First impressions review: Ford Performance Calibration tune installed on 2.3 MT Bronco Badlands

[FloatingMoat]

It is 50 state legal for the 2021 MY, but only 49 state legal for 22+. I'm guessing they don't yet have the CARB certification for 22+ and will add it over time. You'll note on the Ford Performance page that the CARB cert for 2021 is listed, so I'm good. Mossy had no problem doing the install and were stoked I was doing it.

Ah, got it, thank you! My lack of reading comprehension hurts me again

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[Dmorty217]

I think it’s ridiculous that you have to have a ford performance dealership install it instead of just a ford dealer. There aren’t nearly as many ford performance dealership around, nearest one to me is 2 hrs away. I do want this tune though, have the scorcher Bluetooth piggy back but think this will be better.

 

[theentirety]

So you have to register the unit and then download the tune to the unit and then bring Procal unit to the dealer to install on Bronco? What’s the link for and how do you get it ? You don’t need to bring your laptop to the dealer after you download tune on to the Procal correct?

im glad I read this because I thought you just bring the box to the dealer and they take it from there

I had the same impression. I could have done the below steps 1-3 before dropping it off of course, but I just took the ProCal box to the dealer and said "here, do it." Since I don't even own a Windows machine, my work around was the following:

1. Log in at home on my mac https://performanceparts.ford.com/register/
2. Register the ProCal on the ProCal tab on the Account page https://performanceparts.ford.com/account/#page-6
3. Change my password to something the Mossy guy could easily type in instead of the insane gibberish that my password generator creates
4. He logged in with my account (I wasn't worried because there is nothing on there they can do)
5. He downloaded the software on his PC and emailed to let me know he got it
6. I changed my password to new gibberish
7. He loaded the software on his PC and plugged the ProCal into his laptop to sync it

 

[Lcubed]

I think it’s ridiculous that you have to have a ford performance dealership install it instead of just a ford dealer. There aren’t nearly as many ford performance dealership around, nearest one to me is 2 hrs away. I do want this tune though, have the scorcher Bluetooth piggy back but think this will be better.

if your ford dealer has a ASME certified tech, they can install and you get to keep your 3yr36m warranty

 

[Rick Astley]

The reason why I won't lock myself into 92 octane fuel.... And these are Seattle prices, not even CA prices.

Full disclosure: Washington has been #1 or #2 in the nation for state gasoline tax going on 30 years now, so our prices are generally high. $0.494 per gallon currently and will be $0.90 per gallon by 2030.

 

[DrewBronc21]

I had the same impression. I could have done the below steps 1-3 before dropping it off of course, but I just took the ProCal box to the dealer and said "here, do it." Since I don't even own a Windows machine, my work around was the following:

1. Log in at home on my mac https://performanceparts.ford.com/register/
2. Register the ProCal on the ProCal tab on the Account page https://performanceparts.ford.com/account/#page-6
3. Change my password to something the Mossy guy could easily type in instead of the insane gibberish that my password generator creates
4. He logged in with my account (I wasn't worried because there is nothing on there they can do)
5. He downloaded the software on his PC and emailed to let me know he got it
6. I changed my password to new gibberish
7. He loaded the software on his PC and plugged the ProCal into his laptop to sync it

Thanks for the clarification. This is a very helpful review

 

[DrewBronc21]

if your ford dealer has a ASME certified tech, they can install and you get to keep your 3yr36m warranty

this is what I read as well. I thought ALL Ford Dealers could install it.

I was also slightly hesitant to potentially reduce my powertrain warranty coverage from 5/60 to 3/36 but I’m a fan of some extra torque!

 

[HorizonHunter]

Specs:

• 2021 MY
• Cyber Orange
• 2-door
• Manual transmission
• Badlands
• Mid package
• Stock wheels 33"
• About 4k miles
• Always run 91 octane (California)
• Several cosmetic, lighting, comfort and security mods

Timeline:

• Ordered from Lethal Performance Oct 5
• ProCal unit delivered Oct 13
• Installed by Mossy Ford of Pacific Beach Oct 18
  • Originally I brought it in for install on Saturday Oct 15, but was told I needed to reschedule during the week as the shop foreman was the only one authorized to do the installation.
  • Charged for 1 hour of labor
  • I could have flashed it myself, but according to Ford, the warranty is only preserved if it's installed by an authorized dealer. I erred on the side of caution since it's a first model year vehicle and warranties are good.

Installation:

This is the first time I've used a factory tune and it was an easy process. As a Mac guy, I had to jump through a few extra hoops as the software is Windows only. I dropped off the truck early in the morning and the service rep was familiar with the tune; he had it on his Ranger and vouched for the performance improvements. The ProCal unit gets tied to the VIN and the pre-flash tune gets uploaded to "the cloud" for safe keeping. I had to register the ProCal with my Ford Performance account using the included code. This then gives you a link to download the software (if you're on a PC). I had to get the tech the software another way, which worked fine. A few hours later they said it was installed.

Driving Impressions:

The first thing I did was activate the rev matching feature to verify the tune was installed. Super easy process and I'm a fan of auto rev matching for MTs, especially for casual driving. It really smooths out the day-to-day driving by alleviating the need for me to do the blipping on down shift. It's not a performance vehicle; I'll save the heel-toe for my Camaro on track days, thank you very much.

