Some Interesting Trackey Info
 

http://www.mustangevolution.com/must...ost-cam-tunes/

http://www.mustangevolution.com/foru...08/#post902316

Lots of strange news coming out about Trackey, guess we are the lucky ones to be the first with this (if it ever arrives).

i was told that a few weeks back and posted it up in a thread around here. no one really believed it at the time. My source was right it seems. the same source also said that patent is what is holding track key up, not CARB. According to source track key patent went up once at the USPTO and was denied the patent and they are trying again, hence the continuing delay.

my old thread: https://themustangsource.com/f813/he...ck-key-494793/

Scouped biatches lol :) Now never doubt me again!

Sucks for those that wanted the Ghost Cam tune...

Did a pretty thorough search and could not find a patent application for Trackey or anything that sounded like it might be part of it. There are a bunch but they mainly have to do with EcoBoost.

I don't think the patent would "hold it up" they may be trying to get one but that would not effect the release of what they have. I spoke with one of Ford's marketing directors and he told me it was in fact CARB.

The way the program will work (from what I understand) is that it is ordered with the VIN and car number. Dealer installs it and the program will erase itself, so there is no patent issue there with someone trying to copy it.

as I said in another thread:

IMHO, the Boss is the Guinea pig for this new technology, I would bet in time we will see it out there for F150's !



Plus every other car company doing this also :lol:

My source tells me that CARB is the ONLY thing holding up TracKey. :yup: :yup: :yup:

I hear the same

This

Patent isn't likely to be holding up anything. It only takes a few days to put together a patent application (I have 4 patents, I know) and as long as it's applied for prior to a commercial offer to sell, the patent prevents anybody from stealing the technology. Now if clever people heard about what Ford was planning to do with the track key and did similar (or just figured it out on their own - it doesn't take a particularly smart person to realize the possibilities with dual independently adjustable cams), then these tuners are withholding product as a service to Ford. Or more accurately, not to bite the hand that feeds them.

That's what the Ford Racing rep at VIR told me today. He let me hear what it sounded like on a silver LS out here at the track. SWEEEEET!!!!!

It'll be worth the wait!

Well that's what I think - how can they patent something that isn't unique to Ford, the 5.0, or the Boss??
Using DOHC to adjust valve timing is not new. Neither is using computer controlled hydrualics to adjust cams.

So if CARB is holding it up then it's possible it will not be approved.

Anything is possible

That is not really a true statement. Ford could not even apply for certification until the first production cars were being sold due to some kind of stupid rule, it is not Ford's fault for that. So they could only even start the process around April, now think how slow government works and we come up with something like July at best. It should not have a problem passing, remember it does not add horsepower or effect gas mileage, right? Then again we are all getting 26 MPG in the Boss right?

I would think they would be more interested in emissions.
I'm sure Ford wouldn't have bothered if there was much of a chance it wouldn't be approved.

From the conversation I had a couple weeks back with one of the guys working on TracKey, Ford was close to certifying the tune. After that, CARB gets a car with the tune for evaluation, and approval comes three months later. So we're supposedly still three months out by now.

what i was told is that it is very difficult to get a patent approved for a software functionality. ford applied for the patent, waited it out because they wanted to be sure it was granted before track key went out. if they only put in the patent app, then put track key out and the patent was declined they would be SOL and others could take that and build off it. i honestly dont get why it would matter if other cars had tghost cam, ford will sell anyone any part off the boss they want so why not the tune.

Still, i was told the original patent was denied, then ford went to tweak and resubmit hoping to get the patent the second time around. it makes sens, an app is not a guarantee of a patent. time will tell, but if the lund tune is not being sold, bama isnt offering one anymore, and they are saying its a ford patent issues i tend to believe it.

I talked to a guy at the store and he said it was CARB

lol, i talked to your mom and she said it was a patent issue. :devil:

Are you retarded?

Maybe Bill Ford is? He told me it was CARB. :D

There goes the neighborhood lol

If in fact it includes the 'ghost cam' effect at idle, I would think it would be impossible to get approval. Because increasing the overlap at idle (where they check emissions) is dumping raw unburned fuel in the tail pipe = CARB fail. Whereas using TiVCT in the stock tune is designed to clean up the emissions at idle and lower rpm (no overlap) but dial in performance (increased overlap) at high rpm's.

Which is why it makes more sense to allow after market tuners (incl FRPP) to play with and sell 'ghost cam' tunes vs selling it as a factory tune.

Besides, the track key tune is a real performance tune for the track at speed - not a gimmick for city streets idling at stop lights.

