SUPERCHIPS CORTEX TUNER WITH DYNO #'s

[dukeofpg]

I just installed and tested a Cortex tuner on Mike Haddad's dyno. Haddad Motorsports is in downtown LA. Steve registered and downloaded the program for my 2009 GT on the Cortex Tuner, (Premium Sport Red) Mike ran two base line runs. The #'s were a constant 331.3 HP with 341.0 TQ in stock form. The tune was Cortex custom with changes to 91 octane, Shift pressure Superchips tune, Speed limiter Superchips tune. The first pull was 337.3 HP and 344.6 TQ. The overall torque curve stayed high even after the 4700rpm peak. Well this is not jaw dropping and you might laugh or think this is a bad deal, but.......... DRIVING IS AMAZING. The package on the road makes this car feel and run fantastic. The 1-2 shift just about pitches the car sideways. I even got a sweet little chirp on the 2-3 shift. Downshifting in sport mode will spin the tires at 40 mph.

I spent a bit of cash for the tuner until I can take time to install a MagnaCharger and it was good money spent. If you want real big numbers and expect to rip it up on the track, you might need to look at some other source for horsepower. But if you just want to improve your driving experience, call Haddad and get your Cortex.

[BigRob]

what mods did you have? that sounds like quite a gain over stock

[esinger]

I really like my Cortex unit and it's not just for tuning. You can troubleshoot SES codes and datalog 4 data points for 1 minute with it.

For a stock (or near stock) vehicle this is a really nice unit for the money.

[08Ignition]

I just installed and tested a Cortex tuner on Mike Haddad's dyno. Haddad Motorsports is in downtown LA. Steve registered and downloaded the program for my 2009 GT on the Cortex Tuner, (Premium Sport Red) Mike ran two base line runs. The #'s were a constant 331.3 HP with 341.0 TQ in stock form. The tune was Cortex custom with changes to 91 octane, Shift pressure Superchips tune, Speed limiter Superchips tune. The first pull was 337.3 HP and 344.6 TQ. The overall torque curve stayed high even after the 4700rpm peak. Well this is not jaw dropping and you might laugh or think this is a bad deal, but.......... DRIVING IS AMAZING. The package on the road makes this car feel and run fantastic. The 1-2 shift just about pitches the car sideways. I even got a sweet little chirp on the 2-3 shift. Downshifting in sport mode will spin the tires at 40 mph.

I spent a bit of cash for the tuner until I can take time to install a MagnaCharger and it was good money spent. If you want real big numbers and expect to rip it up on the track, you might need to look at some other source for horsepower. But if you just want to improve your driving experience, call Haddad and get your Cortex.

Let me see if I follow this correctly? Your stock dyno numbers were 331.3/341.0 and the 91 octane tune pushed it to 337.3/344.6 giving you a net gain of 6hp/3.6Tq? Is this correct? If so, it doesn't seem like much of a gain which is a little surprising (but maybe not if you have zero mods). I am sure the TCM changes more than make up for it in the driving experience though!

[Chewy]

Stock numbers wouldn't be that high... 300 or so is average for stock. I think he tweaked it a bit and got more out of it.

Chris

[08Ignition]

Stock numbers wouldn't be that high... 300 or so is average for stock. I think he tweaked it a bit and got more out of it.

Chris

That would make more sense as I thought the "base" numbers were a way off with no mods. So the "stock" numbers he shows are with the 91oct tune and the after would be with additional tweaking of that tune...got it...thanks!

[G8+6=fun]

Does the SUPERCHIPS CORTEX TUNER do that much good so you can notice a bit of difference on a stock motor..I use 93 octane all the time 2009 Gt G8

['02 ws6]

Its a good handheld for those not planning on going aggressive with the mods. Fair estimate is about 15-20rwhp over stock, from what I've seen on the basic 91 tunes they have. They just released a 93 tune and are working on a CAI tune as well so there's some more potential in them.
BlackBerry8830/4.2.2 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104

[G8+6=fun]

That is pretty good numbers for just a hand held.. Ijust like a more even flow without that little hesitent there when you press it down. I get this when I floor it and it just makes a split second take before it goes. Hope that will cure it. I am thinking serious about getting one.

