RickyMartinZ28

iTrader: (5)

I'm thinking about buying some tuning software and cables.

Would it be better to buy a mail order tune or to do my own? Dumb question.

Just wondering how much it costs to get setup with all the stuff to do your own in the end...

Thinking about CunerTats.

-Rick

infinitebird

iTrader: (11)

cunertats lol

Well its totally worth it if you want to spend the time learning to do it yourself.

caldercay

I've done the research and have decided on TunerCat too.

You'll need an ALDL interface cable to connect your PC to the PCM. You will
need a cable from AKM Electronics (www.akmcables.com), TTS Power Systems
(www.ttspowersystems.com) or Craig Moates (http://moates.net). And you
will need "Tuner". I've sent an email to the TunerCat folks to ensure what
is required. RT-Tuner can not be used, so all that is avail is Tuner.

As far as whether to have it tuned versus DIY - that would be a decision
that you have to make. If you feel comfortably, technically, and want
complete control over the car, and to be able to readjust any setting at
any time you well please, then the DIY route is the way to go.

RickyMartinZ28

iTrader: (5)

I'd like to do it myself, but just not sure if its cheaper to have it done or just buy the cables and such and do it myself.

-Rick

MardyMc42

well the cable's $90, TTS Datamaster's first 10 or so logs are free, FreeScan is of course free - so you could scan codes/not replace any unneccessary parts - email tunes are gonna be between $50 & $200. this is a judgement call for yourself. you know, how much time do you have? patience for trial & error?
consider how much possible anguish there would be in trying to learn all the parameters to successfully tune......I think the email tune's the way to go.
yeah, maybe as I have more time to read & study up on 'how to tune lt1's' I'll bust off my own tune somewhere down the line.

C_Rules

iTrader: (7)

definitely learn to do it yourself. it will save you $$$ and you can have a truly custom tune. plus you can change the parameters anytime you want. i got into it like a year ago. learned alot and still learning. i really enjoy it.

RickyMartinZ28

iTrader: (5)

Well my car is by no means radical so I would assume tuning wouldn't be too complicated.

-Rick

koolaid_kid

iTrader: (21)

Best to start early. Tuning books are a good read, but tend to be generic.

lt170chevelle

iTrader: (2)

yeah man tuning isnt that hard especially for a n/a car. i think i spent a grand total of 140 for my cable and tuner cat stuff...and i log with freescan..plus its always nice to say"yeah...i tune it myself" lol

BattleShip

I bought a couple tunes from mail order and they were a waste of money. People bragged about these two and neither was worth spit. I out tuned them in maybe a month or so.

RickyMartinZ28

iTrader: (5)

Thats kinda what I gather. It seems like it would be cheaper in the long run to just buy everything and do it myself.

The car doesn't run bad, it just seems to be a little rich and could probably use some timing adjustments and such.

How do the credits work for TunerCats? Is it something like HPTuners?

-Rick

RickyMartinZ28

iTrader: (5)

Also, my car stumbles a bit when it first starts, always has, I'm thinking it needs a little timing pulled. It always starts right up but it'll chug for a second everytime. Damn Cam. lol

-Rick

caldercay

The way to keep yourself out of trouble is to save off the current setup before
making any changes, that way you can back into a previous tune.

Initially, take things one step at a time, until you feel comfortable with multiple
adjustments. The best approach would be to change one setting and flash it.
Test it out - depending on the setting that was changed, maybe drive the car for
a couple of days to see the net effect. Then go on to the next setting change,

I'd refrain from doing more than one setting at once, especially when first starting
out with tuning - if you change more than one setting and something gets borked,
you might not know which chang goofed things up.

infinitebird

iTrader: (11)

I can vouch for this as well, ran into this issue a few times myself where I had changed more than one thing and then wondered which one caused some behavior.

C_Rules

iTrader: (7)

http://www.lt1pcmtuning.com/tips.php

go there and read it over a few times.

Beaflag VonRathburg

iTrader: (176)

That's a pretty helpful link. I plan on just buying everything I need for mine too. I'm still considering running mega squirt just to control the engine due to having a 93.

buffman

iTrader: (9)

IMO as long as the mail order tuner is reputable, there is nothing wrong with having them do your tune. They're no where near perfect, and a dyno tune and accompanying drive along tuning would be the best, but they are a good place to start. Especially when you have nothing.

Matt

caldercay

No one is disputing whether a mail-order tune is good or not. The problem I have
with a MOT is that I want to make a change RIGHT NOW and I want to do it with
less impact to my pocketbook. I might want to see if I change *this* value, what
is the net effect to how the car runs. And so on and so forth. And I will have spent
less money for the software and hardware than with most MOTs.

Personally, it's more about "doing it all myself" and being in complete control of the
car; plus, it's also about understanding how everything works together as a unit.

Sure, I understand that many folks would rather view their car as a "black box" and
not have to worry (or want to know) how everything interacts. The other advantage
is that self-tuners can log data over a period of time to assist in troubleshooting,
pull codes, and so on.

With that said, I ordered TunerCAT last night and downloaded the program - all I
have yet to do is build the cable and I'm in business.

buffman

iTrader: (9)

I was commenting based on what Battleship said.

caldercay

Probably a good idea to "quote" who you're responding to. Be that as it may,
although I was responding to your opinion, I was expressing an opinion for the
benefit of others, to give them something to think about. There are many people
that just lurk, so for those folks, the more information, the better.