2005 Silverado re-gear question

tonybolton · Oct 22, 2019

....or jus get a tonneau cover...

Dan_Goodwin · Oct 22, 2019

TacomaJD said:
Also, which black bear route did you go? Did you do the data logging where you drove around with their junk plugged into your truck then send the pcm back to them to tune it (or however it works)?

I've been looking at them, looked at them back in the day for my old truck too, but got a good deal on the Predator tuner from a buddy on here and went that route. I think the Diablosport i3 tuner has torque management adjustability, but not sure if the Predator 2 does. Predator 2 is cheaper. But from reading on Diablosport forums, the Diablo tunes all have torque management reductions built into the tunes, which makes me wonder if there would be anything else to gain by buying the i3 tuner, or could I pretty much do what I needed to do with the Predator 2 tuner. The Predator 1 tuner I had allowed for installation of a few different preset tunes, and had advanced options to adjust shift points, shift pressure, and seems like there was some fuel injection options and ability to adjust speedometer for tire size/gear ratio change. I'd figure the Predator 2 does the same ****, might even do the same **** as the i3 tuner, further research is needed.

I can only speak to my research and experience with BBP, but the overwhelming majority of what I read said that a BBP tune was much better than everything else available. I have been satisfied with the tunes and customer service so far, though having to email them for every little thing can get old. Maybe I'm a little old school in that regard.

I went (and encourage) the data logging route and ended up buying the Autocal after the fact so I can change tunes on the fly and not have to swap the ECM every time. I would buy the Autocal for the sole reason of not having to do the security relearn every time you change a tune - not difficult, just annoying. I have a sport tune, towing tune and a stock tune, though I leave it in sport 99% of the time. Because racetruck.

TacomaJD · Oct 22, 2019

Dan_Goodwin said:
I can only speak to my research and experience with BBP, but the overwhelming majority of what I read said that a BBP tune was much better than everything else available. I have been satisfied with the tunes and customer service so far, though having to email them for every little thing can get old. Maybe I'm a little old school in that regard.

I went (and encourage) the data logging route and ended up buying the Autocal after the fact so I can change tunes on the fly and not have to swap the ECM every time. I would buy the Autocal for the sole reason of not having to do the security relearn every time you change a tune - not difficult, just annoying. I have a sport tune, towing tune and a stock tune, though I leave it in sport 99% of the time. Because racetruck.

Atsrite! So do you leave it in sport mode even when towing something? I was watching a youtube vid on the Predator 2 tuner on a 2015 silverado and it had a Diablo Tow Tune available on it. I know thats a newer truck than mine, but the same tuner is listed for use in the whole year model range of 5.3l silverados I believe. So it would seem I could download a tow tune and try, or just run the 87 octane tune like I did in my old truck.

I don't doubt Black Bear's quality and performance, I'm just hesitant to commit to the hassle. Plug and play is much more appealing to me. But if I knew the difference was substantial I might opt for Black Bear tune. Predator 2 is only $338. Not terrible.

ridered3 · Oct 22, 2019

TacomaJD said:
The mesh ones create bad wind resistance? I wouldn't have thought they made much of a difference. Either way, I don't want to remove it, its way too handy. I also have a few yards to keep mowed so I haul my mower on this trailer all summer and don't want to lose the gate.

In my limited experience yes on the tall mesh tailgate. Drug an empty 6x12 with a gate (very similiar to yours) two hours of interstate driving away to pickup a zero turn for wife's work. Truck (06 Tacoma with V6 and automatic) hated that trip and was constantly hunting for gears and acting like you mentioned at the beginning. Honestly wondered if the tranmission was going out.

Picked up the zero turn and folded the rear gate all the way down into the trailer floor. Drove two hours back home and truck was just fine and showed none of the problems of the empty trip down. So while I added weight to the trailer, by folding down the air dam/tailgate on the trailer and everything acted better/happier.

You probably don't notice the wind resistence with the lawn mower since I assume you aren't driving extended periods of time at interstate speeds with that setup. If you have the room on the trailer (and the trailer/tailgate allows), load the bike and then flip the tailgate down into the trailer floor. See if that makes a difference since it's a cheap fix.

Dan_Goodwin · Oct 22, 2019

TacomaJD said:
Atsrite! So do you leave it in sport mode even when towing something? I was watching a youtube vid on the Predator 2 tuner on a 2015 silverado and it had a Diablo Tow Tune available on it. I know thats a newer truck than mine, but the same tuner is listed for use in the whole year model range of 5.3l silverados I believe. So it would seem I could download a tow tune and try, or just run the 87 octane tune like I did in my old truck.

