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My Trifecta ECM/TCM tuning experience - 2010 CTS-4 3.6L DI Wagon

84K views 152 replies 36 participants last post by  Good83knight 
#1 · (Edited)
After spending some time in this forum, as well as the Camaro forums, I've decided to go ahead and pull the trigger on the Trifecta ECM/TCM tune, commonly referred to as a Vince Tune, as Vince Geglia is the owner/operator of Trifecta Performance and custom writes each tune that goes out his door.


So, why do I want a tune? Well quite honestly, I'm addicted. Every car I own has been tuned in some way or another, all with great results. My 2010 AWD CTS Wagon, equipped with the 3.6L DI engine and 6sp auto slushbox, is in need of a kick in the pants. While the car is rated at 304bhp, it feels like it only has 2/3 of that. I believe the reason is more related to the crappy OE calibration of the TCM, more than it is about the calibration of the ECM. I don't know about your CTS, but mine is ALWAYS wanting to find 6th gear just as quick as it possibly can. So when a call for power is made from your right foot, it's not there. You have to wait for the car to downshift, spool up the revs, make a bunch of noise in the process, and then you're finally moving forward at a quicker pace. I don't like this. So now what? Well, a Trifecta ECM/TCM tune is what.


With only modest power gains, the real value in this tune is the ability to predefine at what speed you'd like to upshift/downshift at, and how firm/quick you'd like that event to take place. So, for normal A6 mode, you could keep the OE calibrations in effect, and unleash hell when you move the gearshifter into the "sport" position. However, that's not the approach I'm going to take. I'm going to have normal A6 shift points moved upwards so that the car holds steady in it's power band at each gear, but I won't change the firmness of the shifts. I'll call this "wife mode". But in sport mode, I'll have the shift points raised, I'll have throttle blip on downshifts like it does in manual mode, and I'll have it stepped up to the firmest/quickest shift allowable. I'll call this "Daddy Mode".

Another selling point of this tune is if I mod the car in the future, say an intake and/or exhaust, then a retune is free. This allows you to take full benefit of any hardware mods you may add at a later date.

I'll have the ECM timing advanced to take advantage of 93 octane, and I'll have it leaned out just a hair, but keeping the A/F ratio within safe limits. These cars are equipped with very advanced knock sensors, so I'm not really worried about detonation. Plus, we're not going to tune it aggressively enough to put the car in any real danger. And let's be honest here, we're talking about a naturally aspirated V6, not a Biturbo V12. It'd be pretty tough to mess up a tune on this engine.

Another nifty feature of the this tune, is the ability to reset the learning transmission adaptives. This is a particularly useful feature when the car has been driven as a daily commuter. Even though we're tuning the TCM, the adaptive nature of the tranny is still in play. So, it'll adapt itself accordingly, but on a sliding scale from our tuning points vs. OE calibrations. As part of your purchase, you'll download a software interface to your laptop, that when connected to your ECM via the OBD cable, you can reset the tranny adaptations with the click of a button. Neat.

There's also the "Ghost Cam" feature, that's available for the 3.6L DI. It's a gimmicky thing that allows you to click a sequence of buttons on the steering wheel, and enable a lopey idle, just as if the car had a big cam in it. You can preset how agressive you'd like it to lope, but I think this is probably more for the Camaro guys than the Caddy guys. Nonetheless, it's there if you want it.

I'm using Bad News Racing as the reseller for the tune. It's cheaper to purchase through them, then going direct to Vince and Trifecta. I paid $460, including the tuning cable needed to write the .net code to the car's CAN-BUS. Jerry, the owner of BNR, has been outstanding with communicating to me what to expect, what not to expect, and has always replied to my emails within 24 hrs.

I plan on updating this thread at each milestone to chronicle everything from purchasing experience to my thoughts on the tune, post install

2/8/11 - Purchased tune and cable via Bad News Racing's website, and received verification email

2/9/11 - Received email stating that order has been placed with Trifecta, and cable will be shipped directly from them. Tune will be developed and emailed to me.
 
