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View Full Version : HELP, HELP, Runningwiththedevil



DURAMONSTER
08-13-2003, 17:26
I finally ordered the predator from you yesterday and I was so excited to get it so I took today off (and thats not easy for me to do) so I would not miss UPS. and so I was waiting around and finally here he comes, I sign for the package and I run (yes I ran) inside to rip it open and, and, and, Guess what. I got 8 spark plugs. Now im depressed the rest of the day and the worst part is that I called the only # I can find for you guys and I cannot get a hold of anybody. So it probably wont go out tomarow will it.

conradv
08-13-2003, 19:33
:eek: :( :eek: :( :eek:

mackin
08-13-2003, 20:02
What kind of spark plugs ?? tongue.gif
Wonder who received the Pred look'in Spark Plugs ?? :eek:

That suuucks .....

Good stuff,a better choice (http://www.edgeproductsinc.com/)

Mac ;)

Burner
08-14-2003, 01:18
---------- You've got mail -----------


Burner-------> :D

DURAMONSTER
08-14-2003, 02:22
Theese are exspinsive spark plugs. But I cant figure out whare thay go in my duramax. Oh well Ill look harder. smile.gif
BURNER, I have the same #. Hopefully it will work tommarow. Why are you gonna sell.

SoCalDMAX
08-14-2003, 12:11
Are they at least the right plugs? ;)

OK, seriously, this is what frosts me. RWTD came on here in the beginning tooting his horn about how awesome and great the Predator is, the qualifications of the programmers, the speed with which updates could be made (although it wouldn't need them because unlike "another company" they got it right the first time :rolleyes: ). Not to mention his promises of awesome customer service and past performance.

He received a less than warm response because his posts contained more ad hype than hard data and at our age (all you old farts, not me!) we are kind of a "I'll believe it when I see it" crowd.

So now his shipping clerk somehow accidentally shipped spark plugs to a diesel owner (some kinda sarcastic message?) and he hasn't been seen in a while. He's got a customer who was anxiously awaiting his performance box (NONE of us have ever jumped a UPS driver before have we?) and gets disappointed - big time.

Now let's talk about the Predator. I waited to see how they would handle VIN # issues - it's married to 1 VIN until it gets shipped back to the factory to be reset, so you can't sell it or lend it to a buddy. The Quadzilla uses the VIN but can back out and be installed on another truck, only 1 truck at a time. That's fair, you only paid for one unit. The Predator smokes more, has higher EGTs and makes less power than competing products. Not good. I haven't heard of any updates, but I wasn't paying that close of attention. It can read/clear DTCs and read diagnosics, set tire size, etc. Now the Quadzilla can do all but monitor diagnostics and has a lot more power and less smoke on comparable levels.

Welll... I think you all know where I'm going with this. I don't buy my diesel performance stuff from Walmart or someone who tries to be a performance guru for a wide range of vehicles. I like a specialist who knows MY vehicle, and knows all about all of the products on the market for it. Who will honestly tell you (via 5,000+ posts and a cell phone!) what works and what doesn't without his wallet or ego getting involved.

Who's been working on diesels 5x longer than I've owned a diesel? Who's been trying out different tranny upgrades on his own nickel to tell us the pros and cons of each (without hurting people's feelings?) All together now: John Kennedy. I always drop his name when people on other forums ask me where to get parts or where I get my info from. If for 1 second I thought that they wouldn't get great service, honest answers and fair prices, I'd zip my lip and throw my keyboard away.

But this is all JMHO. *Sheepishly stepping off soapbox now.*

Oh yeah, I wave the flag, too. :D

Regards, Steve

mackin
08-14-2003, 12:46
Hey Steve are you on the ballot for Governor ??
First The Terminator,perhaps Socal,who's next OJ ??

Only in the land of fruits and nuts .. You got my vote ...

Mac http://www.turbodieselregister.com/ubb/hihi.gif http://www.turbodieselregister.com/ubb/hihi.gif http://www.turbodieselregister.com/ubb/hihi.gif

sdaver
08-14-2003, 18:41
hey macs is your power on?........james you need to step up and help this guy....I have and extra 90 horse juice Ill loan you till the predator gets there but once you go juice you throw rocks at the predator.......course it does handle my speed limiter.......I think ole jk has predators and juicers and several others give him a call He probably just sitting there getting caught up on some TV or daydreaming about watching the beverly hillbillies.........seriously lemme tell you john is a class act who spends his on dollars to research and find the best product and he backs up what he sells :D dave

ps mac have you been doing any electrical wiring today..........joe said your kit was ready but he could not ship because the power was off :D :D

mackin
08-14-2003, 19:29
I got a couple surges that's it ... Full power AC is cranking

I have a generator nevertheless ...I suffer not ... ;)

I should have GUTS in hand or at least shipped by next week ... Suncoast is a mirror image of excellent customer service ... Joe has gone out of his way to assist me in my dilemma ... Man he is busy guy,building Allison's ... Looking forward to getting the goods ....

