Well said.

 

Thats right! My 98 Ford Explorer DD with 126,000 miles was faster than my 03 vette with a few minor mods after one of these aforementioned tuner gods was finished with it , and they got three tries. Chuck got it to run perfectly for me after one session.
Let's go back to what Doug, and Chuck very graciously just said. Give your praise to the guy who did a good job for you. Save the bashing for your kids Little League team. Geez, grow up here. I know members here who have used every one of these different tuners, and each person loves their car. That is what matters. I have specifically avoided mentioning any names except for Chuck's, because he is the guy that won my confidence.The original post was a simple question about who is a good tuner. Wouldn't it have been possible to just say: ECS was great for me, or Vette Doctor's got my car running the way I really wanted it, or Cartek worked with me to get the mods I wanted just right, or as in my case, Chuck took my car which wasn't any fun to drive even after I put alot of money( alot to me, not so much for others here) into it, and made it not only fun, but a joy to drive.
How this turned into a finger pointing, "my dog is better than yours" little kids pissing contest is really beneath us, isn't it? As much as I love the forum, and have met some great people here, and have learned alot, this type of childish stuff really turns me off

 

Very well said Ralphieboy. After reading all these posts I will go to Chuck or ECS when I have mine done. Guys with class always win me over. (not that the othersdon't, but Chuck and Dave stepped up to the plate)

 

Yea thats a good reason to drop the track records

 

The "tuner god" I am refering to has alot of "track records " to show for highly modded cars. My A4 car is not highly modded.With only a vararam, 3.42 rear, and ZO6 TI exhaust it would bog down coming off the line, have to down shift into second to accelerate hard off a roll, couldn't smoke the tires even with a power brake, and basically ran like crap. They had the car 3 times in the shop to address these issues.I was told by this tuner that I should have put in a 3200 converter, and that was the reason my car ran so badly. He could do it for another mere $1500. I went to Chuck, and he got the car to run great with just a 160 stat, and a tune. No, I didn't get the $1500 converter, and yes, the car still runs well, even though i didn't do what the guys with all thsose "track records" told me. Like I said ,go to the guys who work with you to get the results you want for the car that you have. Let people know if you like them, and show enough class to leave it at that.I have met alot of these tuners mentioned , and they are all very talented mechanics and tuners with expertise for certain specialties, plus they are good people too. Their reputations are based on their skills as mechanics, not as mudslingers.

 

All i can say is i cant wait for the next new customer looking for a tune in the east coast. its hilarious watchin everyone pull on his arm to go to their favorite tuner. if it was a girl, heaven forbid, they will just leg hump her.

 

What I find interesting is that, not only is Chuck at Corvettes of Westchester a genuinely nice guy, he also seems to have the nicest customers.

At least based on the posts I've seen over the years on this forum.

That alone speaks volumes.

 

Hey IKE, where have you been? Down in the Carribean doin 145mph. Oh wait, that's Hurrican IKE.

 

I wish I was out in NY, I am in Chicago and just sent my PCM to Chuck.

Great Service. Call Chuck from Corvette's of Whestchester
914-332-0049

Shane

 

- another "well said"

 

These threads always crash and burn into one believeing it is a personal attack. I can say in my participation, I posted 7 times with what I thought were good technical questions or input, nothing personal, just looking to discuss the fine art of tuning. I have been learning and reading and wanted to see how I was coming along. Interestingly I never got any response either good or bad.

Post #8 --Suggested talk to all 3, customers etc and make a decision. Added Vette Doctors Carmen and Dennis are GM Certified Technicians

Post #22 -- Asked for explanation to support "...best all around tune" above all the other tuners

Post #29 -- "If you want first rate service and the best all around tune..Give me a call" ... "we've got the most flexible hours on the east coast" ; re-iterated question on and added "...most flexible"

Post #33 -- Response to racerx8 statment on dyno's good for peak power ; Load Dyno's and wideband sensors are great for tuning across the RPM/Load bands and dyno's will also very quickly (and safely ) identify power under the curve. Specifically the development of max torque and hitting the maximum cylinder pressure which results in max power. The street is mostly used for drivability elements. I do agree that a combo of both is the way to go based on above though

Post # ?? -- I did lose another post that went through the whole history of the Dyno. Don't know if it was deleted or didn't post properly.

Post #41 -- Response to Dewived on "how they did tuning before the advent of the dyno" ; been around since 1939, C5 tuning since 1998.

