I've been thinking very seriously about buying a performance chip for my 2008 5.7 Ram. Several days ago I had to have a spare key made for it and chose a local locksmith due to the huge cost savings over a dealer since I didn't need the lock and unlock buttons. He had to program the key by plugging a laptop into the data-port.

That got me thinking... Is there software and cables available so that I (or anyone) can adjust their truck's parameters with a laptop instead of buying a Diablo, Superchip, or whatever and paying for a plastic case basically when I already have what I think is a starting point for a system.

I tried to Google the question, but didn't get what I was looking for on the first couple of pages. Rather than spend hours seaching, I figured I would ask, since I'm sure someone else must have thought of this...

 

If you have a smart phone ( like a Droid ) you can download the Vivid app, but you still are going to have to pay to control it. They are not going to lose money by selling a program for cheap. If you do find something like that, please let me know, good luck brother.

 

What parameters?

 

The stuff you would change with a Diablo, Superchip, etc...

 

Superchips Vivid or Diablo Intune but they are going to be more expensive than their older hand held predecessors. Better just to get a handheld considering you can buy them used at darn good prices. Plug them in, load one of the canned tunes, make your adjustments and then unplug and put it away,. DONE
Function over Form

 

Q) Is a Chip Necessary to Adjust Parameters?

A) A chip? No. Because a chip cannot do it. A tuner can and it needed to adjust them. Canned tunes are those that are pre-set and pre-programmed in the tuner and used to program the PCM. Adjustable parameters would be idle, governor, tire size and maybe one or tow other basic things. Custom tuning is ONLY avail from Diablo and SCT and cannot be done by you. You need to find a shop that can custom tune for you and change what you want. These custom tunes are only need for BIG mods like certain cams, turbos, ect