V8ANGER

I can see your point, I wouldn't tune unless you've added anything aftermarket. As for them not doing it from the factory I believe that's more red tape than anything to do with the design of the car.

0Chuck CoW

Guys.... Take a good look around.... I don't think you'll find a better A6 or A4

tune than what we offer.

EVEN IF YOUR CAR IS TOTALLY STOCK My A4/A6 tune will totally change

how you feel about your car!

Give me a call any time.
Chuck CoW

redzone

When GM makes a car,they have to design it to be able to perform whether it ends up in Fairbanks,AK in winter or Death Valley,AZ in the dead of summer. During it's lifespan,the car could end up at either of those points,or anywhere in between. All while maintaining emmisions compliancy.

Plus,they have to warranty it for 100k miles.You can bet they're going to hedge their bets as far as the tune is concerned.

Cybernetic Medic

I agree with that but what I want to know is how close to the harry edge does a tuner go to get those extra ponies?

DSteck

The real answer is that GM is calibrating their vehicles to make power in an operating condition without causing any harm. They are tuning cars to accommodate the person going wide open throttle in fifth gear up a 30* incline in 120* heat with two fat asses in the car. They ate conservative in the sake of longevity, durability, and consistency. An aftermarket tune won't neccessarily put you at the ragged edge, but it may not be friendly with a full minute of sustained WOT in crappy conditions. For most drivers, that scenario will never happen and you can "safely" enjoy the car.

0Chuck CoW

Good Point... The manufacturer always does a lowest octane, worst abuse, and bad environment

test to be absolutely sure they are safe and the cars will survive.

As tuners, I know that I always do something similar, but some of the things I personally

do to minimize problems are.....

I ALWAYS INSIST on a 160 deg stat with specific fan calibrations. HUGE BENEFIT here,

I'm not after power so much with that one, it's more of a safety/longevity thing.

NEXT, I highly recommend EXCLUSIVE use of 93 octane when available, and a minimum of

91 octane when 93 is not available....

Beyond that, a SMART calibration and a sit down with the customer explaining

what I've done and why.... And I make some suggestions for how to use the car

intelligently to make it perform, and most of all...to make it KEEP ON GOING...and GOING...and GOING.

Chuck CoW

detaildude

As an owner of an 05 A4 I can attest to the value of a tune. My only performance mods are NPP over the axle exhaust, 160 t-stat and a vararam intake. I then let the mad scientist Chuck from CoW have at it a couple of weeks ago and I'm totally impressed with his skills and with the results. He completely woke up the car(as I expected...I'm not new to tuning) and made it run better and more efficiently while upping the fun factor 10 fold.

A tune on a completely stock car, especially an A4, IMO would be money well spent.

1st Time Corvette

Mine is a 2011 GS auto bone stock. As yours, I'm thinking of Halltech and a tuner. What tuner did you go with? Diablo, Jet?

0Chuck CoW

VARARAM! & AutoCal with Chuck CoW TUNE!....

And a CoW BOOSTER! will just simply add to that!

Chuck CoW

0Chuck CoW

VARARAM! & AutoCal with Chuck CoW TUNE!....

And a CoW BOOSTER! will just simply add to that!

Chuck CoW

Mike@DiabloSport

Not to toot my own horn ...but...

It would seem the fastest bolt on C6 on CF is a GS running our 93 octane tune

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c6-s...-question.html

11.74 @ 120

Danfw

Newbie question, I'm sure. Yes, my 2008 LT3 A6 with 20k miles all stock isn't even here yet; still waiting for a truck to pick it up and bring it to me..... hopefully before Christmas! but that's now much of a newbie I am. Last Corvette I had was a '77.

I'm reading about the tuning; we live 100 miles from the nearest 'performance' shop, no dynos nearby, no (legal) drag strip, etc. so I'm pretty much on my own. Is the tuning something that an individual buys the device from a vendor, mods you've made, or select from a pre-set list and it does it, or do you provide the info to someone (elevation, mods, type of driving, etc.) and they recommend the programming changes? I'm just looking for crisp shift, throttle response and hopefully otimize mileage when I'm not lead-footin it.

