TRIFECTA Performance

In 2022, TRIFECTA shocked the GM aftermarket by announcing they were first to successfully native-tune the 8th Generation Chevrolet Corvette (C8) as well as other GM Global B applications. This began a new era for Corvette, finally enabling native tuning to support some of the best aftermarket power adders from the biggest names in the industry. Never one to rest on their laurels, TRIFECTA has remained at the forefront of aftermarket calibration technology and solutions for Corvette, leading to being able to claim to be first – and second - to tune the 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray! “We’ve been watching the development of the E-Ray very closely and worked hard to hit the ground running once the cars hit the streets. We had the 2024 Engine Control Module (ECM) in hand months before the cars were on the street, just to be sure there wouldn’t be any surprises.”, says Vince Geglia II, Owner/Founder of TRIFECTA Performance. The First E-Ray – Lingenfelter Performance Engineering First Tuned, First Boosted, and First Supercharged Leveraging the TRIFECTA Calibration Platform, the claim for first tuned E-Ray belongs squarely with Lingenfelter Performance Engineering. “We had Paragon Performance an Official Lingenfelter Installer call us about installing our stage 1 Magnuson supercharger on the new E-Ray. They had a long-standing customer who purchased VIN# 36 and wanted to have the world’s first supercharged E-Ray. We knew this was unchartered territory, we’d just finished one of the first 2024 C8s. Knowing the challenges we faced there, now we were staring down the first ever hybrid Corvette!”, says Mark Rapson, Vice President of Operations, Lingenfelter Performance Engineering. Lingenfelter did the project in collaboration with Paragon who did the initial break-in miles and the first baseline test where the car made 573 HP and 630 TQ. Arrangements were made and soon the beautiful red 2024 Corvette E-Ray was at the LPE Build Center in Wixom, Michigan. After validating the baseline with the car on the SEMA Garage’s All Wheel Drive chassis dynamometer, LPE’s best-in-industry technicians began the supercharger installation, while the factory ECM was sent off to TRIFECTA for their magic. “Our calibration team and engineering partners at TRIFECTA got together and discovered a few months back that the 2024 Corvette ECM calibration and software had many changes to it. Fortunately, we’d had the opportunity to do 2024 Stingray supercharger builds prior to the arrival of the E-Ray, so we had experience on the new code base when we started calibrating the E-Ray. From an install perspective, we weren’t sure what challenges we might run into as the E-Ray has lots of parts and controls the regular Stingray doesn’t”, explains Mark. Once the blower installation was complete, Christian de Saint Preux, the lead calibrator at LPE set to work to develop a calibration for not only the world’s first tuned E-Ray, but the world’s first supercharged E-Ray! The question that’s sure to be at the forefront of every GM tuner: Did the hybrid propulsion system cause any concerns or roadblocks? To this, Christian demurred, “We definitely had concerns. I’ll just say it’s a different world with the E-Ray, but I do want to thank the GM Engineers for not making this impossible.” “There was a torque security calibration that we needed to chase down. In many cases, the ECM software will tell you where these types of faults come from, but this diagnostic routine was so new we didn’t know much about it, so we had to rely on static code analysis to determine what the source of the fault was.”, explains Vince. What about power and performance? After calibration, the E-Ray was taken back to the Paragon Performance dyno for another power test. The car now made an amazing 734 horsepower and 792 TQ at all four tires. As for track performance, the E-Ray will soon be at the track but according to Mark, it has blistering performance on the street! “On the street, this car has ripped out a 2.0 second 0-60 [miles per hour] on the car’s built-in performance monitor, and with our Supercharger Control Module handling the additional engine sensors, the car has exceptional drivability and better manners than it did before we modified and tuned it!”, explains Mark. “Positive displacement superchargers, from a control and calibration strategy are meant to have two sensors – a manifold pressure sensor and a supercharger inlet pressure sensor. If you look at the factory LT4 engine it comes this way, for a reason. Through our work with TRIFECTA, we’ve been able to enable these control routines, the associated diagnostics and with our calibration, offer OE quality drivability and precise throttle control. We also have full OE diagnostic capabilities, including sensor rationality tests.”, explains Christian. Exclusive to LPE supercharger kits, the Supercharger Control Module (SCM) was originally designed to feed accurate air temperature data to the ECM to allow it to optimize spark control strategy. Through a collaborative effort between LPE and TRIFECTA, it was extended to add these additional and crucial sensors to the engine. Vince jokes, “I’ve been ranting from my soapbox for years about these sensors! People have even accused me of being an angry person over this, but our work with LPE gave us the opportunity to prove this is the way to go. But, pinning in additional sensors to an engine harness connector is difficult and error prone, so LPE challenged the whole team to make it plug and play using the factory LIN bus. This is truly a first - we modified the ECM code to accept additional sensor input using the LIN bus by extending the messages on the LIN bus, in concert with the protocol