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Programmer vs programmer ???

ATXGLADIATOR2020

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What are you using and how do you love it. I had TDS 2 on Amy JKU And was waiting for an update for it for my gladiator but that isn’t happening anytime soon. Super chips offers a pulsar which seems nice but it’s $600. So was curious what people are using.
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cgflyer

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I just installed the Pulsar by Edge products and I really like it. It is a tuner, but plugs into the ECM, not the OBDII port like other tuners I've used in the past. That made me nervous and it will be a pain to remove for when the Jeep needs to go to the dealership. It can be updated via the OBDII but you need an OBDII to USB cable to do it.

It has a stock, economy, tow and performance tune. Adjusts tire size, gear ratios, TPMS settings and allows memory hold for ESS.

I was getting about "16 mpg" after putting my 35's on my Rubicon manual transmission. After I installed the Pulsar I am getting 21+ mpg on the economy tune with slightly better throttle response. I have a Gibson exhaust coming this week and hope to see some slight improvements after that as well.
 

Whiplash2130

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I just installed the Pulsar by Edge products and I really like it. It is a tuner, but plugs into the ECM, not the OBDII port like other tuners I've used in the past. That made me nervous and it will be a pain to remove for when the Jeep needs to go to the dealership. It can be updated via the OBDII but you need an OBDII to USB cable to do it.

It has a stock, economy, tow and performance tune. Adjusts tire size, gear ratios, TPMS settings and allows memory hold for ESS.

I was getting about "16 mpg" after putting my 35's on my Rubicon manual transmission. After I installed the Pulsar I am getting 21+ mpg on the economy tune with slightly better throttle response. I have a Gibson exhaust coming this week and hope to see some slight improvements after that as well.
Are you going to remove it when going in for regular maintenance?
Let us know how you like it in a couple of weeks.
 

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cgflyer

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Are you going to remove it when going in for regular maintenance?
Let us know how you like it in a couple of weeks.
Still like it. I have over 3000 miles on it now (I drive quite a bit). I did not take it off for my first oil change and tire rotation, but will remove it if there are any recalls that could involve and engine flash of obviously if I have any engine issues. I bought an extended warranty otherwise after 36,000 miles I wouldn't bother removing it, unless I expected a flash.
 

Whiplash2130

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Still like it. I have over 3000 miles on it now (I drive quite a bit). I did not take it off for my first oil change and tire rotation, but will remove it if there are any recalls that could involve and engine flash of obviously if I have any engine issues. I bought an extended warranty otherwise after 36,000 miles I wouldn't bother removing it, unless I expected a flash.
Thanks
 

cgflyer

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Are you going to remove it when going in for regular maintenance?
Let us know how you like it in a couple of weeks.
So it is funny you asked this a couple of months ago because I actually just removed the Pulsar to go to the dealer and this is an update to my initial review...a few days ago I started my truck and got a check engine light and service electronic stability control light. I used my scan tool to clear the code as I like to see if they replicate before I do anything with the vehicle. The lights came back today and my truck went into limp mode on the highway. I figured it was time to go to the dealership but was worried about having the Pulsar installed and the owner's manual for it says to remove it before having service done on the vehicle. So I limped home, pulled the Pulsar and put everything back to stock. The lights were gone when I started everything back up but that could have been a result of disconnecting the negative battery cable. I drove it for about 30-40 minutes without any lights and then drove to the dealership. They did a quick scan and could only find one stored fault code which essentially said the PCM had detected a fault, but it was no longer detecting it and was monitoring. I called Edge and they said they have only had one other person complain about something similar and they sent them a new tuner. Their recommendation was to reinstall the Pulsar and see if the lights come back and if they did, they would send me a new tuner. In all honesty, I think I like the stock tune better now but need to drive more to see what kind of mpg's I get with it. Edge did confirm that the stock PCM retains the updated tire size information even if the tuner is removed. If anyone is interested, I will update again in a week or two. There are more tuners coming on the market that I think offer more features and plug into the OBDII. I like that for ease of removal, but I don't necessarily like having to have a pod/programmer on my dash/windshield. I have close to 7,000 miles on the tuner now, so I think I can provide a pretty comprehensive review.
 

