Tuning Your F-250 & How Throttle Adjustment Tools Work

Tuning engines is something real gear heads have been doing since the dawn of the automobile. Enhancing certain aspects by tuning an engine can really help you restore lost power and even increase the engine’s power output.

There are many reasons to do this. It helps you tailor the truck to your driving style, which is important for every driver. It can help you produce more power output or increase fuel efficiency. For F-250 owners who intend on modifying the truck, tuning the engine will be necessary to make sure it’s able to contend with the add-ons and modifications installed.

The F-250 is offered with both gas and diesel engines, creating a very interesting discussion in the tuning department. Many of the upgrades in both gas and diesel applications will be similar, but the installation process and results will vary. Gas engines are much easier to work with, but the fuel-injected gas engines offered by Ford today make it hard to achieve results without aftermarket parts.

Diesel engines, on the other hand, respond extremely well to swapping fuel injectors, upgraded fuel pumps, and air delivery modifications. The savvy can even ring additional power from these setups with very little money spent. It’s also worth noting diesel engines respond very well to power modifications with the use of typical tuning upgrades.

Gasoline engines can free up a decent amount of power, but one shouldn’t expect similar results to what they would with a diesel. The drawback to the diesel market is it’s very easy to spend thousands of dollars more to modify their engine and fuel system than a gasoline-powered engine owner would.

There are a lot of advancements that make modern engine tuning a breeze. What likely ranks first is modern engine management systems and the ability to use handheld tuners. Without having to break out a timing light or spending countless hours under the hood you can tap right into the engine and pinpoint the characteristics of the engine you would like to enhance in minutes.

Even a factory truck should have a tune run to tailor the vehicle to the driver. This becomes even more of a critical process when select modifications are made. Airflow enhancements are a key reason to install a tune to make sure the engine can take advantage of what’s being offered to the cylinders.

Other modifications that can bog the engine down or throw off the speedometer reading, such as a lower ring gear, bigger tires or a lift kit, should also be paired with a tuner to help restore the management systems as well as get the vehicle back to or beyond its running quality.

• - Bigger Tires
• - Cold Air Intake
• - Lift kit
• - Differential Gears
• - Aftermarket Exhaust

Throttle adjusters are growing in popularity as their primary focus is to enhance throttle response. This makes them very similar to a tuner, but they aren’t on the same plane. Throttle adjusters perform a mechanical action that causes the throttle body to send more air flow to the engine earlier which is then matched with the right amount of fuel amount by the computer. A tuner is designed to tap into the ECU’s mapping to change the rate at which fuel and air are introduced to the engine and will work across the entire rpm range.

A throttle adjuster should be selected by those who are after more low-end power. These are perfect for off-road applications where high rpm’s aren’t touched that much. By sending more of the air and fuel to the engine sooner, one won’t have to press the pedal down as far to achieve throttle response.

When timing is everything, this adds up to a major advantage. One doesn’t have to choose between one or the other unless the budget tells them otherwise. If additional power off the line is more important, one should start with the throttle adjuster, but can still move to a tuner in time.