Procal tuner
 

Hello, I have been looking at mods for my car and came upon this Ford racing procal tuner. I read about and but I am still confused about what it actually does. I read that this does not void the warranty, at least I don't think it does. But the question is what does it actually do and are there performance gains if the tune is applied? Thanks!

I am speaking as a TracKey owner, which theoretically has the same tune as the ProCal.

The way the warranty works is that it does not void the warranty unless the failure is proven to be related to the ProCal. If so, it's covered under the ProCal's warranty, which is shorter than the powertrain warranty. So there is a certain risk except for the fact that it's a pretty mild tune and there does not appear to be any evidence of failures related to the ProCal at this time.

I did find gains with the TracKey, about +20 peak lb-ft torque (+15 avg) and +25 peak hp (+20 avg). I found the biggest difference to be significantly more torque at lower RPMs. My only other mods were the Boss side pipes and the K&N filter which comes with the tune.

Also dynos amirite, so YMMV.

Can you really FEEL a difference though? Bc some people say they can really feel it and I just think it's their mind thinking its faster just BC they saw it gave some hp and tq gains on paper. And any problems with the engine? Any pinging? Thanks.

I just added the Track Cal to my 14. I have only had a couple hours drive time total since install. I put the K&N Filter in the night before my Dealer installed the tune. Felt Zero difference with just the filter. After the tune I could feel only a slight difference if any at all truthfully. Guys who track their cars do notice a small drop in Quarter Mile times. I LOVE the Lopey Idle feature though. It and the Launch Control once I get it dialed in will be worth the money for me. I have not experienced any Ping yet on 91 (Best Octane available locally). I did add the JLT Oil Separator. And I run BG Supercharge in every tank. I also had one other positive side effect. I have had the tick noise on light acceleration since new. Am currently working with my Dealer on that. But the tune changed the idle characteristics of the car and lessened the tick noise greatly. It is still there... Just significantly less noticeable.

So do you feel any extra power when they applied the tune? Bc it's a lot of money for little to no power difference, at least that we can feel. The lopey is cool but just not worth the price if that's all the tune adds. The ad does say 60ib/tq. I doubt that is true. Man I wish my warranty was up! I'd get the sct and a cai in a heartbeat.

Yes, I feel a difference. I think it's mostly the low end torque and pedal mapping on off idle acceleration. No engine or pinging problems so far, running 91 with no catch can.

Now, is it a huge difference? No. But I think it's a big difference for the $350 I spent. I've never had such a low cost mod be detectable at all.

I agree. A good mod for the price. Not a huge power difference. But a safe mod. And with the Boss Exhaust the Lopey Idle is Awesome! I noticed the difference in power in second gear myself. The car could always roll the tires over in second with relative ease. Now it can really blow them off.

I have it on my car was worth about .30 in the 1/4 mi. which is about 30 HP.
It's a good mild tune, I have had it for about 1 1/2 years with no problems!
You will want to run a good oil seperator with it to keep detonation from happening!

I have the Trackey on my '14 GT/CS and I can feel a slight increase in power when accelerating for the freeway. It's not a big power increase but I am glad I spent the money for it. All things considered it just makes daily driving more fun. I love it.

All this being said, ProCal does have one significant limitation: It can only replace the stock tune.

So if you have any mods planned that require a re-tune (e.g., Boss intake, supercharger, etc.), you will not be able to use ProCal with them.

Is the oil separator mandatory though? I'm already spending 320 on the tuner it self. And separators are maybe 90-100? Not sure but I know they aren't cheap also.

Oil seperators help keep detonation from occurring!
You do not need to have one but they keep your motor clean, and the procal realy ramps up engine timming so you need higher octain, and oil in the air intake lowers octain and can cause detonation!

Ford Racing recommends it if you are having trouble with detonation. I have not noticed a problem, so I plan to get one but it's not a priority.

I'm thinking that gasoline quality may have something to do with it.

I ran 93 octane and didn't have any pinging. When I did my research for the TracKey, I found most people who reported the issue, reported using 91. The only detonations I have come from the exhaust end when I engine brake in 2nd.

I did eventually buy the Moroso separator. Mostly for additional protection from oil getting sucked back in... and maybe a bit for looks. (AM has it on sale this month btw)

Not my place decide what you buy, but it sounds like you are unsure if it will be worth the money for you. My personal advice, if you aren't going to get advantage from the launch control and pit speed control, you are left spending ~$400 on a little more HP and idle lope. You'll find plenty of people that will say the idle alone is worth it, and it does sound ridiculously awesome. What you don't read often or get from a sound clip is that it smells. After about a year, mine is a bit more tolerable but it was almost enough to make me completely regret spending the money. What good is a car that sounds and looks good if it stinks while its sitting there running?

All that said, and not to scare you away from it since you'd be able to turn off the lope with the tuner, you won't find a better deal for what you get overall with the ProCal or TracKey. In the (hopefully) unlikely event you had some engine issues, the FordRacing warranty is a bit more "no questions asked" vs having to argue with Ford that it wasn't a tune issue with other aftermarket tunes.

As mentioned before, if you have plans to upgrade anything else that might require a tune, don't bother wasting your money on the ProCal. Just get something you can purchase "custom" tunes. You loose some of the other cool track features, but it will grow with your car.

Loved the tune on my 2012 stick car. I put the tune into the 11s with a slick tire on a fully loaded car. The difference between it and stock was night and day. After running the tune for nearly three years, I pulled the plugs. No signs of pre-ignition and the car passed a compression check exactly even across all 8 and at maximum spec.