The Patent office denies almost nothing these days. They do not have the staff nor the expertise to investigate every patent, nore hire experts in every possible field that understand all technology issues. Todays patent office looks at basic issues and approves. They are self-funding and want your patent application dollars! The strength of the patent is them tested in the market place. Any Patent lawyers out there? I can't believe the general, overriding, patents that get approved in my industry. It's rediculus! If there is something worth patenting, Ford have endless patent lawyers and endless experts on any give topic/technology. If its a patent issue, I'm shocked!

Would it have possible to designate the Trackey for off-road use only. The buyer would have to sign a form saying they understood that it was for track only.

There, problem solved so give me my Trackey! :)

I happen to work for a large law firm who does extensive intellectual property and patent work, and as such has the ability to review and research all patent office approval activity and process. I can find nothing about this, or Ford being denied a patent in any official record or transaction on this matter. They have nothing rejected or pending at least in this regard.

However - it's not uncommon for Legal to work with R&D in these cases. Perhaps it is an internal "legal" hold, based on their own judgements on patent-worthiness. It is possible for it to be a "patent" hold and still not really be in the USPTO's court as of yet. Only someone in Ford R&D or Ford Legal could tell us for sure, but that's rather unlikely.

I don't believe that for one second. What about new model cars? How can they SELL a car that has not been approved? Obviously a car maker would need to know that their car meets requirements BEFORE they PRODUCE and SELL a car.

I'm also pretty sure that Ford said it effects gas mileage. They said it's not something you would want to use for daily driving.

I guess we'll know for sure in a couple of months.

lol, was joking man

Believe it. That's what I originally thought as well. This is an accessory not a new car.

I suppose, but something still seems off to me. But like I said- we'll know in a couple of months.

i wish it had already come out, ive got an appt for mods in mid july so it seems ill never get to try it unless i go back to stock. i was looking froward to launch control too, mostly because its a really cool phrase. and because i cant launch a car lol

Launch control is pretty cool. I use a feature in my old EEC IV ECU that allows me to pull timing in 1st gear at selected Load/RPM levels. In combination with the 2-step in the ignition box, launch is floor it, dump the clutch and hold on as the timing comes in lifting the front wheels.


The above about the patent office is pretty much true. Up until recently, they'd approve most anything as they generally don't have the expertise to know if a technology is unique. More recently I would get some pushback - perhaps someone told them that I was making cracks about patenting a ham sandwich. :lol: But even when they do have an issue, they give the applicant a chance to clarify and perhaps eliminate some of the claims that are too broad. A patent almost never gets rejected. Besides, a good applicant will do an extensive patent search to verify that a their invention is indeed unique before applying for a patent. It is highly unlikely that a massive company like Ford would have a patent rejected. Also, it's generally taken 1 - 2 years to get a patent from application to being granted, not sure if Ford has a way to get expedited review.

I want it for the idle lobing cam feature too- I love the sound of that, and sounds like my old 91 Pushrod engine with an E-cam.

Launch control will be so much fun to try out and use as well. I cant wait.

Ford, please get that track key software out for us to buy soon! $302 dollars and lets do it!!

Maybe Ford is waiting for Track Attack in Utah where they can introduce it as training session. That would be worth waiting for!

http://www.youtube.com/v/T549VoLca_Q&hl=en_US&

Does this mean Bill Ford isn't?

LOL Sorry:rofl2:

Track Key Update
 

For those of us still "crying" for our TrackKey, I recently attended a Shelby car event in the Midwest which Ford kindly sent two engineering representatives in two new Boss 302’s for show-and-tell. The Competition Orange (white stripes) pre-production “mule” was driven by a design team engineer responsible for electronic engine management (including TracKey) and the other representative an engineering strategic planner drove a new production yellow blaze. Both answered general Boss questions all day and made a presentation on the car at the dinner awards banquet.


Knowing the TracKey availability is of great importance to us Boss owners, many of my questions focused on this topic. The Boss design team is working diligently with all the Certifying agencies to get full 50 state approval of the TracKey and have spent weeks if not months working with these agencies. The novelty of the TracKey is a benefit (to us owners who want engine performance parameters tailored for track use) and yet at the same time a significant challenge for certification. Note, the very existence of this dual-path tune approach was conceived as a “nice to have” dream within the development team, was not internally funded and four resourceful engineers worked many off-the-clock hours bringing this dream concept to reality. Since this parallel path programming has never been done before, the Certifying agencies are being extremely cautious in exploring at every possible facet before approving this new engine tuning feature. Ironically – the innovative nature of this concept is resulting in the time consuming process of receiving an official certification. Certification of the TracKey is still anticipated by late summer, so no change in the official rollout. And the TrackKey rollout is not impeded in any way by any Ford patent pursuit. This is a certification paced issue only.

