Looking for testers - 1998-2004 T444e & DT466

[Power Hungry]

Hey all... Just wanted to give everyone a status update.

We're still banging through the software to get the server database communications completed. That is about the only thing holding us up at this point. Unfortunately, it's like writing three different programs all at the same (application, web, and database), so it is taking a little longer than anticipated.

I'm *hoping* that we'll have everything squared away by the end of next week and we'll be able to distribute test kits to everyone that has contacted me.

If anyone is interested in being a tester and hasn't e-mailed me yet, please send the information requested earlier in this thread to bill (at) phptune (dot) com and I'll send you a reply to let you know I received it.

Thank you all for being patient and willing to participate in this project. We're very excited to be able to finally get this released and know that it will be a huge hit.

Take care and God bless.

[RolesvilleMarina]

Originally Posted by Power Hungry

Hey all... Just wanted to give everyone a status update.

We're still banging through the software to get the server database communications completed. That is about the only thing holding us up at this point. Unfortunately, it's like writing three different programs all at the same (application, web, and database), so it is taking a little longer than anticipated.

I'm *hoping* that we'll have everything squared away by the end of next week and we'll be able to distribute test kits to everyone that has contacted me.

If anyone is interested in being a tester and hasn't e-mailed me yet, please send the information requested earlier in this thread to bill (at) phptune (dot) com and I'll send you a reply to let you know I received it.

Thank you all for being patient and willing to participate in this project. We're very excited to be able to finally get this released and know that it will be a huge hit.

Take care and God bless.

Splendid!

I initially responded to your PM with my info

I also decided to email just in case but never got a reply from that

so I just wanted to make sure you got what you needed

Cheers

[JackE]

Originally Posted by Power Hungry

At some point here soon, we're going to start cracking into the Allison controllers and adjusting shift points, shift pressures, and unlocking 5th/6th gear where applicable. This would be a huge benefit to skoolies looking to get the transmission doing what it needs to be doing. This will be some months out... maybe towards the end of the year... but is definitely on the radar.

I would love to be involved in the beta testing, but I have a Cummins. I am very interested in your plans for unlocking 6th gear in the 3060 trans when you get to that point. If you need a beta tester for that, I'm more than happy to oblige! If you don't need testing, I'm good with just buying the program to get that last gear.

[Chaos0812]

Hi, Chaos again. I am going to email you details of my situation. Please read over it, and I think that you'll agree that I have the perfect platform for your program.
Thanks,
Chip Daniels,
Workhorse Enterprises, LLC

[cadillackid]

Originally Posted by JackE

I would love to be involved in the beta testing, but I have a Cummins. I am very interested in your plans for unlocking 6th gear in the 3060 trans when you get to that point. If you need a beta tester for that, I'm more than happy to oblige! If you don't need testing, I'm good with just buying the program to get that last gear.

there a thread here where brokedown found a great guy for unlocking 3060s for not a huge amount of $$

[Gathman]

My son and I just bought a 12 window 2000 Bluebird with a T444E and Allison 2100. We just this weekend picked her up in Albuquerque and drove to San Diego. She has 162xxx miles and runs nicely. We ran at 65 (RPMs throttled at 2500 RPM I think) most of the time but slowed to 40 on the steepest hills (6-7%).

We're just starting the conversion (as soon as we recover from 120 degree heat on the trip), so it's just got seats at the moment which will be ripped and rebuilt into our custom RV.

We'd love to work with you on the software if you think we'd be good partners. I believe we meet all your criteria. Please let me know if you agree.

Thanks!

Jim Gathman

[Seriousracer]

Sent you a pm a couple weeks ago anything happen?

[StedyStreamnCashios]

Definitely interested in the product, I wouldn’t be a good tester though as no time to drive bus or work on it with other projects. I’ll be looking for it when it comes out though, I’ve got a 01 IH DT466 215HP. Not sure on transmission as I haven’t crawled underneath to see the tag yet.

Very cool product it sounds like though, I’d love more power.

[johnbloem1974]

Any updates on this?

John

[cadillackid]

im curious too.. I want to put my bigger sticks in and really be able to dial in the curves

[Power Hungry]

Hey all...