I drove it on a long-ish highway drive and around town. I noticed a few things right away. The boost seems to come on at lower RPMs making the turbo feel less laggy. For me, this equates to a smoother acceleration through the mid-range and more eagerness to wring it out a bit. I'll have to give it some more time, but it feels a bit more peppy. I would say, though, that the tune makes it feel more progressive through the revs, more than you really feel the horsepower and torque improvements.

It's a relatively inexpensive mod that keeps the warranty in place, smoothing out the power delivery of the 2.3. The throttle response does seem better requiring less depression of the pedal for the juice to flow. I'm a fan.

https://performanceparts.ford.com/part/M-9603-B23

I was unaware of the rev match. This might be where my Ford points go now.

 

[Austin Bronco]

Specs:

• 2021 MY
• Cyber Orange
• 2-door
• Manual transmission
• Badlands
• Mid package
• Stock wheels 33"
• About 4k miles
• Always run 91 octane (California)
• Several cosmetic, lighting, comfort and security mods

Timeline:

• Ordered from Lethal Performance Oct 5
• ProCal unit delivered Oct 13
• Installed by Mossy Ford of Pacific Beach Oct 18
  • Originally I brought it in for install on Saturday Oct 15, but was told I needed to reschedule during the week as the shop foreman was the only one authorized to do the installation.
  • Charged for 1 hour of labor
  • I could have flashed it myself, but according to Ford, the warranty is only preserved if it's installed by an authorized dealer. I erred on the side of caution since it's a first model year vehicle and warranties are good.

Installation:

This is the first time I've used a factory tune and it was an easy process. As a Mac guy, I had to jump through a few extra hoops as the software is Windows only. I dropped off the truck early in the morning and the service rep was familiar with the tune; he had it on his Ranger and vouched for the performance improvements. The ProCal unit gets tied to the VIN and the pre-flash tune gets uploaded to "the cloud" for safe keeping. I had to register the ProCal with my Ford Performance account using the included code. This then gives you a link to download the software (if you're on a PC). I had to get the tech the software another way, which worked fine. A few hours later they said it was installed.

Driving Impressions:

The first thing I did was activate the rev matching feature to verify the tune was installed. Super easy process and I'm a fan of auto rev matching for MTs, especially for casual driving. It really smooths out the day-to-day driving by alleviating the need for me to do the blipping on down shift. It's not a performance vehicle; I'll save the heel-toe for my Camaro on track days, thank you very much.

I drove it on a long-ish highway drive and around town. I noticed a few things right away. The boost seems to come on at lower RPMs making the turbo feel less laggy. For me, this equates to a smoother acceleration through the mid-range and more eagerness to wring it out a bit. I'll have to give it some more time, but it feels a bit more peppy. I would say, though, that the tune makes it feel more progressive through the revs, more than you really feel the horsepower and torque improvements.

It's a relatively inexpensive mod that keeps the warranty in place, smoothing out the power delivery of the 2.3. The throttle response does seem better requiring less depression of the pedal for the juice to flow. I'm a fan.

https://performanceparts.ford.com/part/M-9603-B23

I’ve been really looking at this and it looks like it’s a 30hp gain, also interested in how it makes it where 37” tires will run. Can 37s fit on a SAS setup or are 35s are big as it gets? Seems like for about 1k, adding this to the 2.3 seems awesome. Also wonder how it works with extended warranty, is that out the window for anything that would be related to the tune?

 

[SoDak1623]

Glad it worked for somebody. Took my 2 door MT badlands to Ford today to have my tune installed. 3 hours later and I find that it didn't work at all, Ford Performance tech support couldn't provide a solution, and we have to wait for one of the software programmers to get back to us to help solve the issue. The fact that they didn't test an off the shelf unit using dealer level install procedures is ridiculous. Really lost my confidence in something I had my hopes up for. Similar to waiting 2 years for my delivery.

 

[Shoresy]

Lots of interest. I have a ‘21 MT badlands 4d. Put a throttle controller which helps quite a bit.
Curious if you noticed any improvement in rev hang? I drive other classic and modern MTs, but the darn Bronco rev hang makes me feel like a jackass when driving even remotely hard! Not a performance vehicle, I know…

 

[351W-Bronco]

Two questions.

1) Is there any benefit to the tune if you run less than Premium gas (recognizing that the gains will be less)?

2) Are you also using anything like the Panda Motorworks Pedal Commander? Curious to see if the two are mutually beneficial.


thanks,
Herb

 

[Jamiegla1]

this may be a dumb question so bear with me; why wouldnt Ford just tune them like this from the factory? Why does it require an add-on to make the drive more enjoyable?

 

[adamruiz2001]

this may be a dumb question so bear with me; why wouldnt Ford just tune them like this from the factory? Why does it require an add-on to make the drive more enjoyable?

Come on man, deep down, you know the answer..... All comes down to money for Ford, always!

 

[CeeCeeBronco]

Bummer

• Not available for 2022 model year vehicles in California

Just waiting on approval. It's expected very soon.

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