I don't doubt Black Bear's quality and performance, I'm just hesitant to commit to the hassle. Plug and play is much more appealing to me. But if I knew the difference was substantial I might opt for Black Bear tune. Predator 2 is only $338. Not terrible.

If I'm towing much more than my Rhino I'll load the Tow tune in it, otherwise I leave it in Sport. I had them set up my Sport tune with an 80% reduction of TM and when Tow/Haul button is pressed TM goes to 100% reduction and really wakes the truck up. I have an aftermarket trans cooler and scangauge 2 to make sure trans temps stay in check.

The only real hassle (if you buy the Autoca)l is the initial data logging, which isn't all that bad. The other reason I went with the scan cable tune was so that they could review data and make sure I didnt have a sensor reading off in left field. They also review the log after the tune to make sure it's running right. That peace of mind is worth a lot to me.

If you're ever around Hoover I'd let you take my truck for a spin.

onepieceatatime · Oct 22, 2019

Why don't you just quit being a ***** and ride the bike to the track? Isn't it just a grandpa version of a sport bike anyways? :flipgotcha:

TacomaJD · Oct 22, 2019

ridered3 said:
In my limited experience yes on the tall mesh tailgate. Drug an empty 6x12 with a gate (very similiar to yours) two hours of interstate driving away to pickup a zero turn for wife's work. Truck (06 Tacoma with V6 and automatic) hated that trip and was constantly hunting for gears and acting like you mentioned at the beginning. Honestly wondered if the tranmission was going out.

Picked up the zero turn and folded the rear gate all the way down into the trailer floor. Drove two hours back home and truck was just fine and showed none of the problems of the empty trip down. So while I added weight to the trailer, by folding down the air dam/tailgate on the trailer and everything acted better/happier.

You probably don't notice the wind resistence with the lawn mower since I assume you aren't driving extended periods of time at interstate speeds with that setup. If you have the room on the trailer (and the trailer/tailgate allows), load the bike and then flip the tailgate down into the trailer floor. See if that makes a difference since it's a cheap fix.

You bring up a very good point to compare. I had the 2007 FJ Cruiser before this truck, with exactly the same size tires 295/70/17 Nitto Trail Grapplers and aftermarket wheels, and pulled the same trailer with my old Polaris Ranger on it. So I pulled the trailer/Ranger with both the FJ and my current truck after I got it, both running same size tires. From a stop, the truck was a big improvement. At highway speeds, not a whole lot of difference between the FJ and the Z71. Which is kinda ridiculous. Both struggled about the same.

Dan_Goodwin said:
If I'm towing much more than my Rhino I'll load the Tow tune in it, otherwise I leave it in Sport. I had them set up my Sport tune with an 80% reduction of TM and when Tow/Haul button is pressed TM goes to 100% reduction and really wakes the truck up. I have an aftermarket trans cooler and scangauge 2 to make sure trans temps stay in check.

The only real hassle (if you buy the Autoca)l is the initial data logging, which isn't all that bad. The other reason I went with the scan cable tune was so that they could review data and make sure I didnt have a sensor reading off in left field. They also review the log after the tune to make sure it's running right. That peace of mind is worth a lot to me.

If you're ever around Hoover I'd let you take my truck for a spin.

Hmm. It seemed (from my reading) the consensus was that 100% torque management reduction and even maybe so much as 80% reduction made it pretty rough on the 4l60e. I def don't want to introduce tranny problems into the situation. I've still got some reading to do. I wish Diablosport noted how much torque management reduction was in their tunes. Maybe I can find that info somewhere buried in forum posts.

TacomaJD · Oct 22, 2019

onepieceatatime said:
Why don't you just quit being a ***** and ride the bike to the track? Isn't it just a grandpa version of a sport bike anyways?

That's a terrible idea.

RustyC · Oct 22, 2019

Both tuning and regearing will put more torque to the ground. BUT regearing will take stress off the 4l60e and they need all the help they can get.

felipecj · Oct 22, 2019

Gearing is definitely the solution but also the most costly. I think tuning will help a lot and Dan has given some great advice. But doing something about that sail on the back of your trailer will help out more than you realize.

kmcminn · Oct 22, 2019

Josh, I'm sure you have thought about this but what about the front differential. Is that included in the 300$ from ecgs?

TacomaJD · Oct 22, 2019

kmcminn said:
Josh, I'm sure you have thought about this but what about the front differential. Is that included in the 300$ from ecgs?

You mean I would have to regear both ends?! Fawk, I'm definitely not doing it now....

