HP Tuner for 2016 Tahoe L83/6L80

[RobH]

I want to get the Active Fuel Management (AFM)/Displacement on Demand (DOD) turned off in my 2016 Tahoe. At the moment I am driving with the transmission in M5 which prevents V4 operation. If I operate the transmission in M6, AFM remains disabled in 1st - 5th gears, but in 6th the AFM is enabled again and switches back and forth from V8 to V4 to V8, etc. I use the OBDII port for my ScanGauge II, so I don't want an AFM Disable dongle.

I am considering the HP Tuner. I also would like to modify Torque Converter Clutch (TCC) engage and disengage speeds, shift speeds, set the TCC slip to zero, etc. I am not looking to alter engine ignition and fuel tables. I have enough power. I just want to perform the AFM disable and change the way the transmission behaves.

With our 1995 Chevy Caprice and 1995 Buick Roadmaster, I used Tuner Cat software on my laptop to download the PCM settings files, edit the files, and then load the settings files back up to the cars' PCM's using the cars' OBDI connection port.

Looking at the HP Tuners (HPT) website, it looks like the HPT MPVI3 OBDII Interface module, VCM Suite software, and 2 credits (activity authorizations) are needed. My understanding is that I can use the HP Tuner in the same way I used the Tuner Cat software on our 1995 cars.

But, I see something on the HP Tuner website that suggests that the MPVI3 and VCM Suite will only allow me to modify the operation of the ECM (Engine Control Module) and not the TCM (Transmission Control Module). Is this true? Am I unable to modify the transmission behavior? Do I need to buy additional software, hardware, or credits to modify the transmission shifting?

I am not currently considering Black Bear Performance because I sent them a PM a week and a half ago on this Forum with no response. I sent them a message on their website a week ago with no response. It appears that I will need to go back to them to get fine tuning of my transmission's behavior. I want to be able to make my modifications, go out and drive the car, and then fine-tune the transmission's behavior without having to wait a week or more or several weeks for updates to my "Tune" (settings file). I understand that BBP may have more business than they can handle. If so, that is good for them and bad for me as a prospective customer.

Thanks in advance for advice.

 

[swathdiver]

Well I was beginning to type in @BlackBearPerf until I got to the bottom of your post.

When I was in your shoes, I chose to take advantage of Justin's decades of tuning experience instead of using my daily driver as the guinea pig for my learning curve. My learning curve can be steep!

Since he's done such a tremendous job on my trucks, I never bothered with doing it myself though it is something I like to do. He's done two so far and I have one more coming up when it cools down in the fall.

 

[BlackBearPerf]

I want to get the AFM turned off in my 2016 Tahoe. At the moment I am driving with the transmission in M5 which prevents V4 operation. If I operate the transmission in M6, AFM remains disabled in 1st - 5th gears, but in 6th the AFM is enabled again and switches back and forth from V8 to V4 to V8, etc. I use the OBDII port for my ScanGauge II, so I don't want an AFM Disable dongle.

I am considering the HP Tuner. I also would like to modify Torque Converter Clutch (TCC) engage and disengage speeds, shift speeds, set the TCC slip to zero, etc. I am not looking to alter engine ignition and fuel tables. I have enough power. I just want to perform the AFM disable and change the way the transmission behaves.

With our 1995 Chevy Caprice and 1995 Buick Roadmaster, I used Tuner Cat software on my laptop to download the PCM settings files, edit the files, and then load the settings files back up to the cars' PCM's using the cars' OBDI connection port.

Looking at the HP Tuners (HPT) website, it looks like the HPT MPVI3 OBDII Interface module, VCM Suite software, and 2 credits (activity authorizations) are needed. My understanding is that I can use the HP Tuner in the same way I used the Tuner Cat software on our 1995 cars.

But, I see something on the HP Tuner website that suggests that the MPVI3 and VCM Suite will only allow me to modify the operation of the ECM (Engine Control Module) and not the TCM (Transmission Control Module). Is this true? Am I unable to modify the transmission behavior? Do I need to buy additional software, hardware, or credits to modify the transmission shifting?

I am not currently considering Black Bear Performance because I sent them a PM a week and a half ago on this Forum with no response. I sent them a message on their website a week ago with no response. It appears that I will need to go back to them to get fine tuning of my transmission's behavior. I want to be able to make my modifications, go out and drive the car, and then fine-tune the transmission's behavior without having to wait a week or more or several weeks for updates to my "Tune" (settings file). I understand that BBP may have more business than they can handle. If so, that is good for them and bad for me as a prospective customer.

Thanks in advance for advice.

That is odd. We didn't receive your PM here and we are only a few days back on email. Please send the email again. We are more than happy to review it for you.

 

[Trey Hardy]

I want to get the AFM turned off in my 2016 Tahoe. At the moment I am driving with the transmission in M5 which prevents V4 operation. If I operate the transmission in M6, AFM remains disabled in 1st - 5th gears, but in 6th the AFM is enabled again and switches back and forth from V8 to V4 to V8, etc. I use the OBDII port for my ScanGauge II, so I don't want an AFM Disable dongle.

I am considering the HP Tuner. I also would like to modify Torque Converter Clutch (TCC) engage and disengage speeds, shift speeds, set the TCC slip to zero, etc. I am not looking to alter engine ignition and fuel tables. I have enough power. I just want to perform the AFM disable and change the way the transmission behaves.