extended by the SCM.” So what’s next for the world’s first tuned and supercharged E-Ray? Mark explains, “The car is back with Paragon Performance for some additional cosmetic and performance upgrades before going to the owner who will thoroughly enjoy it. With the weather improving, we’re looking forward to seeing some track results. I’m certain this is a nine second car! This is a nine second emissions compliant car!” The Second E-Ray – Boost District ..and the First Turbocharged There’s one thing that Boost District isn’t, and that’s a stranger to GM tuning and modding! Already a Lingenfelter authorized reseller and installer for the LPE Corvette C8 program, Boost District wasted no time in shooting for the moon with their new E-Ray. With barely 500 miles on the clock, they went and ran deep into the 9s with surprisingly few mods! For frame of reference, MotorTrend published the new E-Ray in stock trim runs 10.6 seconds in the quarter mile, at 128 MPH. “The goal for this car is simple – to get into the eights in the quarter mile with as few changes as possible. First time out, we got a best of 9.7 second quarter mile at 153MPH!”, says Roshan Poptani, owner of Boost District. After picking up their E-Ray, in short order, Boost District’s expert team upgraded the engine internals, then installed fuel system upgrades and twin turbos screaming at 12.5psi to boost the E-Ray’s LT2 internal combustion engine’s output to the stratosphere. “Already, we are nearly mid nines on stock tires and suspension. The engine mods are few – our valvetrain, Lingenfelter’s pistons, fueling upgrades and twin turbos. Everything else is stock, including all of the OE emission controls.”, says Roshan. Next, building with TRIFECTA’s Calibration Platform, Christian masterfully updated the new-for-2024 engine control software calibration to support the upgraded fuel system and twin turbos. Support for each new model year generally requires seeking out every single calibration table and constant, identifying them and properly tuning them. The 2024 software posed an exceptional challenge, but Christian had the advantage of already having been down this road. “GM generally makes small changes to their ECU application software and calibrations from one year to the next, but the 2024 brought in many new changes. Tuning for the upgraded fuel injectors took a bit of time, since GM decided to remove some of its strategies for injector characterization. This will require aftermarket companies to come up with these new calibration definitions which GM has been rolling out, but until now has been nice enough to leave the old strategy in place and selectable. However, having the experience of calibrating 2024 Stingray and E-Ray at LPE under my belt, it went much more smoothly this time around.”, says Christian de Saint Preux, also the calibrator for this project. Once the new ECM calibration was mapped out, Chris worked hand in hand with Roshan at Boost District to dial in the calibration. “Once we got the car started, the job wasn’t too bad, all in all it took about a day from start up, to three to four pulls on the dyno, and then to our nine second run at the track.”, Christian explains. So what’s next for Boost District’s E-Ray? Roshan explains, “We’re aiming for eights on a build that would be 50 state legal, with a CARB [Exemption Order]. We worked closely with the turbo kit manufacturer – ETS - to produce a version of the kit which retains the OE emission control devices. TRIFECTA has made clear their vision for supporting power adders that can and will eventually meet emission compliance.” Vince adds, “It’s exciting! We’re in an era where gasoline engines, even with full emissions controls meeting modern emissions standards, and we’re still making this kind of power!” TRIFECTA Calibration Platform ...and the secret sauce. Dealing with all the tuning idiosyncrasies and challenges of the C8 has been an on-going effort. TRIFECTA’s Calibration Platform for the C8 Corvette now includes access to over fifteen different custom application software changes / additions, including support for LPE’s Supercharger Control Module (SCM). “Over time, collaboration with each of our partners, their engineering teams, and calibration teams, combined with our own experience has allowed us to develop an ever-increasing list of custom and exclusive software features for the C8 that all our calibration partners can take advantage of. For example, our ‘clutch saver’ feature allows the OE clutch to handle power levels far in excess of its design capacity without requiring friction and steel changes.”, explains Vince. “The factory E99 engine controller software for the C8 has some surprising limitations in airflow calculation, which affects driveability, clutch holding capability and emissions just to name a few. TRIFECTA’s platform gives us the tools to get past these limitations.”, says Christian. Roshan explains, “Boost District also has a Stingray coupe which, by the way, on the same night our E-Ray ran, also set a new record for world’s quickest supercharged C8. Without TRIFECTA’s platform, this wouldn’t have been possible without the ability to recalibrate the transmission’s launch speed.” Erik Radzins, an industry renowned calibrator, and Director of Communication and Calibrations for ProCharger offered his thoughts as well, “Working with TRIFECTA to build the calibration for our C8 full supercharger systems has been great! We worked hand in hand with their engineers to develop software and calibration solutions to some of the more tricky challenges the C8 posed. They also transformed some of our ideas into reality, such as moving the transmission launch speed around, and selectively disabling the AFM mode on the fly.”

