Bluebelle's Performance Tuner

[pdub]

Surfed and found a tuner that mates up with Bluebelle the 2012 3.0L Fusion. I was kinda lost at first during the hunt, it seems from all the stuff I punched in came back 2.6L or something. Maybe the 3.0 is not that common or something. But we ordered that car from the factory. Kinda neat, we sat at a table in the showroom and "built" it from a list of all the options available.

Got the tuner, it's an SCT. The tuners are do dadgum easy to use, even "I" can use one. Got one for Red, after running him at the Mile and before running road courses. Got Red's tuner specifically to turn off the traction control for road courses. Red's weird - he doesn't have the TCS button on the dashboard. From all I could learn he's one of about 10,000 '06 Mustags released like that, traction control always on. Maybe they ran out of dash buttons, I dunno.

So while I was at it tuning Red, I turned the traction control off, put the default 93 octane tune on him and turned the speed limiter off. Not that I'll need the speed limiter thing again, it was Red's rev limiter in 4th gear that kept him fractionally under 140 at the Mile, before the 93 octane tune. That octane tune is said to add 20 HP and I believe it. I could feel the difference. Red said, "Oh HELL yeah." And you guys who know stuff could use the tuner to do more exotic stuff, spark advance etc., but the basic options require no thinking and they do make a difference.

Two orders of immediate business with Bluebelle's tuner - turn the speed limiter off and put the default 93 octane tune on her. And away she goes down the Mile a little more than two weeks form now.

There's an option on the tuner menu - WOT fuel. "Add or remove fuel at Wide Open Throttle."

That's intriguing. I'll pose a question to the board, is that something I should mess with for top end? I don't know these things. Can I just throw fuel at it at WOT and it'll just mix right and go better?

[Deaf Bob]

I know nothing about tuners.. I know dragsters have top end lean problems.. They melt those motors, while Bluebelle will not melt, I would think you add fuel at the WOT spot, not remove.. I'll let someone who knows more about it set you straight, but I'll say ADD at WOT..

[pdub]

Hold on, this tuner's not that easy, not plug-and-play like Red's Diablo Sport Tuner was. Though it's got 2012 Fusion 3.0L all over the packing slips, it's not ready. "ECU Not Supported." Made a couple calls, filled out a form and they'll email me some custom tunes to load into the thing.

Film at eleven sometime next week. Dang. Couldn't even get past the login menu. Bummer, small bummer, having to wait on it. Like the dog in those old commercials with the Milk Bone balanced on his nose, and the owner saying, "Not yet.....not yet..."

[Barry Donovan]

I learned to go rich at WOT.

rochester carbs did that on purpose for hundreds of years.

I have a 1.8 liter dipping to 10.2 AFR when wide open.
there is an impressive racing bellow to gain, going lean..just not worth it. The wear.

[pdub]

I learned to go rich at WOT.

So, I CAN throw fuel at it? How will I know where the curve starts down, the point of diminished gains? Don't know how many runs down the track I'll get. Red only got two all weekend on his trip up there, weather.

[DanStokes]

Number of runs is always an iffy thing. Maybe someone will give Keith and Joe the money to build a 2 mile long roof........

I'm looking forward to seeing what Ms. Bluebell will do when unfettered.

Dan

[pdub]

I'm looking forward to seeing what Ms. Bluebell will do when unfettered.

Dan

I leaned on my local experienced source (Superman) and told him the whole story about the tuner and Ohio and asked his great advice RE the WOT fuel setting.

From what I gathered, he said leave that alone. And I will comply. He also did a Jimmy the Greek thing and said he thought Bluebelle would be good for 129 MPH turned loose.

I seriously, VERY seriously doubt that, though that would sure be fun. I'm realistically thinking 120, but we'll see. It's fun. It's why folks go there. In a toy production car, in my case this time. They'll let anybody run anything. Get in line or stay at home. The best part is the people and all of the machines, the waiting in line talking with people and hearing about what they've got. That for me is the draw.

[dieselgeek]

PeeWee, the trick to adjusting the WOT fuel is to have an air:fuel or lambda sensor and display so you can see where its at. Your engine on the roadcourse would last a long time running at 12.0-12.5:1 AFR, and it might pick up power if you run it leaner - like 13.0:1 (these are gasoline Air:Fuel ratios, beware of difference in different fuels). So I wouldn't change it unless you pick up a wideband O2 sensor to know what the air:fuel mix actually is. That being said, a portable unit for all your cars and your friends is a NICE thing to have juts for this occasion.

