. Also, gonna be a little bit on the VT365. We ran into a communications issue on the VT365 when programming in-vehicle that we need to get worked out. Once that's resolved, we should be good to go.

[pwerwagn]

Sounds good Bill!

Out of curiosity, could I have the FICM programmed with the available software or is it different for the VT?

[Power Hungry]

It's the same software. It will handle both the ECM and the FICM.

[pwerwagn]

Hi Bill!

I am considering sending my FICM to Ed at ficmrepair just to get it "fixed" to narrow down one more issue I could have multiple states away.

I noticed Ed can reprogram the FICM with your software. If I had him reprogram the FICM with the atlas 40, will that normal "6.0 truck" software work with my 300hp RV specific VT365? Or is it unknown/not worth the risk?

--Jeff

[Power Hungry]

Jeff,

Actually, it will NOT work. We've already run into this.

Navistar calibrations for the FICM are vastly different in several aspects and are not compatible with Ford's versions. One of the big issues is that if the ECM doesn't identify the correct strategy, the vehicle will set a DTC and go into limp mode. It just not as simple as it is doing the Ford strategies.

Ultimately, if you want the FICM reflashed it'll have to come in to us. There's just not any other way around it at the moment.

I hope this helps.

Take care.