POLL: OVTune Reviews (3rd gen)

I just installed @OVTune yesterday and right after flashing I drove 300 miles towing my camping trailer 3500-4000 lbs. Wow, what a difference, truck has more low end power and required less shifting. Getting the shifts smooth was also much easier. The surge of power at 3500 rpm is completely smoothed out now, it just pulls. Today I drove about 50 - 60 miles without the trailer. Acceleration is much peppier (quicker) but still smooth and predicable. Very nice driving experience. Also so far with and without the trailer I'm seeing my average mpg up about 1-1.5 mpg vs. stock. Also noticed the idle seems more stable with the A/C on, doesn't shutter/surge like it did stock, the rpm's still change but more gradual and much less noticeable. Big thanks to Mat for his hard work!

• Order number: 2798
• Date purchased: 5-8-18
• date installed: 5-28-18
• Version: 1.04
• transmission: 6MT
• octane: 87
• Star rating you give it: 5
• Any mods that would impact: None

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/2016-toyota-tacoma-v6-ecu-tuning-alpha-release.495735/

 

The SSP is just "manually" shifting in S-mode, just like what you would do by moving the lever with your hand. Shouldn't really have much of an effect on torque converter operation I wouldn't think. I'm going to reinstall the SSP soon. Still not happy with how 1.04 shifts to 5th gear at 35 mph

 

I know we shouldn't be asking questions on this thread, but this seems rather important. Is there a way to determine our ecu version before purchasing?

 

Somewhere on this site there's a thread that said what ecu goes to whenyour truck was built, like if your truck was built in August of 2016 your ecu is x and in september of 17 is y

 

What is shiftsense pro and is it something u have to set or what. I am stupid about all these tunes ect. I plan on getting ovtune which ad I understand it just once set I just drive it and no wires or anything to deal with
Guessing from what I read I can choose 87 or 91 fuel as the setting. So confusing for me i just go . Love to be able to hold gears longer and at hyw speed better

 

My TSB 0077-16 was done last week.... so far so good, but worried ECU will "learn" it bad habits again.....

 

With the 285's ,would it be better to get OVT or SSP ? $$$

 

Just installed 1.04 on my 2016 SR5. Its the first day so I'll wait a few for a more in depth analysis, but the main thing I want to say is WOW.

Plain and simple, the tune just feels like it fixed the truck. I have a little more down low power for slow speed driving that give me some additional driving comfort and security. Pin the thing to the floor and it RIPS:

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bkfwprin1WR/?hl=en&taken-by=late_night_loops

 

I got my files last week and promptly loaded up the 1.04 87 octane tune. Installation was a breeze and went very quickly. Drove it on my daily commute for several days before taking off on a 4 day camping trip to New Mexico, leaving from Phoenix, towing a light camping trailer. VERY happy with the tune!! As others have mentioned, much better power and gearing. The truck is noticeably more responsive and simply feels right now. Throttle response is much improved. The only issue I noticed was when using cruise control while towing the trailer in a hilly environment. It worked mostly like a champ but at times would hold 3rd gear at around 5K RPM even AFTER topping a hill and starting down the other side. Minor issue for me.

Conclusion? WELL WORTH THE MONEY! This is how the truck should be running off the showroom floor IMO. Thanks to Mat for making it so!

 

Dang, that sounds like a winner in my book with my 285’s.... kinda wanted more power along with the improved shift points.

 

Are you running stock tires with you OVTunes ?

 

Not me! I'm on 255/85r16 size 33s! Tune has been great

 

285/70R17 here.

 

Got the 1.04 91 tune running a couple weeks ago. I don't know that I can add significantly to the detailed reviews here as my experience is mostly the same positive experience that other have had. I noticed nobody else seems to be towing anything, so here's my limited review of that: the tune makes me much happier when towing. So far I've really only pulled my fairly tall v-nose 6x10 aluminum chassis cargo trailer with a few hundred pounds of dirt bike stuff inside. But the skipping between gears 6 and 4 that I had before the tune was greatly reduced. I like to slowpoke along at 65 mph with my trailer because I enjoy driving and I am one of the last people on earth that doesn't have to have everything right this instant (separate rant avoided). I don't know if it's the extra transmission smarts or the extra torque, but it spends some time in 5th now which makes a lot more sense to me. MPG's changed from 13-ish to 17ish in the very flat midwest. So... yup, well worth it for the better towing experience. Also very happy for the much improved driving experience.

One extremely minor gripe: I find the point of shifting from 2nd to 3rd to be a little late sometimes, but I only really notice in some sweeping bends I drive when pulling into work. It feels like it should be in 3 bu hangs around 2100-2200 RPM/32-ish MPH. I really don't care much about this and I wouldn't notice if I had a heavier foot.

One other thing that needs saying: YEOWZA when you punch it from 40-ish mph with the ECT mode on. I'm not going to say that my Taco is now fast by spots car standards, but that is one shocking improvement from prior to the tune. I honestly did not think Tacos could haul ass like that. So that part is pretty fun as well.

Very nice work Matt.

 

Didn't take long for people to completely ignore the "Don't ask questions in this thread" part of the OP.

Anyway, ordered mine on 6/16. Had it installed by 6/25. Running V1.4 87octane on a stock truck. It took a while to install because I didnt know that I needed the TSB 0077-16 Rev1 to load the OV Tune. Make sure you get that done first if you want to flash your truck right away.

Before the OVTune, I was not in the camp of "I was about to sell my truck because it was so slow". Yes, I thought it dragged ass unless I mashed the pedal but I knew I wasn't buying a race car. But, as someone who has spent their entire life driving manuals and dirtbikes, I knew there was something just wasn't right with the way it shifted and the throttle. The delayed throttle response was annoying and the truck made inappropriate and/or unpredictable down shifts and up shifts. There were a few times where I looked like a jackass trying to merge onto the highway or pass someone. I also hated how high it throttled when in Park and the AC compressor kicked on.

Install: Be patient. Assuming you have the TSB and the TACTRIX module already, its still going to take a few days of emailing Matt back and fourth. Other than that, Its stupid easy to flash your truck.

After the OVTune, I was relieved. This is exactly how the truck should have came off the floor. Throttle is smooth and predicable. It no longer felt like I was asking for permission to go faster. It actually feels like Im "giving it gas". Up and down shifts are predicable and right where they should be. I feel like I'm using "all of the engine" and what its capable of.

Bottom line, I would buy this tune again and recommend this be the first mod you do before you start bolting shit on to make it look good.

Big thanks to Matt at OVTune and the guys at TACTRIX.

 

Friendly reminder - this is the thread created to give potential buyers a CLEAR place to read real-world reviews of OVTune for 3rd Gens without the clutter of one-off questions that fills the alpha thread. The following thread has 20,000 posts, many of which will answer basic questions with a bit of searching but as you can see that thread is very active and you'll get a near instant response to ANY question you ask about the tune.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/2016-toyota-tacoma-v6-ecu-tuning-alpha-release.495735/page-998

 

Thx for all your input.... I just bought this Taco about 3 months ago, just had the TSB done this week. It does improve the excessive shifting, but I’m still looking for better throttle response. As far as I know OVTune is the only option as of yet for 3rd gen.

 

Updated my review in post #72 to reflect my experience with towing an extended distance this past weekend.