SCT urgent firmware update

[Bonefish]

I'm not sure I feel comfortable doing this.....ugh. Guess Ill leave as is until I have a tune revision and then fix it....

I assume I can download everything to my computer to update it now and then fix it later? Turn the car back to stock, fix, load new updated tune and flash the car?

 

[MalcolmV8]

It's weird SCT put out this notice as an urgent firmware update but no details like what it fixes or why it's urgent? I asked on SCT's PRP forum as have many others and they're not responding. Has anyone who's called SCT support asked what this update addresses and why it's so critical?

 

[Ninjak]

To follow up on the SCT crit update, I gave SCT a call this morning to find out whats going on. Here it is in a simple layman terms.

1. The update is for some issues they were having with cars (2011) being return back to stock, and in some cases being programmed at all. So the update will fix these issues. They had in some case to send a file so the program could reload, since the car would be in a non drive state. This file is basically their fix. So yes, its worth doing......just in case you ever run into the issue.

2. The update WILL back up your files and tunes, and restore them to the vehicle. The reason they are saying to return your vehicle back to stock is because sometimes this process does not work correctly and can corrupt the stock file on the device. What I did was copy my stock to my computer, then I did the update. The guy SCT also said this was fine, but want people to return to stock because....they do not want to be flooded with calls of the people who may screw it up, then not have a stock file.

So it seems that the process is painless, unless of course your computer has a hick-up doing this. Be warned, tech support hold times are......long. So hopefully you can update and have no issue.

GL and I hope this helps.

 

[MalcolmV8]

Thanks for the update.

 

[03MUSCLE]

reread post #4. You don't need to do anything for a 2008.

Steve

o

 

[Catmonkey]

2. The update WILL back up your files and tunes, and restore them to the vehicle. The reason they are saying to return your vehicle back to stock is because sometimes this process does not work correctly and can corrupt the stock file on the device.

That's obviously what happened to me when the process timed out.

 

[Moody03SVT]

ok so I can pull the stock file off of my SCT tuner (and leave the custom tune in my car) and save that somewhere. Then I can update my SCT X3, it will back up the custom tunes and the stock file, update firmware, then put it all back on the device. And then I can either never use it again unless I change my tune or I can plug it in and do datalogging.

Only issue here is that during that updating process it might brick the tuner which will involve calling SCT Tech Support... but I can still drive the car right?

 

[mullens]

ok so I can pull the stock file off of my SCT tuner (and leave the custom tune in my car) and save that somewhere. Then I can update my SCT X3, it will back up the custom tunes and the stock file, update firmware, then put it all back on the device. And then I can either never use it again unless I change my tune or I can plug it in and do datalogging.

Only issue here is that during that updating process it might brick the tuner which will involve calling SCT Tech Support... but I can still drive the car right?

Always bring the car back to stock before updating.

 

[MalcolmV8]

ok so I can pull the stock file off of my SCT tuner (and leave the custom tune in my car) and save that somewhere. Then I can update my SCT X3, it will back up the custom tunes and the stock file, update firmware, then put it all back on the device. And then I can either never use it again unless I change my tune or I can plug it in and do datalogging.

Only issue here is that during that updating process it might brick the tuner which will involve calling SCT Tech Support... but I can still drive the car right?

Sounds about right and what I would do.

Always bring the car back to stock before updating.

I really don't see why? my car won't even fire up on the stock tune it's so far modded from stock. If I return my tune to stock and brick my X3 I'm hosed. I'd rather hose the X3 and still just keep driving my car as it is.
If your car just has a couple of bolt ons and you really want to save the stock tune save it to your PC before updating the X3.

BTW my stock tune is long since lost anyways. My X3 has died on me more times than I can count and the first time it died they replaced the entire system board and said sorry stock tune is gone.

 

[Moody03SVT]

See this is where it is confusing. I have heard to always bring the car back to stock and then flash it again after the update.

But it sounds like one of the guys didn't have to do that and that makes this process SO much less painful and worrisome, unless I am missing something.

 

[Ninjak]

ok so I can pull the stock file off of my SCT tuner (and leave the custom tune in my car) and save that somewhere. Then I can update my SCT X3, it will back up the custom tunes and the stock file, update firmware, then put it all back on the device. And then I can either never use it again unless I change my tune or I can plug it in and do datalogging.

Only issue here is that during that updating process it might brick the tuner which will involve calling SCT Tech Support... but I can still drive the car right?

Yes basically. I spoke with them for a bit and the guy basically sort of broke it down to me what their process was and thinking in this. Being that I am in this industry myself, (*System integration Engineer*) I totally understand why they are doing it this way.

But in truth, and perhaps it would be better to do this anyway, is that you can pull your stock file off, keep it for safe keeping, then do what you need to do. I now have my stock tune on a drive I use just for this purpose, and everything else went great.

I have also used my X3 since as I updated a tune from VMP just last night. No issues at all.

 

[Moody03SVT]

I suppose the only problem may come is when you went back to the car and want to update the tune with another tune, because the X3 was reflashed/updated firmware, would it think that the car had a stock tune and save the existing custom tune as the stock tune?

If that did happen you could probably figure out a way to override that with the externally saved stock tune.

Do they have instructions on all this somewhere? Does someone have the detailed instructions written out? I think that would be a good sticky.

 

[MalcolmV8]

I suppose the only problem may come is when you went back to the car and want to update the tune with another tune, because the X3 was reflashed/updated firmware, would it think that the car had a stock tune and save the existing custom tune as the stock tune?

If that did happen you could probably figure out a way to override that with the externally saved stock tune.

That is exactly right. Mine's done that several times and it just saves your current tune as what it calls the stock tune. All you do is just load your real stock tune that's saved on your computer as a custom tune. Just upload it and you're stock even though the X3 will call it a custom. Doesn't matter.