Quick Xineering downshift blip module install review

[drummerboy]

2019 GT350

While I intend to learn to heel-toe eventually, I don't want to do that in my first sessions in this car on track. Having had my eyes on the auto-blip for awhile, I came across this post and realized that since 1) laying on the floorboard and working my hands and arms into tight places under the dash is never my idea of fun, 2) I hate spending the time involved to tap wires properly, 3) combining those two things would make me want to punch a hole in the wall, and 4) my garage walls are cinder blocks... I decided the auto-blip unit wasn't for me at this time (maybe they will add pass-through connectors in the future). Using the PC app to dial in precisely how I want the unit to act is right up my alley, so I bit.

This is going to be short and sweet. It took my all of 5 minutes to tape up the connectors to a 12" rod and send them from the passenger side (where the unit is mounted) over to the drivers side, and peel all the tape back off. Connecting the throttle up took about 1 minute, clutch probably 10 minutes while I had to figure out how to access the correct connector. Lastly, opening up the fuse panel and inserting the 12V and brake wires per the instructions was another 2 minutes.

A couple of zip ties later to keep everything tidy resulted in what felt like would be a 15 min install if you knew exactly which plugs you were looking for and how to access them. Needless to say, I am ecstatic about the pass-through connectors and the ease of install. The only hiccup is where I located the wrong clutch connector, tried to use that, and then had to figure out how to get to the correct one. But a good flashlight cleared everything up.

And that's it. A quick ride down the road verified the unit works as intended, although much more aggressive than is needed at low RPM downshifts. I'll bring the laptop along on a spirited romp soon to see where it works best.

A+ for the install, will report back after using it on track.

Sidenote: I really love the idea of the intelligent rev matching feature that comes on the GTs, that would be fantastic to have.

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[drummerboy]

One thing I forgot - you're going to need to pick up a switch and install it onto the 12V orange wire to turn it on and off. It seems to me it should at least come with a switch on the unit.

 

[meterman]

2019 GT350

While I intend to learn to heel-toe eventually, I don't want to do that in my first sessions in this car on track. Having had my eyes on the auto-blip for awhile, I came across this post and realized that since 1) laying on the floorboard and working my hands and arms into tight places under the dash is never my idea of fun, 2) I hate spending the time involved to tap wires properly, 3) combining those two things would make me want to punch a hole in the wall, and 4) my garage walls are cinder blocks... I decided the auto-blip unit wasn't for me at this time (maybe they will add pass-through connectors in the future). Using the PC app to dial in precisely how I want the unit to act is right up my alley, so I bit.

This is going to be short and sweet. It took my all of 5 minutes to tape up the connectors to a 12" rod and send them from the passenger side (where the unit is mounted) over to the drivers side, and peel all the tape back off. Connecting the throttle up took about 1 minute, clutch probably 10 minutes while I had to figure out how to access the correct connector. Lastly, opening up the fuse panel and inserting the 12V and brake wires per the instructions was another 2 minutes.

A couple of zip ties later to keep everything tidy resulted in what felt like would be a 15 min install if you knew exactly which plugs you were looking for and how to access them. Needless to say, I am ecstatic about the pass-through connectors and the ease of install. The only hiccup is where I located the wrong clutch connector, tried to use that, and then had to figure out how to get to the correct one. But a good flashlight cleared everything up.

And that's it. A quick ride down the road verified the unit works as intended, although much more aggressive than is needed at low RPM downshifts. I'll bring the laptop along on a spirited romp soon to see where it works best.

A+ for the install, will report back after using it on track.

Sidenote: I really love the idea of the intelligent rev matching feature that comes on the GTs, that would be fantastic to have.

I just installed the Xineering blip module and ran 3 track days with it. I love it, works great!

 

[loco_GT350]

Would it be possible to post a video for people to see/hear it in action?

 

[Tank]

Pics of the install? Esp of the CORRECT wires!

 

[Venom52]

Max and the guys are awesome I've used mine on my second track day with it and gained over 4 seconds just in braking alone.

Make sure to use posi taps on the brake and power hook up. Makes life so much easier. The install guide is really well documented and easy to follow.

Here's a pretty in detail install

 

[JAJ]

I've installed mine but I haven't had a dry track day yet to try it out for real. I did a wet day, and it was great, but the real difference will show up when it's dry.

