MarylandSpeed DYNO TESTED: Diablosport Predator Canned Tune on 2010 SS A6

[MarylandSpeed]

As some of you may have noticed, I have been hinting here and on Facebook that we recently purchased a dyno so we can accurately test some of the parts we sell. I have always thought this would be neat since we only sell parts, and don't have a shop/tune business. Since our dyno does not have to make us money and is not open to the public, it really allows us to have some fun and be methodical. Obviously, when you buy a new piece of equipment like this, there is a leaning curve, and it has taken us a few months to get to where we can put together good, reliable results.

For the first test, I wanted something simple, but could be helpful to a lot of people. After some thought, I decided to answer a question a few times a week it seems, which is "How much power will I get from a Diablo Predator canned tune". This question never really gets answered because if you put the car on the dyno, odds are, you are going to also dyno tune it. I have seen a few Predator tunes dyno tested over the years, but it has always been tuners doing a "Look how much better we can be" comparison to their own tune.

DISCLAIMER- Yes..I know I sell the Predator. Yes, I know some will say I have an agenda, the test is BS, or whatever. The way I see it is, a.) there is data now, where there is none before, and b.) if the Predator did not perform, I would have simply not posted this and pretended it never happened (which would have taken a lot less work). That being said, take the data for what it is.

Test Car- My wife's RJT 2010 Camaro 2SS/RS A6. Car is daily driven with 3K miles on it. Only mod is a SLP Loudmouth II axleback.

Test Procedure-

The test was done over two days in the late afternoon before closing. The First day we did two runs stock, and then loaded the Predator performance tune and did one run with their tune. We then shut down the car on the dyno and call it a day.

Then the second day, we started by doing two runs with the Predator tune we installed on day one. Then we loaded the stock tune back on, and did one last run. So basically Day 2 was a mirror image of Day 1.

When installing the Predator, we literally pulled it out the box, and installed the tune. We did no adjusting or updating. The runs were done with the hood closed, and a standard industrial fan on it. We did not pay a ton of attention trying to create like a freeway situation. Rather than shooting for the higher power numbers we could have gotten with paying attention to keeping the car cool for each run, I wanted something that was a closer simulation to real driving or drag racing. So basically, each day we did runs, they were done 15-20 minutes apart. I only did 3 runs per day with this pace because in past testing, that seemed to be the point where the car got heat soaked enough that the runs would not be accurate comparisons. Basically, the car would have to sit for 1-2 hours to be itself again. Also, since this is my car, I did not want to beat on it too bad.

On another note, the Predator does not tune the TCM of the A6 cars, so no changes were made to the transmission calibration for this run. I know Diablo *supposedly* is working to bring transmission support to some of their tools.

The results are below, and the numbers kind of tell the story. We did 6 total runs, and the charts below all present them different ways. The Diablo seemed to be good in most cases for 10-15 HP and ft/lb of TQ across the band, even if the peaks did not always show it. The car was running on the rich side from the factory, and the Predator seemed to correct that a bit and lean the car out to a nice place. By leaning the car out in a save manner the Diablo made more power, and will also get better gas mileage. The Diablo tune does require 93 octane because it does advance the timing a bit and bad gas could make it knock and pull timing. The numbers were *fairly* repeatable, however I would say this shows that there is about 5-7 HP play between dyno runs.

While the results are good, a Predator is not for everyone. If you have headers, or internal engine mods, you should get a dyno tune. However if you are stock, and have very basic bolt ons, I think based on these results, the Predator is a solid choice. I know I have had a lot of customers over the years, by Predators, kind of as a starter mod, and then when they modded more seriously, they ended up selling the Predator and using the money to pay for a really dyno tune. Either way, the choice is yours, you just now have some data to look at.

I am also including a video of the car on the dyno (once youtube processes it). Does not really show anything but a car on the dyno, but it is in HD and 5.1 surround sound.

[mikeSS]

if i was only keeping the car stock or things like a axle or cat back i would for sure use this...

[linkwpc]

Very nice I got to install mine soon

[Malan35]

How does a Diablo Tuner effect the factory warranty? I have heard that GM can read into your computer to see if the car has ever been tuned. Is this true? And can the Diablo return your car to the factory tune?

[linkwpc]

Originally Posted by Malan35

How does a Diablo Tuner effect the factory warranty? I have heard that GM can read into your computer to see if the car has ever been tuned. Is this true? And can the Diablo return your car to the factory tune?

Yes is till efffect your warranty if they find it on your car when you take in to service. Pepople say that GM can read if it has ever been tuned but no one had real proof that it will. And yes your can return your car back to stock.

[Luttinger]

No one can tell me that you will notice a 15 - 20 HP gain on a car with more than 400 HP.

[BackinBlackSS/RS]

Originally Posted by Luttinger

No one can tell me that you will notice a 15 - 20 HP gain on a car with more than 400 HP.

Maybe not, but if you are drag racing, you will see it in the results. That's worth about 2/10's in the 1/4 mile.

[BackinBlackSS/RS]

Very good info.

[3min3m2]

i would think you would notice the torque more then anything. i notice the difference from 80 degree to 60 degree days. Car just goes...

