SCT X Cal 2?

[drew_shipley]

I'm thinking of picking up a X Cal 2 so that when I do get gears I won't have to pay $70-$80 for a Speedcal and when I get my O/R Mid Pipe I won't have to pay $50-$60 for MIL elminators.

Now here's my question, what kind of gains can I see with a tune off the X Cal without switching to a higher oct. gas? What would I be looking at if I went with a 89 tune or a 93 tune gain wise? What do you mod 4.6 guys think of this mod... is it worth the $350 for it? The only reason I'm considering this before gears is to save a bit of money down the road and to maybe bump my power a bit.

Here's what I'm looking at doing Mod wise as of now over the next year or two:

XCal 2, 4.10 Gears, LTs & O/R H, JLT Full CAI, Steeda UDPs.

Discuss

 

[twogts4us]

Sounds like a perfect receipe to me. You'll sound good and accelerate better than ever, wondering how you lived without gears...! Plan to add lower control arms down the road to help hook up.
The X-Cal2 is the newest and would be my choice. You can get multiple tunes on the X-Cal2, one for 87 and another for 93. I'd guess the loss between the two to be about 5 HP?

 

[ForPointSex]

I got rid of my speelcal and got the xcal2 and steeda timing adjuster. I still ran the exact time in the 1/4 so I think the HP is exactly the same. The tune maked the car feel so much smoother, I don't want to go back to stock. It got rid of the last when I let off the gas too.

 

[twogts4us]

It got rid of the last when I let off the gas too.

Can you clarify that?

 

[Stangdriver1119]

Yeah I have the Xcal 2 and I got about 12rwhp just from bumped timing on my still rather stock car. At 89 octane I'm sure you'll see 4-6 rwhp and you'll save over $150 from needing MIL Elims and a Speedo Cal. Plus if you ever get bigger wheels like 18's you can adjust the speedo for that also. In my automatic I was able to firm up shifts and change the shift points.

On the other hand...it appears to be a bit buggy right now and I they had a keypad problem where the buttons would stick. Make sure you get the tune from a dealer who knows how to tune well and can show you how to use the device because instructions for this device are all but NON-EXISTANT. You can get a good amount of help from SCTflash.com which is their site.

 

[Don 95Vert]

The great thing about an XCal 2 is it's ability to have the tunes emailed to you from a dealer when you change things. You can also use XTreme tune to adjust for minor changes. For your future mods Xtreme tune would handle it for you - so you could do it yourself. You can also datalog with it. Right now you need a computer to make adjustments to the tune and datalog. But future firmware upgrades are free and will add features.

As for the documentation end of it - SCT offers demos online that show you how to use each feature. They are good - I know because I did them for SCT. Their documentation for the base XCal 2 isn't great, but for our customer's I offer a much bigger user's manual. The New XCal 2 SF allows on-screen datalogging, onscreen programming and comes with a 22 page user's manual.

Hope this helps.

Don

 

[DocG]

Does something like the Xcal 2 make sense for a first mod? Or does the tuning make more sense after you add other mods?

 

[StratGT]

Question for you guys with the SCT2. Can you adjust parameters with this programmer, or is it just to change from tune to tune? ie. Can I adjust my timing, a/f ratio and anything else like the Diablo Predator? Would I have to get a new tune installed everytime I modded the car? If so how much does that cost? Also, do I have to run to the closes dealer to have this done or can I download it to my laptop? Basic questions I guess.

 

[Don 95Vert]

You can make adjustments with a free downloable program called Extreme Tune. You will also be able to make adjustments and datalog directly from the unit itself when the newest firmware update is released by SCT. We can currently program an XCal 2 now to allow adjustments on-screen without a laptop, but with datalogging you need a laptop. We are waiting until SCT upgrades the firmware to allow on-unit datalogging before we send out any with on-screen adjustments though. We are doing this because if you currently get on-screen adjustments and have to get a file emailed to you from a dealer, you will lose that ability and have to then use Extreme Tune and a laptop or computer to make adjustments. It's less confusing that way. Although exlaining it, it sounds confusing.

Here is what is available to adjust in MOST Mustangs - but not all - Speed Limiter, Idle Drive, Idle Neutral, Shift Point 1-2, Shift Point 2-3, Shift Point 3-4, Shift Firmness 1-2, Shift Firmness 2-3, Shift Firmness 3-4, Rev Limiter, Cooling Fans, Spark 0 - 2000, Spark 2000 - 4000, Spark 4000 - 8000, WOT FUEL, Axle Ratio

Hope this helps.

 

[Torinalth]

sct is justa different company doing the same thing as the preditor. however there seem to be a bit more SCT tuners out there now then diablo (unlike in the past) so thats why there is getting to be a lot more people pushing the Xcal then pred.

Torinalth

 

[Mossberg]

I got rid of my speelcal and got the xcal2 and steeda timing adjuster. I still ran the exact time in the 1/4 so I think the HP is exactly the same. The tune maked the car feel so much smoother, I don't want to go back to stock. It got rid of the last when I let off the gas too.

You got an Xcal2 AND timing adjuster? I thought you can adjust timing on the Xcal2.

 

[ForPointSex]

You got an Xcal2 AND timing adjuster? I thought you can adjust timing on the Xcal2.

I must of been really tired when I wrote that. I got rid of the speedcal and timing adjuster when I got the xcal2.

It got rid of the last when I let off the gas too.

It got rid of the lash when I let off the gas and get back on it.

 

[Mossberg]

Gotcha

 

[drew_shipley]

So, I should see some where between 5-7 hp on 89 and 8-12 on 93?

 

[Mr.~G]

sct is justa different company doing the same thing as the preditor. however there seem to be a bit more SCT tuners out there now then diablo (unlike in the past) so thats why there is getting to be a lot more people pushing the Xcal then pred.

Torinalth

I'll be getting one of these tuners soon and still am not sure which to go for. The predator seems to have a nice user interface but you need to get extra stuff to hook up to your computer and only comes with a high octane tune. What I've read about the xCal is that it more cumbersome to use (having to use the PC for a custom tune) but it comes with a three octane tunes and does not need extra stuff to hook up to PC.

You folks with experience with these devices - what do you think?

Also, is eBay a viable cheap alternative or stick to a speed-shop?

BTW the Ford dealers will recallibrate your speedo for 1hr's labor after gear change so there is no need to buy any gizmos and cut into your wiring.

Thanks.
MG

 

[ForPointSex]

The tuner can program your xcal2 with all user adjustables on the handheld.