Mac :D :D :D

sdaver
08-14-2003, 19:32
he likes to scuba fish too!

NWDmax
08-14-2003, 19:38
Hey Steve,I like your soapbox!
JK is the man for sure and he's prolly(your fault Mac)to busy counting his money cause of all the referrals.Lol.
Seriously though for straight no bs talk and 5 X 5 solid info you can rely on John's the guy.
Nice post Steve, I concur!
Blake :D

Burner
08-14-2003, 20:38
Hey, I scuba fish too..... I just do it down the road from the Sun Coast shop ... at Night Town. ;) :D :D :cool:

DURAMONSTER
08-14-2003, 23:52
My wife has been intouch with james by e-mail and he is bieng really cool about it. I will have a predator in my hands tommarow (friday). I am worried about the EGT temps people keep talking about. I have no gauges or exhaust. I want to tow in the 40 HP tow mode in a couple of weeks and there is some serious hills to climb and Im worried that I cant use it. What do you guys think.

a64pilot
08-15-2003, 06:33
IMHO, never run any body's power enhancer of any kind without knowing what your EGT's are, especially towing, particulaly big hills.

Bullseye54
08-15-2003, 07:07
I have a tall 30' 5th wheel toy hauler that weighs 12000 lb loaded.I towed with the Pred on 40hp & the EGT would go 1200* on hills in fla. on a regular basis,& our hills arent hills.Before going to Sturgis I bought a Hot Juice from JK & programed o hp & speed limiter/tire recal with Pred.I ran Hot Juice level 1 & never went over 1250 EGT all the way to Sturgis & there are some BIG hills between here & there,at least they are big to me.On the way home I decided to DC the Juice & run Pred. on 40hp high EGT & the power is another story.This was on I-90 in SD.Switched back to Juice real quick.Just my .02.I just got a G-tech & am going to try & run all levels on both & see what I get.

SoCalDMAX
08-15-2003, 13:33
DURAMONSTER,

Great! As long as he's taking good care of you and you like the product, that's what matters.

Regards, Steve

jesshd
08-17-2003, 10:35
Your really need to get some guages in there. If you are worried about installing the EGT, just do a post turbo install for now. You NEED to know what the EGTs are.

Jess

schnier
08-18-2003, 06:46
Just finished towing through KY, nice hills and the Predator. In 5th going 80 mph pulling 9,000lbs it never went over 1200 degrees on the EGT. It does not downshift either. If you floor it to force a downshift to fourth going 75 or less it will climb to 1300 degrees. I usually let off to about half throttle and it goes 70 mph in fourth at 1200 degrees. This thing runs great with the predator in 40 HP mode. The Juice would not confirm my settings properly, so I went with the Pred and am very happy. Oh well, just my .02 cents worth.

DURAMONSTER
08-18-2003, 16:49
Thanx for the replies guys.
schnier
Do you have a exhaust system, or stock?

schnier
08-19-2003, 05:57
Probably not what the experts will like, but I have a 4" magnaflow straight through chrome muffler, welded into my stock 3.5" pipe system. It was the right price at the time, when there were not many to chose from. Sounds good and I would say is more free flowing than the stock double chamber. Has a nice sound also. I will be looking at 4" pipe in the future. When I hit the lottery. Between the camper, boat, rc cars, toyota mud truck, and other toys, it is hard to divide the priority list on what to buy.

schnier
08-19-2003, 08:13
Hey Duramonster, I just noticed the Toyota in your sig:
I have a 1982 Toyota, 4x4, 22R, 5:29 gears, lock rite lockers, 2" suspension lift, externel roll cage, 33" boggers, and a big cooler in the back. There are some guys trying to go to Windrock, TN this weekend at Coal creek riding area. Check out Pirate4x4.com under Toyota section.

