Okay, I'm a novice at this. In the good old days you bought a truck had it built for running around town or towing a trailer. Tuned the carb properly and away you went. Nothing more.

I've got a 2005 QS, 1500HD, 6.0L, 4.10 rear end, crew cab, all the toys. I don't notice that the truck is lacking in power anywhere, but I notice that the gas milage sucks bad (13mpg). This truck replaced my '97 Z71 Ext. Cab, 5.7L and that truck got 18 on the highway every time!

So I've read the threads on the Wester's tune's and want to know more.

1. What performance increases should I expect?
2. What gas milage increases should I expect running 87 octane (not interested in bumping up the octane)?
3. How tough is this to install, is it something I can do in a few minutes or will it take me and the neighbors all day to get done?
4. How much does it cost?

This may be a bit much. I tried e-mailing to Wester's tech contact, but the message was rejected. Whoever runs their web site needs to make sure the contact addresses are correct.

Any guidance here?

DaMan, I'll try to address your questions first and add a little extra at the end.

First, sorry about the mix-up with the Wester's tech-support thing. I'll let them know about it immediately.

So you know, I'm an authorized Wester's rep and can answer any of your questions (or get the answer quickly), handle your orders, reburns, customer service issues- you name it. This is separate from his sponsorship here, which just happens to be a sweet coincidence !!!! So...

1- With any of the tunes, you will get a noticeable increase in power. How much depends on what balance between power and economy you want. In any case, you will get BOTH NOTICEABLE added power AND better mileage.

2- No one can guarantee you ANY specific number, there are just too many variables. But I can say this- you will get bigger increases in economy (as well as power) with super unleaded than regular. But that doesn't answer your question. For an example, I'm seeing AT LEAST 2mpg better with my new HOTTER tune than I did my last 89/93 tune, and HUGE power !! And I'm heavy footed.

3- The install takes, maybe, if you stop and have a beer... maybe... 10 minutes !!!! It's very easy.

Behind the left headlight is a black cover, under it is the cpu. There are two wiring harnesses that bolt to the cpu with 7mm bolts.

The cover might be the trickiest part of the install !! It has locking tabs on front and back (or side to side !!). I used a little flathead screwdriver to pop mine; Dan's came off much easier.

Then there's a metal clip, pop it, then a black arrow-hook like deal, and the cpu lifts out. Unbolt, swap, reverse. It probably takes longer to type it !!!

You don't even have to disconnect the battery. I've done three, never disconnected a single battery, never had a problem (except Dan's safety-relearn !!!).

4- A tune for your truck is $595. But, being an 05, lemme check a couple thing and get back to you on that. I KNOW we have them, lemme see what we have for cores.

Okay, so I hope I answered your questions adequately. If you have any other questions, please just ask, I'm always more than happy to talk about the killer tunes !!! But I wanted to add a few things...

First, the 87 vs 91/93 issue.The tunes can be tuned for as low as 85 octane, even lower. But, for maximum gains in efficiency and power, super is the way to go. Regular just doesn't give the return super does. And here's why-

With regular, you will get knock MUCH sooner and easier than with super. Before you hear it, the sensor will pick up on it and retard the timing. Right there- your mileage has declined and so has power.

With super, we can run more timing longer and harder before knock becomes present, if at all. Octane is a gas's ability to resist knock. The higher the octane, the more *squeeze* you can put on it. With more timing, the engine is making more power and burning less fuel at any given point.

Basically, it's like this: (and I'm just throwing numbers out for comparison, here)
Let's say a regular tune gives you a 10% increase across the board, and hotter super tune will give you 20% or more across the board. Probably A LOT more !!!

Those are the main selling points, of course, but the tunes do a lot more- each tune is custom calibrated to the customer, all the way down to what altitude you live and drive. It's burned with your VIN number and all the latest factory updates.

We calibrate for tire size to fix speedo error, rear end gear ratio, can set shift points and firmness, adjust the top speed limiter, and probably the most important thing- reduce the torque-management that keeps the engine from giving you 100% of what you ask of it.

And they're guaranteed for LIFE. If it ever fails, we'll replace it free.

If you ever upgrade your engine, we'll recalibrate the cpu for free.

If the dealer ever reflashes your cpu and you lose your tune- we'll reburn it for free.

And if you ever sell your truck, we'll give you 100% trade-in value on the purchase of your next custom cpu.

All of these guarantees are for LIFE, and they're all free. This is a $45 shipping fee associated with each except workmanship, but the service is free.

If I can give one last piece of testimonial !!! Go to the home page and read my review on my old 89/93 tune. I wrote that as a kind of resume for the job here at QSClub. I had no idea I'd ever ask Wester to be a sponsor, and had NO idea they'd ever ask me to be a rep. I had the old tune for a year, and must have ranted about it 100 times or more !!!! I guess they saw it and picked me up !!

