what kind of tuning?

[senicalj4579]

hey all, i just got done installing my first big mod to my 1998 z-28. long tube headers,catted y-pipe,and magnaflow catback. other mods are high flow lid and free ram air. should i get a tune with these? considering my mods would i benifit with a handheld like maybee a vince or would i benifit more with a dyno tune? how much hp should i gain? any feedback would be great. thanks

[ninobrn99]

if you dont plan on doing a cam for a while, then get it tuned. Your going to be running rich so if you want to maximize power if a cam isnt in your near future. You actually have a few routes you could take.
1. get a handheld and out grow it with your next big mod.
2. get someone to dyno tune it for you..ok if you go to someone who knows what they're doing. These tunes are mainly to get the car to idle and for WOT, not part throttle, where guess what....you there most of the time!
3. if you have a laptop, tune it yourself. Tune the car the way it should be tuned. Let me tell you. It takes more than a few hours to tune the car. A wideband is almost a must have too. You can go as cheap as the LC-1 or the expensive dual sensor ones...all depends on what you want and how much you wanna spend now and in the long run.
Nino

[senicalj4579]

yes, there will not be any mods for a while. i would like to learn to tune myself but right now time is a issue. i hear that the best tune you can get is a dyno tune from a shop. is this true? how much is the average hp gain? or considering my mods will i gain just as much hp from a handheld or more from a dyno? thanks

[ninobrn99]

you will gain more with a dyno tune than a hand held. you may gain 10hp or so, but the real reason for a dyno tune is to get your a/f ration correct and to avoid from running too rich. avg price is anywhere from 350-500 or so.

[senicalj4579]

you will gain more with a dyno tune than a hand held. you may gain 10hp or so, but the real reason for a dyno tune is to get your a/f ration correct and to avoid from running too rich. avg price is anywhere from 350-500 or so.

thanks

[brad8266]

If you want to learn then just do it right and buy some good tuning software like efilive or hptuners. Its not that difficult although it does take a while to get the closed loop, normal driving tuning done. Once thats done you can tune WOT although WOT tuning is best accomplished with a wideband O2 sensor, get one of those if you want to get your tune dead on.

[senicalj4579]

If you want to learn then just do it right and buy some good tuning software like efilive or hptuners. Its not that difficult although it does take a while to get the closed loop, normal driving tuning done. Once thats done you can tune WOT although WOT tuning is best accomplished with a wideband O2 sensor, get one of those if you want to get your tune dead on.

yeah thats what i hear. i just dont know squat about tuning. i'v never even used a handheld before. what do you need to know to be able to learn how to use those types of programs?

[ninobrn99]

you just need to read the how to's, learn what affects what..i read so many threads over and over trying to make sense of things, but once i got the software it all clicked. i was doing that for about 5 months before I even got my HPtuners. I still dont know that much about it, but I know enough to get a car running. Its really not that hard. If you have the time and money to dedicate to it, then its well worth it. ive paid for a dyno tune and my software..given 350 at the time wasnt much, but that plus what i paid for HPtuners is alot more. In the end, its up to you. I now know that i can mod it to hell and not have to worry about paying someone to tune it cause I can do it myself.

[senicalj4579]

you just need to read the how to's, learn what affects what..i read so many threads over and over trying to make sense of things, but once i got the software it all clicked. i was doing that for about 5 months before I even got my HPtuners. I still dont know that much about it, but I know enough to get a car running. Its really not that hard. If you have the time and money to dedicate to it, then its well worth it. ive paid for a dyno tune and my software..given 350 at the time wasnt much, but that plus what i paid for HPtuners is alot more. In the end, its up to you. I now know that i can mod it to hell and not have to worry about paying someone to tune it cause I can do it myself.

thats an awsome freedom to have. so are you able to tune your car perfectly? better than a dyno-jet? how long did it take you to learn? how long did it take you to know how to tune your car to what it needs? thanks

[ninobrn99]

its still not perfect. im tuning it better than a shop would if thats what your asking. it takes time. all together, id say ive been doing it for about 6-8 months. Alot of that time was cause my car was down for 3 of them. Doing it yourself, you know your getting it done right, not 1/2 assed. If you do decide to buy a tuning package whether it be efi or hpt, BUY A WIDEBAND! get the eio cable for either one the first time around! the only thing you really need a dyno for is for tuning your timing, but then again, that can be done by adding till you get knock, then backing it off some till there isnt anymore.

[senicalj4579]

thanks nino,good info