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#33 ·
Guys, this is the person you want to talk to, if you want the same tune I have. Since we got very detailed on the TCM calibrations, you can just ask for the same file I have on my car. Or, you can do a base file first, and adjust what you want from there. Jerry is very responsive to email, and can do just about anything you want.

Good to have you on board, Jerry!
 
#47 ·
I hear ya on that.

I decided not to enable the cam on my car, as it just doesn't suit it. But, the target is the guy with a Camaro, running a CAI, long tubes, and exhaust. If I were that guy, I think I'd enable it. Even if you install it, you're still able to toggle it of/on with the cruise control button.
 
#48 ·
I didn't enable the g-cam on my tune either. That's not the sound I want coming out of my car, I'm past that stuff. Got the Iceolater and oil catch can ordered and will install upon receipt. Have had the KPE intake and ported throttle body already, so with the manifold spacer and catch can the only other item I would install is LT headers if I could get them. KPE keeps saying they will have them, but....
 
#61 ·
I'd still absolutely 100% endorse the tune. Car has had zero issues, works as advertised and is a much more fun and engaging car to drive now. I put the stock tune back on it the other night because I was bored, and I immediately was reminded of the horrors of the OEM TCM programming. I've stated it before, but it's very apparent that GMs sole purpose while tuning the TCM was to get the car moving, and dump it into 6th gear as quickly as possible. Horrible....

With the customer parameters Vince did with my TCM, the car is completely transformed.
 
#62 ·
Vince still has your calibrations saved correct? I will be making a buy in the near future. Do realize GM's sole purpose of the 6th gear is to get to it as quickly as possible not really a "kick in the pants" calibration haha. Recently installed a catback exhaust for Cts v coupe for my 3.6 di coupe. Turned out better then expected now I just needed to tackle the slush box.
 
#64 ·
Local muffler shop had a hell of a time from what I was told but it did fit pretty well tips lined up and put out a nice growl. Keep in mind I do have a v rear bumper to facilitate the v exhaust. When everything was said and done it didn't appear they needed to re bend any of the mandrel bent piping the kit comes with just modify piping to match up with stock.
 
#72 ·
Sorry it took so long to reply, I just returned from a 4 day bender....

So as far as the ECM, I didn't request any particular changes be made. I just got their "canned" tune. However, for the TCM, that's where I got pretty specific on what I wanted...

I asked for the car to hold each gear longer, shifts to be as firm as safely allowable, and rev-matched downshifting (throttle blipping) in Auto mode.

After logging thousands of miles on it, I'm very happy. The only change I'm going to ask for, is that the 1-2 shift at WOT be softened just a hair. I feel like it's shocking the AWD system just a bit. Other than that, it's darn near perfect.

wag-o-neer;
I saw some datalogging you had done.
It looks like the Knock sensor easily pulls several degrees out of the car even in stock tune.
I assume these are full throttle runs.
Does using premium let the ECU add more timing (or retard less)?
Does the Trivecta tune wind up with more timing?
I assume these are full throttle runs.
Any idea what part throttle timimg is at cruise?

Yeah, the knock sensor in these cars are very finicky, from what I've learned. You can see it pull timing in my logs, pre/post tune. The Trifecta tune does run more timing, without a doubt. I also posted logs after the tune, so you can see exactly how many degrees they've added, across the rev range. And yes, all logs were taken in 3rd gear, at WOT all the way to redline. I have no clue what part-throttle timing is set at....
 
#71 ·
wag-o-neer;
I saw some datalogging you had done.
It looks like the Knock sensor easily pulls several degrees out of the car even in stock tune.
I assume these are full throttle runs.
Does using premium let the ECU add more timing (or retard less)?
Does the Trivecta tune wind up with more timing?
I assume these are full throttle runs.
Any idea what part throttle timimg is at cruise?
 
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