Things as still moving along. Unfortunately, I keep getting interrupted with all the day-to-day stuff in the office as well as trying to get this software ready for Beta release. Nobody ever said juggling was easy, and that includes juggling projects.

Anyway, I'm just about finished with the software, or at least close to a working state. Had to write, and rewrite, and rewrite again several modules because I kept coming up with more efficient methods of handling calibrations as well as a few different aspects of tracking and licensing. The biggest problem is being that we need to keep track of all vehicles locally read and modified, and then be able to push that stuff to the server, all of this while keeping in mind that the computer may not have access to the internet at times. This has been extremely cumbersome on the software side of things, since there is a great deal of validation required to make sure none of the information get corrupted along the way.

We've got several modules stabilized and just working out the final details on synchronization with the server as far as module state (stock or programmed), licensing control, and stuff like that. It's been a bugger but we're getting ahead of it.

As soon as we get all this stabilized and tested in house, we'll be getting in contact with Test Candidates, getting the hardware out, and getting you the links for the download.

Again, many thanks for being patient. I know it's been a long wait, but I promise you that it'll be worth it!

[cadillackid]

ha!! I spent over 6 months on the licensing modules alone (using cloud based licensing) for my software products that i develop and sell.. licenbsing is the hardest part in my book.. and its boring.. plus have to make it so computer-savvy people cant circumvent it


-Christopher

[PeteinSF]

Wow, I have been offline for a bit...


This looks awesome, are you still looking for testers?


My 28ft bus has a 2004 466, 2500 Trans and the rear end was recntly swapped for a 4.63 with 11r22.5. for low RPM freeway use.



Current weight is about 17K lbs.


Pete

[RolesvilleMarina]

Good news

I am looking forward to either testing as we talked earlier or buying later if I don't pass muster

but currently I am now in the phase where I am indeed interested in turning up the heat and playing with parameters since the Allison 2000 swap has gone so well

We flat tow a 1995 YJ and still at the 130 hp stage... but woudn't mind juicing it up some

keep us posted

[cadillackid]

your 444E shouldnt be 130, the minimum is 170.. i can crank those computers up pretty high as is//. nothing like bill will be able to do. but before we play with your ECM get that EGT installed.. (or did you already install one?)

[RolesvilleMarina]

Originally Posted by cadillackid

your 444E shouldnt be 130, the minimum is 170.. i can crank those computers up pretty high as is//. nothing like bill will be able to do. but before we play with your ECM get that EGT installed.. (or did you already install one?)

HA! Well I did explain once me and numbers don't work well.

I was going by my head and I just remembered the sticker on the side has what basically amounts to "Small, Medium, and Large"

you are right.. it's 175, 190, 210

and mine has a punch ticket hole through the 175


The EGT sensor has been put on hold, as is the bluefire, for the moment. M has restricted funds again as we are in the process of a re-fi attempt and she wants this complete before I go spendy mcspend again like last year.

her being self employed has been a real PITA with covid. They changed the rules and now want to see "potential income" and other weird ****. We were all set and about to sign and be good a few months ago.. the fellow called the following morning and said deals off, everything in the industry just changed this morning with new "guidelines" essentially screwing millions of self employed.

it's crazy as I have virtually no debt, the house 1/2 paid off and is worth 2.5 times what we owe and would be borrowing. so aggravating.


But yes the EGT as well as the digital dash will be first installed before we diddle with the power

[cadillackid]

you can run that up to 210 withoiut the need for any gauges.. but remember its not whats stamped on your valve cover its what was stamped on the valve cover of the donor bus engine that counts.. unless the IH dealer reprogrammed all your parameters by VIN into the donor computer when you took it to them..

[RolesvilleMarina]

Originally Posted by cadillackid

you can run that up to 210 withoiut the need for any gauges.. but remember its not whats stamped on your valve cover its what was stamped on the valve cover of the donor bus engine that counts.. unless the IH dealer reprogrammed all your parameters by VIN into the donor computer when you took it to them..

