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Old 03-17-2012, 09:03 AM   #30
arghx7
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^ It's all based on the mapping inside the control modules and whatever the engineers decided to do for a given application. There's always a balancing act of fuel economy requirements, emissions requirements, driveability requirements, and component protection. Sitting there in top gear with the throttle open could result in high exhaust temperatures, which degrades components or requires enrichment to keep the cat from heating up. Enrichment will hurt fuel economy and emissions.

If you run a big business and buy a gazillion fleet vehicles (vans or maybe pickup trucks) you could be looking for a vehicle calibrated to be sluggish and less likely to downshift. Sluggish might mean 1 extra mpg multiplied by a gazillion miles driven, meaning a lot of money saved. A regular consumer might want something more responsive.
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