My TracKey Experience

[ArizonaBOSS]

Wow a little touchy? ;D Just don't pull one of the rifles out of your back window and come after me ;D ;D ;D

Speaking of rifles on the back window, check out this youtube video I made last year when I had my mullet wig (some NSFW language):

[youtube]Pk-QBRe1y44?hd=1[/youtube]

 

[Jza1736]

Short vid from outside and then I set the camera on the dash. I think the Milller car would have moved the camera. Looking forward to more reports of people that have been there.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLuxcfvqoUc&feature=player_detailpage[/youtube]

Nice! I just went to Miller 2 weeks ago and I agree with you they seemed louder and definitely shook the whole car. Nice ultraguage, I got that too!

 

[VoodooBoss]

Nice! I just went to Miller 2 weeks ago and I agree with you they seemed louder and definitely shook the whole car. Nice ultraguage, I got that too!

Sure sounds quite a bit different from the TA cars.

Scott was your car nice and hot? I recall the lopey idle at MMP being much more noticeable after we pulled off the track.

I'm scheduled for a Saturday morning install.

 

[jas427]

Just wanted to add my video to the info and state that with a little seat time running the drag strip and of course power braking to heat the tires ( something I won't do on my track car) you could really get it consistent lap after lap. BUT no drag car for me. Last time to the drag strip for the car. The roar down the track is awesome to here. I know everyone is out driving their cars but you can believe me the launch control works great...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rX9BqU1Rxc

 

[Vince]

TracKey Idle message ==== It was just posted by farmboy on TMS that early Bosses will say "ENGINE" and later Bosses will say "IDLE". I guess I have an 'early' Boss. This is mentioned on v1.1 on the customer instruction download which was just put online today.

Since there are two different words, does that mean that the tune as always been in the PCM, and early Bosses get the word "ENGINE", or does it mean that only those who had trackey installed before about 9am today have the word "ENGINE"???

 

[2012YellowBoss]

Sure sounds quite a bit different from the TA cars.

Scott was your car nice and hot? I recall the lopey idle at MMP being much more noticeable after we pulled off the track.

Yep, it was after a 20 mile drive, it is night and day different. I just took three people for rides and do not really see the big increase in engine braking. I do feel the throttle response like I said but that is the only big difference.

I will have to see what it does on track but unless people are tracking the car a lot I do not see this as worthwhile to get. The $500 can be spent better IMHO. I am not expert, I am not Parnelli Jones, Joe Foster and even if my name is Scott, I'm not Scott Maxwell. So take my opinion for what it is worth. Even if the dealer is doing it for free, you need to weight the loss of warranty.

I say this because I know many people want the idle, it would be cool showing off at car shows and the like. If I was not tracking that is exactly why I would want this. If this is the case you will be disappointed.

I will know better after this weekend, if at the very least it stops limp mode it will be somewhat worth it. I am not a big fan of aftermarket tunes but if someone cracks this and puts the original tune back together I might be very interested in getting one. Maybe it will even add some ponies which would be nice.

 

[2012YellowBoss]

For people asking about the "IDLE" Vs. "ENGINE" car number 6 says this.

 

[Vince]

Scott, so does mine.

I wonder if the word depends upon the manufacture date of the car, or the date the TracKey was installed?

 

[2012YellowBoss]

I have no idea ??? I doubt it would affect the tune but you never know.

 

[VoodooBoss]

Scott, so does mine.

I wonder if the word depends upon the manufacture date of the car, or the date the TracKey was installed?

Inquiring minds what to know...

 

[Vince]

Scott, so does mine.

I wonder if the word depends upon the manufacture date of the car, or the date the TracKey was installed?

Inquiring minds what to know...

Another data item for the registry LOL!

My story is the one with "ENGINE" is a pre-CARB tune

 

[jec246]

I thought it would sound more like this. :-\

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5p8WQj9apw[/youtube]

 

[suprmn]

Well, now that I have time to sit at the computer after a very long day.....here is what I can personally report about my Trackey experience.

I had a 1pm appointment which was originally set for yesterday but due to the snow I rescheduled. Prior to my appointment, my dealership called and stated they had received the instructions and information needed to install the software. I explained to them some of the hiccups I've read on BMO and instructed them to look into them before I arrive.

