Piston Slap: A More Powerful Tune For The Mopar 11?

Shane writes:

Is there a tuner that I can purchase for my 2011 Charger RT Mopar 11 Limited Edition, or do I have to have it custom tuned?

The 3.91 gear (unique to the Mopar 11 – SM) won’t complicate things, will it? 

Sajeev answers:

The Mopar 11’s physical gear will not complicate things, but its unique software calibration could be a hang-up. There’s a Calibration Identification Number (CALID) for the Mopar 11’s powertrain computer, and this special edition is rare enough (1 of 1000!) that information isn’t readily available. So the answer to your question is harder to find, but not impossible.

Perhaps we should step back, because some readers might not be familiar with the process of “tuning” a vehicle. There are many software/hardware vendors that offer this as a product (in the form of a hand-held controller) or a service (strapping your car to a chassis dyno or remote data-logging). The former are usually plug-and-play systems (often called “canned” tunes that are predetermined based on your car and its state of modification), but these hinge on the fact that the vendor has access to your specific CALID.

I chose three paths to answer your question, reaching out to tuning vendors via chat, phone call, and a personal discussion. The first one was a chat, and it felt enabled by AI. That ended as poorly as you’d expect, as the Mopar 11 isn’t something your average bot will care to research appropriately.

Thankfully, I reached the good folks at Diablosport. Bragging about the rarity of the Mopar 11 to the customer service rep did the trick, as they understood the ramifications of Dodge only making “1000 of them, and it has a unique computer.” I was put on hold for a couple of minutes, and was then informed they do not know if their list of CALIDs applies to the Mopar 11. They said I would need to make note of the CALID from the computer and call them back.

This video suggests pulling the computer is shockingly easy. Take a picture of the code(s) written on the unit, as one of them should be the CALID for your Mopar 11. Or perhaps not, because my final step was to talk to a person I trust in this industry. He provided some fantastic insight:

“I have no doubt we can easily do that Charger with HP Tuners. HPT works by reading out the existing file, and then I modify it from there. Put another way, HPT’s website denotes vehicle support on their support page by vehicle type, year, and powertrain.

If you have that information, you can read out most anything from the OEMs, and then modify it as needed. This is some of the best software on the market today.” – Torrie McPhail, Unleashed Tuning

Torrie has a multi-stage installation process using HP Tuners as a foundation. Having a professional tuner* with decades of experience might come in handy, considering the uniqueness (i.e. calibration for the 3.91 gear) of your Mopar 11.

So that makes two good options for you. If HP Tuners isn’t your cup of tea, you can click here to give Diablosport** a call, and ask them to check with their tech folks to see if that CALID is supported. Good luck in what must be a trailblazing effort, as I suspect nobody else with such a rare Mopar has tried this yet!

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*I am both a two-time customer and a friend of Torrie’s. I have an obvious bias, so please remember there are other HP Tuners who can probably do the same thing.

**I did not set out to promote Diablosport, but their call center staffed with professional employees earned them such kudos.

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Have a question you’d like answered on Piston Slap? Send your queries to pistonslap@hagerty.com—give us as much detail as possible so we can help! Keep in mind this is a weekly column, so if you need an expedited answer, please tell me in your email.