Yeah on the valve cover of the donor was the same 175

unless it was turned up when the Allison was put into the donor. I don't know if it was original because as I wrote in my thread one thing that made it so easy on me was the donor bus wire harness on the bus was for an AT545

the Allison came already setup with plugs for this. the Sensors on the trans were tiny and different connectors, and they ran from the trans to the TCM and from the TCM itself 4 plugs came out that fit into the appropriate ends of the buses AT545 harness on the chassis...

was odd


I am also unsure what they took from my ECM. I did just swap in the 2002 ECM on your advice, and IH took my 99 ECM and benched it, took some stuff off 9I have the print sheets still) and then when I went back they used the sheet they printed to put in my values. I think mostly to do with tire size maybe.. I am not sure. It is a sheet full of number jumble to me

EGT is on the list, as the bluefire before I start to diddle with anything.

and remember the BNB is always available in Raleigh should you be passing through.. would love to meet and compare buses

[Power Hungry]

Hey all! Getting ready for *GO* time.

First, I want to say thank you to all of the folks that have responded to our request for testers. You guys are awesome and we're looking forward to working with you over the next several weeks in order identify any possible issues and/or concerns as well as compile your feedback, comments, and suggestions to make Orion the best possible programming platform.

I would like to also offer a huge thank you to everyone for your patience while we finished up some of the module changes in the software. We've had to rethink some of the processes, but we've got something that we're pretty happy with.

Moving on... This is where we're at:

We're collating all of the responses from folks interested in BETA testing and we're super excited over the number of responses we've received. Those who have submitted information to me via e-mail or PM, we will be getting in touch with you over the next couple days to speak with you personally and make sure we have all the pertinent contact and vehicle information. We also want to make sure that everyone understands their role in BETA testing. To put it bluntly (and yes, this is a bit of a lecture) - If you're just looking for a freebie and have no intention of providing any feedback, this is hugely inconsiderate to those who would be responsive BETA testers and may have been passed up due to the limited number of test kits being sent out. The purpose of BETA testing is to work through any possible issues with the software, hardware, or tuning in order to make the most reliable package as possible. It helps provide us with confirmed results so that we know what we're producing and distributing is what we say it is. BETA testing is a relationship and it's important for us to talk directly so that we understand each other. You are trusting us with your vehicle and we are trusting you to back us up.

With this in mind, I will once again outline what we expect from our testers (just so it's no surprise)...

What we expect from you:

• Most importantly - Regular and FREQUENT communications. If you're not going to commit to this, please don't waste our time.
• Current vehicle modifications and setup (engine mods, drivetrain mods, installed trans, tire size)
• Feedback on the hardware functionality.
• Feedback on the software including functionality, intuitiveness, features, and other suggestions.
• Drivability observations (Acceleration, cruise, smokiness, etc.)
• Performance gains (above or below expectations)
• Documented Fuel Economy gains (with load/weight, distance traveled, average speed, traffic conditions, etc.)
• Any other information that you may feel would be relevant to improving the hardware or application interface.

For those who have already e-mailed me (so I at least have an e-mail or a phone number), thank you! If you have not directly e-mailed me, please provide the following information:

Contact Information:
Name
Address
City
State
ZIP
E-mail
Phone

Vehicle Information:
Year
Model
Engine
VIN (Optional)
Factory HP Rating (from sticker, if available)
Current HP Rating (if known)
Current Engine Family Rating (EFRC, if known)
Manual or Automatic
Vehicle Curb Weight (if known)
Any current modifications to engine/drivetrain

E-mail this to bill (at) phptune (dot) com and we'll make sure to be in touch before the end of the week.

Again, my sincere thanks for everyone that has already contacted us. You guys are awesome!

[Seriousracer]

To be honest with you I am putting mine up for winter after next weekend.

I sent you a pm before with all the required information.

Still willing to do it but next spring about April is when mine will be back on the road.

If I was a consideration in this I am still willing to do it but my insurance is being changed to storage. So the bus will be in hibernation till then.

Like I said thanks. But not going to lie or deceive you that you will be getting valid information from me until then.
Would work with you on things if there was a way over the winter.

Kurt

Thanks.