RWTD
08-28-2003, 14:15
Originally posted by SoCalDMAX:
Not to mention his promises of awesome customer service and past performance.Steve, I have not ever purposely upset any customer nor have I ever given any of my customers bad service nor ever any bad support. I give them 100% effort at all times. Things happen, we're all humans, so we make mistakes. I promptly shipped him out a new Predator and he had it the very next day. Here is the quote from the customer:


Thank you, There is no need to call if you are shipping another one. I understand that mistakes happen so it's okay.The problem was completely rectified and DURAMONSTER was pleased with how I handled the unfortunate and accidental situation.

As for my contact information, is it found directly on my website where the customer goes to either purchase the product or learn more about the unit. It's also listed directly on the UPS shipping label in the upper left hand corner. I would have it in my signature here but it is very limited and only allows 250 characters.


The Predator smokes more, has higher EGTs and makes less power than competing products. Not good. I haven't heard of any updates, but I wasn't paying that close of attention.There are 5 members on this board running around with a custom tune at this time; Awesome Power, low EGT's, and great Shifting. I would hope that at least 1 or 2 of them would chime in and tell everyone how happy they are with that program.

Very Kind Regards...

[ 08-29-2003, 11:04 AM: Message edited by: RunninWithTheDevil ]

DMAX Daddy
08-28-2003, 16:41
Good news, time to upgrade the predator, especially since mine is messed up and wont let me do any swapping now. :mad:

SoCalDMAX
08-28-2003, 16:48
Hi James,

All of the info I had to go on was in the first post. He got 8 spark plugs (ya gotta admit, that's pretty ironic ;) ) and he said he couldn't get hold of anyone on the phone # he had. I agree, everyone is human, but based on that 1st post it looked like he was asking for our help because he couldn't get in touch with you. Once he answered back that you'd been in touch and all would be fixed, then I agreed, as long as he's been taken care of, it's all good.

All of the info on the Predator performance vs smoke levels was based on what owners have posted here, I've never used one. It's nice to hear that the Predator is soon to come out with better power levels. But the Juice is currently avail in 90, 125(actually 140hp) and mental/comp (175-180hp) versions. So it's definitely a case of too little too late when a guy is shopping for a big hp box. The diagnostic features of the Predator sure sound nice to have!

Anyways, good to hear from you again and hope you read/post more frequently as your busy schedule allows.

Regards, Steve

DMAX Daddy
08-28-2003, 17:46
took out my juice and my predator is working again. Reinstalled the Juice and it still works. Maybe just a hiccup smile.gif

ndamico
08-28-2003, 23:42
James,

Since you spilled the beans about the new levels i will chime in. :D

James has sent me 3 different files over the last several weeks. the first was an improved version of the 100 that smoked considerably less, was quicker, and had much lower egt's. next he sent me a yet improved version of the previous with a bit more hp.

the most recent file doesn't smoke at all during normal driving and makes a lot of power during hard acceleration. it shifts great too. i had originally pondered not using the power levels in my predator and just keeping it for a diagnostic tool. now that i have got some improved tunes, i've removed my banks ottomind stacker and put it up for sale.

anyone who cares to upgrade will be very very pleased with the new levels. even the lower power levels run cooler with much less smoke, which is nice especially when you tow something big and white. :rolleyes:

No to mention the OBDII functions of the predator, plus the 8-line LCD far superseed that of any other programmer/scan tool combo. Not to mention the price!

James has been great getting me new tunes too. his customer service has been top rate.

Nick

[ 08-29-2003, 08:32 AM: Message edited by: ndamico ]

NFLDMAX
08-29-2003, 05:57
Thanks for the info Nick....I am ready to upgrade

jesshd
08-29-2003, 06:59
So what will be involved with the upgrade? Can it be done via the web, or do we have to send our units back in? And what will be the cost?

Jess

BassinRVer
08-29-2003, 07:01
Its been a while but is the upgrades free?

AlanL
08-29-2003, 07:22
When you upgrade, do you have to program your truck back to stock, then send back the old unit and wait for it to return? Or can you do some sort of swap where you get an upgraded unit and return the old one after you've recieved it?

-Al

WhiteDuramax
08-29-2003, 14:01
I have recieved several custom tunes from James and I am very happy with them. I have tried 2 different tunes over 100hp and I am very pleased with the highest ones he sent me. Plus he sent me a new 100hp and 60hp, both better than the originols. I dont know why you guys complain about the Predator smokin, my buddies 90hp juice smokes more than my custom 100+ Predator tune does. The only thing I have to compare the tunes to are the 90hp juice and the VA 110, both of the 100+ custom tunes from James felt much stronger and quicker. I know you guys dont think that means anything, but to me it does. The power also seems to come on a lot earlier, right off of idle. I am pleased with my Predator.