I expressed the widely held sentiment of rolling out a 49 state tune and let CARB certification come out at a later date, but the realities of a dual certification are just cost prohibitive and that is just not a viable option to pursue. The TracKey when issued will be a 50 state approved tune. The engineering mule had the TracKey logic in the engine Electronic Control Module (ECU) and invoking the track engine logic was impressive. Demonstrations always drew a large crowd of onlookers. Nice loopy idle and I did not detect any change in exhaust “smell” as some have offered up.


The engine induction system as well as the exhaust system all flow very well with very little flow losses. Thus (to me anyway) is would seem that forced induction (with an already high 11:1 compression ratio) or tubular headers are of little value for the cost/weight expenditure. Removing the sidepipe plates is worth a few more horsepower (less than 5), but certainly not a large gain of 10-12 hp as some have hoped. The 7,500 rpm engine redline has been set at this level for an engineering reason. In my experience “tuners” almost always move the limiter up at least a few hundred rpm (if not more) “just cause” they know there is more “power” at higher rpm and the factory is always conservative. The Original Engine (OE) manufacturer does have durability and life constraint targets which their products must possess when sold to the public. However, approaching redline, engine torque is definitely falling off faster than rpm can increase the horsepower output equation and so running the engine higher than 7,500 rpm just does not make sense. Stick with the OE recommended redline.

The ECU has sophisticated algorithms which use the two engine knock sensors to retard/advance spark timing based on fuel octane the owner puts in the tank. The advertised 444 hp is achieved on 91 octane fuel. For the black key, the engine is capable of running on 87 octane fuel. If premium fuel is supplied the ECU will advance spark to take advantage of the higher octane fuel and give more power output. For the TrackKey, the tune is designed to run 91 octane fuel and has the ability to increase spark beyond that – up to and including running on race (100+) octane. If by chance you happen to have a load of 87 octane fuel aboard and use the TracKey, the ECU will reduce spark (and power) to prevent detonation. The Ford party line is TracKey will not deliver the owner any more engine power than the black key with 91 octane fuel (444 hp). Since the TracKey program alters over 600 engine variables within its control, the “bottom end” torque curve very likely is altered to better match engine output to a road course track environment.
Several of my questions touched on engine technical aspects the representatives were unable to comment, which is fine. This engine pushes the state-of-the-art and the new dual-path ECU programming is being patented. My overall impression is the Boss team has certainly put in their Blood, Sweat and Tears into this program to give us owners one heck of a performance package. I can’t wait to try mine out on a nearby track!

Not to mention there are 16 other states that follow CARB certification.

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/fuel-e...nomy/carb4.htm

Great write up and thanks for sharing. :nice:

Why the heck is everyone talking about carbs? The BOSS is fuel-injected, you morons!!



































:devil:

This :jester;

So let the Americans wait. Give the Track Key programming to the Canadians already. We paid more so we expect more.

**** CARB and the 16 moronic states that use it. Give it to the rest of us, like Texas. :Tex:

.....

Said the guy with no current use?

Maybe if they actually had it I'd buy something to use it on.

Or I might be looking out for my compadres.

Whichever may be the case, it doesn't change my previous opinion.

Give them the money for multiple certifications and be done with it

If, and I mean if, they are truly waiting on CARB, it may be a long wait. And if they actually do satisfy the certification for it, who's to say it won't be watered down from what was originally intended.

To me it seems like an awesome idea that in the end will be either killed or diminished by "red tape".

I hope this won't be the case. Perhaps if they can just get the thing certified, then the aftermarket can take over and make "custom" tunes that would be more to our liking.

I agree with you, but I think it is already watered down.

Originally the key changed over 600 parameters, then I read 400, then I read over 200. Yep, sounds watered down. The fact is I bought the Boss and paid top dollar because of track key. It's bad enough it was not available immediately after I got the car but now it may not be all that was promised. I love the car, I truly do. And I want Ford to do well, in fact I originally intended to get a Fiesta, Focus or maybe even a Flex to go with the Boss as my daily driver/winter beater. But after all I've experienced I frankly doubt I'll buy another Ford again.

First I place an order with my local dealer who knows nothing of the car.

A month and a half later he calls to say "good news" we are getting the car. And we're only going to charge you $15K over MRSP.

I want the car, the key and the whole experience so I call around all the dealerships and find one only asking 5K over MRSP. Not happy, but I put down the 5K deposit. To this dealers credit they keep me well in the loop from this point on even as the first dealer swings from accommodating to rude trying to keep my order.