[DRCUSTOMPARTS]

I tuned my car with the Cortex with no mods and it made a big difference, just like Duke said. A few weeks later I installed a Spectre CAI with Borla axleback mufflers, and now it pulls much harder in the higher RPM range. With the stock airbox it seemed to run out of steam around 5000 RPM's. The new 93 tune gave the car even more power, I would say it easily gained 30+ hp. I highly recommend this tuner!

[Mlozano]

Damn, i'm gonna miss the superchips, it was nice being able to change things around at will without complicating things.

[Torqued]

That would make more sense as I thought the "base" numbers were a way off with no mods. So the "stock" numbers he shows are with the 91oct tune and the after would be with additional tweaking of that tune...got it...thanks!

I thought the Cortex tune was a canned tune for a particular octane and could not be edited by anyone but the mfg?

[Mlozano]

You can load the tune and then use HP tuners or something to tweak it from there. It would render the handheld useless though since you can't use on another vehicle untill you reload the stock tune. I assume...

[camoeto]

Stock numbers wouldn't be that high... 300 or so is average for stock. I think he tweaked it a bit and got more out of it.

Chris

Not necessarily, I think the Haddad dyno always reads high. From what I remember they dynoed a G8 GT with JBA headers at more than 380 RWHP on their dyno.

[Chewy]

WOW I think it's time for them to have it calibrated if it reads that high! DANG!

Still to see only a 6hp diff with the SC doesn't seem right.

[HaddadMotorsports]

Not necessarily, I think the Haddad dyno always reads high. From what I remember they dynoed a G8 GT with JBA headers at more than 380 RWHP on their dyno.

That car runs 13.0 in the 1/4 at a bad track.

This gentlemen also had a roto-fab on his car which we have already proven is worth at least 10rwhp.

The average stock g8 on my dyno is making right between 310-320 rwhp.

We have done extensive work in the past comparing my dyno with my competitors dynos. and have always fallen somehwere in the middle. Usually give or take 10rwhp from our competition.

The only time we see a huge variance is when a car has heavy wheels. For those of you that don't know, we have a dynapack dynamometer, the rear wheels come off of the car in order to be mounted to the dyno. That extra rotational mass can alter our #'s when compared to a roller dyno.

However there is not a more consistent dyno on the planet and we love it because we're able to make magic happen with our tunes.

The moral of the story is. Dyno's are tuning devices and are only valuable with in themselves. Every dyno company has there own method of calculating hp and every dyno is going to read a little bit differently. in the end we made 6rwhp. with his mod, and that i guarantee is as accurate of a measurement that can be had short of an engine dyno.

Thanks
Mike Haddad

[HaddadMotorsports]

Oh and I'm actually very impressed to see any gains via a mail order tune.

This is not the first time we've done testing on hand held programmers and chips.

This is a new record for gains.

There is and will never be a replacement for a custom tune.

This car shipped very rich and there is at least another 10rwhp to be had in a proper tune.

Thanks
Mike Haddad

[camoeto]

That car runs 13.0 in the 1/4 at a bad track.

This gentlemen also had a roto-fab on his car which we have already proven is worth at least 10rwhp.

The average stock g8 on my dyno is making right between 310-320 rwhp.

We have done extensive work in the past comparing my dyno with my competitors dynos. and have always fallen somehwere in the middle. Usually give or take 10rwhp from our competition.

The only time we see a huge variance is when a car has heavy wheels. For those of you that don't know, we have a dynapack dynamometer, the rear wheels come off of the car in order to be mounted to the dyno. That extra rotational mass can alter our #'s when compared to a roller dyno.

However there is not a more consistent dyno on the planet and we love it because we're able to make magic happen with our tunes.

The moral of the story is. Dyno's are tuning devices and are only valuable with in themselves. Every dyno company has there own method of calculating hp and every dyno is going to read a little bit differently. in the end we made 6rwhp. with his mod, and that i guarantee is as accurate of a measurement that can be had short of an engine dyno.