Whether you're planning to tune your vehicle now, or 6 months from now, this is your chance to save! Our Black Friday sale will run from Friday, 11/24/2023 @ 12:00am until Monday, 11/27/2023 @ 11:59pm EST! This is the ONLY sale we hold each year, so don't miss out! To find out if we offer a calibration for your vehicle, visit our Store! Store If you have any questions related to our Black Friday Sale, please feel free to contact us! Contact Us

meet the next generation of "V-Sport": The Cadillac CT5-V.

With the ability to natively tune the ECU in the CT4-V Blackwing in hand, we have begun development on the dyno. Our first test/proof-of-concept update involves a small increase to airflow and boost limits. This dyno video shows the results! Stay tuned as we continue to work on our CT4-V Blackwing and other projects!

“This has been a long time coming. Today’s success has its roots in a project that started the better half of a decade ago.” – Vince Geglia II, Owner / Founder of TRIFECTA Performance Inc. With the release of the 2020 model year of the Chevrolet Corvette, General Motors undeniably upped the ante. The 8th generation Corvette (C8) was redesigned as a mid-engine sports car with its sights set to compete with the very best of the European exotics. The arrival of the C8 stunned traditional Corvette fans and made new fans out of people that would have never considered a Corvette previously. Unfortunately, recalibrating (tuning) the C8 requires much higher hurdles to be hopped. The C8 has been on the streets for over two years now, and until this moment had no recalibration option. TRIFECTA is pleased to announce success in tuning the C8! “We absolutely respect what GM has built here. Aftermarket tuners have a tendency to cast themselves as smarter than the OE engineers as a dubious marketing strategy for their services. GM without question put their best foot forward with the C8, and from a tuner’s perspective, this car deserves nothing less than the humblest approach.” – Vince The C8 is good out of the box. Really good. In fact, from our perspective it’s darn near perfect. Since the Gen V V8 debuted with the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette (C7), tuners have faced a daunting challenge to find reliable power gains in the calibration alone. With the C7, we found some of the more impressive gains came from tweaking the driving characteristics of the car – making the transmission shift schedule more progressive, giving the accelerator pedal more linearity. The first time we drove the C8, our thinking was, “This is going to be really challenging to improve on.” “When I told people we would be tuning the C8, almost without exception, the first question I was asked was, ‘How much power do you think you’ll get?’ My answer? ‘None.’” – Vince Our prediction was there would be little to no power left on the table in the C8 factory calibration, and that prediction ended up being accurate. We adjusted the air to fuel ratio, ignition timing advance, DI injection timing, DI rail pressure, and variable cam phasing angles. We confirmed that our calibration changes were in fact taking effect, but none of them led to measurably significant power gains. “While we didn’t find power, what we did find is that the C8’s software largely works the same way as the older ECUs, like the E92, and that we were able to modify the parameters required to make power adders work on the C8 without stand alone or piggyback systems.” – Vince The dyno chart shows four different pulls with our C8. The Red pull is the baseline (stock calibration). The Green pull shows the result when we set the power enrich (PE) ratio to 11.5 across the board. The Orange pull shows the result when we set the PE ratio to 13.5 across the board. And, finally, anyone that’s ever experimented with an LT1 should recognize the Blue pull: this pull had the variable valve timing (VVT) tables zeroed out, which causes substantial losses at higher RPM. These pulls have been selected because they best illustrate some of the tuning changes we tested, and show, at the least we have been able to modify the PE ratio and the VVT calibration. Up until now, with the lack of native tuning capabilities, C8 tuners have been forced to use stand alone or “piggyback” systems to make their power adders work. We celebrate what’s been able to be accomplished with these systems, and while these builds have put down head-turning numbers at the track and on the dyno, they have quirks and limitations. A piggyback system has the task of persistently lying to the engine control module (ECM) about what’s going on with the engine in order to push the ECM into a behavior that allows the power adder to work correctly. In many cases this involves clipping the mass air flow (MAF) sensor value so the ECM doesn’t think the engine is making too much power. Or clipping the manifold pressure (MAP) sensor value so when the manifold goes into boost, it doesn’t set a sensor fault. Essentially a piggyback system has to make the engine look like it’s making no more power than the stock engine does, while allowing it to make, in some cases twice as much power, or even more. One of the major consequences, particularly with the C8, is the transmission gets overpowered, especially when it’s trying to shift from one gear to the next. Normally, when there’s a gear-to-gear transition, the