Bullydog PMT, first impressions

[Jeepr]

I did some research on programmers/monitors, and ended up buying a Bullydog PMT. I wasn't able to find much information or experiences on it, so I thought I would share mine.

I bought it at MCS Midwest Performance Diesel. I had them drill and tap for the Pyro, but I did the rest of the install. I bought a second Pyro and put that in the port in my Mag Hytech tranny pan. The rest of the install is just running two wires from the engine compartment into the cab, and plugging it into the OBDII port.

The PMT has inputs for 2 Pyros, so Pyro1 is the EGT, and Pyro2 I'm using for my tranny temp (they intend it for before and after turbo temps if you want to do that). You can set defuel settings for several things, and can set them to whatever level you are comfortable with. You can also configure many Dodge specific things, such as controlling the horn honk on lock, auto door locks, unlock, headlight delay, etc, etc. Those changes do require a re-download of the program to the truck.

I had one small problem after the install, the unit kept locking up on it's first boot, I called Bullydog, and their support was great, and got me going. I've also updated it via the web. They have and will continue to expand the options and features through these web updates.

The driving experience of my truck is totally different! The power is great, and the responsiveness is great too. I took one 300 mile round trip to my parents for the holidays, and it seems the mileage is about the same, maybe only slightly better. It was right at about 18mpg for the trip on the truck computer. I know the hand calculated is lower, but the computer seems to be about as accurate as it was before. Oh, and yes, you can change power settings on the fly!

I'm sure some of you would be disappointed with this, but it's doesn't smoke that much. I definately see more than stock, but no large clouds of black or even anything close to my friends Smarty Jr thus far.

I'll be towing the Jeep and ATV later this week. Before I hit the highway, I'm going to remove the program and hit a large hill nearby and watch the boost and EGT's, then do it again with the program on and set to "tow" and see what the numbers look like.

One concern I have, and confirmed with Bullydog is that the stock program is stored in the unit, rather than the SD card. I'm concerned that if someone thinks its a GPS or something worth stealing, they will get my stock program also! Bullydog says they could rebuild it for me, but I sure hope I won't have to deal with that. You can also remove the unit from the truck, by simply popping it out of it's cradle, and it will run fine without it, it will be in whatever setting it was last in. And, obviously, I would have no gauges.

I'll update again after some testing, and my towing trip experience.