For those of you that self tune......l oozing to start doing my own???
07-03-2016, 02:02 PM
#1
Le Mans Master
Thread Starter
For those of you that self tune......l oozing to start doing my own???
Looking to start learning/ tuning my own car.....where to begin (other than purchasing Hp tuner pro)? Car has a spot on tune now....but tuner moved to Houston. Can I save current tune as a "default tune" and work from there? Running 4" pulley now and wanting to go to a 3.6"
* damn auto correct screwed up title...lol*
* damn auto correct screwed up title...lol*
Last edited by C U IN REARVEIW; 07-03-2016 at 02:16 PM.
07-03-2016, 02:41 PM
#2
Race Director
Member Since: May 2004
Location: Raleigh, NC
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St. Jude Donor '15
If the current tune isn't locked then you can read it/save it/edit/use it as a starting point
Where to begin? Read read read... it's a lot of info to soak in / steep learning curve in the beginning. Need HPT Pro + a wideband (if you don't already have one). Greg Banish has some pretty good books that aren't very expensive that go over some theory. He has some DVD's too but they're pretty pricey
Where to begin? Read read read... it's a lot of info to soak in / steep learning curve in the beginning. Need HPT Pro + a wideband (if you don't already have one). Greg Banish has some pretty good books that aren't very expensive that go over some theory. He has some DVD's too but they're pretty pricey
Last edited by schpenxel; 07-03-2016 at 02:43 PM.
07-03-2016, 04:07 PM
#3
Drifting
The compare feature is you friend IMO. You can compare the stock tune to the one your tuner did and the learn from there. The main thing is knowing how an engine works. Whats safe and unsafe when it comes to adjustability in the tune. Dont get greedy.
Last edited by Pitufina; 07-03-2016 at 04:09 PM.
07-06-2016, 12:15 AM
#4
My car isn't boosted - just a cam and bolt-ons, but I started doing my own tuning just because I wanted to be able to make changes quickly and without visiting my tuner every week.
No matter how many cars a tuner has worked on or how good they are, there's only so much they can do with a few hours of time on your car. When you're tuning it yourself, you can spend as much time as you need to get it perfect, and you learn a good deal along the way.
At the very least, I recommend going with EFILive's FlashScan and a TechEdge wideband for engine tuning. If you have an automatic then HPT is the way to go for that. I prefer the EFI software for modifying the engine tune as access to the VVE tables is simpler (or maybe it's because I learned that first). With the right setup, the car essentially tunes itself.
There's a bit of a learning curve, sure, but EFI and HPT both have excellent forums with tutorials and other key info. Plus, once you own the hardware, you can help some of your buddies tune their cars for cheap.
My personal experience with pro tuners is that they can make a cammed car run properly and make great peak power - but they simply don't have the time to fully tune every aspect of the ECM. With a little time and effort on your part, you can take a cam only car making 490 at the wheels and make it idle at 600RPM sounding like stock. From there you can adjust the tables to get the idle sounding exactly the way you want it. That same logic applies to whatever aspect of the tune you want to work on, whether it's WOT fueling and spark or drivability around town, you have the freedom to customize the car to your liking.
Perhaps not for the faint of heart - it is a bit intimidating. But, IMO, there's really no other way to get the car running "right" if you're a perfectionist like I am.
No matter how many cars a tuner has worked on or how good they are, there's only so much they can do with a few hours of time on your car. When you're tuning it yourself, you can spend as much time as you need to get it perfect, and you learn a good deal along the way.
At the very least, I recommend going with EFILive's FlashScan and a TechEdge wideband for engine tuning. If you have an automatic then HPT is the way to go for that. I prefer the EFI software for modifying the engine tune as access to the VVE tables is simpler (or maybe it's because I learned that first). With the right setup, the car essentially tunes itself.
There's a bit of a learning curve, sure, but EFI and HPT both have excellent forums with tutorials and other key info. Plus, once you own the hardware, you can help some of your buddies tune their cars for cheap.
My personal experience with pro tuners is that they can make a cammed car run properly and make great peak power - but they simply don't have the time to fully tune every aspect of the ECM. With a little time and effort on your part, you can take a cam only car making 490 at the wheels and make it idle at 600RPM sounding like stock. From there you can adjust the tables to get the idle sounding exactly the way you want it. That same logic applies to whatever aspect of the tune you want to work on, whether it's WOT fueling and spark or drivability around town, you have the freedom to customize the car to your liking.
Perhaps not for the faint of heart - it is a bit intimidating. But, IMO, there's really no other way to get the car running "right" if you're a perfectionist like I am.
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SBCGENII (07-07-2016)
07-24-2016, 10:00 AM
#6
Le Mans Master
Originally Posted by C U IN REARVEIW
About ready to go....where to begin learning?
It's not really rocket science. It just take some time and research to figure most of it out.
07-24-2016, 12:05 PM
#7
Le Mans Master
Thread Starter
There are some decent guides around online. Basically reading all you can and scouring hp tuners forums can get you going. Then I would start setting up the scanner, doing some scans and understand what you are looking at. Don't change anything before you fully understand what it is you are changing
It's not really rocket science. It just take some time and research to figure most of it out.
It's not really rocket science. It just take some time and research to figure most of it out.