Trans Tuning, Stock PCM

[Charles]

Not to change the subject complete put with a PCS can you tell it to lock the converter during shifts?

The only way I can see how todo this is is have your shift points and TC lock up value the same.

I feel like you could. I've never tried. Locking ON a shift is asinine IMO, although the stock PCM seems to love it.

I have my reg cab truck set to lock the converter at 28mph. The end, have a nice day. Ah the simplicity....

I like 1, 2, lock, 3 and 4 as a shift strategy. Everything else just seems like wasted energy and bullsh*t. Locking in 1st doesn't appeal either. Get it in second, get it locked and move on with your life. That's my thinking on the 4R. Brian made me unlock it on the downshifts against my wishes after the OD planet popped (for unrelated reasons). Other than that, lock and stay locked.

KISS.


If you have manual input from a bump shift then add a deadman lever for commanded unlocks, like say 3rd gear, low rpm and you want to accelerate hard you can pull the deadman, unlock the converter to light the charger(s) then release the deadman and lock up.

 

[TurboM700]

I could not stand the unlock on downshift on mine. (12v in a X with a 4r100)

It would actually down shift wait a second unlock the TC then Lock it back up.

I changed mine to never unlock on down shift and it seems to be happy.

Ok sorry for the derail this isnt about PCS tuning I just know you have a lot of experience in this so I thought I would ask. I actually have one of your PCS files that a very kind memember on here shared. Along with BTS base file. All of which I had to change for my liking.

I have found out that tuning a PCS behind a 12v is actually rather diffcult as the TPS doesnt mean ****. The AFC and govnor springs control the throttle. You almost need a rack travel indicator instead of a TPS.

 

[Charles]

I have found out that tuning a PCS behind a 12v is actually rather diffcult as the TPS doesnt mean ****. The AFC and govnor springs control the throttle. You almost need a rack travel indicator instead of a TPS.

Easy answer.... map based instead of TPS based on everything except shift points.

That's the only way to fly.

 

[Mark Kovalsky]

I seem to remember someone saying that the mph needs to be lower on scale with the gear. I took that to mean the mph to be set consecutively higher with each gear.
Like....
1st - 10mph
2nd -20mph
3rd - 30mph......
Anything to that Mark?

Yes and no. It doesn't make sense to have the tables at 10 MPH in 3rd gear if you never get down to that speed in 3rd gear. But the PCM only looks at the table for the gear that it's in. If it is in 1st gear it isn't looking at the tables for 2nd or 3rd. The computer is so dumb that it doesn't even know those other tables exist until the commanded gear changes, then it looks for the tables for that gear. So you can program each table for any speed you like, and only the one for the gear that is currently commanded has any effect at all.

 

[bigfords]

I feel like you could. I've never tried. Locking ON a shift is asinine IMO, although the stock PCM seems to love it.

I have my reg cab truck set to lock the converter at 28mph. The end, have a nice day. Ah the simplicity....

I like 1, 2, lock, 3 and 4 as a shift strategy. Everything else just seems like wasted energy and bullsh*t. Locking in 1st doesn't appeal either. Get it in second, get it locked and move on with your life. That's my thinking on the 4R. Brian made me unlock it on the downshifts against my wishes after the OD planet popped (for unrelated reasons). Other than that, lock and stay locked.

KISS.


If you have manual input from a bump shift then add a deadman lever for commanded unlocks, like say 3rd gear, low rpm and you want to accelerate hard you can pull the deadman, unlock the converter to light the charger(s) then release the deadman and lock up.

Charles, this would be my favorite shift strategy also, but the tuners I have run don't lock in 2nd unless under fairly specific load/accelerator parameters.

Should the converter not be locked until a specific RPM/MPH, as far as not damaging the converter. I'm sure it needs a certain line pressure for healthy clutch operation.

 

[Charles]

As far as I know the converter uses the fluid pressure to UN-lock.... not lock. Devoid of any input it should be locked on spring, unlocked on pressure.

Trans experts can verify.

 

[Mark Kovalsky]

There are no springs in the torque converter to help it lock or unlock. It uses pressure to unlock, and pressure to lock.

When unlocked valves in the valve body route fluid pressure between the clutch plate and converter cover. This forces the plate away from the cover and the converter is unlocked. When it locks the valve switches the flow so that the pressure between the plate and the cover is released and pressure is now routed to the back side of the clutch plate. This pressure holds the plate against the cover and is required to have enough clamp force to keep the clutch from slipping.

Attempting to lock below 1300 RPM may result in insufficient pressure to keep the plate clamped to the cover. Without enough pressure it can slip, and a slipping clutch is a dead clutch.

 

[CurtisF]

Charles, here's some tuning stuff that has worked with me. VDHx likes to give me fits when it comes to the torque converter lockup. What I've changed helps me to make it lock in 2nd and keep it locked, where just changing only the lockup tables and shift strategies by themselves would not work. The combination of everything below forces it to lock the TC and it works on my truck perfectly.

I'm using Minotaur, can't remember if you are or not, so not sure if some of these settings are labeled the same.

Parameters:

- Minimum time since 1-2 before 2-3: 2.00 (default is 0.00)
- Maximum accel rate for anticipated shifts: 17.00 (default is 6.00)
- Minimum accel rate for anticipated shifts: -10.00 (default is -6.00)
- Switch to use RPM anticipated shifts: 1 (default is 0)
- Delay converter lock after 3-2: 0.13 (default is 2.5)
- Delay converter lock after 1-2: 0.00 (default is 2.50)
- Delay converter lock after 2-3: 0.00 (default is 2.50)
- Delay converter lock after 3-4: 0.00 (default is 2.50)

Maps:

- Trans TV Pressure Shifts (1-2, 2-3, 3-4): raise to desired firmness, varies based on trans build.
- Converter lockup duty cycle: Raise your duty cycle, my minimum is 40% at 5 ms (default is 14 at 5 ms), varies based on trans build.
- Target slip time (1-2, 2-3, 3-4): Cut by about half over stock, depending on your trans.
- Torque reduction (all gears): zeroed out to 100% across the board.

Functions:

- Shift schedules (all gears): Mine are close to stock, not much of a change.
- Converter Lockup: See screen shots below, red is original stock calibration, black is modified (do the same for Converter lockup hot)....

Let me know if you need more info or screen shots.

 

[Charles]

I'm actively looking for an 02 manual trans PCM now. I may or may not mess with this anymore. At the moment it just seems like wasted time and effort that could be better spent plugging in a PCS and the ensuing 10 minutes of tuning it would take to perfectly nail it.

Given the funky stuff I feel in the trans I have no doubt the PCS would make one last longer. I feel like the trans would breath a breath of fresh air if the ford PCM was unplugged from it....

 

[sootie]

could it be possible that there is a mechanical issue?

 

[Charles]

could it be possible that there is a mechanical issue?

Anything's possible.

Much more likely that the PCS will give zero ***s and the trans will immediately snap to attention and do what it's told, when it's told to do it.

Thanks for all the input. I will still have to use this info to tune my red truck when it gets the stock motor and trans out of this truck. But if the later PCM's have more gayness than the earlier ones, I've got better things to do with my time than finger-*** a transmission to get it to partly do what I want, some of the time when my PCS will nail it right from the get-go.