Flash forward 5 long months of waiting and I've learned Canadian's with our better than par dollar are paying a full 10K extra for the cars MRSP. I think about canceling but don't want to lose 5K. Oh yeah, I also find out the track key is an extra cost accessory. Fortunately my dealer decides I've already paid for it. None the less with the crappy weather and the fact I still have a 65 Mustang to pull out of storage to free space and cash for the Boss it will be another month and a half before I can pay for and pick up the car.

Pick up the car. Still no track key. And on the drive home I notice a rattle behind the dash. A week later a drop of at the dealership revels nothing so an appointment is made for the following week at which point the car stays at the dealer 3 days while I pay for a rental. The problem? Loose fender and shock mounting bolts. I'm feeling less than confident about tracking this Boss. Oh yeah and no track key yet!

It better be all that and a bag of chips.

Rant over.

:nice:PO CORSA :nice:

Thanks for the excellent report-->:metal:

Big time thanks P0. The only problem is it makes me that much more anxious since I won't have it at BIR next weekend :wacko:

TracKey was always going to be an after purchase accessory. While the exact cost was not known when you put your deposit down Ford never said it was going to be included with the car.

Steve, I can fully appreciate your frustration with your Boss buying experience. Many I am sure have had a similar rocky road to ownership and the loose fender/shock mounting bolts is equally unacceptable. I sincerely hope that your ownership experience swings to the plus side and you ultimately feel the car delivers "value" for your expenditure. Most postings of Boss track experiences are that the car delivers.

In my above report out, I was in fact speaking to "THE guy" responsible for the dual path programming logic in the track key. And as I stated at program launch, this "feature" was just a pipe dream, neat to have but have no idea how to make it happen. Oh, and as I stated, it was NOT part of the Boss development budget. All this was done by 4 dedicated individuals, off the clock and who would not be defeated by this challenge. I have no reason to believe, nor did our lengthy discussions of the various track key topics lead me to believe the design engineers have compromised in any of their performance goals. It was represented to me the ECU code still alters or modifies 600ish parameters when the track key logic is invoked.

It is my opinion the challenges the team faces in the certification process is not so much combustion emissions requirements, but more what happens when or if a certain branch in the dual path logic is mistakenly (if it can happen at all) invoked. As I stated, the novelty of this dual path control logic is both a blessing and a curse.

Perhaps the marketing department had a bit too much zeal in touting this new feature and they should not have been so strong on marketing this feature. Perhaps these marketing people did not realize or anticipate the laborious procedure necessary to achieve full certification. The engineers actually working the certification appreciated the enormity of this challenge and believed all along the key would not be ready when the Boss vehicle was initially released.

Again, I hope you will be patient. Understanding there is constant behind the scenes work being done to roll out this feature. And I hope you will be ultimately be pleased with this option and continue to favor Ford in future transportation purchases. (No I do not work for, nor am I associated with Ford).

Why do people still doubt this? Ford has been very consistent in their message and although the completion date for CARB certification has moved out the story has always been the same.

I think there's the potential for the lopey idle to be watered down but I doubt the on track performance will change much if at all. I like the lopey idle sound but let's face it that sound isn't going to improve performance.

Let's assume it's available in August. No big deal if you live in California as you can drive all year round. But I'll be 2 months away from storage. Don't get me wrong, I love this car. But now I wish I'd waited for a 2013. Ah well, live and learn.

This. If people are primarily interested in TracKey for the lopey idle, they've missed the point entirely.

Guys, think about it, it is not watered down or changed IMO. If Ford has applied for certification do you think they are still making changes to it? If so, then every time they change one thing they would need to re-apply, does not sound cost effective to me?

I think the current certification is an interactive process. :nice:

Unless they are making changes to comply with certification

That I understand but there is nothing to say that they are cutting it down and changing things for the worse, it is all rumor. I doubt they would have spent so much time and money for something that was so completely wrong they needed to make major changes, let alone advertise it the way they did. These guys that put this together are pretty smart, I sure they knew what they could get away with.

I know the way government works and stupid things will come up but again unless the engineers really screwed up they (carb) will not/can not make major changes for no reason. JMHO, I could be wrong.

Yes you could :jester:

Very informative update, thanks for that P0. :nice:

Does anyone know if the TracKey eliminates the 155mph limiting? I doubt I would ever get there, just curious.

It does not remove the speed limiter or raise the rev limiter. It does eliminate skip shift but I doubt you'll want to use the red key driving around town much. Your gas mileage should be significantly worse with TracKey.

