Cadillac Owners Forum banner

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.
 
See less See more
#140 ·
I tuned my car with Trifecta a few months ago, and on occasion my check engine light would come on. I recently took my car in for inspection, and multiple codes showed up indicating cylinder 2, 4, and 6 misfires, Catalyst System Efficiency Below Threshold, and Evaporative Emission Control System Vent Valve/Solenoid Circuit Malfunction errors.

This has only happened when my car was tuned. I added the ported/polished throttle body and never bothered getting a tune to reflect that change. Also, I don't use the "ghost cam" feature.

Has anyone else had these issues? Can the misfiring cause damage over time?
 
#143 ·
Hey guys
New to the cadillac scene. Just bought my first about a week ago. Always been a Chevy guy. Owning a built up 78 malibu on nitrous is fun for the wknds. But gotta have a little of the "get up and go" during the week too. Nice to see there is development on the modern front and to hear good things about the guys doing this work. I will be on the list shortly for some of these upgrades and mods so thanks for all the input and pointing in the right direction.
 
#144 ·
The best mods are start with a good catchcan to prevent further valve coking issues, then 20 rwhp & 25 rwtq from the $150 Iceolator, then the $150 CNC pattern ported TB along with the tune from BNR and you will have a completely different animal. Still want more? We supercharge, and turbo charge these to 500 plus HP.

:thumbsup:
 
#148 ·
I'll step in and add that with one of our super charged 3.6 LLT builds we made just under 400 RWHP until running out of fuel with the Trifecta tune, our new tune the customer made 447 RWHP same boost,. The tune company stated there were several power enrichment features not touched in the trifecta that they have cracked allowing the system to provide enough fuel for the 447 to the wheels vs less than 400. So far none of the issues for FI we had in the past, but we just started using them so will add more as we have more experience with them. And this is only FI, not NA. Haven't used them for NA tunes yet.
 
#149 ·
I'm considering this - hoping to revive an old thread!

@BNRacing, do you have a spec sheet on the newest tune? Also, what is the policy on renting the cable (cost/duration of rental)? I have torque and compatible cable to pull logs down the road when I need to, but for locking in the tune I would like to attempt to limit out of pocket.

Thanks!
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top