Does your tuner allow data logging while on the track? There would be some handy information in there.

[pdub]

DG, that's all sure over my head. Which is why I love it here, you guys know stuff and maybe in some years I'll pick up something by osmosis.

But I do know I can make that car go faster on top end with that tuner, once they email me the special tunes I typed in and ordered.

I've just gotta do LSR again, joke or not in a 3.0L stock Fusion. Yep, it's a joke, but that tuner wasn't cheap, so I must be into it at least a little. Road courses wore me out, the track fees alone. But that was worth it too. But not forever. It's all fun. It's all so much fun. All of it, curves and straightaways.

[dieselgeek]

DG, that's all sure over my head. Which is why I love it here, you guys know stuff and maybe in some years I'll pick up something by osmosis.

But I do know I can make that car go faster on top end with that tuner, once they email me the special tunes I typed in and ordered.

I've just gotta do LSR again, joke or not in a 3.0L stock Fusion. Yep, it's a joke, but that tuner wasn't cheap, so I must be into it at least a little. Road courses wore me out, the track fees alone. But that was worth it too. But not forever. It's all fun. It's all so much fun. All of it, curves and straightaways.

Not that it's entirely necessary, but if you combined the tuner with a trip to a chassis dyno you could find the combination of timing and fuel mixture that gets you the most power, if you wanted. One important thing to note: "more timing" does not mean "more power" necessarily. So don't simply turn the timing (ignition advance) all the way up without testing of some type. Most tuners like yours will advance the timing a degree or two, which reduces the safety margin a little bit (pump gasoline is inconsistent). Make sure you run fresh high octane fuel if you are letting the tuner advance the timing. too much timing will wear the engine prematurely, or worse.

[pdub]

That's all got to be great stuff DG, but I'm a complete car dumbass. I am, and I am.

I'll get the tuner up to programmed, turn the speed limiter off (Job ONE) and go down the track. My ears would be flopping in the wind like Dumbo's except for the helmet on and the windows rolled up, as required.

[pdub]

Well, this is not going well. The tuner's packaging-paperwork says 2012 Fusion 3.0 on it but it's .....I don't think Windows 8 (remember Windows 8?) is going to recognize the tuner. I plug it in, it makes the "I'm Connected" sound but the software keeps saying "Plug the Tuner In," (((...at least that prompt doesn't end with, "You dumbass!"))) The software says Failed to Connect. I'm already thinking I should have failed to purchase.

This is looking like....to quote Vic, "Ohhhh boy," (with the voice inflection trailing away at the end of it)

EDIT: Unit's computer with XP can see the tuner, so I'm not DIW yet.....I just so love technology, I really surely do. Passionately. Every time.

EDIT EDIT: I've got an email in to the manufacturer's "support" of this tuner. I'm sure I'm just doing something wrong, or not doing something I should be doing. Right now Jerry's DOT song on the Friday night song thread is sounding mighty good. For the money, I could trade this tuner in on nearly 4 of the Husky air tool kits from Tony Depot, and at least I'd then have four perfectly good boat anchors, since the cute little Husky took kit-box has a handle where you could tie a rope. But then I'd need to get a boat. It goes on and on, like deer meat, it gets bigger and tougher as you chew it.

[pdub]

Being of the optimistic frame of mine that I always try to be (and I'm not always exactly that way)...I'm thinking optimistic.

This tuner came empty. The car can't see it, the computer in the house can't see it. It's the whole opposite of the tuner I got for Red a few years ago. Red's tuner was plug and play. Punch some buttons and ZOOM.

I'm not about to slam a tuner brand, that would be just like a me-thing to do, just waste them here on the forum, as I've done before with other things. That's a gutless approach, gotta give them a chance to fix things.

The tuner came completely empty and I had to order custom tunings to fit the car after I took it out of that package. Okay, I get it. I'm betting hundreds of dollars there will be something in that email from them (when it comes) that tells me how to do this thing I want to do, because all the rest of it is nothing. I'm sure I'm just wrong, they can't sell something that just plain doesn't work, not for that much money, not more than a few times at least. Can they?

[oldsman496]

addicted. hehehe.

[DanStokes]

I'd get Superman involved. Personally, I'm useless in the computer world - you need a 14 year old.

Dan