Here's the switch I installed to control it:

 

[drummerboy]

In lieu of pics, I'd direct you to that video above as it is pretty accurate for the install. I'll elaborate on a couple things:

1) 17:00, if you shine a flashlight from passenger to driver side you'll see a pretty easy path to run the wires. You'll know you found the right place when you can see wiring under the driver side dash from your view from the passenger footwell.

2) 11:00, I taped all 4 of those connectors to a little extending magnet pole to send them to the other side. I would also tape another pair of wires for a switch if you want to locate your switch over there.

3) 19:20, he talks about the clutch switch, but it seems he did it without pulling out the switch. I'm not sure how easy that would be, but it is easy to pull it out for easier access to the connector. There are two clutch switches: one is depressed when the pedal is fully depressed - this one is not the one you want. Look up and you'll see a switch that is depressed when the clutch pedal is fully released - this is the one you want. If you're a big guy this might be difficult, but what I did is lay on the floorboard looking up, hold the clutch pedal all the way in with my left hand, reach up with right hand over the bracket the switch is mounted to, and twist the switch to release it and pull it out.

3) 21:40, he tapped into the wires on the connector in the fuse panel. The instructions show you which pins to use. I pulled the connector off, slid the exposed wire ends into those two pin sockets, and put the connector back on. I'm not sure if this is a recommended way to tap connections, but for me it was extremely quick and simple to do, and the wires are held in with quite a bit of tension by the connector itself and feels like a 100% solid connection. At 22:23 you'll see the provided T-taps on the wires - I'm just not a fan and feel uncomfortable tapping wires in this manner. I'd rather cut and solder, but I'd hate to have to do that in such a cramped space.


I'd like to reiterate that it would be nice if they'd have installed a switch on the unit itself, and I'd also like to note that it would be awesome to somehow have the unit switched off in 1st and Reverse. In the past in another car I have rigged up nitrous switches engaged based on shifter position, but I am absolutely not going to do that on this car.

 

[JAJ]

In lieu of pics, I'd direct you to that video above as it is pretty accurate for the install. The video took me longer to watch than to install the whole thing blind. You obviously don't need to remove the center console unless that's where you want to put a switch. Personally I've been putting switches in the sunglasses box.

I'll elaborate on a couple things:

1) 17:00, if you shine a flashlight from passenger to driver side you'll see a pretty easy path to run the wires. You'll know you found the right place when you can see wiring under the driver side dash from your view from the passenger footwell.

2) 11:00, I taped all 4 of those connectors to a little extending magnet pole to send them to the other side. I would also tape another pair of wires for a switch if you want to locate your switch over there.

3) 19:20, he talks about the clutch switch, but it seems he did it without pulling out the switch. I'm not sure how easy that would be, but it is easy to pull it out for easier access to the connector. There are two clutch switches: one is depressed when the pedal is fully depressed - this one is not the one you want. Look up and you'll see a switch that is depressed when the clutch pedal is fully released - this is the one you want. If you're a big guy this might be difficult, but what I did is lay on the floorboard looking up, hold the clutch pedal all the way in with my left hand, reach up with right hand over the bracket the switch is mounted to, and twist the switch to release it and pull it out.

3) 21:40, he tapped into the wires on the connector in the fuse panel. The instructions show you which pins to use. I pulled the connector off, slid the exposed wire ends into those two pin sockets, and put the connector back on. I'm not sure if this is a recommended way to tap connections, but for me it was extremely quick and simple to do, and the wires are held in with quite a bit of tension by the connector itself and feels like a 100% solid connection. At 22:23 you'll see the provided T-taps on the wires - I'm just not a fan and feel uncomfortable tapping wires in this manner. I'd rather cut and solder, but I'd hate to have to do that in such a cramped space.


I'd like to reiterate that it would be nice if they'd have installed a switch on the unit itself, and I'd also like to note that it would be awesome to somehow have the unit switched off in 1st and Reverse. In the past in another car I have rigged up nitrous switches engaged based on shifter position, but I am absolutely not going to do that on this car.