I would not promote this product if it wasn't everything I say it is and then some. And I was promoting long before I had anything to do with the company.

I guarantee, you will not be dissatisfied with a custom Wester's tune. They are, unquestionably, the single best bang-for-the-buck performance mod you can do. And it only makes sense to do it first, because you'll never out grow it with free lifetime reburns !!!!

Oh, want a little more of everything ?? Get the new flow-match injector service. That will boost mileage and power even more, and give you a much smoother running engine. And it's a bargain at $19/injector.

Have I convinced ya, yet ?!!!!!!!?

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Holy crap !!!

As MrQuadrasteer said, running higher octane increases gas mileage, paying for itself. I run a Wester's 91/93 hot tune in my 6.0 also. I get 13+ MPG around town and 17+ on the highway, and I drive hard! I found about 1-2 MPG increase going from 87 to 93 with the Wester's tuning. You will not believe the boost in power, torque and throttle response!

Here are a few questions from a guy who knows next to nothing about engines:

1. My main issue is having maximum power for towing a 5,000lb travel trailer. Will a Westers tune help me out and, if so, what would be the best kind to get?

2. Will a Westers tune prevent me from getting a clean smog test in California?

Thought you might want my feedback, it's in another post as well, but here it is.

The tune I bought is the 87/89 octane tune. Kept everything as easy as possible as I'm mostly interested in gas milage and not performance.

The tune is great. I get better gas milage 2mpg around town and a little more on the highway. Getting 14.7ish at 75mph on the last trip. Didn't notice any difference between 87 and 89 octane.

My performance is significantly better. Noticed it right out of the box. I drive pretty easy, don't hit it hard. If I wanted a sports car I'd have one (well I used to have one). Anyway the performance is significant.

Installation was a little tougher than I thought. It wasn't hard per se, but was tricky getting all the hoses and wiring harnesses out of the way. I did have to disconnect the battery which was a bummer as I had to reset everything electronic in the truck, but no biggie.

I am having a 2mph speedometer issue and we're trying to work through it now. The truck says I'm going 70 and my GPS says 72.

Otherwise thrilled with the tune. With gas prices where they are there is no way I'm going to the super unleaded. I'm a working man and can't afford that stuff.

Crap,

I only get 10-11 MPG...this gas thing sucks, but still love the truck...guess i'll need to give up expensive coffee for a bit...

I'm ready to spring for the Westers myself. I wonder if the extra weight the SUV body pulls around will limit the gains from the tune.

I too live in a state with a $0.41/gal fuel tax. A regular fill-up brings me to $100. Another $9.00 for super isn't gonna make it much worse, but it does add up.

-Peter

DaMan,

Thanks for the response. I have been very happy with the power of the 1500HD, but we may be upgrading to a heavier trailer this weekend (GVWR 5,800). I know that it isn't huge in most people's books, but when you are towing, a powerful engine is almost as important as solid brakes. If anybody has towed after adding a Westers, I'd really appreciate it if you could let me know if it made a big difference. Thanks.

Pete, I'll shoot you an email later this evening.... I'll be on the driveway for a while tonight.

Same as every other night this week !!!!

Coach, we can set up a tune for you with towing in mind, boosting low-end power and increasing economy across the board. A lot of tune I've done were specifically set-up for towing

I'll PM ya, again, it'll be later on, but I'll send you some additional info to help you make an informed decision as to if this is for you or not. (psst- it is !!!)


Happy Friday, gang

Ok... I already get pretty good gas mileage 12-13 city, 18 or so highway... maybe the guy who had this truck before me already installed one... I'll have to look now.

So this is where you "program" the truck for new tires/tire size change?

Ok, I'm learning....

Are you still a rep? How long does it take to get this once ordered? And is it still $600 + shipping?

thx

Cat, yeah, I'm still a rep !!

Anything you need to know about custom tuning, I can answer for ya. I certainly don't know it all, but I am lucky enough to have the right contacts to guide me

The tunes were never $600. I think at their peak they were $529, but in any case, I offer all my customers 10% rebates, so that helps a little. Get a couple buds to order with you and I can offer a bit more

For guys like you with no reps in the area, we can usually have a turn-around time of less than 7 biz days. If we do have a rep in your area and they are set-up for remote burns, we can often get it done in a day or two.

The tunes are 100% calibrated to the purchaser's needs and requirements, so yes, we'd correct tire diameter, shifts, top speed, and everything else that is adjustable when processing and setting up the new ecm.

If you want some additional info, check out the vendor section, and shoot me a PM or email. Let me know what you're after and I'm sure we can set ya up


Happy Quaddin'

Eric, if you're back online, check your PMs/E-mails.

-Peter