BassinRVer
09-05-2003, 13:51
What's the latest on the upgrades??

jsa
09-05-2003, 19:32
VERY confused predator or stealth tuner?


2003 2500HD CC/SB (dslpwr)

RWTD
09-06-2003, 00:42
Okay, since the cat was pretty much let out of the bag last week, I'll go ahead and spill the entire beans ;)

The new tune levels will be 0, 40, 65, 85, and 120. The 65 will put out about 75, and 85 around 100, and the 120 anywhere from 115 to 130 depending on the modifications on the truck (if the truck has exhaust and an intake it should make over 120 easy).

All the shifting will be vastly improved and should feel like stock, and there will be none of the previous defueling that was associated with the old tunes. All of the issues with the overboost codes and limp mode has been fully rectified, and the EGT's have been lowered substantially compared to before, as well as the smoke. The drivability has been improved upon, and there should be no more just off idle twitchiness as some have reported before.

The same end-user options that was there before will remain; tire size, axle, and speed limiter adjustability. Also, the years covered are all Duramax years, which is 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004.

The price on the unit will remain the same, which means you will see me sell the unit for the standard $449 with FREE UPS Next Day Air Shipping. All revision upgrades will be free to the current customers, and DiabloSport only asks that you pay for shipping. In order to get the revision upgrade, you will need to contact DiabloSport at general@diablosport.com and ask for the instructions on returning the unit for the revision upgrade. Please state your name, what year, make, and model of the vehicle you have, and the current type (Duramax Predator) and version (v1.02, 1.03, 1.04, etc.) of the Predator you have now. Please be patient on the reply back from DiabloSport, as undoubtedly they will get bombarded with emails from this new revision update.

A BIG special thanks to the near 10 members of this board who volunteered their time and their vehicles to do the testing on the new tunes for us, for the last few months. I greatly respect each of you for being so considerate and friendly with us. Johan of DiabloSport, and I, personally can't thank you enough!

Very Sincerely...

ndamico
09-06-2003, 03:00
Yes I'm sure everyone who has a predator will be delighted with the improvement in it. i sure was!

DMAX Phil
09-06-2003, 12:29
I thought part of the Predator's value was the promised ability to download programs on-line. Is this feature included in the upgrade (for future upgrades)? Sure makes sense and would save Diablo lots of money in the long run...


Phil B.

Ltrainracing
09-06-2003, 13:34
This is for RUNNIN WITH THE Devil, I just purchased a programmer for my 2004 3500 GMC, and i was supprised it did not come in on friday which would be the next day, just wondering if everything went through: check for Elliot Thompson 612 MANN RD.

Also I am wondering if it will be coming with the new 120hp setting. please let me know.

you can email me at Ltrainracing@yahoo.com THANKS

RWTD
09-06-2003, 14:35
Originally posted by Ltrainracing:
This is for RUNNIN WITH THE Devil, I just purchased a programmer for my 2004 3500 GMCElliot, hello sir and I hope all is well. I sent you an email on Thursday evening, did you not get it? I'll resend). Basically, it said: If you do not mind, please email me your telephone # to sales@runninwiththedevil.com, so I may call you on Monday, if you do not mind. I want you to get the newest revision, and I'm sure that is what you want as well.

Very Sincerely...

FIRELT
09-06-2003, 18:34
GOT MY NEW TUNES TODAY,MUCH BETTER THEN BEFORE,120 HP IS FASTER THEN THE 100 HP FOR SURE, SHIFTS ALOT BETTER,I THINK EVERYONE WILL BE HAPPY,MIKE

SoCalDMAX
09-06-2003, 18:44
That is awesome, James! Lots of improvements, Johann has been a very busy man! It's good to hear of all of these improvements, because the diagnostic capabilities make it very attractive, all it needed was some of these rough edges fixed and then it becomes a very VERY attractive unit to have.

Anxiously waiting to hear what the members think of all of this after testing it out.

Regards, Steve

WhiteDiesel
09-07-2003, 02:00
OK, now I can't decide. Hypertech, Predator, Edge, or what? I just need something reliable to tow with 5 days a week @ about 5000lbs. But I also want to beat the pants off my uncle's 8.1! What product allows for easy change from one level to the next?