A couple of things that I did that helped:

1. I am big and I have big hands (thumb and little finger in different zip codes) and decades of working in an office have left me less than limber. Turns out that working on the clutch switch gets a lot easier if you just pop the dash cover panels off to the lower left of the steering column. Pop off the outer panel, remove the screws you can see, fold the headlight switch up and park it on top of the steering column (don't disconnect it or the headlights will come on and the BCM will throw a code) and slide the sunglass tray out and you can now get both hands on the clutch switch when you're lying on the floor.

2. The switch in the picture above draws power from the cabin temperatures sensor wiring - that's the louvered holes just below the switch. The wire I tapped into there is literally the other end of the wire at the fuse box. I wanted the switch to be accessible easily when I'm returning to the pits, and that switch is a perfect fit and quite unobtrusive. I love Carling switches - used them in electronic products for years. Super reliable and stunningly well priced.

3. The AMP wire taps are diabolical. Use these instead: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01ESCQ9EQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[drummerboy]

Thanks for the tip on the dash cover panels as well as the link to those taps. Those look awesome. I'm grabbing a pack now for future projects.

 

[GT30fan]

2019 GT350


Sidenote: I really love the idea of the intelligent rev matching feature that comes on the GTs, that would be fantastic to have.

So the new mach 1 coming has our trans, AND adds rev matching

Is there any hope at all we can add the rev matching then? Or is it all part of the computer and the "Boy Honda" digital dash?

 

[meterman]

Would it be possible to post a video for people to see/hear it in action?

there's nothing to see when it action, only to hear the sweet sound of blipping the throttle.

here's a track day that you can hear it a lot.

 

[meterman]

I've installed mine but I haven't had a dry track day yet to try it out for real. I did a wet day, and it was great, but the real difference will show up when it's dry.

Here's the switch I installed to control it:

I wish I would have realized how difficult it is to get to the switch in the console to turn it off when strapped into a 6 point harness. I want to move it to a spot like you installed it. Did you just pop off that panel and cutt the hole?

 

[JAJ]

I wish I would have realized how difficult it is to get to the switch in the console to turn it off when strapped into a 6 point harness. I want to move it to a spot like you installed it. Did you just pop off that panel and cutt the hole?

The panel just pops straight out, and there's a tether that I suppose is there to keep it from flying around if the airbag goes off - you rotate the tether end piece until it passes through a slot to release it, then unplug the plug and it's in your hands. Two tabs release the sensor from the panel. That said, I also bought a new panel from my friendly Ford parts counter so I'd have an uncut one if I want to go back to stock.

The switch I used was a Carling LRA511-CB-B/012V that has a blue LED light in it. They're about six bucks each. It goes in a hole 28mm x 13mm, and I just masked it up with masking tape, marked out the hole location, drilled two half-inch holes (with a flat blade bit) and filed it out square. If you don't care about the LED, there are other Carling switches in the same series that don't have them, and it'll save you from running a ground wire up to the switch location. You pick the power off the sensor wiring which is about an inch from the switch, run it through the switch contacts and that's it.

And, yes, I already knew how hard it would be to get into the console when strapped in - I have had more than one occasion where I had to and it's just not happening. I can reach this switch easily, and if I move my head I can see it around the steering wheel.

 

[meterman]

The panel just pops straight out, and there's a tether that I suppose is there to keep it from flying around if the airbag goes off - you rotate the tether end piece until it passes through a slot to release it, then unplug the plug and it's in your hands. Two tabs release the sensor from the panel. That said, I also bought a new panel from my friendly Ford parts counter so I'd have an uncut one if I want to go back to stock.

The switch I used was a Carling LRA511-CB-B/012V that has a blue LED light in it. They're about six bucks each. It goes in a hole 28mm x 13mm, and I just masked it up with masking tape, marked out the hole location, drilled two half-inch holes (with a flat blade bit) and filed it out square. If you don't care about the LED, there are other Carling switches in the same series that don't have them, and it'll save you from running a ground wire up to the switch location. You pick the power off the sensor wiring which is about an inch from the switch, run it through the switch contacts and that's it.

And, yes, I already knew how hard it would be to get into the console when strapped in - I have had more than one occasion where I had to and it's just not happening. I can reach this switch easily, and if I move my head I can see it around the steering wheel.

thanks for the info. I'll take a look at it when I get some time.

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