Whiplash2130

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So it is funny you asked this a couple of months ago because I actually just removed the Pulsar to go to the dealer and this is an update to my initial review...a few days ago I started my truck and got a check engine light and service electronic stability control light. I used my scan tool to clear the code as I like to see if they replicate before I do anything with the vehicle. The lights came back today and my truck went into limp mode on the highway. I figured it was time to go to the dealership but was worried about having the Pulsar installed and the owner's manual for it says to remove it before having service done on the vehicle. So I limped home, pulled the Pulsar and put everything back to stock. The lights were gone when I started everything back up but that could have been a result of disconnecting the negative battery cable. I drove it for about 30-40 minutes without any lights and then drove to the dealership. They did a quick scan and could only find one stored fault code which essentially said the PCM had detected a fault, but it was no longer detecting it and was monitoring. I called Edge and they said they have only had one other person complain about something similar and they sent them a new tuner. Their recommendation was to reinstall the Pulsar and see if the lights come back and if they did, they would send me a new tuner. In all honesty, I think I like the stock tune better now but need to drive more to see what kind of mpg's I get with it. Edge did confirm that the stock PCM retains the updated tire size information even if the tuner is removed. If anyone is interested, I will update again in a week or two. There are more tuners coming on the market that I think offer more features and plug into the OBDII. I like that for ease of removal, but I don't necessarily like having to have a pod/programmer on my dash/windshield. I have close to 7,000 miles on the tuner now, so I think I can provide a pretty comprehensive review.
Thanks for the update! I’ll follow your progress.
 

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ATXGLADIATOR2020

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So it is funny you asked this a couple of months ago because I actually just removed the Pulsar to go to the dealer and this is an update to my initial review...a few days ago I started my truck and got a check engine light and service electronic stability control light. I used my scan tool to clear the code as I like to see if they replicate before I do anything with the vehicle. The lights came back today and my truck went into limp mode on the highway. I figured it was time to go to the dealership but was worried about having the Pulsar installed and the owner's manual for it says to remove it before having service done on the vehicle. So I limped home, pulled the Pulsar and put everything back to stock. The lights were gone when I started everything back up but that could have been a result of disconnecting the negative battery cable. I drove it for about 30-40 minutes without any lights and then drove to the dealership. They did a quick scan and could only find one stored fault code which essentially said the PCM had detected a fault, but it was no longer detecting it and was monitoring. I called Edge and they said they have only had one other person complain about something similar and they sent them a new tuner. Their recommendation was to reinstall the Pulsar and see if the lights come back and if they did, they would send me a new tuner. In all honesty, I think I like the stock tune better now but need to drive more to see what kind of mpg's I get with it. Edge did confirm that the stock PCM retains the updated tire size information even if the tuner is removed. If anyone is interested, I will update again in a week or two. There are more tuners coming on the market that I think offer more features and plug into the OBDII. I like that for ease of removal, but I don't necessarily like having to have a pod/programmer on my dash/windshield. I have close to 7,000 miles on the tuner now, so I think I can provide a pretty comprehensive review.

What happened to this? I had the same issue with mine after a month of working just fine, Reset the light and it worked for a couple days, but now its jacked.. I took it out and the jeep is back to normal. Called Superchips and they said send it back and they will see whats up
 

cgflyer

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What happened to this? I had the same issue with mine after a month of working just fine, Reset the light and it worked for a couple days, but now its jacked.. I took it out and the jeep is back to normal. Called Superchips and they said send it back and they will see whats up
Yeah, I had the same conversation with Edge (are they the same company as Superchips?)...I have been driving for about a week and a few days without the Pulsar with no lights. I don't want to put it back in because it is just a pain just to ended up having to pull it out again for the new one...so I am going to call Edge and again and ask for them to send me a replacement. I have definitely noticed a drop in mpg again without it.
 