Yes that was $300ish per end for Yukon gears and then another $130 per end for master rebuild kits. So nearly $900 just in parts. Motive gears were a little less than $200 per end, but I'm gonna try a tune first and if that don't work I might regear later. Or swap it for a 3/4 ton gasser. Lol

kmcminn · Oct 22, 2019

TacomaJD said:
You mean I would have to regear both ends?! Fawk, I'm definitely not doing it now....

Yes that was $300ish per end for Yukon gears and then another $130 per end for master rebuild kits. So nearly $900 just in parts. Motive gears were a little less than $200 per end, but I'm gonna try a tune first and if that don't work I might regear later. Or swap it for a 3/4 ton gasser. Lol

Imagine this

If you had a badass, red, 3/4 ton gasser! It was a sharp truck.

TBItoy · Oct 22, 2019

FIgure it all out, and let me know if it was worth it and how much it cost you. (of course, I'm sure all this was hashed out somewhere on the internet 10 years ago when these trucks were new enough that people cared)

I'll probably buy a newer Tundra or newer 2500 Chevy (new enough to get the 6L90) before I dump any money into this old pile.

side note:
I've found that driving with the shifter in 3rd, and tow haul mode on, it drives and holds gears *almost* exactly what I would do if it were a manual trans.

TacomaJD · Oct 22, 2019

kmcminn said:
Imagine this

If you had a badass, red, 3/4 ton gasser! It was a sharp truck.

It's currently for sale, but has 200k miles on it now. Lol. If I got another one it would be a newer body style anyways. I dont drive the truck much, so kinda dumb to invest more in another truck. Maybe a tune will wake up my old white beast up and it will suffice for a long time.

TacomaJD · Oct 22, 2019

TBItoy said:
FIgure it all out, and let me know if it was worth it and how much it cost you. (of course, I'm sure all this was hashed out somewhere on the internet 10 years ago when these trucks were new enough that people cared)

I'll probably buy a newer Tundra or newer 2500 Chevy (new enough to get the 6L90) before I dump any money into this old pile.

side note:
I've found that driving with the shifter in 3rd, and tow haul mode on, it drives and holds gears *almost* exactly what I would do if it were a manual trans.

Regearing will be last resort, as I really don't want to dedicate the time to working on it. My free time is sparse and both my bikes need worked on too. Lol. Hoping a plug and play tuner really helps. That's likely the first route I go.

TBItoy · Oct 22, 2019

TacomaJD said:
Regearing will be last resort, as I really don't want to dedicate the time to working on it. My free time is sparse and both my bikes need worked on too. Lol. Hoping a plug and play tuner really helps. That's likely the first route I go.

hell I've bought and sold 4 or 5 hypertechs and diablo tuners for these trucks in the last 15 years... should have kept one. I think dad has a hypertech max? somewhere, might try to dig it up.

After putting 4 years and 200K+ miles on a nice tuned up Duramax, then selling it and driving absolute beaters for the last 3 years, I got this 1500 and was just happy to be in a fullsize truck again... I've just learned to accept it's limitations (accept the fact that it's basically a damn car...)

TacomaJD · Oct 22, 2019

TBItoy said:
hell I've bought and sold 4 or 5 hypertechs and diablo tuners for these trucks in the last 15 years... should have kept one. I think dad has a hypertech max? somewhere, might try to dig it up.

After putting 4 years and 200K+ miles on a nice tuned up Duramax, then selling it and driving absolute beaters for the last 3 years, I got this 1500 and was just happy to be in a fullsize truck again... I've just learned to accept it's limitations (accept the fact that it's basically a damn car...)

Yep, I agree. I don't enjoy driving this truck as it sits now either, because of the poorly balanced tires. I'm going to get them rebalanced this week or the next and if that dont fix it, they are coming off and getting replaced with some all terrains. Almost wish I'd never put either the wheels or tires on it, but it looks so much better, just rides like ****, vibrating and whatnot. I hate to go back to a smaller size, but I may eat crow and do that, but stay at at least 285's and do the tuner. More I think about it, the more it pisses me off. #neversatisfied Ha...

TacomaJD · Oct 22, 2019

What it really needs is some GD turf mode installed! Sumbitch'd dig then!

easleycrawler · Oct 23, 2019

TBItoy said:
FIgure it all out, and let me know if it was worth it and how much it cost you. (of course, I'm sure all this was hashed out somewhere on the internet 10 years ago when these trucks were new enough that people cared)

I'll probably buy a newer Tundra or newer 2500 Chevy (new enough to get the 6L90) before I dump any money into this old pile.

side note:
I've found that driving with the shifter in 3rd, and tow haul mode on, it drives and holds gears *almost* exactly what I would do if it were a manual trans.

I've got a 17 tundra with the 5.7, and it tows my Toyota crawler very good to be a gasser.