I arrived just before 1pm and my service guy (Martin) was eagerly awaiting my arrival. He informed me, this would be the first Boss 302 Trackey install the shop has done. With that being said, I fully expected a learning curve or delay on the estimated 1 hour of shop time.

An hour passed and I was informed by the shop supervisor (Marty) installing the program that his tools were up to date but for some reason the program itself would not merge with the car or the key. He called directly to Ford and got some assistance. After 2 hours of waiting Marty came back and told me he had some good news and bad news.

The good news was he finally was able to merge the two systems together and everything seems to read perfectly. The bad news was he could not get the "lopey idle" to present itself. This immediately had me concerned. However, thanks to the information on BMO (thanks guys) I was able to inform him the car had to warm up and a certain amount of time to elapse before the "lopey idle" would begin to work.

With a warmed up car and approximately 160 seconds passed, the car began to shake slightly and the exhaust note change. It seemed the full effect of Trackey was working properly.

Now after having a chance to drive the car around and mess with a few settings, I have to say I was really hoping for more of a distinct "lopey idle." The sound is still very good, but personally not great! Maybe I was thinking this thing was going to shake alot and truly make it like a racecar.

That being said, I played around with accelerating and decelerating and could very well notice the "snappier" throttle response and the engine braking. Best example I could say is using the phrase said here: "Throwing an anchor out of a boat."

The last thing I did was a small test of launch control. I say small test because I couldn't really find a quiet place with no traffic to full out experiment with it. The one thing I learned real quick is make sure you have Traction Control turned off......do not assume Trackey turns it off as I did. All in all, the launch control feature works well and when you mash the throttle to the set RPM it will jump slightly past it but settle down to the mark it should be at.....just be ready to unleash the ponies under the hood when you side-step the clutch.

So all this being said, my one day experience with Trackey I'd have to give it a 7 out of 10. Need to play around some more, test it at the drag strip, road course and time seeing what its all about. I just wish it had a louder "lope" and more shake to the car....JMO.

Overall, worth the purchase!!!

 

[farmboy90]

Scott, so does mine.

I wonder if the word depends upon the manufacture date of the car, or the date the TracKey was installed?

Inquiring minds what to know...

It is based on when your car was built. On the trackey website you can read the v1.1 documentation. Ford clearly says that depending on the build date of your car, the message will say either ENGINE ENABLED or IDLE ENABLED. They mean the same thing.

 

[Vince]

Scott, so does mine.

I wonder if the word depends upon the manufacture date of the car, or the date the TracKey was installed?

Inquiring minds what to know...

It is based on when your car was built. On the trackey website you can read the v1.1 documentation. Ford clearly says that depending on the build date of your car, the message will say either ENGINE ENABLED or IDLE ENABLED. They mean the same thing.

We'll know for sure relatively soon. If someone with an early build ends up with "IDLE" or late build has "ENGINE" ...

 

[2012YellowBoss]

I thought it would sound more like this. :-\

Not a track help but that would be really nice to have.

I am going to Jupiter this weekend so have fun at Sebring. I will try to get in with PCA next week there. Last chance to get some time before Daytona.

 

[cloud9]

Mine is #159 and says Engine Enabled

 

[Vince]

Mine is #159 and says Engine Enabled

LS74 is Engine Enabled

 

[808Boss]

Got my track key installed today. I bought my car in extra early... Dropped it off at 430 am(early dropoff) bc wanted the dealer to get an early start in case they needed to call Ford racing... Maui is 6 hrs behind east coast time... I was happy to hear there were no problems with the install, I kind of prepped the dealers letting them know about the issues that have occurred and to call ford racing if they had problems. When I got the car and started it, I got scarred when the lopey idle didn't come on, but was relieved when I read the instructions and it came on 2 minutes later...It's pretty sweet, with the increased engine breaking and throttle response. I just found an empty, deserted street and was trying out launch control... Set it to 2500 rpm, revved her up and dropped the clutch, got some wheel spin, but not too bad and opened it up. Very rewarding. Cost me $302 + 110 for labor(1 hour). Worth it IMHO

 

[BossJockey]

I thought it would sound more like this. :-\

I think it is an engine RPM thing. All the resent videos I've seen, the car is idling around 800 RPM on the tack. I think it needs to idle around 600 - 650 rpm to get the good lopey sound.