[MarylandSpeed]

Originally Posted by Malan35

How does a Diablo Tuner effect the factory warranty? I have heard that GM can read into your computer to see if the car has ever been tuned. Is this true? And can the Diablo return your car to the factory tune?

Supposedly GM can tell if the car has been tuned. That being said, we sell a lot of Predators, and I have never seen a customer actually post they had their warranty refused. Basically it can happen..but the odds seem pretty low.

Originally Posted by Luttinger

No one can tell me that you will notice a 15 - 20 HP gain on a car with more than 400 HP.

Well..it is more like a 325rwhp car. 15 HP is about as much as your gonna get from a bolt on outside of headers.

[axis]

Originally Posted by Luttinger

No one can tell me that you will notice a 15 - 20 HP gain on a car with more than 400 HP.

As was mentioned, this isn't a 20 hp gain on 400 hp at the crank. A 20WHP gain on a 325WHP car is quite noticeable. Also note that this isn't just a peak HP/TQ gain, but a constant gain across the entire power band.

If anything, this shows that GM did a damn good job tuning this thing. Giving you a very good drivetrain warranty while only leaving 15-25whp on the table is pretty damn good.

[MarylandSpeed]

Haha..come on guys...more than a few people have to be interested in this. I put a lot of work into it because we are always asked about these tools.

[chopss]

I would bite just don't want to risk my warrenty

[mlee]

These are EXACTLY the same results I had with my Diablo tune... I've said it before this is a solid tune and when put on a dyno virtually no adjustments were needed w/ minor mods like CAI and Catback.

You won't notice it on the street but you will on the track...

Like the OP said once I got headers I got a custom Diablo tune done, but eventually sold it and got a dyno tune... But the main reason was, I needed the TCM tune too. If you have an L99 buy the SCT so your trans can be tuned also...

[MarylandSpeed]

Originally Posted by chopss

I would bite just don't want to risk my warrenty

I really think people blow the whole warranty thing up. I have NEVER in 4 years of selling these seen someone post on a forum they had warranty work denied because of a Predator. Is it a possibility? Sure...but it is pretty remote. I mean..it may sound perverse, but you likely have a much higher chance of someone running into and totaling your car while it is parked in a parking lot then you do having a warranty claim denied because of a canned tune.

If you mod while in warranty, there is a chance they will fix it. If you wait till after, there is no chance.

[victoryred1ss]

Good info, keep up the good work

[caverman]

Well.....here is a thread to watch. I don't know which tune he has but let's see how the dealership handles this one.

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=107869

[1camaro70]

a year ago a dyno tune on a L99 A6, running on low octane table, got +27 HP and +47 ft.lb. torque,
shouldn't a canned tune get better than 15 HP?

[caverman]

Originally Posted by 1camaro70

a year ago a dyno tune on a L99 A6, running on low octane table, got +27 HP and +47 ft.lb. torque,
shouldn't a canned tune get better than 15 HP?

I would think that running on the low octane table it was really being robbed of HP. I remember reading about the A6 running in the low octane tables before they figured out about doing the Fuse Pull. The cars were supposedly so slow they were getting beat by Hondas.

So....assuming his car was running on the High Octane table like it should've been the 10 rwhp is probably correct and from what I've read is typical from just a tune.

[1camaro70]

low octane table costs about 20 HP and 25 ft. lb. torque, still felt slow prior to fuse pull, after fuse pull, the power was finally there, and of course I added the tune model Vararam without any tweeks to the tune, now, which of course no one believes I can get a chirp 1-2 AND 3-4 with traction control ON.
Again for the typical thread reader, I have not been back to the Dyno, Vararam keeps saying that any day they will have a revised unit ready to correct problems, mine only has slight stumble at idle.
If Vararam revises their unit, or I can it and buy another manufacturer, I will go back to the dyno and get proof, otherwise who knows.
Dynos for typical L99 are 325/ 325, mine on low octane table were 300/305, the tune gained 27/47, then the fuse pull put back the 25/20 so was I at 352/ 367 before the Vararam? Maybe the answer will have to wait until after another dyno run, but I am just trying to put out the information, not argue with anyone. The fuse pull kept me from dumping the underperforming camaro, reminded me of my 1990 Impala SS, SLOW.
So the minimum you can take away from this is if you want the truth, 27HP / 47 torque was not felt by me, the fuse pull really was felt and woke up the engine.

[MarylandSpeed]

I would think that result in an extreme outlier on the high side. Most people don't get that with dyno tunes.

Originally Posted by 1camaro70

a year ago a dyno tune on a L99 A6, running on low octane table, got +27 HP and +47 ft.lb. torque,
shouldn't a canned tune get better than 15 HP?

[MarylandSpeed]

I have been having some people ask about these, so I wanted to bump it!

[Viral]

Have you guys had a chance to do a similar before/after dyno for the LS3 using a Predator? Are the results similar?

[Bell040]

Any new dyno comparisons? ... Other than the predator?

[Tie Rod]

I would like to see a test side by side with a SCT and a Jannetty canned tune on your dyno. Then we can compair all three for ourselves.