transmission control module (TCM) requests a temporary torque reduction from the ECM, which is effected by either/or/all closing the throttle, cutting fuel, and retarding the ignition timing. The extent to which the ECM performs these tasks is dependent on its understanding of how much power the engine is making. If the ECM is being told by the piggyback that the engine is making 460 lb-ft of torque, but it’s actually making 660 lb-ft of torque, it’s not going to be able to correctly reduce the torque for the gear-to-gear transition, and POOF, there go your transmission clutches. Native tuning won’t solve hard part power limits, but it will allow for correct torque management events to occur under these critical circumstances. “Now that we’ve examined the performance side of the C8 calibration, we’re going to turn our efforts towards drivability character traits. The C8’s driving manners are very, very good out of the box. Virtually every issue we had about the way the C7 drove has been fixed with the C8. But there are a few places where we can make good into great.” – Vince Our feeling is the C8 could, by default, wind gears out just a little more than the factory calibration does. And, while the pedal’s response linearity is much improved over the C7, we feel there’s still a bit of compression in the pedal in the 65 – 100% range that can be smoothed out. We also believe there are C8 owners that would like to see an optimized AFM (V4 mode) profile, and others that would like to have their AFM exhaust valve or bypass valve settings modified according to their exhaust system design or personal preferences. All of these settings can be modified in the ECM. “This is a very exciting moment for the C8! We’re excited to share in pushing the platform forward, and to have the opportunity to work with the community’s members who share our passion for the C8!” – Vince Native tuning opens up so many possibilities for not only making power adders work, but also making them work reliably, with OE level controls and diagnostics. Turbocharger builds can have octane scalar-based airflow limits enabled. Supercharger builds can limit boost based on incoming air temperature. And, instead of figuring out how to evade the OE diagnostics and safeguards, native tuning allows attention to be paid to recalibrating, or even enabling OE diagnostics that are otherwise disabled (e.g. enabling boost control diagnostics on a factory naturally aspirated calibration).

We have natively tuned the boost on our CT4-V Blackwing beyond what the gauge can display! This was the case on the ATS-V as well. Actual boost stops registering on the Driver Info Center after 20psi. No wiring harnesses were harmed in the flashing of this ECM. Stay tuned for more! Edit: Hey Tapout, We saw this on your website and thought we'd comment on it! Ironic judgements aside, the performance timer is green while its still recording a run (not finished), and we didn't make any claims to the effect of setting any 0-60 times in our post. We took a picture of our boost gauge showing 20psi, which is featured over on the left. Thanks for checking out our article!

Our solution will require ECM modification, and once completed, the ECM can be flashed / updated / datalogged in-vehicle without expensive and unreliable 'piggy back' solutions. Simply remove the ECM, have us modify it, re-install. After that you can flash back and forth from custom to stock, receive updates from us, etc without having to remove the ECM ever again. This is the real deal - we've settled for nothing less than actually tuning the ECM! Stay tuned to our website, Facebook, and Instagram for further release info!

The year was 2014. This year ushered in an exciting chapter in Cadillac performance. With the arrival of the new 3rd generation 2014 Cadillac CTS came the VSport trim, which sported a first-ever for Cadillac and General Motors: A twin turbocharged, direct injected V6 engine (LF3)! In January 2014, TRIFECTA purchased their first Cadillac CTS VSport. Within a short period of time, they had the first version of their calibration to market, and, at the time of this writing, the only company to support native flashing of the Aisin TL80SN transmission used in this vehicle. In October 2015, TRIFECTA purchased their first Cadillac ATS-V development vehicle, and quickly set to work in developing a calibration for the more powerful LF4-equipped ATS-V. All was progressing nicely until GM threw a curve ball in mid 2016: the T87A transmission control module. A new standard was set for the industry: T87A modification would be required in order to recalibrate the transmission. Once again, TRIFECTA solved this challenge without requiring hardware modification. Today, TRIFECTA remains the longest running, world-wide Cadillac twin turbo V6 tuner due to cost advantages, ease of use, exclusive features and platform experience. The future is as bright as ever as more vendors build parts for the Cadillac CTS VSport and the Cadillac ATS-V, and as the LF4 legacy continues on in the 2022 Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing! Platform Features CTS VSport ATS-V Ease of use – 20 minutes install time, no extra software needed In-house developed software, no reliance on 3rd party software. TRIFECTA controls the software end-to-end solution. Installs in 20 minutes using a Windows laptop or a Mac