Could someone please reply for point me to where I need to go (be nice) to find out more info, with out volumes of tech data. Main quesiton is; is this something a standard car guy can get and figure out without a dyno or taking it to a 'tuner'?

Thanks!

danieloneil01

How does running a lower thermo stat help in safety/longevity? Is there some type of data to back this up over running what the manufacturer insists on running ?

DSteck

Colder thermostats just help to keep underhood temps down. Every car I've ever tuned made more power with coolant at 200-210 than 180 though. That said, I run a colder thermostat in mine.

To Danfw, lots of people get remote tunes where hardware is sent and files are exchanged back and forth between the customer and supplier.

gsx1300r

Dave - THEN SOME of us (ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) are fortunate enough to get the real tuners! Leaving to drive MY NEW Tune in about 10 minutes..... WOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Danfw

after poking around it appears the 'remote tune' process is removing the on-board computer and shipping it off to be reprogrammed.
What parameters does the tuner need? normal altitude range, modifications (cat-back, air intake, etc)?
I was reading one of the articles on here and the person mentioned that after a battery disconnect, they lost their programming and it reset to factor default. Is the programming change done to an EPROM or such so that it doesn't reset to factory default on accident? And, in the event something did go south, is there a simple way to reset the on-board computer to factory defaults, but keep your changes to be reloaded at a later time?
Once the first go-round of programming is done, is there a way to receive 'tweeks' via email or FTP to be loaded via a USB or Bluetooth connection?
If the upgrade process is slow, i.e. air intake this month and a cat-back exhaust in a couple, is it safe to assume no damage will be done if you make the mods and wait to have the reprogramming done one you have all the upgrades done?
On some of my other cars, I've used JET and on my Dodge Diesel an EDGE box. Is there such a 'generic' device for a C6?
Besides air intake and exhaust, what other 'bolt on' mods are there to consider?

Yawlak80-86

Performing a tune with no mods will add power and increase the fun factor a little, however, I would suggest taking baby steps. First drive the car for a month and make sure it has no bugs. If you tune it before you really know the car, you will complicate the diagnostic process tremendously if a problem should arise. If everthing on the car works/runs good, then I would recommend buying a Diablo Predator. Do some reading on the Diablo forums and familiarize yourself with the unit, (I think its a U7194). I've used these before and they're very user friendly. They also give you the ability to make small adjustments after mods or pull the tune completely without the help of a shop or tuner. They have a good support system and will not screw up the car if you follow their directions. The reason I recommend the Diablo is that its the best and safest hand held tuner,(in my opinion). With your distance from a tuning shop being considerable, I think it's best that you learn to do some tweaking yourself.

If you want to make a bigger power increase then get a cold air intake like a Halltech or Slp blackwing, etc. If you have the NPP exhaust, I say leave it alone, (the exhaust). If you don't I would recommend either used NPP mufflers or a Corsa Sport system. Great sound with good power and NO DRONE!!! Any system other than a Corsa or a stock/modded NPP is a waste of money in my opinion. If you would like more info or suggestions, feel free to pm me. I won't steer you wrong.

Good Luck with the new car.....Enjoy!

g's13 GS

how can I tell if I have a stock or custom tune?

0Chuck CoW

Ask someone to download it and compare it.....

or, have someone with a tech II read your CVNs and call me with the numbers.


or, note the temps the fan turns on and off and compare to stock settings available around the forum.

If it has a higher rev limiter than stock, or the skip shift is disabled and there is no dongle under the car.

There's tons of ways to tell.

Call me if you have questions.
Chuck CoW

rjkrumb

I instaled a diablo tune on my 06 with A6 the shift improvement and a 2 to 3mpg was well worth money for me. It's hard to tell a 5% hp gain from the drivers seat but I'm happy