Bullydog tuner

C-Ron

New member
I just ordered the Bullydog GT tuner as my jeeps first mod. I was curious how many people are using one and what features they use most. I'm sure performance gains are minimal but if I can feel a slight difference ill be happy. I mainly wanted it for the other features it has.
 

jkjurny

Member
I just ordered the Bullydog GT tuner as my jeeps first mod. I was curious how many people are using one and what features they use most. I'm sure performance gains are minimal but if I can feel a slight difference ill be happy. I mainly wanted it for the other features it has.

I have one and I like it. All I have done is change the tire size, but a $150 ProCal can do the same thing. I'm paranoid to install any of the performance tunes. I'm waiting for others to try this out first though.

I'm looking forward to trying out the rock crawl tune that should help prevent sensitive throttle when crawling.

It comes down to whether you're willing to spend the extra $ for monitoring and some of the switching features that you can do on the fly versus a ProCal.

Pros:
1. Ability to change tire, gear, tunes
2. Ability to monitor throttle, MPG, Load, Coolant Temp, Auto Trans temp, etc.
3. Fuel economy guide give a A to F rating on how efficient your driving. It beeps if you push down too hard on the accelerator
4. Ability to turn on/off lockers, sway bar, change idle throttle when winching.

Cons:
1. AEV ProCal can do the same things minus the ability to watch
2. Depending on where you live, you'll need to swap out the tune when taking to a dealership or smog inspection
 

jkjeepit

New member
I bought the tuner though amazon, best price.. and fast shipping..
i had to get tech support to upgrade the SW. The website still loads one that doesn't work if your increasing the tire size... I have 34's and it hit the MPH limiter ie 99MPH when I was really only going 10ish... a few other items weren't working either. Like the ideal adjust.. my Jeep isn't my DD so I could afford to have it not drivable for a day..

First thing is the whole procedure is easy. They also have a YouTube video on loading it..,
Customer support... AWESOME!
there is a wait Q you have to wait through but it's not that big of deal,,, I also called during lunch hour.
They updated the SW remotely, they do this to save time (they really need to get the SW you load from the website updated) doesn't take long if you know what your doing to help them do what they need done.... Also after they aee done remember to close the remote iser window...etc...
they stayed on the phone the whole time I reloaded to stock, drove down the street to make sure it was back, had them remotely reload, then as I reinstalled it on the Jeep and again drove down the street to make sure I didn't hit the 99mph limiter..... Etc
so far everything I have tried works....
haven't really noticed much power change although there might ba a little bit., I'm using the regular power level... And currently will stay with that tune. maybe when I hit some mountains I'll be able to notice more power...???

the only thing I would recommend is call them and make sure you have the latest version loaded before you load it into the Jeep....

So far I would recommend this tuner.. and they really do have excellent support.

Also it was missing the fuse adapter but I just bought the add a fuse circuit from autozone.

Review of the Econ grading. I don't think this is designed for a Jeep. So if you get a good grade I'd be surprised.

2011 JK Auto, 285/75/17's
 
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jkjurny

Member
Agree on the customer support, they are awesome. Also, mine was missing the fuse connect also, but Bully Dog shipped me one for free.

Another thing is to make sure all your electronics are off when doing the tune. If it's on, it can make the tune fail. I had to do redo it all, which took about 45 minutes of reverting to stock (about 20 minutes) and then reinstalling the tune (another 25 minutes). All because I left the radio/navigation on.
 

C-Ron

New member
Well I guess I better cancel my order. Don't feel like buying a pc in order to use a tuner. I wonder why nobody makes a tuner that works on a Mac
 

jkjeepit

New member
Well I guess I better cancel my order. Don't feel like buying a pc in order to use a tuner. I wonder why nobody makes a tuner that works on a Mac

Check there website. I prefer MACs also, But I'm pretty sure it didn't have a Mac included. Maybe a friend could help. I doubt you will need it to many times. if you have an 11 there aren't to many to choose from.
 
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C-Ron

New member
Check there website. I prefer MACs also, But I'm pretty sure it didn't have a Mac included. Maybe a friend could help. I doubt you will need it to many times. Of you have an11 there aren't to many to choice from.

I looked on the website and couldn't find anything. I'll just have to call and ask tomorrow. I guess once I have the software up to date on the tuner then ill be set. Yea I have an 11, didn't realize the computer was different.
 

jkjeepit

New member
I looked on the website and couldn't find anything. I'll just have to call and ask tomorrow. I guess once I have the software up to date on the tuner then ill be set. Yea I have an 11, didn't realize the computer was different.

you will have to download and use the update agent
ht tp://www.bullydog.com/updateagent.php

I had read this (via JK Freaks BIG IKE; Day 2- Even though the Bully Dog website has compatibility links. The update program IS NOT compatable with the Mac. Called Tech support, I MUST HAVE windows. Bought windows and downloaded the BootCamp to lap top. Still no tuner.) on another forum and this might be why I didn't try the MAC files.

there is also the Diablo that works with the 2011's but it was like $600 something

I think starting by calling them is the best bet... test customer support.......
hope you get something setup
 

BlackKnight

Member
If it works on Windows, you can make it work on a Mac too.

As a long time mac user, as long as you have a modern Mac (Intel Chip) you can boot camp, or VMWare/Paralells to run it.there should be no Issues.. If you have any let me know and I'll try to help you through the computer issues in a PM.

PS> BlackKnight = Computer Nerd, and yes I'm a Sr. Network engineer that prefers Mac rather than Windoze... Been on Mac since College, and before I was a windows user that hated Macs. Then I worked at MIT where I was in charge of the Network for the Human Genome project (US Gov one). and MIT is a Mac and Unix shop :)

Bob
 

C-Ron

New member
If it works on Windows, you can make it work on a Mac too.

As a long time mac user, as long as you have a modern Mac (Intel Chip) you can boot camp, or VMWare/Paralells to run it.there should be no Issues.. If you have any let me know and I'll try to help you through the computer issues in a PM.

PS> BlackKnight = Computer Nerd, and yes I'm a Sr. Network engineer that prefers Mac rather than Windoze... Been on Mac since College, and before I was a windows user that hated Macs. Then I worked at MIT where I was in charge of the Network for the Human Genome project (US Gov one). and MIT is a Mac and Unix shop :)

Bob

Tuner shipped today and I should have it in a few days. If I have questions ill be sure to ask. I do appreciate it
 

jkjurny

Member
So I've had this tuner almost 1 year, but never installed a tune until now. I went to Bully Dog and updated the tuner, which went well!

I have a 2012 Automatic and 2 weeks ago installed the regular tune, which is supposed to give 10 more HP and Torque. Now, I cannot feel that power, but what I can tell you is that the Jeep is more responsive. The responsiveness is mainly due to the new tune changing the automatic's shift points to be more aggressive. The Jeep keeps the lower gears longer than the stock tune does. Of course, this doesn't improve mileage at all, but does give power sooner rather than later. The nice thing about the Jeeps automatic is that you can force an upshift if you want to save on gas and don't need the power.

Just wanted to update my experience with the new tune.
 
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