With our 1995 Chevy Caprice and 1995 Buick Roadmaster, I used Tuner Cat software on my laptop to download the PCM settings files, edit the files, and then load the settings files back up to the cars' PCM's using the cars' OBDI connection port.

Looking at the HP Tuners (HPT) website, it looks like the HPT MPVI3 OBDII Interface module, VCM Suite software, and 2 credits (activity authorizations) are needed. My understanding is that I can use the HP Tuner in the same way I used the Tuner Cat software on our 1995 cars.

But, I see something on the HP Tuner website that suggests that the MPVI3 and VCM Suite will only allow me to modify the operation of the ECM (Engine Control Module) and not the TCM (Transmission Control Module). Is this true? Am I unable to modify the transmission behavior? Do I need to buy additional software, hardware, or credits to modify the transmission shifting?

I am not currently considering Black Bear Performance because I sent them a PM a week and a half ago on this Forum with no response. I sent them a message on their website a week ago with no response. It appears that I will need to go back to them to get fine tuning of my transmission's behavior. I want to be able to make my modifications, go out and drive the car, and then fine-tune the transmission's behavior without having to wait a week or more or several weeks for updates to my "Tune" (settings file). I understand that BBP may have more business than they can handle. If so, that is good for them and bad for me as a prospective customer.

Thanks in advance for advice.

There’s plenty of tuners in Texas that could do it and I don’t know how far you are from Texas speed performance but they were my first thought I’m sure you could find one local though if you called around at the performance shops near you

 

[RobH]

I'm a retired IT guy. So I know my way around programming.

I understand that the companies that provide the software to download the Engine Control Module (ECM) and Transmission Control Module (TCM) settings files ("tunes" or "calibrations"), edit the files, and then upload the modified settings files back to the ECM/TCM need to get payment for the value they are providing. Otherwise they wouldn't do it and we'd be stuck with what the auto manufacturers give us, warts and all.

Now the companies that analyze our ECM's, TCM's, etc. to write their proprietary software to display and edit the settings files have inserted a hardware interface in between our laptop and our ECM's/TCM's. That way they have something physical they can sell in addition to their software. OK. And it makes it difficult for me to send a custom file to a friend, since they need the hardware interface module/credits to load the custom file into their car. OK.

But, I know how to do the file downloading, editing, and uploading. I have researched what settings I want to make. HP Tuners has YouTube videos on how to shut off the AFM/DOD in the ECM and to modify/improve the 6L80 files using their software. The current version includes data logging. I don't need to drive to a tuner to have the tuner make the changes or send me an off the shelf "tune" which does things I don't want it to do and doesn't do things that I do want it to do.

In my dragstrip days, after twice breaking my daily driver's differential spider gears, I decided I didn't want to spend the time and money to do that. I'm past my street enthusiastic driving days when I regularly got tickets. I now drive for longevity and no tickets.

So, my original question. If I buy HP Tuners' MPVI3 OBDII Interface module, VCM Suite software, and 2 credits can I shut off my AFM in the ECM and adjust my transmission (TCM) behavior? Summit Racing will be happy to sell me the interface module, the cable between the interface module and my OBDII port, and "credits". Or do I have to buy something else to edit my 2016 Tahoe TCM settings file?

Thanks in advance.

 

[randeez]

you would need to buy additional credits to unlock the tcm and make modifications, in addition to the credits needed to unlock the ecm to make the modifications to disable afm.
you can still send the file to anyone, downloading the vcm suite is free for anyone and they can view a tune file you send them. if they want to make changes and save the changes then they would also need license the tune (credits associated to an mpvi)
its a farcry from the ol tunercat days tho, steep learning curve... especially playing around with transmission pressure settings, lockup and shift points can still be laid out with the bluecat tool as it has been updated for 6-8-10 speeds

 

[RobH]

you would need to buy additional credits to unlock the tcm and make modifications, in addition to the credits needed to unlock the ecm to make the modifications to disable afm...its a far cry from the ol tunercat days tho, steep learning curve...especially playing around with transmission pressure settings, lockup and shift points can still be laid out with the bluecat tool as it has been updated for 6-8-10 speeds.

Thank you. I suspected something like more credits for the TCM.

Thanks again.

Edit: It turns out that only two credits are required to modify both the ECM and TCM calibration files.

 

[swathdiver]

Thank you. I suspected something like more credits for the TCM.

Thanks again.

Keep us posted on how everything works out.

We run our trucks at the drags and don't like breaking things either. I skip the burnouts and just launch off idle. She's faster that way anyway.

 

[tooleyondeck]

Should be 4 credits total. I use my MPVI2+ on all my vehicles, definitely a recommended purchase.

 

[RoadTrip]

you would need to buy additional credits to unlock the tcm and make modifications, in addition to the credits needed to unlock the ecm to make the modifications to disable afm.
you can still send the file to anyone, downloading the vcm suite is free for anyone and they can view a tune file you send them. if they want to make changes and save the changes then they would also need license the tune (credits associated to an mpvi)

Can HPTuners give access to the BCM via extra credits? I've had no luck finding anyone who will make a couple changes for me to the BCM.