cgflyer

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Edge/Superchips is sending me a new Pulsar, pretty much no questions asked. They said they had some know issues with older modules that shouldn't have affected the JL/JT modules with bad soldering, but who knows what is the issue with mine. The first guy I spoke to said that if the connection is loose, it could cause faults, but the instructions were pretty clear on how to press the two pieces together and then it is bolted into place, so not sure how it would come loose if it wasn't loose to begin with...but long story short, to send a new one, they want my old one back but there were supposed to be sending a shipping label with the new one. They took my credit card info but said it wouldn't be charged as long as the old Pulsar was returned within 2 weeks, but then their system wasn't actually able to run my CC and he said he was sending the new one anyway. The support was actually really good and I'm pleased so far. Small annoyance that I needed to go through the exchange process, but they are standing by the product.

A couple of other things they shared: Edge and Superchips are indeed the same company now. The Superchips TrailCal is stackable with the Pulsar. You can buy both from Superchips as a package, but not from Edge. Quadratec has it but for like $100 more than direct from Superchips. The TrailCal gives you more functions and you can adjust your tunes from the TrailCal if you don't like using your cruise control buttons. They also told me that the Pulsar will likely never need an update, but if it does, they will "loan" you an update usb to OBDII cable to use. They send it to you and you send it back. I bought one on Amazon that I will just keep in case for later, but usually if they sell you something that will require frequent updates, they include the cable in the package. I plan to install the new one and hopefully regain the mpgs that I lost.

I would still recommend the Pulsar if anyone is still trying to decide. For the money, I think it beats spending $300 just for a flashcal to change tire size.
 

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This might sound crazy but I have an LE I got in July and had the Pulsar installed while I was away from the vehicle cross country so I have not driven it with the Pulsar yet.

I am guessing that since my programmer was one of the very first it probably needs to be updated also as it appears you are saying that it basically is happening to all the early programmers?

If so, I will have to remove it from the vehicle and send it back to them?

What exactly is the symptom of what happens?

I have the drive shaft recall to so still and was wondering if you know if there have been any flashes since July that would require me to remove the programmer before taking to the dealer anyway?

Removing and re-installing sounds like a pita or is it easier to do once its already in the first time?

Thanks!!
 

cgflyer

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This might sound crazy but I have an LE I got in July and had the Pulsar installed while I was away from the vehicle cross country so I have not driven it with the Pulsar yet.

I am guessing that since my programmer was one of the very first it probably needs to be updated also as it appears you are saying that it basically is happening to all the early programmers?

If so, I will have to remove it from the vehicle and send it back to them?

What exactly is the symptom of what happens?

I have the drive shaft recall to so still and was wondering if you know if there have been any flashes since July that would require me to remove the programmer before taking to the dealer anyway?

Removing and re-installing sounds like a pita or is it easier to do once its already in the first time?

Thanks!!
I'm not aware of the drive shaft recall, wondering if mine is not affected but as for the Pulsar symptoms...I got a check engine light, Service Electronic Stability Control light and Jeep went into limp mode (reduced throttle response and limited to 3,000 RPMs). I couldn't clear the code with my tuner. When I decided to take it to the dealership, I disconnected the negative battery terminal and pulled the Pulsar. All the lights were gone and there ended up being only a stored code which said the computer sensed a fault that was no longer there. Edge sent me a new programmer but I can't honestly say it had updated software. I drove about 7,000 miles with the first one and have 10,000 miles on the replacement. Got the same situation a few weeks ago. Same lights and limp mode, however this time limp mode went away after I turned the Jeep off and on, as did the ESC light. The CEL stayed on, but I was able to clear it with my scan tool and it hasn't come back sense. My new scan tool app said the computer sensed throttle position discrepancies. But I just cleared everything and I have had no issues. Still getting about 20-21 mpgs on highway trips, 18.5-19 in combined driving.
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