A few questions about getting a tune

[ClearwaterSHO]

Hello again! A few questions, before I start ordering mods, because Christmas bonus is coming!

1. The T-stat, why do we need this? I saw AJPturbo (spelling?) say he isn't an advocate, and he is obviously an incredibly knowledgeable person. He doesn't run one in his, why are they recommended? Do the cars run hot after tune? I live in FL, so the summer heat here is pretty vicious.

2. Spark Plugs, are they basically stock just gaped properly, or are they colder plugs? I honestly don't know why or what colder plugs do or what they are for. I understand spark plug gap, just not the difference in "colder plugs". If that is even the proper term.

3. I saw that when changing the T-stat that burping the system is necessary. I read from AJP that we need a vacuum tool to do this, is this something I could purchase from Ford?

4. When it comes to our fuel systems, is the high pressure or low pressure fuel pump that is the weak point, or is it the whole system? How big are our injectors? Is this something I will have to upgrade as I push for more power?

Thank you for your time and knowledge!

[curry67]

Thermostat is recommended by both major ecoboost tuners. It's really a comfort thing for them I think as it keeps coolant Temps down considerably.
Plugs need to be perfectly gapped or you won't be happy with tune. Motorcraft plugs are fine.
To my knowledge it's maxed out at about 600 brake horsepower and you need new fueling.
I've heard of guys changing the thermostat when they had let there car cool down considerably. (Over 12 hours) and only losing a very small amount of coolant. I've heard of other guys do it like you would a mrlube and it will pump out like 3 liters. I just know most of this thermostat stuff researching myself got itsitting in a box on my desk lol

[ClearwaterSHO]

Thank you for the reply. If I am going to do the T-stat, I wonder if I can get the vacuum tool that the Ford Service Man. recommends.

[AJP turbo]

http://www.amazon.com/UView-550000-Airlift-Cooling-Checker/dp/B0002SRH5G/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1447000901&sr=8-2&keywords=coolant+vacuum+pump

This is the vac pump that is in the ford service procedure for the 3.5 ecoboost.

Maybe my car is different than the non pp's. If I road raced or autocrossed I might consider a cooler T stat and or 1 range cooler plugs. But my WOT pulls consist of short blasts to at most 140mph and 1/4 mile...

When  log I never see misfires and my coolant temps never got over stock temps. I lowered my desired coolant temp to 205 in the the tune. Stock was 212. You always want your fan settings to be slightly over your tstat rating otherwise your fans may never turn off.

If you run a cooler plug and don't drive in high boost a lot then you may be sacrificing cold drivability and I could even see more misfires when cold...There is an optimum tip temp of the plug and if you don't operate there then emissions could increase and misfires could occur until. In reality I don't think there is a big difference between stock and 1 range cooler which is why so many have good luck with the popular change

I think it was the recommended mod long ago and some of the perceived problems with tuning were being misdiagnosed as spark problem...And now it's just so mainstream to do the plugs and tstat nobody really questions it....I see no reason in my datalogs for any of it....However I still only have 14K on the car so who knows.

[ClearwaterSHO]

I don't plan on going super crazy any time soon, probably just a tune, and some DP's. Is the CAI really recommended? As I have seen some tests that prove they don't really improve the HP, and that most modern air boxes are well engineered to provide sufficient air flow.

[SHOdded]

1. The T-stat, why do we need this?  Per the tuners, you need this to be able to run "hotter" or more "extreme" tunes.  Can't generate more power without generating more heat   Keeping the engine cooler allows for continued use of the stock cooling system also.

2. Spark Plugs, are they basically stock just gaped properly, or are they colder plugs?  Stick with the SP534 plugs (OEM) and you will be fine.  Gap the plugs to 0.030 (check if they are already like that) or whatever your tuner recommends.

3. I saw that when changing the T-stat that burping the system is necessary. A Lisle spill-free funnel (also one of the links on the UVIEW page at Amazon) should work pretty well also, if you lose significant coolant during the process and need to burp repeatedly.

4. When it comes to our fuel systems, is the high pressure or low pressure fuel pump that is the weak point, or is it the whole system?  The only clear weak point is if you pushing for more & more power.  Well, that & the quality of the fuel injectors themselves, as they have been known to fail for a few folks.  If you are going for power based on anything other than pump gas and/or methanol, if that fuel requires more flow than the OEM is spec'd at, you will need to upgrade the fuel pumps and at some point further along, the fuel injectors.  At that point, you are talking SERIOUS engine power levels that may be well beyond the OEM drivetrain's handling capacity.  Don't forget any seals that might be need to be upgraded as well with those fuels.  So NET, pumpgas/methanol, I don't think you have to worry about the fuel system Ford put into these vehicles, other than maybe possibly leaky injectors