edge upgrade & custom tune questions

[double j]

my truck is a f150 stx super cab 4x4 with the 4.6L

my mods are
-volant cold air intake
-mbrp cat back 3.5" exhuast with single tail pipe
-helix power tower TB spacer
-295 70 17 tires
-edge evo (soon to bee gryphon)

i am going to upgrade my edge to a gryphon and get custom tunes. i was looking at the order form and seen that you can get custom tunes in several different octane ratings. is the higher octane going to make that much of a difference or is it just preference of what gas you want to put in your ride. i know that it will help a little to get higher octane. but is it going to make that much of a difference.
i am looking at getting the
-custom 87 tow
-custom 87 performance
-custom 93 performance
would i be wasting my money getting the 2 performance tunes. i usually run 87 in my truck.

also i seen on the order form there was a coice if you had catalytic converters or if you had deleted them. is this going to make a big difference. i have heard that if you take them off your truck will run like crap. i guess what i am asking does the custom tunes compensate for having your catalytic converters removed. if so i would like to remove them to get the most that i can out of my new gryphon when i get it. but dont want my truck to run like crap or use a tone of gas.

any help on this will be greatly apperciated. THANKS

[88Racing]

With you having a CAI those tunes look excellent.

My personal prefrence with cat removal is this. Leave them in place but if you want to delete them replace with high flo cats. At least you'll have something there just in case the emissions Nazis ever start poking around.

Hope that helps.

[double j]

thanks for the input 88. if i do take off my cats it should not be a problem there are no emissions around where i live. but you never know when they might start. do you know if it would cause any problems with the way my truck runs. also do you have any input on the octane rating that i had posted.

[88Racing]

Originally Posted by double j

thanks for the input 88. if i do take off my cats it should not be a problem there are no emissions around where i live. but you never know when they might start. do you know if it would cause any problems with the way my truck runs. also do you have any input on the octane rating that i had posted.

They can be removed and a mod done to the rear o2 sensors but I don't can't approve or disapprove of you doing this to your truck.

[double j]

well im just going to leave them on there. i dont want to mess anything up. thanks for your input once again.

[double j]

also do you know about the octane rating is it going to make a big difference

[ticopowell]

Originally Posted by double j

also do you know about the octane rating is it going to make a big difference

I have pretty much the same tunes on my truck, with the 2 performance and the 1 tow. I havent noticed much difference in the octane ratings. There are a lot of threads talking about octane ratings here and on other F-150 sites that might help more. I personally use the 93 octane as the daily driver and I think i get slightly better fuel mileage, but I have never actually compared them for long enough to make a good guesstimate. You could specify the 87 to be geared towards gas mileage, while 93 for performance. but that was just my 2 cents.

[Jackpine]

Originally Posted by double j

also do you know about the octane rating is it going to make a big difference

Double j, I'm going to say this: Our trucks were designed to run on 87 octane fuel. As I'm sure you know, octane rating is just an indication of the fuel's "anti-knock" properties - nothing more. A higher octane fuel is more resistant to being ignited under pressure and, when it does ignite, it tends to burn more slowly. That's all there is to it.

With higher octane fuel, in our engines, we can advance the spark a bit to ignite the fuel charge earlier, since it needs the earlier ignition to complete the burn "on time". The overall effect is a more "controlled push" on the piston in the power stroke. Some people claim this give them enough of a power boost that their mileage improves enough to justify running the expensive stuff. That may well be, but you would have to check that yourself. You WILL experience more power due to the more "controlled" burn.

To really take advantage of high octane though, you need to be able to increase the engine's compression. This would involve an engine rebuild.

So, is there a BIG difference? Not enough for me to worry about filling with high octane gas. I think my truck has plenty of power. I can pass just about anyone traveling slower than me in a safe distance, even pulling a trailer. You, of course, could see it differently. You'd have to try both kinds of gas with custom tunes for each to find out.

- Jack

[double j]

thanks for all the input. i think i am going to just get this

1 canned transmission only
2 custom 87 tow
3 custom 87 performance

this will save me a few bucks and i can always get another custom tune if i feel the need in the future. going to send my order in this weekend or at the first of next week i cant wait.thanks to everyone once again.