running Parallels. ☒ ☒ Extensive chassis dyno testing All TRIFECTA products are exhaustively tested on a chassis dyno, by TRIFECTA calibration engineers using state of the art instrumentation. Includes loaded / simulated road load scenarios. ☒ ☒ Extensive environmental testing (altitude, temperature, climate, fuel quality) Our calibrations are tested in various regions, with a specific focus on altitude, ambient air temperature and climate. Testing is also performed with an eye towards local fuel quality and octane level. ☒ ☒ Extensive road testing (daily driven by engineering team) Using a concept like large software companies, TRIFECTA engineers not only develop the product, but they use the product themselves on a daily basis. They take their experiences and improve the product and platform-specific support methodology based on them. We ran out of traction with the factory tire, so we outfitted our ATS-V with 305's in the rear to cope with the power delivered by the more advanced modifications we support. Proper maintenance of the factory water-to-air intercooler involves bleeding air out of the system via the "Vac-n-Fill" process As OE spark plug technology improves, it can be applied to existing models for improved performance or reliability ☒ ☒ Calibration development process makes CARB certification possible “One off” custom tunes will never be eligible for CARB certification / EPA compliance because there is no standard followed for the product that can be tested. TRIFECTA uses a tuning process that allows for US emissions rules compliance and has applications pending. ☒ ☒ TRIFECTA Exclusive Feature Set CTS VSport ATS-V Active Rail Pressure Management (ARPM) The ever-present concern for direct injected engines is whether the high-pressure pump can provide fuel under the most demanding conditions. ARPM predicts the fuel requirements based on current operating conditions every 6.25 milliseconds, and dynamically adjusts the power levels to match the capabilities of the fuel system. For more info, click here: ☐ ☒ Full boost launch / boost assisted launch Having trouble brake-standing your car at launch? Full-boost launch / Boost-assisted launch retards the timing while you brake-stand it, allowing the turbines to be fully spooled as soon as your foot comes off the brake.* *Dependent on brake/tire combined holding force. Recommended for track use only. ☐ ☒ Drive mode switch offers mild to wild settings for drive character While the factory drive mode switch makes subtle changes to the engine and transmission response, TRIFECTA takes it to the next level by offering a daily driver setting in tour mode, and sporty driver settings in Sport and Track mode. Customers can request different settings, or simply have sport mode always active. ☒ ☒ Power by mode customizes power output levels by drive mode selection In contrast to the above feature, power by mode adds another dimension, and allows us to dial in different horsepower and torque limits depending on the selected drive mode. ☒ ☒ Memory modes – your car remembers you shut it down in TRACK mode How annoying is it that your car doesn’t remember that you were in TRACK mode when you turned it off last time? We can fix that. Don’t like having to activate Active Rev Match every time you start your car? TRIFECTA can program your car to remember the last setting you used! For more info, click here: ☒ ☒ Engine Sound Enhancement disable Don’t like the fake engine sounds your car produces through the audio system? Let us know and we’ll disable it. For more info, click here: ☒ ☒ Manual transmission launch bog correction available Don’t like the bog you get when you launch your manual transmission ATS-V? We can fix that. ☐ ☒ Full transmission strategy tuning Upshift, downshift, demanded torque through shifts, and torque converter lockup are just a few things our product improves on your vehicle. ☒ ☒ Transmission tuning without TCM removal All transmission calibration features available without requiring expensive and time consuming TCM unlock (all model years supported). ☒ ☒ Support for upgraded DI pumps without signal translator box TRIFECTA is the only tuner for this platform that can make the Bosch style DI pumps work on the LF3 / LF4 without using a ‘signal translator box’. ☒ ☒ TRIFECTA Service Commitment CTS VSport ATS-V Support for modifications (intakes, turbo upgrades, HPFP/LPFP/Fuel cam upgrades, flex fuel, etc.) Have mods for your car? If we have a quality calibration that meets our standards for those parts, we’ll support them! ☒ ☒ Data log review and diagnostic support by LF3/LF4 specialists available Whether you’re looking for a checkup, need help diagnosing an issue, or need some remote tuning with your vehicle, our LF3 / LF4 specialists are available to assist you! For more info about how our tuning works, click here: ☒ ☒ Return to stock tune Our software allows you to return to stock tune at any time, for any reason (recommended for service visits). ☒ ☒ Tune feature and version updates TRIFECTA’s development process is continuous – we’re always making new discoveries and finding new ways to optimize our products. As these updates reach the completion milestone, they are made available to all of our customers of record. Want to participate in up and coming updates before release? Watch for correspondence about beta programs as they become available! ☒ ☒