Ferrari 360 F1 auto-PIS setting

[Mike01606]

My late 2000 car has the original 176552 TCU and I was/am considering a swap to a CS TCU but have a number of concerns with the switch, least alone the cost and I've never actually driven another F1 360 for comparison.
The car actually drives really smoothly and the changes in normal driving are pretty seamless but I'm getting a bit sucked into the hype.

My car had 29% clutch wear at the last service 400 miles ago but the PIS reading was 6.1 which is very high. Adam Eyre suggested at the service that I run the auto-PIS adjust sequence when the car was cold. He could not do it as the car was not cold enough. I'm assuming you cannot force a PIS auto set with the SD2.

The car pick-up is very soft and I also think most of the 9% wear between the services came from Silverstone GWR!

Following the auto-PIS adjust procedure in the manual which is;

Air con off, water temp between 30 and 70 DGC
Ignition on, when Check OK is on, start and run for 10 secs, then off and wait until the beep stops and the dash lights go out.
Repeat 5 times in total.

I've tried this several times before and basically the car does not like being shut down in the warm up cycle. On the second start the rev fluctuate between 500 and 2000 and it sounds like a bag of hammers so I've always abandoned the procedure on the second start.

As the maximum temp for the procedure is 70 DGC which where the gauge starts to read, I thought I'd try a different approach tonight and actually ran the car for a couple of minutes before shutting down and that worked fine on the second start. I managed to cycle the car on and off and on the 6th cycle the temp gauge came up so i just managed it in time.

On about the 5th cycle I'm sure I heard the clutch engaging but that may be normal. I don't understand the software and whether it recognises what you are trying to do and runs a sequence on the 5th start or it just sequences every start and it takes 5 or so to reach a stable setting,

The result. Big difference in the bite point. The clutch is closing several hundred revs lower and slipping a lot less on pick-up. I'd be really interest to see what the PIS was tonight. Out for a run afterwards and the changes feel a lot crisper also.

So, I know I've discussed this on hear before and the view is that the sequence is not very effective but has anyone else tried it and what were the results?

[elt]

Hi mike i cannot coment on most of your thread but i replaced my tcu (176552) with the cs tcu(196986) 2 weeks ago, bite the bullet and do it the gear change is crisper and in sport mode is almost instant well 60ms i promise you you will not regret it. cheers elt.

[Total Performance]

PIS auto-set does very little after initial clutch installation. PIS is simply an extrapolation made by the tcu between the distance the cylinder travels before RPM is seen at the gearbox, and the known thickness of the clutch. You will therefore have more success altering the "clutch thickness when new" setting rather than PIS auto-set. The downside of doing this is that the clutch wear index becomes less of a true figure. Go for the CS tcu. It transforms the car and clutch wear is massively reduced. I've been fitting CS tcu's to 360 almost since the CS came out, and have never had any subsequent issues caused by this mod. The only caveat is make sure you use someone who properly understands the F1 system to do the instal, the factory tcu replacement procedure does not work with this instal.

[Mike01606]

Thanks Eddie.........M

[Mike01606]

Me again on CS TCU’s!

I’ve never driven one and never been in a car fitted with a CS TCU but I’m still looking at options for my car as I am getting sucked into the hype (maybe) and my ‘missing out’ gland is a bit overactive.

The general advice is “go for it” but at £1500 plus for the module and installation and the downside of losing the TCU historical data and originality, I want to make sure I’m not disappointed and my wife if not denied new handbags for no good reason.

I’ve even looked at and compared the owner’s manuals (crazy I know when the t'internet is full of advice) for both the early Modena and CS and there appears to be little difference between the gear change programmes.

For both cars;
In normal mode, faster changes come in above 5500 RPM and wide open throttle.
In sport/race mode the fastest changes are above 7000 RPM and wide open throttle.
Both models have 150ms fastest changes.

I didn’t expect that. I expected the CS TCU to use faster changes over a wider range but I guess the definition of ‘faster’ could be different for both cars as it is not specified.

So my car with its cr@ppy original early 176552 TCU is a delight to drive and apart from the initial pick-up whist being smooth, I think is slightly soft and could be improved.
In sport mode the 7000RPM changes are fast, crisp and clean and the rev matching is superb.
In pootle about mode (where in reality I spend most of the time on our roads) the changes are as smooth and seamless as the best auto boxes.
I can also reset the PIS myself and it does actually make a difference but as the clutch wears more the effect will be less and less (as above).

Extended clutch life is a justification but clutch life is as long as a piece of string and should not be measured in miles but number of starts/stops/changes/abuse etc and by not changing the TCU I effectively have a free clutch change in the bank. So clutch life is not part of the equation for me with the mileage I do.

So to you owners out there who have done this please educate me!

100% worth £1500 and why? Or have I answered my own question? If I'm happy with it why change it.......

[elt]

Hi mike you know my views on this subject When i took the car around silverstone the foc instructor was really impressed with the speed of the up and down shift. The other thing to consider is this, if ferrari thought that the original tcu was up to scratch then why would they bother to up grade it in 2002, 2004,and for what reason? Just a thought. hope the family are ok.elt.

[Mike01606]

Hi mike you know my views on this subject When i took the car around silverstone the foc instructor was really impressed with the speed of the up and down shift. The other thing to consider is this, if ferrari thought that the original tcu was up to scratch then why would they bother to up grade it in 2002, 2004,and for what reason? Just a thought. hope the family are ok.elt.

Hi Elt,

No doubt it is better but 1500 quid better? I think they realised they needed to give the techs more adjustability and they improved the clutch management and pull away but I'm concerned I will lose as much as I gain. Not all development is necessarily positive.
The car is unlikely to go on track and it drives well. I don't want a kick in the back when I'm cruising around etc.

[elt]

Hi Elt,

No doubt it is better but 1500 quid better? I think they realised they needed to give the techs more adjustability and they improved the clutch management and pull away but I'm concerned I will lose as much as I gain. Not all development is necessarily positive.
The car is unlikely to go on track and it drives well. I don't want a kick in the back when I'm cruising around etc.

Driving in every day traffic the change is smoother than with the original tcu,elt

[Mike01606]

Well, someone off here kindly emailed me and offered me a drive in a car with a CS TCU. Thank-you

Short Verdict, IMO not worth it and I'm now content with my car and the itch is scratched.

Caveats, the PIS was probably set a bit lose so the pick was similar to my car.
It was a short drive but I thought as both a passenger and driver it would be really noticeable. It wasn't.

The car had a standard silencer so the exhaust blips were muffled. I think if I went CS TCU route then a Capristo or the like is a must, which I don't want to do.

I will now sit back and get flamed but at least I'm a 1200 quid better off.....

[JohnJStewart]

Well, someone off here kindly emailed me and offered me a drive in a car with a CS TCU. Thank-you

Short Verdict, IMO not worth it and I'm now content with my car and the itch is scratched.

Caveats, the PIS was probably set a bit lose so the pick was similar to my car.
It was a short drive but I thought as both a passenger and driver it would be really noticeable. It wasn't.

The car had a standard silencer so the exhaust blips were muffled. I think if I went CS TCU route then a Capristo or the like is a must, which I don't want to do.

I will now sit back and get flamed but at least I'm a 1200 quid better off.....

I got one for £500 - from a late 2004 car - not a CS just a standard 360 and it made a huge difference.

This is a simple upgrade and I had it done just after a new clutch. It saves on clutch wear and at £500 is worth the cost.