Tech 2 arrived today, hopefully resolved my high alcohol %

[Joseph Garcia]

Hah not yet! But it's still fairly new to me and it's mostly been ironing out all the little problems it came with. But now that I'm approaching the "all clear" status I find myself thinking, it doesn't "need" more power but it'd be a lot cooler if it did.

You won't 'know' that you need more power on that 6.2, until you put a tune on it. After that, there will be no going back.

 

[wsteele]

Finally decided to pull the trigger on a Tech 2 and hopefully resolved my codes from an abnormally high alcohol percentage in fuel with a composition reset. It seems to run better!

For some reason I had gotten it in my head I could turn off the TPMS light with a Tech 2 on a 2009 but does not appear to be the case, that was a little annoying but I think it's just from my lack of research.

So far the Tech 2 seems like a really handy tool. I just got one off ebay, I felt better about having some of the buyer protections instead of going through other sites.

What actual percentage of Ethanol were you using versus what your virtual sensor said it had in the tank?

 

[mftrnr]

What actual percentage of Ethanol were you using versus what your virtual sensor said it had in the tank?

I did not do a manual sample/test on the fuel, but multiple sources I found online says the Costco 91 Octane here on Oahu doesn't have ethanol in it, but I think I'll be over there tomorrow to see if the pump is labeled.

However the reading was 67% before doing the fuel composition reset and I'm pretty certain it's never had E85 in it since from the Carfax it doesn't appear to have ever been off the island (Oahu).

 

[mftrnr]

You won't 'know' that you need more power on that 6.2, until you put a tune on it. After that, there will be no going back.

Yeah..... that's what I've really been thinking about, is the black bear tune.

How do you like the hellwig sway bars?! That's one of the other things I'd really like to pick up but I think shipping here to Hawaii will be unreasonable.

 

[wsteele]

I did not do a manual sample/test on the fuel, but multiple sources I found online says the Costco 91 Octane here on Oahu doesn't have ethanol in it, but I think I'll be over there tomorrow to see if the pump is labeled.

However the reading was 67% before doing the fuel composition reset and I'm pretty certain it's never had E85 in it since from the Carfax it doesn't appear to have ever been off the island (Oahu).

Interesting. I haven’t seen an error that large yet. On my Yukon, using Costco E10 87 here (with about 6% actual Ethanol) the highest I have seen it off was like 38%.

Even at that, it ran really rich after cold starts, that is what prompted me to look at what it thought it had versus what it actually had.

We have a thread on the subject where a few of us that have experienced these issues have posted our experiences.

It would be great if you could post what your truck thinks it is getting versus what it actually is getting. If yours is like mine, you will have to reset it every time you fill (that is when the virtual sensor does its thing).

FWIW, @kbuskill fixed his virtual sensor error by installing a new fuel pump. I have not done that yet.

 

[Joseph Garcia]

Yeah..... that's what I've really been thinking about, is the black bear tune.

How do you like the hellwig sway bars?! That's one of the other things I'd really like to pick up but I think shipping here to Hawaii will be unreasonable.

A Black Bear Performance tune will really wake up that 6.2. And, it is a one-time expense (~$600) for the AutoCal interface device and first tune, and you will receive subsequent free tune adjustments for the life of your truck, whenever you install a mod for which a tune adjustment may be needed (even something as simple as re-calibrating your speedometer and odometer, when you change to a different tire/wheel combination, which has a different overall tire height).

The Hellwig sway bars are fantastic. There is virtually no lean of the truck to the left or right when cornering. On my 'test' exit ramp, I picked up over 20 MPH in speed in the truck going around that curve with the Hellwig sway bars. And still, virtually no lean of the truck while negotiating that exit ramp.

I chose Hellwig sway bars after @PNW VietVet installed them on his truck and reported a major positive improvement in cornering and overall handling.

 

[OR VietVet]

To this day, when I have a passenger with me, they are amazed at me doing 50 mph on a 25 mph exit cloverleaf near where I live. You can see them cringe and grab hold tighter at first and then they relax as they feel the stability.

 

[mftrnr]

Interesting. I haven’t seen an error that large yet. On my Yukon, using Costco E10 87 here (with about 6% actual Ethanol) the highest I have seen it off was like 38%.

Even at that, it ran really rich after cold starts, that is what prompted me to look at what it thought it had versus what it actually had.

We have a thread on the subject where a few of us that have experienced these issues have posted our experiences.

It would be great if you could post what your truck thinks it is getting versus what it actually is getting. If yours is like mine, you will have to reset it every time you fill (that is when the virtual sensor does its thing).

FWIW, @kbuskill fixed his virtual sensor error by installing a new fuel pump. I have not done that yet.

Took me longer then I thought but finally made it back to Costco for a refuel, it is labeled under 10% and after one fill up it is still reading 7% so I'm hopeful I dont have to reset every fill up, but we'll see, this Yukon has been fill of surprises.

 

[wsteele]

Took me longer then I thought but finally made it back to Costco for a refuel, it is labeled under 10% and after one fill up it is still reading 7% so I'm hopeful I dont have to reset every fill up, but we'll see, this Yukon has been fill of surprises.

Costco E10 87 here has been right at 6% Ethanol every single time I have given it the bottle test.

When I fill up after having run some Ethanol free through for a tank, my virtual sensor usually registers around 17%. If I don’t want a pretty rich mixture while it warms up before it gets to closed loop, I have to reset the value with my Tech 2.

I ran a tank of E85 (measured 80% with the bottle test and the virtual sensor said 59%) and when it was down to about a 1.5 gal in the tank, refilled with Costco E10 87 (so I was guessing somewhere in the 11-12% Ethanol in the tank), the virtual sensor came back like 28%.

It basically doesn’t have a clue how much Ethanol is actually in the tank. The good news is after a fill up of Costco 87, I reset it to 3% with the Tech 2 and cold starts are very clean.

 

[smokymtn65]

Will this effect hot starts too? still plagued with long crank when hot. I have noticed the Ethanol content reads highs but haven't reset it.