Thanks
Mike Haddad

I don't have a problem with your dyno, but I still think it reads higher than most. The actual number you got for that specific car was 393 RWHP with just CAI, headers, cat-back, and tune. Other cars with those mods don't even get close to that.

http://www.g8board.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5679

[Steve @ HMS]

The point of putting the car on the dyno yesterday was to have an apples to apples comparison of how much power the car made on the factory GM tune vs the Cortex 91 octane tune. Same car, Same Dyno, Same day, Same 15 minute time span. We took the time to take measurements using our tool for measuring horsepower to inform the community of G8 owners on how much power they will gain with the cortex 91 octane tune.

Steve

[locrzn#92]

All these dynos are all over the map, the comparison seemed fair. That 337 is about the same as one of the other members had. I don't really know about the stock tune. I'm very impressed with my cortex. I ran 5 tenths faster and 5 mph over last year 1/8 mile times with my 19's. It was almost 3 tenths faster and about 3 mph compared to my stock wheels and tires which are lighter and stock height. Still a great buy for us who want to play around with the Torque Shift and otanes. The custom tunes are locked in and have to be changed the the tuner, we can do it our selves. Just about everyone who has been back to the drag strip after the cortex tune has picked up a bunch and thats a deal for $350.00 bucks.

[camoeto]

All these dynos are all over the map, the comparison seemed fair. That 337 is about the same as one of the other members had. I don't really know about the stock tune. I'm very impressed with my cortex. I ran 5 tenths faster and 5 mph over last year 1/8 mile times with my 19's. It was almost 3 tenths faster and about 3 mph compared to my stock wheels and tires which are lighter and stock height. Still a great buy for us who want to play around with the Torque Shift and otanes. The custom tunes are locked in and have to be changed the the tuner, we can do it our selves. Just about everyone who has been back to the drag strip after the cortex tune has picked up a bunch and thats a deal for $350.00 bucks.

I agree, the comparison is definitely fair. My original post was is regards to 4GASEM's post about the stock baseline being so high. I didn't mean to turn this into a discussion about Mike's dyno.

[96Prix]

Dynos readings are all relative, and comparing one against another is a bit futile. Can't ask for much more than having them all within a general range. Altitude, atmosphere and application all conspire to ensure that no two are the same. That said, as long as you are on a constant relative scale (do all your tuning on the same dyno), and maintain conditions as consistantly as possible (same operator, fan/no fan, temp, humidity, etc.) there is no more useful tool.

I'm still a little confused by the results though. 6 rwhp? If you said it happened, it happened, not questioning that. But there are several others who have done the same thing and picked up several times that figure. Something has to have been done differently. Was the battery unhooked to allow the computer to reset after the tune was uploaded? That was specifically asked and confirmed in the other dyno thread.

[dukeofpg]

Dynos readings are all relative, and comparing one against another is a bit futile. Can't ask for much more than having them all within a general range. Altitude, atmosphere and application all conspire to ensure that no two are the same. That said, as long as you are on a constant relative scale (do all your tuning on the same dyno), and maintain conditions as consistantly as possible (same operator, fan/no fan, temp, humidity, etc.) there is no more useful tool.

I'm still a little confused by the results though. 6 rwhp? If you said it happened, it happened, not questioning that. But there are several others who have done the same thing and picked up several times that figure. Something has to have been done differently. Was the battery unhooked to allow the computer to reset after the tune was uploaded? That was specifically asked and confirmed in the other dyno thread.
Sorry. No battery reset. I was not aware that this was needed. Can you tell me why and what is happening when the battery is I/O? How long do you leave it off? Do I lose radio presets? Thanks. I would love to learn as much as possible and I say that sincerely. I think that we read some of the comments thinking that the writer is a blowhard or know it all. Written words can be easily misunderstood. Thanks, I MEAN IT!!!!

[dukeofpg]

Hey, I love all the feedback. It takes a lot of experience to learn a little sometimes. My intent was to let anyone interested in a Superchips Cortex handheld programmer see some realtime results. No one was playing games or making up numbers. We spent some money, installed, tested and then drove a tuned G8 GT. Now I am reporting what we found. Believe me if we could gain 30 RWHP, we would have been crazy happy. As it is, 6 RWHP is what we found with a 91 octane tune. Everything happened in about 30 minutes, from 1st pull to last pull. I don't understand why disconnecting the battery would do more than the tuner with a direct link through the port could. If it does, then I will now see better results.

