Smarty Jr.
Registered User
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 186
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From: Washington
100's of posts on this subject, but from my experience it has consitently netted me 1.5 MPG better all the way around (Hwy/city) I have had my Jr. I still turn my truck down to stock on occassion just to see how it runs and my fuel takes a dive. Partly becouse I am used to the power on tap with the Jr and end up floorboarding it to keep up with traffic. If you run with a conservative foot you will gain MPG.
Chapter President
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 9,375
Likes: 7
From: misplaced Idahoan stuck in Albuquerque, Roughneckin on RIG 270
it will gain you mileage but in the end, you are the one who is responsible for driving it in a manner to get you the mileage. 95% of the people get a power adder expecting mileage but end up being heavy footed because of the new found power and then post up complaining because they are loosing mpg. sooooo, for the first few weeks you will be like a teenager all excited about the power so ignore the drop in mileage. after that, go back to your normal driving habbits ignoring the extra power and your mpg will come back up.
have fun!
have fun!
Advocate of getting the ban button used on him...
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 5,082
Likes: 9
From: Live Oak Texas
it will gain you mileage but in the end, you are the one who is responsible for driving it in a manner to get you the mileage. 95% of the people get a power adder expecting mileage but end up being heavy footed because of the new found power and then post up complaining because they are loosing mpg. sooooo, for the first few weeks you will be like a teenager all excited about the power so ignore the drop in mileage. after that, go back to your normal driving habbits ignoring the extra power and your mpg will come back up.
have fun!
have fun!
I have had the Jr. for almost a year and close to 20k miles. I set it straight to SW3 (100hp) and messed with the settings and PoD. After the thrill of the extra power and the snappy throttle eased up I started to drive for mileage again, and I get a constant 1.5 to 2mpg hand calculated increase with mixed driving of 80% hwy 20% city.
Administrator/Jarhead
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 14,965
Likes: 19
From: Jacksonville, NC
Bob,
Swing by the house, I'll load up SW 1 for you, and we can see how you like it. It'll get you better MPG's and your truck will run smoother.
Will the fuel savings pay for the smarty? Probably in 4 years. It's worth it, tho, and will hold it's resale.
Swing by the house, I'll load up SW 1 for you, and we can see how you like it. It'll get you better MPG's and your truck will run smoother.
Will the fuel savings pay for the smarty? Probably in 4 years. It's worth it, tho, and will hold it's resale.
Registered User
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 1,694
Likes: 6
From: Lost Lake, Wis
Where have you been Bob? LOL...
The Smarty jr definitely gains mileage. And power. The trade off is you may smoke a bit when you floor the truck, and you probably will want even more power.
Yes, on level 1 you will think it is a different truck. Every time I have loaded mine on someone's truck I wait until they put it in gear and then as soon as they touch the throttle they get a huge grin on their face. It's that noticeable!
Instantly you will have better throttle response, better mileage and a smoother engine.
I still claim there are fewer problems on a Smarty jr engine than a stock engine. Looking at the boards here, it seems like Smarty jr engines have fewer injector problems, fewer FCA problems, fewer transmission problems. I'd like to take a survey and see if that holds true.
The Smarty jr definitely gains mileage. And power. The trade off is you may smoke a bit when you floor the truck, and you probably will want even more power.
Yes, on level 1 you will think it is a different truck. Every time I have loaded mine on someone's truck I wait until they put it in gear and then as soon as they touch the throttle they get a huge grin on their face. It's that noticeable!
Instantly you will have better throttle response, better mileage and a smoother engine.
I still claim there are fewer problems on a Smarty jr engine than a stock engine. Looking at the boards here, it seems like Smarty jr engines have fewer injector problems, fewer FCA problems, fewer transmission problems. I'd like to take a survey and see if that holds true.
Registered User
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 359
Likes: 1
From: Orange County, Texas
Hey Madhat
Love the avatar,,,, let's undo it in 2012!!!!!!!!
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Registered User
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 346
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From: Washington
I would love to try out the Jr. also, that is really cool you are letting him do that. I would like to load it and run a trip pulling my trailer, that would be key for me and show my wife the benefits. $500 is not cheap. best of luck.
Registered User
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 751
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From: Mesa AZ
Well I just dropped an oem 48RE not TQ but the gears and clutches, won't say Jr did it but I'm sure it didn't help. I drive pretty moderately and tow around 11k 5ver was only towing on sw1 then last 6 trips started using sw2 tm4 tq4 and lets say that it help speed up what was probably inevitable just wasn't thinking @ 65k. So hope the new stage1 ATS plus extras will stand the test of time. Sure feel mucho grande now 
Registered User
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 51
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From: british columbia canada
Just what are the advantages of a smartyjr? I understand you can get more power out of the engine but what else does it do to make it worth spending the $500+ when the 5.9 engine has all the power most would ever need. There have been reports that 48re's can't handle the extra horses. Just wunderin'.
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Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 87
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Just what are the advantages of a smartyjr? I understand you can get more power out of the engine but what else does it do to make it worth spending the $500+ when the 5.9 engine has all the power most would ever need. There have been reports that 48re's can't handle the extra horses. Just wunderin'.
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Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 322
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From: Salmon Arm, BC Canada
[QUOTE]t seems like Smarty jr engines have fewer injector problems/QUOTE]
Lost Lake may be right here. It's too early to tell but I just installed the Smarty Jr and did a 1700mile trip with my flat deck and pulled 5500lbs plus the 3500lb trailer for half the trip. My fuel mileage went up by 2-3mpg, the power is insane and the injector ping, that was there before, is gone.
Lost Lake may be right here. It's too early to tell but I just installed the Smarty Jr and did a 1700mile trip with my flat deck and pulled 5500lbs plus the 3500lb trailer for half the trip. My fuel mileage went up by 2-3mpg, the power is insane and the injector ping, that was there before, is gone.