So, yes I am new to the Jeep family, although I've been a MOPAR guy for a long time. I traded my 2015 SRT 392 Charger for a 2015 JGC Ltd EcoDiesel about a month ago and I haven't looked back. At $10k off the MSRP, it was too good a deal to pass up. My wife has been driving a 2015 RAM Laramie Ltd since the end of May 2014 and we've loved nearly every minute of it, except the turbo lag. That was, until the GDE tune...
My first and only mod on this JGC was to install the GDE Hot tune. Mercy!!!! This is the only mod I'll ever need. Zero turbo lag and a very quick 0-60 time, plus great fuel economy to boot. Here are couple pics I took today. On a 75 mile trip we set the cruise control at 75 and averaged 35.1 mpg. Additionally, our average over the last 303 miles, approximately 45/55 city/hwy driving, we've averaged 30 mpg. Absolutely amazing, imho.
Thanks, and a big thumbs up to you! I put mine on at 667 miles, but she had 380 on her when I took delivery. It sure is like night and day compared to stock!
GDE says the ED will pass emissions tests with their tune installed.
The tune can have an effect on your warranty if the following two conditions are met:
1) The dealership knows about the tune (GDE says it's undetectable at the dealer level)
2) FCA can show the tune caused the failure for which you're seeking the warranty coverage (Magnusson Moss Warranty Act). GDE claims their tune is well within the safe operating parameters of the 3.0L engine and will not cause failures. They will provide programming information to fight any such claim by FCA.
I've had my ED serviced several times with the GDE tune, I simply tell the service writer to not update the PCM and make sure he annotates it on the work order. No issues.
As with any aftermarket tune, it is not legal for emission controlled vehicles. It is for off-road use only....yada, yada, yada.
That being said, I've been tuning my vehicles for more years than I can count. I've never had a problem. To me, the improvements are worth the risk. Funny thing is about life, without risk there is no reward. I like rewards, so I take calculated risks.
This tune is a direct ECM replacement, and the EGR will be totally disabled. However, it is not detectable by the service techs. On that note, I told my service tech and he has labeled my JGC according to my wishes of "no future ECM updates desired by owner."
As far as the tune goes, check this data sheet out.
I just read the GDE literature referenced and I hardly call their tune hot. It seems very practical and prudent and doesn't look like it would over tax the engine. I was told early on that this engine was already pretty maxed out on another forum. I am now seriously looking to have this done. From what I recall reading you must pull your ECU and send it to them and wait for the return then reinstall...
You can do it either way. I chose to purchase the tuned ECM and pay the core charge of $650.00. This is the ECM exchange option. When my GDE tune arrived, I swapped the ECM's and used the same shipping box to return my original ECM. They immediately refunded the $650 and I've been a very happy driver.
The whole experience took 8 days from purchase to refund of the $650.00. Three days to receive my tuned ECM, I installed it in about 20 minutes, and shipped it back USPS Priority that afternoon. My return reached their shop on Saturday, and they processed my refund late on Monday.
Overall and excellent experience.
I will mention, some guys choose to keep their original ECM and forgo the refund.
I too added the hot tune to my '14 @ 65000 miles on the odometer. I gained back some of the mileage that I lost when I added the KO2s, as well as a near instant throttle response. And while I did see a gain in fuel economy back to near what I had when new, I've yet to crack the 30mpg barrier. Granted however, one must consider that: I now drive it more aggressively as it is FUN to drive & I am running 50mm of OME suspension lift and now DuraTrac tires. (switching to non-LT rated DuraTrac's saw a gain of 1.9mpg alone, and it would be safe to assume that is because the tires are 11 pounds lighter EACH). The greatest improvement I've seen was while pulling 4053 pounds of trailer - still maintaining 21mpg on interstate whereas before the tune I would get 15.6 - and having the mini-exhaust brake to aid in deceleration as a bonus.
I purchased a used ECM out of a wrecked '15 limited and sent it to GDE to install, and kept a stock ECM on hand for dealership visits. Swapping ECMS now takes a whole 8 mins. By simply removing the two threaded bolts that hold the overflow tank in place one can gain easy access to the bottom ECM bolt. Longer to R&R the overflow tank than to swap a ECM.
I second the sentiment expressed above. 40K very satisfied miles with GDE O/r tune. + great customer experience, that is generally lacking now a days with other merchants.:thumbsup:
They're professional programmers, they didn't just throw some code at a PCM to see what sticks. They go so far as to alter the injector timing to create 700% less soot for the dpf to catch, you don't get that by accident. I really don't understand what you're looking for that they're not providing.
They won't provide proprietary code, so what else is it you want?
What does the Hot Tune do for the dreaded "incorrect DEF - See Dealer" notification some used to get with the stock tune even though they were using the approved DEF Fluid?
One question I have not seen addressed, and perhaps best asked of GDE..... How does this impact EGT's, especially when towing. This is the first vehicle in probably 25 years that I have not changed software tuning on, mainly because when towing stock the oil and water temps run very high. I suspect EGT's are pretty high too. On my Duramax the towing tune I ran increased torque in the towing powerband and actually lowered EGTs because the extra fuel cooled everything. But at the expense of some visible exhaust. While under warranty I don't want to do anything that's going to jeopardize any part of the powertrain.
The packaging, cooling system, etc. lead to the warmer operating temps. There are factory safeties in the software that limit coolant, oil and exhaust gas temps. It is called overheat protection and basically backs off peak fueling to keep the temps in check. GDE keeps the factory safeties active, so even pulling loads up Eisenhower pass you will still reach the limits and the vehicle will slow itself down as needed on its own. In most part load operation the EGT are lower with the GDE tune. At full sustained load the EGT peaks at about 1550 F. Keep in mind, this is a high speed diesel. Most European diesels limit peak EGT somewhere between 1500-1650 F from the factory.