Also when I said stock, I meant that the tune was stock direct from GM. There are some mods but very little. They are: Break in with "break in oil" then filled with XPR 5W30 Racing Oil by Royal Purple, Linkite aviation lube in the engine and fuel, Rotofab CAI. The nifty engine cover was taken off. We had one carpet dryer fan on high blowing. The temp was in the high 60's to low 70's, overcast with a cool breeze blowing. Humidity was about 30%.

I have been involved with racing for many years. That includes; street stock Drag racing, snowmobile racing, motocross, Mountain bike racing, stock car racing (Street stock, super street and hobby stock) and now I want to do some road racing. I am not a professional, but I do know how to make some cash with my hobbies. I have been a driver, spectator, team owner, pit crew member, race promoter, track announcer. I have stood on the podium in all three spots. I have been in the pits after lap 1. I have gone home with a trophy and cash and I have been flown to the hospital in a helicopter. After all of this, I am still a husband and dad first, business man second, Sunday School teacher, and I dream about going fast more than I do go fast. I fly about 100 flights annually. Since my hot wife cannot always greet me at the airport, I am happy that my G8 GT is there ready to launch me on to I-15 southbound for about 50 quick miles. I was lucky to be invited by Cadillac to drive the 2009 CTS-V on the Monticello race track in New York. I got about 35-40 thrilling laps. It was one of the most fun times I have had driving. I purchased this G8 GT for a stupid low price. Lets say, I could have about 2.5 G8's or one CTS-V. I am so happy that I own the G8 over the CTS-V and that is another story. It is a great car and it is even more fun to squeeze power out of the "almost LSX" motor. Working on it makes it mine. I will install the forced induction and other mods in my garage with my tools. I will and have tried to create my own mods also. If they work and I can prove it, you will see it right here.

[locrzn#92]

I think the track times speak for themselves, we have all had significant gains at the track and on the street. A dyno is just a tool that is used for tuning and testing, its when the rubber meets the road that you know if you have achieved your goal. You can argue graphs and hp/torque gains all day long and sometimes it means nothing till the tree starts to come down, you make your pass and you pick up the slip at the booth at the end of the track. Maybe you'll have a smile on your face or maybe not. I have a cortex and a smile on my face. Thats good enough for me. (for now) Check out my sig and you can see the pick up the cortex achieved. I haven't had a chance to run the quarter yet and the track was only running 1/8 mile last Saturday, but, hopefully I'll get to go back tomorrow night when they have test and tune to run the quarter. The temps were fairly close in all runs shown in my sig, elevation was 1360ft.

[96Prix]

I'm far from an expert on tuning the LSX, I'm just seeing different results than I expected based on other similar trials with the Cortex. I don't have a Cortex or any reason to distrust anyone's results. I'm stock, and curious. The last thread asked specifically if a reset had been performed by disconnecting the battery, which is why I asked. I reset my battery when I was try to attach a left over K&N cone to the intake. Presets are fine, there is a battery backup in the head unit.

I always did that with my GTP whenever I changed anything to let the PCM "relearn". Whether it was necessary on not I can't say for sure, but a 5 minute battery disconnect was a very simple "last step".

I've also read that the Cortex tunes settle in, so maybe there is a relearn period. Might be worth a try.

[SRG963]

Hey, I love all the feedback. It takes a lot of experience to learn a little sometimes. My intent was to let anyone interested in a Superchips Cortex handheld programmer see some realtime results. No one was playing games or making up numbers. We spent some money, installed, tested and then drove a tuned G8 GT. Now I am reporting what we found. Believe me if we could gain 30 RWHP, we would have been crazy happy. As it is, 6 RWHP is what we found with a 91 octane tune. Everything happened in about 30 minutes, from 1st pull to last pull. I don't understand why disconnecting the battery would do more than the tuner with a direct link through the port could. If it does, then I will now see better results.


Thanks for your input my friend.

Disconnecting the battery will help the re-learn process, but will have no effect on WOT dyno runs.

I'm sure we will see more of a gain with the 93 tune vs 91 tune. Adding the Roto-Fab before the dyno runs are also is affecting the over all gain shown with the cortex. To truly show what the cortex makes, the car needs to be completely stock.