Post #43 -- Posted on how a dyno will display torque values to zero in on peak timing, fueling and advance to reach maximum cylinder pressure or catching the piston at exactly the right time to make the most power. You can utilize the knock sensor but that isn't near as accurate. The wideband will certainly allow for a accurate AFR and allow for a safe fueling/timing startegy and hone in on Commanded vs measured AFR.

 

I guess those that do not have a dyno take offense to talks that include it. You might make them feel inadequate

No personal attacks from me either. My only concern for the OP is to make sure he is aware about some places that "may" lock his PCM.

 

Being Vette owners, it all comes down to who has the longest, uh, gold chain?

 

Nothing was meant to be taken as a personnal attack. Just to state FACTS. If WE don't mention the differences between tuners and the equipment needed for a proper tune, no one will. But obviously it is always seen as an attack

Basically, before choosing a tuner, try to find what you want to do with your car in the future. If you're going to go with serious mods like turbos, heads and cam, supercharger and so on, then choose your tuner accordingly. Anyone can tune a stock car, hell, I suck at tuning but I bhave done several Vettes for friends. To make a stock car run a little better is easy. But with mods, it is a little wiser to go with someone who's experienced with high HP cars. I believe it is not hard to understand. In the case you wanna build a very fast car in th future i.e BIG MODS, you're better off starting with a tuner who has done MANY of them from the beginning. Just look at these tuners feedback and you'll see by yourself what type of customers go where. I won't quote names, you'll see by yourself. There a not many places to go for fast cars.

Anyway I wish luck to the OP with his car. I really hope you'll get everything that you expect and even more. I have made mistakes in the past, have been treated pretty bad by some vendors and I know how it feels when your baby does not run properly. You loose than grin on your face as well as the pleasure of owning a Vette. That's why I also believe that our memebers need to get as much info as possible when they ask a question i.e tuners background, track results AND equipment used. Once again, good luck and please keep us posted.

 

and others that didn't seem to know what to do with it even with their dyno.

 

.....and still no technical as the section alludes to....................

 

As stated all of the NE tuners are more than capable of doing a tune on a base car and with base mods. I think each may attack the problem differently, but in the end the customer will be happy. If you want to go beyond the basic bolt ons well then you have to look around and see who you feel the most confident doing that work. Maybe it is the guy that is right across the street or maybe it is the guy that is 500 miles away, but which ever you choose you have to feel confident with your choice. If you are on the edge then you need to do more research before going forward with your plans. The last thing you want to do is start 2nd guessing your planned mods when you are 3/4 the way down the path already.

Even after you feel confident with your pick there still may be issues that are really no ones fault. Sometimes it is just the car and what one tuner misses another tuner picks right up on. Heck I know cars that come from other tuners and Doug figures them out in 5 mins and I have also seen Doug struggle with a car only to see another tuner solve the problem. Its not unlike you trying to figure out some new gizmo and your next door neighbor's 10 year old walks over and in 3 seconds has the blasted thing working better than it was originally designed

Do your research and plan your mods accordingly that is the best advice that anyone can give you. I dont know how many people I talk to that just do a poor job planning and end up paying more or having a combination that doesnt net the most HP. I realize plans change (heck I started out in the 1/4 mile and everything that I got for that had to be tossed when I decided to RR my car), but many of us freely jump into a mod because someone says it works. Well I am happy that mod worked for you, but maybe it is not a good fit for me.

Take your time and mod when you are ready. Find a good reputable performance shop that you trust will be able to support you today and support you tomorrow and you will be happy for years.

 

I've ignored your posts over and over because I do not care about your sad little story. My message to the OP was clear, do not let your PCM get locked. I never mentioned dynos and where to go. You may not be calling one person out but you are just making a personal attack at one of the other tuners in the area. It is vague but still an attack. Wasn't it said that you should just mention who you like and leave the rest of the BS out? Why don't you try gving that a shot?

Enjoy your locke PCM. You will learn eventually.

 

I would say that summed it up pretty well Bob. It's funny that there is one person bashing another individual for asking tech questions, when that person actually had his engine blown by the other persons "tuner God". Yet he is not bashing back, just asking questions, and getting hammered for doing so.
I dont care who you like or dislike, these cars/tunes are not cut and dry. They do not all do the same thing, and most of us tuners talk to each other except for the ego monsters. Sometimes, no matter how dam good you are, things dont go your way.
As a shop owner you do your best, work off of averages I guess, and give it 100% all the time. Without knowing the inside scoop on the people posting here you wouldn't know why people so adamantly promote one over the other, it's kind of funny really.

Cant we all just get along?!

 

I can agree that Chuck is a nice guy, but I think our customers resent the rest of that.