Tune or pedal commander 2018 manual

Debating on what to do...

My reasoning for making this thread is:
1: throttle response sucks, especially driving a manual

2: the hesitation around 3k is driving me nuts.

Not concerned with power or fuel mileage.

 

I personally wouldn't run a pedal commander or anything that increases the gain or voltage on the throttle input with the manual transmission. My concern would be that it would be too easy to achieve wide open throttle in too high of a gear or too low of RPMs. You could "lug" to engine too easily, something I would avoid doing. So I guess my vote is for the tune. The pedal commander essentially acts the same way as putting your foot down further, only it happens when you're putting it down less making it feel "better" or "more powerful". If you're very good at shifting ahead of time and not trying to accelerate below 3k rpms then I dont see an issue. If you have it set to aggressive and you go half throttle at say 2k rpms its basically going to increase your risk for knock by increasing the gain or throttle voltage and open the throttle too much. This isn't a concern with the auto since it will shift on it own based on throttle input.

Soo.. I vote for the tune I guess. I'm personally waiting on the tune to mature. I've seen a lot of tunes go bad in my past (not on Toyotas though) and I will wait until people are getting 10-20k miles on their tunes.

 

There have been several versions of the OV tune. One of them in particular increased the throttle response quite a bit. The current version is a bit more tame. You won't get rid of the hesitation at 3K with the PC, but the OV tune will eliminate the majority of that.

Not sure what elduder means by a tune "going bad". I assume he means that the ECU adapts to the tune. In that case, the tune can be
reflashed. Autos seem to suffer from the adaptive learning crap much more than the manuals. I have 6K miles on the current version of the OV tune,
and I'm still happy with it.

If you had an auto, I'd say try the PC first, but since you have a manual, go for the tune. You'll get each update for free, or you can contact
Mat and pay a bit more for some custom tuning.

 

I have a Auto. Don't waste your $ on the PC - just get the Tune. As noted you get all future Tune improvements (which includes tsb's that Mat includes into the Tune) at no additional cost. Tune is much better than all the other options - including Toyota TSB's.

 

The only way to fix it is to tune or get a new vehicle

 

The bad news is that Toyota has not bothered to release TSBs to address driveability concerns on the M/T. The good news is that Mat (OVtune) knows what they did to improve the throttle among other things on the auto trans trucks. Future tunes will take advantage of this and improve an already solid product.
OP, it sounds like you are at the point of frustration where the tune is for you.

Oh and BTW there is a noticeable mid range torque bump on the current 91 octane file (~30lb-ft increase). You WILL enjoy that.

 

There are a couple of guys who have that much mileage tuned...

@Shellshock ?

 

I didnt want to elaborate "tune go bad" in hopes not to derail the thread. Basically I've seen tunes lead to engine failure. I've seen this on other vehicles though, not on a Toyota. Specifically Subarus and some Hondas. Im referring specifically to a failure directly related to the tune. I'm not implying that will happen with the OV tune, Im just not in a hurry and theres no harm for me in waiting to see how people like theirs.

 

I have had OV tune on my truck for 35k miles and other than some issues caused by a bad crank position sensor (factory defect) I love it. Pre tune with 1200 lbs of armor and larger tires I was getting 12-13 mpg. After tune I am getting 15-17mpg and the truck had ample power for daily use and towing. Matt has done wonders with the drivability on these trucks well worth the money IMHO.

 

You're being cautious and that's completely reasonable.

I do have one question that may be relevant - were the engines that failed (Subaru/Honda) also forced induction?

 

Yes.

 

What kind of tune are we talking on those Subaru’s and Honda’s? Performance tunes? If so, that is like apples and oranges with this topic. Those tunes are meant to push the limits in a “safe manner”.

The Tacoma tunes are not even in the same category. You can supercharge these trucks for God’s sake (at least the 1 and 2G’s so far). Now that’s pushing limits and they still function well.

 

OVtune's 3rd gen FI (turbo) project is not that far off. Mat stated recently that we may see some results in mid-September. Will likely be too rich for my blood, but interesting nonetheless.

Edit- See post # 20773 in this thread:

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...-alpha-release.495735/page-1039#post-18273675

 

It is apples to oranges, thats why I didn't want to go into it too much. I've seen people using "off the shelf" tunes have failures, typically its likely they fail because the are modded and use a tune meant for stock vehicles. I've seen some stock Subarus fail as well. The short of it is I'm not implying that the OVtune will cause failures, the 3.5 is not an EJ257 from Subaru, I'm only waiting for my own reasons. That's why I voted for the tune.

 

Damn nice! That’s a lot more of a performance tune. What people are getting with them so far is to get things more comfortable, efficient, and add a few hp. What you are talking about sounds badass!

 

I am more familiar with the 4G63 Lancer Evolution, but those cars like you are talking are typically built. Hell, you can barely even buy parts that add up to our Taco motors. We will see what the future brings!

 

I asked him a while back what he thought the 2GR-FKS could make (safely) boosted. His opinion was ~400lbs/ft. Post # 8359:

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...g-alpha-release.495735/page-418#post-16377106

The nice thing of course, is he's the one with the in depth tuning knowledge of this engine. Turbo kit and tune from the same vendor.

Edit: Yeah the additional top end power (+22HP) on the NA 91 Octane tune is not really what I was after. Driveability was my #1 concern, but the bonus midrange torque bump is quite nice to say the least. Gains in that area of the curve max out ~ +30lbs/ft at approx. 3200rpm compared to stock dyno run. Torque comes on sooner than stock, and the VTEC like burst at 3500 is all but gone. Much more linear feeling. Now, it's not perfect yet in my mind - there's still a bit of inconsistency in the throttle, and I get some brief knock when I first get into the throttle around 3000. That's just me and my truck.

 

Dude holy shit! If I had 400 lbs tq in my truck it would feel like driving a completely different vehicle. That’s sounding damn good. I just hope it’s as safe and reliable to push, but still be a great daily.

 

Again that's just an educated opinion on his part. No dyno results on FI 3G Tacoma available yet.

 

I’ve got 30k miles on various tunes and 20k on the latest (1.04A)

Tune is worth every penny. Don’t waste your money on anything else.