First let me start off by saying that this is a great forum and we are really blessed to have all you great guys out there with your world of knowledge. Thanks for helping us lesser mortals learn more as we stumble along.
So... I want to capitalize on all the Power Commander expertise out there and ask (Jamie chime in if you're on, or I can call you tomorrow), what can be done to the PC-V map FM sent me to better compensate for when I'm pulling my loaded Bushtec Turbo II trailer?
I'm assuming we need to boost the fuel input in at least 1st and second gears, but beyond that, any suggestions?
I'm wanting to use a switch, and load two maps - one for pulling the trailer and one for not.
Also, those of you who are playing with your stock map settings, are you adjusting just the fuel settings or the AFR settings, or both; and why? In line with that, how much are you changing the settings by 2-3% points at a time... less, more?
Thanks for your help in advance.
EGK

 

In my case, I have the AT kit for the PCV and I really only play with the AFR's and let the AT find the right fuel inputs to meet the target AFR's. I'm pretty new to this so I don't have an answer to what would work best for trailer pulling but I'll be watching for the answer as I want to do the same eventually....

Keep us updated if you get your answer offline.

 

Thanks for the help. I didn't buy the AT kit... if I really get into the tech of it and start tinkering a bunch, maybe that'll come later. Right now, several maps to choose from is my goal. I've got a laptop, so swapping them should be easier than for guys with desktops!
I'll keep you up on what I learn.

 

If your PCV is tuned properly the why would need to adjust your map. I have never adjusted my map for pulling my Uni-Go. Now granted my trailer is smaller but I still don't think you will have any issues when accelerating...I would be more concerned with stopping when the trailer is loaded.

 

Those of us with map switching ability like to lean out the cruise range a bit for better MPG. While good for MPG this has somewhat detrimental effects to HP/TQ availability in the cruise range. If I was towing a trailer I would want to regain some of that lost HP/TQ in that area and having a map for each scenario would be very helpful.

 

I'm guessing that with the versatility of changing the fuel input by gear, this could/might give me the low end I desire with the trailer.
For those of you who've pulled a trailer, you know what I'm talking about. Once you're moving, you hardly know they're back there, but when pulling away from a standing stop, your bike needs some help. I'm figuring that with a little tweaking, first and second can be even more robust.
Maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree, but it's worth asking about.
Mattman's right, emergency braking can be spooky, but you learn to adjust your riding style for that. But until I get Brembo ABS up front, I can't do too much about that right now.

 

StreetGlider's on the right track with this. I'm thinking that altering the fuel input for 5th and 6th gear is a double-edged sword when pulling a trailer. You can lose mileage, but you definitely need torque help when the cruise is set and you go up an incline.
Let's face it, I knew when I bought the trailer that whichever way the MPG's went, it was worth the price. The surprising fact of the matter is that I get pretty good mileage with the trailer, mostly because I'm never lugging the engine. Instead of cruising at 2200 rpm, I'll cruise at 2500+ to take advantage of the TQ.
Again, how much change in the maps is safe? 2-3 points change at a time? Is that even noticeable?
Thanks guys. This is interesting stuff.

 

When I watch the fuel trims that the PCV AT makes...it makes + or - 1 or 2 inputs all the time in different cells. I never notice the difference with that small of an adjustment. Remember that the values you enter should be read as percentage of fuel enrichment or enleanment. 5 would equal 5% enrichment. -5 would equal 5% enleanment. I would start with 5% in the areas you need help in and see how it works. Maybe Jamie or ICLICK might be of more help with this though.

 

Understood. I'll call Jamie tomorrow and get his input, then come back to this thread with his ideas/thoughts.
Iclick's further south than me... maybe the weather's sweet down there tonight and he's out and about on the bike.

 

I'm speculating here since I've never pulled a bike trailer, but my first thought is that since you'd be using a higher TP at cruise pulling a trailer that it might be wise to extend the leanness of the cruise range to 40% TP. I usually limit the maximum cruise-range leanness to 20%, although I do cut 40% some, just not as much. Based on the target AFR's in Jamie's PCV map for my bike, he tunes for 13.7:1 up to 20%, then reduces it to 13.2 at 40% and 60%. The problem with the PCV that uses only a base map is that you don't know exactly what AFR you're running at any given point. With AT you can specify exactly where you want it. The downside to this idea is that pulling a trailer will increase engine heat, and leaning the AFR's at 40% will not help matters, especially if you don't have an oil cooler, so if you do this I would watch oil temps and judge based on what the engine is telling you. Leaner AFR's under load may induce detonation, and that's never good, so you'll need to keep your ears and eyes peeled for adverse side-effects.

Other than that, as for the performance side of this issue I would simply let the throttle do the job for you. Since the cruise range is leaner, if you want more juice for pulling away while hauling a trailer just give it more throttle to get you into a richer area of the map. For example, based on my map which is the Jamie's "mileage map," his tune goes from 13.7 at 20% to 13.2 at 40-60%, then 13.0 at 80-100%. As you roll-on the throttle you're getting into the performance range incrementally, which I think would be sufficient.

I think enrichening the map for the first two gears as you describe will do little more than rob you of gas mileage. If you found that adding fuel in a given area helps, I would do as you suggest and connect a switch so you can toggle from a richer map for those times when you need the extra oomph to a cruising map for most other times.