Anyone on here running a Catcher ECM on there truck? How do you like it? What mods do you have beside the Catcher? Thanks Harley
I'm not running one but got real interested in one. They are supposed to be pretty good, the main thing for me was that the dealership supposedly can't tell there is an ECM change. Unlike where they can find in the ECM that there was a chip in it at one time, even if it was removed before hand. I have a warranty still, and at the time was the main attraction of the catcher, but now I'm getting closer to it being up so I'd rather just wait and get a Comp box. The Catcher is supposed to let the fuel get more aggressive in the low end where the stock ECM won't put the fuel to the engine until the turbo spools up to reduce emmissions and smoke. THe Catcher makes the turbo spool up faster and puts the fuel to it right away. It's supposed to provide power through a broader powerband than the comparable Edge EZ. It bumps up the timing too, just like a box. It adds somewhere around 60HP extra over stock. Rip Rook told me he doesn't get real excited over it like some people, he said his twins didn't like the Catcher ECM. It's kind of expensive, around $550 IIRC and there is a waiting period. Plus, you have to pay for a core charge on your stock ECM that is like $300 and you don't get that back until you mail your stocker to them. Like I said, I'm still under warranty for about another 7K, after that I'm going to go with the Edge Competition box with the brand new A2 controller that is equipped with GPS and an optional back up camera. It's going to be around $800, which is less than the Catcher if you want to keep your stock ECM, provides more features with the GPS, guages, and camera all one one unit, and is capable of providing twice the power.
The 60 hp gain that the MAD ECM gives is a very poor way to gauge the performance gain that this ECM gives since what the MAD is really doing is completely altering the torque and hp curves and DRASTICALLY increasing low end fueling. Peak gains are small and frankly, in the case of the MAD, don't mean much. The actual perceived gain that the MAD gives "feels" like WAY more than 60 hp since the fueling comes on so hard, so early. The MAD makes a 7000 lb truck feel like a 4000 lb truck. The truck will be very snappy and spool extremely fast.......it will make your CTD feel like a sports car. The by-product of this alteration of the power curves and low end fueling is a 60hp/ 180 ft/lb gain. If very fast spooling and superior bottem end fueling are what you are after, the MAD is for you. It will fuel harder, sooner than any other fueling module you can buy by a large margin (with, perhaps, the exception of the Bluechip Redline box which is in a league of it's own)......if you just want an extra kick in the pants for towing and don't care how fast or responsive your truck is, then the MAD is not for you - just get an EZ. If you are after all out performance, a Comp friendly version of of the MAD can be had which allows the Comp to take care of the mid and top end timing advancement and fueling durations and allows the MAD to take care of the bottom end without any over advancing issues - the best of both worlds.....Huge top end AND huge bottom end.
Interesting, about the only thing I don't like about my truck is the lack of throttle response (timing retard) from a dead stop, who makes this and do they have a web site with more details?
So far, there is no MAD ECM for 3rd gens yet.......but you never know. Since the MAD uses custom software that steals from the Cummins propriatary programming, it is actually illegal to make in North America.....they get around this by having a guy in Italy do it. F1 Diesel and Smokin diesel both sell the MAD.
Steve, CTDNUT spelled out the facts very well. You can read all about it on the TDR site - there's a guy named Marco that does this ECM programming. Tho it's only for the 2nd gens right now, wouldn't surprise me if he was working on the 3rd gens. Frank
Catcher info... Bob Wagner can get you good info on the Catcher. His site is http://www.wagnerandassociates.biz/ Most who make a correct application of the Catcher say they really like it. It doesn't work for everyone, but Bob will be able to let you know for sure.