When I spoke to the Ford rep at Carlisle last weekend he said that CARB has a Boss with track key installed and is the process of testing it. He stated that the vehicle had to be off the regular assembly line and had to be driven over 4000 miles before being submitted to CARB. He also stated that it should be ready by late summer. Who knows????

This thread is like a broken record.

Cliff notes: Nobody knows anything new since February.

The engineer at the store...

I seem to remember seeing a video on here of a Ford rep working the tuning saying that the red key would basically eliminate anything and everything that electronically limits the car's performance. I could see maintaining the rev limit, but I see no reason why a speed governor would remain in effect.

Legally they have to, when any part is rated for a certain speed, the car must be governed at the lowest speed. Look at the veyron. This is y it's so expensive. Every part is rated for over 200 mph. Brakes, tires, rims, suspension. As I'm sure our engine and tranny can handle more, our tires and other parts can not. The M3 is governed to 170 or 175 I forget. But that's y the cars are governed.

Pretty sure the two-piece DS is only rated to 160mph or somewhere around there; assuming that's true it makes sense to keep the limiter.

The Boss 155 mph vehicle speed limit is UNaltered by the trackkey logic.

So give me my 49 state Trackkey NOW!

I will sign a document to promise not to drive in CA

CA isn't the only CARB state, your state could be one.

This is true. CARB (or OTC, to be precise) states include Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Delaware, Massachusetts, New York, Vermont, Washington DC, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Maine, among others. So as much as we'd like to pin it all on California, the Home of the Bad Decision, we cannot :stirpot:

But it's so much fun.

Yeah but they started it.

CARB also known as California Air Resources Board.

Doesn't matter who started it

speed limiter is based on the factory tires as far as i know. any SCT tuner will remove that, but you need to be sure the tires are up to it and short of something like the texas mile you'll rarely see more than 140 on the big tracks we have here in texas in the boss i would think

But on the long deserted roads here in Texas, you could see well north of 140 depending on how comfortable the driver is...Though he'd be a fool to go past his tires ratings'.

The Pirelli Pzero tires have a Y speed rating which means they are rated to 186 mph. The tires are not the limiting factor.

oh really, cool. i could have sworn i read in a review somewhere the speed limiter was due to the 155mph speed rating of the tires. i want to do the texas mile this October and they will let you run up to what the speed rating of your tires is. not sure a mostly stock boss will hit 155 in the standing mile but its nice to know there is some padding there.

I wouldn't be surprised if you hit 155. I'm going to BIR this weekend and the front straight is a mile long into a 60 degree banked right hander in Turn 1 so I'll at least have an idea. Not a standing mile since you exit Turn 10 at about 50 I'm guessing, but it will still give us an idea of the potential top speed.

I ran the numbers once for giggles, and between weight, power, gearing and drag, our cars theoretically would top out at 193 mph. Certainly not in a standing mile, but 155? Definitely possible.

yikes,

what is the connering speed in that turn? i bet that takes some easing into. :heh:

beers

145 in the GT500. I'm hoping for more with the Boss' aero and better balance. Yea you can't really run right to the edge on your first lap because if you find the edge you'll launch into the woods.

wow,

run at tgpr every now and then. a silly short straight. then a ~ 80deg bend with maybe 10 deg banking.

it is so different than anything you ever get to run. after about 2 events and many many 30 min sessions i got the car going fast enough to feel the tread squirm but this was at about 85 through the turn. btw the launch from the turn would be woods! :)

carbon fibre undies ftw!

beers

I can't wait till we find this out for real.

RED TRACK KEY
 

My local dealership called to tell me they had a Boss and i could stop by to look at it.
When I got their they handed me a set of Key's and said you can sit in it, start it, rev it but no test drive! To my surprise one of they keys was RED and had a tag that said "Track Key" along with a disclaimer about the key........But when i started the car there was no lope?
Does the key have to be activated?:dunno:

yes,

it will be 302 bucks when it is available. rumored to be in august. dont hold breath..

beers

spend a few minutes/hours and research some useful 302 info, and welcome ;)

Plus installation. ;)

It's foggy and wet but looks like the rain is done for the day. Driver's meeting at 8 a.m. then they run novice at 8:30 intermediate at 9 and we go out at 9:30 so three hours for the VHT to dry out. Hopefully we're on the big course all day so we can find the answer to this mystery.

Glad you are at least going to get 1 good day. Good luck and be safe. :nice:

+1. Have and fast and fun Father's Day!

Thanks guys. First session was a blast on the short track. Just got the call that the drag strip is dry so moving to the big track now. Happy Father's Day to you guys as well.

Ps I only had one clean lap on the short course after finally getting by all the traffic and beat my best time in the GT500 by 2 seconds. We'll see what happens on the big course.